Jay P. Newcomb took the time to answer some questions about his life since the publication of Visigothic: The Barbarians of Midgard.

Did you always dream of becoming an author?
Yes. My earliest writing experiences were in elementary school, and later in High School. I’ve always been a fan of history and because of the great knowledge of history that I do have, it enabled me to write the Visigothic Series.

What was your first job?
In the Army as a Cavalry Scout, stationed in Germany along the old east-west German Border and in the Fulda Gap

How did you come about writing your book? Was that your intention or did
you start writing for fun?
I had published religious doctrinal books before, but I wanted to write a series of fun stories based on characters I had encountered in both biblical literatures and in the Norse Sagas—creating a mythology of the Goths on a migration, being descendants of the biblical character Gomer, from the Ararat region to their settlement in Scandinavia as the Ice Age is coming to an end. Only much later in history will their descendants leave Gotland and return south to encounter the Roman. I have been deeply inspired by the writings of J.R.R. Tolkien, as well as our own ancestral England, the Anglo Saxons, and the Vikings. Also I like to base characters on actual special people in my life, while not using their actual names of course—the Elf Queen Zakarah, the young Leprechaun woman Molly O’Hurleyhune and the barbarian Queen Gwynnalyn are three cases in particular. Also I have endeavoured to present a great many strong women and girls in my writings; I’ve always been attracted to strong women, and so this is reflected in my choice of women characters such as the various Shield Maidens the reader will meet, and a very strong willed teenage Dwarf Princess, who is faced with profound difficulties in her life, yet overcomes it all in the end. I hope that teen girls will find a role model in Eileza Andavarsdottir.

What was your life like before you became an author?
I got out of the Army after seven years, married and raised two children. I have been a driver of trucks and Lorries. Eventually the marriage failed and I was set adrift in a profound crisis. I found God during this time and converted to Messianic Judaism, eventually studying in a Yeshiva, becoming a Messianic Rabbi.

Did you face any struggles before becoming an author? If so, how did you overcome them?
Oh yes, very much so. There were profound life changing struggles, such as the divorce and the passing of my Mother Lois Newcomb in 2013 at age 93. And it was through my religious faith that I found rebirth and a renewed sense of purpose, which has led me on two mission trips to Haiti with my daughter Tiffany. I saw that there were others whose daily struggles, sometimes for just one meal a day, were far greater than my own. I walked with them in their poverty teaching lessons about hope; but indeed it was the Haitians who showed me what true love and hope really are and what real faith in a Higher Power are. It is my hope to be able to earn royalties enough, in due course of time, to build a school and a clinic, and to have a water pumping system installed in the village of Grand Plaine, Haiti

Now that you are a published author, how has your life changed, if at all?
Right now it hasn’t much changed.

Can you please describe a typical day in your life now?
I arise at 0:530 and get ready for work, arriving at the company by 07:00. I drive an asphalt/gravel truck on various Highway and other construction projects. I edit finished writing in the evening for two hours, watch a bit of news, and do some reading before going to bed. I’m a Messianic Rabbi, but as of right now I don’t officiate a Congregation, but when needs arise that call for a Rabbi, I’m always on call for that and so I have various people contacting me during the day for various reasons.

What is your most memorable moment of your life as an author?
When I received news that Visigothic: The Barbarians of Midgard was to be published, I was driving and in my head the song “Rule Britannia” started to play. And so I played it for real on my iPhone.