I’ve learned to not target a specific reader, age, or even gender. I more love to put out beautiful twisted chaos, and let the knives fall where they may.
28 October 2026
The Back Flap
In a world where the boundary between life and death is managed from a royal ivory tower, every eighteen-year-old faces a choice that will either secure their family’s future or erase their existence. For Tia, the daughter of a family struggling to make ends meet, the “fateful text” from the Reaper Academy represents the ultimate gamble.
Accepting the invitation means three years of grueling trials where thousands of applicants compete for fewer than fifty positions. Success brings a life of unimaginable luxury on the Ivory Island; failure often means a death that is never recorded on the “Endless Wall of Time”
But Tia carries a secret that defies the known laws of magic. While the world’s most powerful “bloodlined” families command the elements of fire, water, wind, and earth, Tia discovers an ancient, unheard-of ability: the power to bring stories to life simply by reading them aloud.
As she enters the Academy, Tia must navigate a landscape of cutthroat rivals, mysterious professors, and the lethal “Elixir of Life”—all while trying to master a power that could make her the Academy’s greatest asset or its most dangerous target. In a place where “Death himself cannot protect you,” Tia must decide if she is playing the Academy’s game or rewriting the rules entirely.
About the book
What is the book about?
Reaper Academy is a trilogy that focuses on a world that loves Death. Year One is just the beginning. The biggest goal a person can hope for is to be a Reaper. To work with Death to put on the funerals brings a sense of power, wealth, and a life of luxury. Something Tia knows nothing about. Tia grew up a poor girl from Kingsile. While her grandmother did her best to make sure she never struggled, there is only so much she could do in one of the poorest countries. That’s why Tia needs to become a Reaper. Yet, she discovers she has an untold magic days before her entrance exam, something no one has ever had. In a world that reveres Death, where does a girl with the magic of life stand?
When did you start writing the book?
I started outlining it in early December, thought I started actually putting ink to paper near the end of January. I like to let the outlines breath a bit in case I come up with ideas for tweaks, altering, or just scrapping the story.
How long did it take you to write it?
Year One took me about two months to write from start to finish. When I write, I put myself under a very heavy schedule, locking myself to write close to thirty or more pages every time I sit down at the computer. Another couple weeks to fix grammar and typos, a few weeks for my arc reader to get through it, and then it comes out. Most novels come out every two to two and a half months. My Sahara novels take me a lot longer to get out because I am nerdy, and folklore is cool, and I get lost in research… sometimes for a week or two.
Where did you get the idea from?
Year One and the Reaper Academy Trilogy actually came from a joke from a friend of mine that I court death in my novels. This may or may not have been after one of her favorite characters bit the bullet in one of my other novels. She made the joke and I couldn’t shake the idea of loving death like that, so now I have a world where Death is loved, famous, and deceitful (because why not?).
Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?
I struggle the most on staying with a schedule. Life does get in the way with that. But with this story, everything kind of fell into place for me as I was writing. I could see the next move three steps ahead while I was writing, and it makes it easier for me to avoid things like writer’s block. The thing I have the worst problem with is knowing when to end the novel when it comes to a trilogy or series. Too much is bad, but so is not enough.
What came easily?
Setting up the character dynamics. The Set vs Tia and Kila came perfectly. I’ve known so many Damiens and Chloes, creating a character setup like that is easy. I also have an easy time doing the descriptions and banters. Both were methods that were refined long before I even started writing my first novel.
Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?
Completely Fictitious. While we all know Damiens, Chloes, Tias, Kilas, Rivens, the characters in this novel were completely pulled from the darkness that is known as my mind with no intended person being represented.
We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?
This is one question that I truly love getting asked and answered, and yes there are actually four authors that influenced me growing up to the point that I was reading them daily. Tolkien, Bradbury, Asimov, and Lewis. Tolkien showed me how vast a world could be, the depths that storytelling could dive into, and just the world of fantasy in general. Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 is the reason I am a dark fantasy author. “It was a pleasure to burn.” are words that live in my head. Lewis showed that you can use religious icons, status and symbols and still be considered one of the best storytellers. Asimov combined Science and Fantasy in a way I had never seen before. I studied them all and tried to take a little from each to create my style.
Do you have a target reader?
Not really? In the year and a half I have been writing, I have been more than fortunate to have many readers who have come over to me that were not inherently Dark Fantasy fans, much less Fantasy itself. They have all enjoyed themselves, many have stayed for more than one book. I’ve learned to not target a specific reader, age, or even gender. I more love to put out beautiful twisted chaos, and let the knives fall where they may.
About Writing
Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?
Best way to describe my writing process is a structured disaster. Outlining is of course first. Though, I tend to tweak fifty million times on the outline before I even open the document. When the writing begins, I have Microsoft Word set up for the largest page setup possible, but in an even dimension. When I sit down to write, I set myself down for at least one chapter, which is about 6ish pages on the setup (Though when I format it, it tends to drop down to close to twenty-five pages). While writing, I entertain the idea of free writing better ideas. Sometimes in the middle of writing, I organically find a better way, I always humor it before I decide either way. Silver Series went a whole different direction that way, an improvement many say. When I’m done, editing is just fixing grammar and typos, and then print. I never retract anything from what I wrote, I trust the process, so to speak.
Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?
So, as I have said, I do outline, but now I can explain what that means here, and it tends to be more of the later than the first. Outlines for me more structure the idea of where do I start, and where do I end. I should clarify I mean for the novel. I don’t structure chapters, or outline dynamics (unless there is a specific reason I need a certain thing to happen). I more outline what I think is important, and just toss the rest to the wind. While it seems crazy to a lot, it has served me well so far. I do however have an extensive character list, folklore list, and even language list of things I have that need translations. Those things tend to be needed more than a hundred times a page.
Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?
I do try to edit as I go, but there are times when I’ll hit two or three chapters in a day, and I just won’t have the energy to edit, and then the rest just gets chucked to the end.
Did you hire a professional editor?
I do not. I use Microsoft Word Read Aloud and some really good headphones, to be really honest. I don’t look at the words, or the scene, or even the book. I close my eyes and let the digital narrator read it aloud and then I try to catch every misspelling or wrong word. I usually go through it that way 2-3 times. My ARC reader Alana is also one of my closest friends and has become so hungry for my next novels that she has volunteered to do editing if she has the time if she can get it sooner.
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?
Yes! I am a huge rock, metal, and rap fan. Currently, The Pretty Reckless’s Dear God album is on my rotation constantly. I think Taylor did something masterful with that record. I’m also big into Halestorm, Dorothy, and Skillet. Hu and System of a Down are also popular on my list. When it comes to rap, I tend to stick with the more lyrical, just something about the complexity of the rhymes helps me thing. Kendrick, Eminem, Black Thought, Papoose, Cassidy, and Red and Meth stay on my playlist.
About Publishing
Did you submit your work to Agents?
I did. Quite a few times. At first I did with my Silver Series, about a dozen times, all of which came back with the almost mirrored response. “You have a great story, but Fantasy needs to be more ACOTAR or Fourth Wing to sell. Your story is far too different to sell.” Which was weird to me, the idea of being different is bad. So, I pushed farther. I was rejected over sixty times before I self-published, which was honestly the best decision I made. I tried again earlier this year with my Midnight Express. The Agent was looking for basically everything that was in my novel, plus an existing IP. I queried and again was told, interesting concept, great idea, but different doesn’t sell. Even when I showed him that this one did, he stayed firm. At this point now, I’ll stay self-published.
What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?
Being told you have a great story, but different doesn’t sell is such a weird idea to me. I’ve had the fortunate luck that if I can get my novels in front of people, 9/10 times, they are highly interested because of the idea of being different. Add the idea that I’m quite well known for having the type of endings you don’t see coming, also determined by the readers I was told I’d never have, and it just seems like it was the right idea to go Indie and work on my own terms.
Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?
All by myself. Painstaking hours of learning about different primary and secondary colors, beveling, layers, textures, plus a lot of free use textures helps.
Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?
I think we all have a plan until we realize it didn’t become a huge sensation in the first month. I’m more of a trial and error type of guy. I research a different idea, basically throw it all at the wall, and see what sticks and what doesn’t. More research, repeat the process basically.
Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?
Write the story. I could go on into different banter ideas, or how to make things seem more cinematic, or a million things I have learned since I’ve started. But in the end, it all started with the hardest part. You are your own worst enemy, so relax, take a breath, shake the fears away, and write the story. Every story written makes the world that much more of a beautiful place. Besides, your story could be someone’s obsession waiting to happen.
About You
Where did you grow up?
I bounced around a lot as a young kid. Pennsylvania, North Carolina, I even think there was some New Jersey and Delaware time, but I was real young then. Most of my life growing up was split between Pennsylvania and North Carolina though.
Where do you live now?
I own my own home in West Virginia now and have been here for over twenty years. I appreciate the sense of longevity, though its not something that I had a lot of growing up.
What would you like readers to know about you?
I love bringing unique ideas to characters and stories. In my Sahara Chronicles, I had a character named Nyx that became a Jekyll and Hyde character playing her Roman lineage off of her Grecian lineage. I am working on another character now that reminds me a bit of Corinthians from Sandman with a touch of William Defoe from Boondock Saints. My mind works in weird and odd manners, thus my stories are that way as well. Weird, odd, and deliciously dark.
What are you working on now?
I am working on a novel called Under the Neon Glow. It is a Dark Romance that will be a Cyberpunk themed world, but a Stalker Romance as well. While the idea may seem completely random and odd, that’s actually because it is tremendously random. I ran a contest to give back to my readers who have followed me so far. 1 main winner, six runner-ups, one story. The grand prize winner chose the story, and the six runner ups all got to decide a different foundational part of the novel, and then I am creating a novel from there. Its coming along great!
End of Interview:
For more from J.D. Goland, visit his website.
Get your copy of Year One: Reaper Academy from Amazon US or Amazon UK.
