Interview with Matt Xell!

To continue with the Tower of Parlen Min book tour, Matt Xell and I "sat down" for an interview. Enjoy! :)


1. What made you want to write novels?
There isn't one particular thing or person that inspired me to start writing. I fell in love with literature and the visual arts from a very young age, so I guess writing has always been one of the two major ways I love to express myself, the other been through art. But I only started taking writing seriously after the 9th grade when I used to write comic book plots and scripts. I didn't know there was any format for script writing, so I wrote in novel prose.

2. How did you come with the idea of Ves Asirin and the Tower of Parlen Min?
I came up with the idea for Tower of Parlen Min in 2006 after having a nightmare that was a bizarre mash-up of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and House on Haunted Hill movies, I'm sure a lot of readers will notice some of the similarities. I merged the initial idea with another story I was working on called The Narrow Escapes of Ben Benns. The idea for Ves as the main character of this new story came a few months after this merger of plots.

When I started working on Ves' character, I wanted him to be very unique from other 'boy-heroes' in literature like Oliver Twist, Charlie Bone, Harry Potter or Percy Jackson who are all likeable and relatable characters. I wanted Ves to be an anti-hero and anti-social for at least the beginning of the series. I wanted him to have a sort of handicap that would make his 'Hero's Journey' a real challenge too, so I developed the concept of his memory loss disorder. I drew a lot inspiration for Ves from Feild Cate in Placebo's Song to Say Goodbye music video, Haley Joel Osmont in AI: Artificial Intelligence and The Sixth Sense, Link in The Legend of Zelda games and more especially Lain Iwakura from Serial Experiments. But something amazing happened during the writing of the Sword Challenge chapter; Ves suddenly took on a life of his own and started writing his own character, becoming increasingly reckless, adventurous and curiosity driven. I had to rewrite earlier chapters of the book to take note of these changes.

3. What are some your favorite pastimes when you're not writing?
I like to think of myself as equal parts a consumer and producer of the entertainment that I love. So, I watch a lot of movies and animation, read a lot of Japanese comic, read a fair amount of novels and play a lot of video-games.

4. Where in the world you love to visit before you die?
Japan. I fell in love with that country when I was 16 and I'm endlessly amazed by it's pop-culture and history, particularly after the second world war.

5. Can we expect more from you after Tower of Parlen Min?
Yes, though I'm still doing a hardcore marketing campaign for Tower of Parlen Min for the next six months at least. Then I'll start writing the sequel, Eclipse Over Atuwis Wood in April 2012. That'll take me a year and a half to complete but I'll writing and releasing some other work in between that period like some light novels or novellas set in the world of Everlon. These'll be Ves and the Good Doctor, The Brothers Macullen, The Hunt for Majis and Eslo's Story.

6. Who are your top three favorite authors of all time?
Right now it's J.K Rowling, Jack Canfield and whoever really wrote the Death Note manga.

7. Can my followers keep up with you and Ves?
Yes they can, and I'd be grateful for the support. They can find me and learn more about all things Ves on my blog mattxell.blogspot.com, on facebook using facebook.com/mattxell and facebook.com/Towerofparlenmin or on twitter using handle @mattxell.


Thanks for the awesome interview, Matt!!!

~~Check out the trailer for Tower of Parlen Min:

Tower of Parlen Min by Matt Xell

Tower of Parlen Min (Narrow Escapes of Ves Asirin, #1)

By Matt Xell

Publisher: self publ'd, 2011

345 pages, Kindle Edition (ARC)

Date Finished: 30/9/2011

Genres: Young Adult, Action, Coming of Age, Romance, Fantasy

Ves Asirin, an orphaned and introverted boy with a complicated memory loss disorder, wins a trip to the Tower of Parlen Min, the home of the wealthiest inventor of the time, Jacobius Trent. There, with 19 other children, he must compete in the Sword Challenge; a series of intricate puzzles and daring tasks, for a prize of $12 million. As dazzling, glorious and liberating as the Tower seems to be for him, Ves finds that it keeps a dark and secret history that he has been unknowingly connected to for over 150 years, a secret that will define his future and destiny ... if he can escape The Shadow: a powerful and seemingly unstoppable, supernatural serial killer.
~from goodreads.com~

~First Line: "There are many seemingly unending roads i the world of Everlon, and it is said that if you do not know where you are going, what you are looking for or why you are looking for it, you will wander these roads forever."
~Last Line: " 'That is a good thing . . . for the Lord knows we'll need him now more than ever.' "

Review: I'm really glad that I agreed to participate in this book tour! Tower of Parlen Min is truly an excellent book.

The main character, Ves Asirin, has a memory disorder. Every 10-15 hours, he forgets all of what's happened in that time period. The only way for him to remind himself of things is by drawwing pictures in his valued scrapbook. Or to cut himself on his arm or hand. Then, because of another child's misbehavior, Ves is chosen to as the one person from his orphange to visit the Tower of Parlen Min, the home of a very waealthy  and well-known man. Adventures await behind practically every corner for Ves.

The plot. Oh, the plot. It's definitely original. The book aautomatically pulled me in, and every time I'd start reading it, I wouldn't be able to put it down. There were lots of things, like Canids, that were new and interesting. No werewolves, no vampires; there were witches, but they weren't the main focus of the book, which I really liked.

It's hard to give parts of the plot that I liked because I don't want to give away any of the book. . . . Let's just say that there was a LOT of action near the end. It kind of gets a little, for lack of a better word, depressing. Everyone ..... *starts mumbling* ..... and it was just so frustrating! :) However, I can say that I was nowhere near guessing that what actually happened would happen.

The characters were really awesome, too. I've never read about anyone in Ves's situation. That was completely new for me, but I enjoyed it. It brought something different to the table. Ves in general was just an awesome charrie. He was always keeping to himself unless it just wasn't possible. His quick reaction to help people when they were in trouble was just so amazing. I loved it. Definitely my favorite character of them all.

I also enjoyed Vikey as a character. She practically fell head over heels for Ves if you ask me. But it was adorable all the same. Her jealousy of Tammi was something that I could unquestionably relate to. The last time we see Vikey before shes goes away was just too romantic. I cried so hard. Gawsh. I think that was the best part of the whole book.

Last, but not least, my favorite characters include the Wiccan Miss Tammi. She's Ves's love interest, and the one that Vikey is oh-so jealous of. Tammi has deep blue eyes (which I would LOVE to have), and can't touch glass, or it breaks. She helps Ves learn about his powers a little. She was such a nice person, and you couldn't help but at least like her. I'm pretty sure she was in everyone's good graces at the Tower.

All in all, gosh... I'm so anxious for the second book that I can't even talk about it. LOL! Honestly, this is a fabulous book, and I recommend it to all. If anyone's looking for a new series, check it out :p

Plot Rating: 5
Character Rating: 4
Cover Reading: 4.5
GoodReads Rating: 5

Overall rating:
and five-eighths :)