Chad Whybrew: So, Tristan Miranda and Blaise Miranda
are co-authors with a growing fanbase here in the US. Since they just released
their third book—and because I’m their first client author—I wanted to pick
their brains as to what brought them to this point… Probably should’ve used a
different coffee joint to do this, though. Didn’t think it’d be this loud in here.
Tristan Miranda: No biggie, man. Thanks for
interviewing us.
Blaise Miranda: Ditto. Happy to have a chat, Chad.
Chad: So, what made you want to become a writer?
Tristan: Well, growing up, I had a condition called
Perthes disease, which basically causes your femurs to deteriorate. So I spent
some time in a wheelchair. I didn’t have much to do at recess, so I became a
big reader. And from there, I really learned how to escape into a book, you
know? So I realized I wanted to be able to do the same thing for other kids. Wrote
my first story in middle school… except it was only seven pages long, triple-spaced,
and eighteen-point font. Gotta start somewhere, right?
Blaise: Yeah. Tristan started a lot earlier than me.
I loved reading as a kid, but I didn’t really try to write my own stories until
I graduated college and started working as an engineer. I worked for a
government contractor, so some days were busier than others. I’d write toward
the end of the day after checking that nobody was watching. But, you know, life
sometimes gets in the way. I had two sons—great kids, obviously—so writing went
to the back burner. As for why, well, I loved writing obviously, but the
flexibility for hours and location was really attractive. I mean, who doesn’t
want to have a nice house on the beach and write on the sand? That’s what I’ve
always been working toward. Became a lot easier to imagine when Tristan and I
started MW Press a couple of years ago.
Chad: Did you ever have any interest in being traditionally
published?
Blaise: I didn’t.
Tristan: Yeah, okay, fine. I wanted to, if only
because I didn’t think that creating a publishing house like MW Press was even
an option. We—I—tried to get traditionally published for years. Sent out
hundreds of requests to literary agents—hell, I even worked for one—but nothing
ever came of it. Just a couple of requests and a shit ton of rejections. We even
got a rejection a full year later. Literally 400 days later. Why even send an
email at that point?
Blaise: At least you’re not bitter about it.
Tristan: Hilarious. Anyway, yes. We tried. But
looking back, I’m grateful that we didn’t get a deal. Traditional publishing
just isn’t what it used to be. At all. Especially now with AI, print on demand
services, and the ease with which you can publish. Here’s what happens in a nutshell.
You write a book. Hooray. You spend time—anywhere from a few months to several years—querying
agents. If you finally get one, you then have to query publishing houses and
get an editor interested in your material—which again takes months to years. If
you do nab an editor, then you have to go through a dozen more drafts and wait
for your book to be published, usually a couple years later. So, if you’re lucky,
you’re looking at three years’ wait from finishing the book. And even then nineteen
out of every twenty debuting books fail to sell enough books, and then the
author is just shit out of luck. And worse, they have absolutely no control.
They can’t choose their cover, they can’t choose what’s in the book a lot of
the time, and they definitely have no control over the publishing and
marketing. Whereas, if you self-publish and really work at it, you control all
of that. It’s harder, but it’s really rewarding—and faster. We can crank out a
book and get it to press far faster, which allows us to put more stories on the
market faster. And we keep all our rights, all the royalties, and we get to
choose what we want to do with the book.
Chad: I take it you don’t like literary agents.
Tristan: I’m sure there are a few good eggs in the
bunch, but I’ve never met them—and I sure as hell want to scramble the rest. They’re
gatekeepers, and frankly, I don’t like gatekeepers on principle. They’re just
relics of a past age, and they take ten to fifteen percent of your money for
being the middleman and sending your book to a publisher, who is also going to
take most of your money. But if you self-publish, you’ll at least have the
ability to maintain some semblance of control.
Blaise: Exactly. The learning curve is quite steep,
but as the saying goes, it’s better to teach a man to fish than to give him
one. Perhaps it’s because of our engineering backgrounds, but we’ve always
preferred knowing how to do something rather than just asking somebody
else to do it. That way, you have a better idea of how the process works and it
especially helps during negotiations.
Tristan: Yeah! That’s why we learned and are learning
every area of this publishing process. After a while, we’ll probably start to outsource
some of the work and know what the appropriate price is supposed to be. This is
an extremely important lesson to avoid being scammed by vanity presses. If
authors spent more time learning this process, those scammers would be out of
business. But they don’t, and scammers make enough money to keep scamming. It’s
a horrible, vicious cycle.
Chad: Right. Going back to outsourcing, what would
be the first work you would pass off to a third-party?
Blaise: Audiobooks.
Tristan: Definitely audiobooks. It’s a month of
work to do each one right, and that’s a lot of time, considering we can write a
draft for a 100k word book in that amount of time. But the trouble is,
audiobooks are extremely expensive to produce—because of the time it takes. So,
we’re still doing our own audiobooks. For now, at least.
Chad: What are your thoughts on AI? I’ve heard news
that audiobooks can be read by AI now. Will you use AI for that?
Tristan: Great question. Let’s set the record
straight on this. We don’t like AI. We absolutely don’t use AI for text and
writing in any capacity. However, we’re a small publishing house fighting
giants like Penguin Random House, Macmillan, and Simon and Schuster. Quite
literally, we are a father and son trying to compete against companies with
thousands of people and a budget millions of times bigger than ours is. So we need
every edge and cost-saving measure we can get. We use AI for cover artwork and
promotional artwork where we think it’s best applicable. Some people might
criticize us for that, which I don’t really get. We’re selling text—the book—and
the cover is only another piece of promotional work. If we were selling artwork
and each piece is AI, well, yeah, that’d be pretty shitty. But we aren’t. We’re
selling a story. Even with audiobooks, we’re selling the audio for a story that
we made ourselves. Obviously, if we had a bigger budget we’d love to support
artist and narrators, but most of the critics don’t understand how much time,
money, and energy that is.
Blaise: True, but you didn’t really answer the
question. We are looking into using AI for audiobooks for several reasons, Chad.
One is cost. It’s cheaper to use AI. Two, efficiency. It’s far faster to use AI.
Three is consistency. The character voices and the narration are far more
consistent and engaging when done by AI than by us. ElevenLabs is the tool we’re
currently playing around with to see if it works for what we need. With the
rapid pace of AI improving, we definitely think that our audiobooks will
eventually all be done by AI but only time will tell.
Tristan: I’m surprised that people have a huge
issue with AI but no problem with publishers just republishing public domain
works, you know? Publishers didn’t write those public domain works, but they
sure as hell are making a profit off of the works of others. Moby Dick, Frankenstein,
The Three Musketeers, and the Way of Five Rings are all prime
examples of this. Mary Shelley isn’t making a dime off of of her works, nor are
her descendants. But nobody thinks about that.
Blaise: People also don’t realize that AI is just
the newest form of technology. During the early Industrial Age, before people
really even started using machines, everything was done by hand. Then some
people’s jobs were replaced by larger machines and people became angry. Now, we
don’t think anything of CNC machines, computers, and other devices. Calculators
used to be human beings with slide rules. Now? It’s on your phone. AI is just
the latest version of this trend toward machines, and it won’t be the last iteration.
I think that people need to learn how to use AI to their benefit and profit
from it. That, or help teach it or create new uses. That way they aren’t left
as obsolete.
Chad: So do you think that AI will ever make
writers obsolete?
Blaise: No idea. If it does, I’ll keep teaching
engineering, and Tristan will teach writing.
Tristan: Definitely. That, or teach the AI better
grammar—even humor. We’ll figure out something to do, so we’re not too worried
about it. Does it suck? Sure. But it’s like worrying about the heat death of
the sun or nuclear war. It’s totally out of our control, so our best defense is
better controlling other aspects of publishing. The people who should be
worrying are those who are only writers. In the sixties, sure, that
worked. Today? You’re turning yourself into a dino and just waiting to get wiped
out.
Chad: Okay, so in another life, what career do you
think you might’ve chosen for yourself?
Blaise: A teacher… considering that’s what I’m
already doing. Never would have thought that I’d be a teacher when I was
Tristan’s age, but life takes you places you don’t expect. Been a lot of things
in my life—everything from a security guard to a pool man—so I’m happy to add “author
and publisher” to that list.
Tristan: I’d definitely love to join the Air Force
and try my hand at being a pilot. I actually tried that, but I was medically disqualified
because of my medical history with Perthes disease. In my high school year
book, my personal quote was the Air Force motto, which is kind of ironic now.
Then again, not really. Still aiming high, even if the Air Force thing didn’t
work out.
Chad: Who are you inspirations for writing and what
books shaped your style the most?
Tristan: Oh! That’s easy. Dad, first and foremost. I’ve
always looked up to my dad. Like, when I was young, I was in such awe that he
was writing his first book. Him writing a book made me realize that it was
possible to even write a book. As far as the books themselves, well, I loved
Stephen King growing up. Garth Nix too. Loved his Keys to the Kingdom series.
And Rick Riordan, of course. But I think all the authors my age say that. Percy
Jackson’s the man. I will say though, I made the mistake of re-reading those
books more recently, and they lost a little bit of the magic. Just because I
recognize the tips and tricks as to how the book is actually written. Still
great stories, but it’s almost like seeing the Wizard of Oz hiding behind the
curtain.
Blaise: Sidney Sheldon and Robert Ludlum. Hands
down. Master of the Game is an absolute masterpiece that I’m trying to
live up to in our writing.
Chad: What are some of your favorite books and
authors now?
Blaise: Not much has changed. Sheldon is still the
man, but I have become a fan of David Baldacci in more recent years. Thrillers
have always been my favorite stories to read and write, so I’ve studied their
styles to better emulate them.
Tristan: I’ve definitely changed up my taste in
books since when I started writing. For fiction, I’ve become a huge fan of
Alexander Gordon Smith, John C. McCrae, and Brandon Sanderson. Smith for the pacing
and metaphors. McCrae for the storytelling. Sanderson for the writing style.
Chad: Do you have any books that you’ve shelved?
Tristan: Several, from before Dad and I started
writing together. Those stories were written in middle and high school, though.
They sucked and won’t see the light of day.
Blaise: Come on. They didn’t suck. You were just
getting started.
Tristan: In other words, they sucked.
Blaise: Agree to disagree. To answer your question,
Chad, no. Well, maybe. We’ll see, won’t we?
Chad: So what is your writing process?
Blaise: I’ll let Tristan explain this one, because
our writing process changed a lot during and after the first book.
Tristan: Yeah, this is a hell of a question. How
best to put it? Okay. When we first started, we just kind of wrote, you know?
Whatever first came to mind. So for Drowned Sea, I wrote the first draft. Then
I passed it off to Dad, and he wrote the second draft. Then vice versa. Problem
was, it took a lot of extra time because we weren’t on the same page
about anything. Actually lead to a couple of arguments.
Blaise: Your fault.
Tristan: Uh huh. We ended up changing our style for
Tooth and Nail and Crimson Ink. We really increased our level of communication
on the front end and created an outlining process that works really well for
us. Starts with getting a prompt, then creating a back cover blurb, then main
characters. After that, it’s a matter of creating the first and last scenes,
filling in the middle by writing a 1% synopsis, and then ending with a 10%
outline.
Blaise: Yeah, we’ve become a lot more technical
about it in recent years.
Chad: What is your favorite book to write and why?
Tristan: So, Drowned Sea is the epitome of the
stories I like to write. Dark fantasy with soft, low magic. Religious themes
and undertones of deception, especially among people in power.
Blaise: We definitely had to compromise with the
magic in Drowned Sea, because I’ve always tended to shy away from magic and
fantasy. Honestly, Drowned Sea always felt like historical fantasy to me, with
some monsters sprinkled here and there. My favorite book, which we’re still
currently writing, is a police story, which I don’t want to go too deep into
yet. Rest assured it’s coming soon, and it’s good. As to why, I get to draw a
lot on my old experiences as a cop and really pour through those memories.
Chad: Do you come up with a series all at once, or
one book at a time?
Blaise: One book at a time, definitely. Tristan’s
the one who likes to plan everything out. I’ve always just wanted to get going
on a book.
Tristan: Looking at the series as a whole before
beginning writing is my favorite way to write, because it’s efficient. If you
know what’s going to happen next in the story, it’s easier to find the path to
that plot point, you know? I like to think of writing as crossing a river. You’re
standing on one bank—the beginning—but you can see the other bank, which is the
ending. The river itself is everything in between. So you create big plot
points which are your stepping stones, and the path in between meanders a bit,
which adds to a more organic story anyway.
Chad: Do you listen to music when writing?
Blaise: Classical music mostly. Nothing with
lyrics. It’s too distracting otherwise.
Tristan: All right, I’m probably going to catch
some heat for this. Broadway musicals a lot of the time. I’ve listened to Wicked,
Heathers, and Hamilton enough where I don’t hear the words anymore.
It’s just white noise. Fun white noise, but noise all the same. When I get
tired of that, I’ll switch over to rap or instrumental hard rock—anything with
a sick beat that gets me motivated… I absolutely would not recommend
doing this for any other writers. When you first start out and are searching
for the right emotions, listen to music that makes you feel that way, you know?
I don’t do it as much anymore just because I have a better feel for the story
and music is less a way to feel the right emotions and more a way to stay
pumped up about writing.
Chad: Who is your favorite audience to write for?
Tristan: Adults, absolutely. I feel like with young
adult, you can be restricted sometimes in what you want to discuss. Just
overall dialogue too. But we’ve launched a young adult series later this year,
so maybe I’ll change my mind.
Blaise: I won’t. An adult audience is my bread and
butter… There aren’t exactly that many young adult thrillers. None that I enjoy,
anyway.
Chad: What is your favorite format of books that
you write and publish?
Blaise: Hardbacks. They’re the most robust and
reliable. You don’t need an internet connection, and they can take a beating.
Plus, the feel of holding a physical copy in your hands. It’s not the same with
an ebook or audiobook.
Tristan: Yeah, hardbacks for sure… Sorry trees.
Chad: Splitting your role as a writer and
publisher, what is the hardest part of publishing?
Tristan: I’ll field this one. So, as a publisher
for other authors, the marketing is definitely the biggest headache. The
process goes like this. Say a hardback retails for twenty bucks on Amazon and
you have a 60% royalty. You’d think that means that you make twelve bucks in
profit. Wrong. The cost to produce is taken from your percentage. So, if your
hardback is twenty bucks but costs ten bucks to produce, you only make two
bucks in profit. And then you split that with the author… and get taxed on it.
Depending on the split, you’re making less than a dollar a book. So it becomes
a volume game. That’s why traditional publishers are notorious for five percent
royalties on books for debuting authors. The real pain for us is
creating enough consumer interest in the book through various sources, which we
are still learning and improving upon.
Blaise: Adding to that, you get into this business
to write, but the more you get into the business of it, the more you spend time
marketing, advertising, and publishing than actually writing.
Chad: How “real” are your characters to you?
Tristan: Extremely real. I tend to “method write”—especially
on the first draft. I like to really get into the character’s headspace, so
they share a lot of space in my head during the various drafts. Because of how
much time we spent working on Drowned Sea, Lilyth has become a phantom of
sorts. She’s never not with me. She coaches me through things, sometimes.
Blaise: Yeah, not so much for me. They’re
characters on a page, and I can see them in my head, but I don’t get as
attached to them as Tristan does. He needs more friends.
Tristan: Gee, thanks.
Chad: Do you ever watch TV shows or movies for
inspiration?
Blaise: All the time. More movies than TV shows,
though. Shows just have far too much filler. It’s one good opening episode
followed by seven to ten crappy episodes, then a good closing episode. Bookends
with no real meat in between. But I must say that Taylor Sheridan does a great
job with dialogue.
Tristan: That’s true. Movies are my favorite to
watch, especially action movies for learning better fight scenes. Stuff like the
Matrix, 300, John Wick. I feel like fighting is a weakness for most
writers, so watching solid choreography really helps to get a better feel for
movements. Watching TV shows and movies is a great way to get ideas for
costuming though. Dune I think is a great example of costuming—showing the
depth of each culture through clothing.
Chad: What are your plans for your upcoming stories,
if you can tell me?
Tristan: We can tell you some of the stuff. Not all
of it, of course, but only because we haven’t talked about it publicly yet. 2025’s
going to be a big year for us. As far as upcoming stories go, we’ve got client
work being released later this year—like yours. Wingman and its prequel are
great stories that we’re really excited about. Animal House meets Aladdin,
you know? And Butch Carver’s story, Semblance, has already given me
two nightmares, frankly. Then we have a couple more books of our own, Memories
of the Reaper and its prequel, which we’ve been prepping for over the last
couple years. As far as the stuff we can’t talk about, let’s just say
that we brought a new member onto our team who’s doing great work with some
picture book ideas we have. We’re pumped to share those stories when they’re
ready.
Blaise: And 2026 will be even bigger. The real plan
is just to keep growing, keep working, keep improving. So long as we do that,
we’ll have plenty of stories to share. We’ve got the next five years of books
planned, so it’s just a matter of staying focused, and I think that’s something
we really do well.
Tristan: Yep, it does help that we can split the
work.
Chad: And finally, what advice would you give to upcoming
authors?
Blaise: First and foremost, trust your instincts. I
see people say that you need to write to the correct audience. Write a story
that’s modern and all this stuff. Don’t. Stop with all that crap. Never chase
your audience. Write how you want to write and create an audience. This
way, your work will be authentic and your enthusiasm will shine through in the
writing.
Tristan: Absolutely. As an author in today’s age,
you need to learn how to promote and market yourself. Over these last twenty-five
years, traditional publishers have forgotten how to market and promote debuting
authors. Frankly, the evolution of the internet, social media, and online
marketing is too much for them to keep up with. So they’re still using the 1970s
version of marketing. Editorial reviews, blogs, etc. That’s why literary agents
are always wondering what your author platforms are and how many followers you
have. What they’re actually saying is, “Can you market yourself?” If you can,
then why do you need them? If you can’t, then why do they want you? See how
this works? Writing a good book is obviously an important aspect to publishing,
but even if you write a great book, it often won’t be a best seller. New
authors and writers always have to keep this in mind: the best writer often isn’t
the best seller. Why? Because sellers know how to promote a book and get
it to a giant audience. The best writers often spend too much time in rooms by
themselves. So, ask yourself, What distinguishes me from authors and how do
I share this with the public? If you can answer that, then you’ll be in
good shape. For us, it’s explaining to people how we work as a father-son team
and we share this by, well, doing interviews together—among lots of other
things.
Chad: I couldn’t have ended that interview better myself.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and insights with me and spending time in this
loud shop.
Tristan: Not a problem. Happy to share our
knowledge. Too many people think that writing, publishing, and marketing
knowledge need to be held secret. That’s a famine mindset, and that doesn’t
help anybody. In this age, authors and writers need to stick together, so we’re
happy to talk, teach, and help however we can.
Blaise: Absolutely. Thanks for talking with us,
Chad.
