Interview with S.M. Warlow, Author of Prisoner

What’s the story behind the story? What inspired you to write Prisoner (Tales of the Phoenix Titan Book 3)?

Much like the previous entries in the Tales of the Phoenix Titan series, Prisoner is a very different book. Heritage was, at its core, an adventure. Invidious was a heist that evolved into a thriller. Prisoner is a mix of survival, action, and investigation, but it also touches on some dark themes that set it apart from the prior books. That being said, it’s still set against the same epic sci-fi backdrop, but everything is a little more grim this time around. For me, this was about writing a story that would place our heroes in a challenging situation, advance the world-building, and provide some big dramatic moments while closing off certain open threads. I guess that was my core inspiration going into this book; I wanted it to feel like a bookend within the wider series and give the reader some closure and a little intrigue as to how it will all progress into volume 4 and beyond.

If you had to pick theme songs for the main characters of Prisoner (Tales of the Phoenix Titan Book 3), what would they be?

Like I said, Prisoner is a pretty dark and brooding read. I tried to explore themes of isolation, the morality of choices, betrayal, loss of faith, corruption, and escaping one’s demons, so any music that goes with it would need to evoke those somewhat hopeless sentiments. Right now, I’m listening to a bunch of soundtracks while writing, so for that reason, I’ll pick “The Night King” by Ramin Djawadi. It’s an intense track that captures the gravity of significant actions and has an overall moody feel.

What’s your favorite genre to read? Is it the same as your favorite genre to write?

While I love to write sci-fi, I’m more than happy to branch out into crime, fantasy, comedy, adventure, and all the rest. I’ve even recently dipped my toe into the cozy genre with Travis Baldree’s Legends and Lattes (which is an incredibly well-written yarn). For me, if the characters and world are well-written and not one-dimensional, I’m quite open to exploring various genres.

What books are on your TBR pile right now?

I’m delighted to be reading my most anticipated book of 2024, The Mercy of Gods by James S.A. Corey. I adored The Expanse and consider that series one of my biggest inspirations for prose. To say I was excited to get my hands on their new book would be an understatement! I then have a backlog of about 30 books on the TBR pile, including but not limited to: The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville, The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne, Shogun by James Clavell, Dark Frontier by Matthew Harffy, and Falling by T.J. Newman. I’ve also been compelled to finally start Pierce Brown’s Red Rising Saga!

What scene in your book was your favorite to write?

Writing the final 25% of Prisoner was a real highlight for me. It’s full of dramatic moments that were incredibly satisfying to get out of my head and down onto paper. There will be significant ramifications from these pivotal character moments that will go on to define future books in the series.

Do you have any quirky writing habits? (lucky mugs, cats on laps, etc.)

Generally, no… I don’t believe so, anyway. At times, I’ve needed to rely on music to concentrate, and at other times, I’ve needed pure silence to get through those tough moments.

Do you have a motto, quote, or philosophy you live by?

So, I’ll happily admit that this book was incredibly tough to write at times. There were some hard characters and scenes where I had to psych myself up to get in the zone and push through. During those times, I referred back to my modern get-through-writing handbook, About Writing by Gareth L. Powell. In that book, Powell offers a line of brutal advice, which for me is like motivation in liquid concentrate form: “Just write the f*cking thing.”

If you could choose one thing for readers to remember after reading your book, what would it be?

Ultimately, I hope readers walk away feeling both satisfied with the journey and eager for what comes next. I hope they experience a deep and engaging story that not only wraps up significant arcs but also sets the stage for exciting new developments for future volumes.

S.M. Warlow is the author of the new book Prisoner (Tales of the Phoenix Titan Book 3)

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