R.J. Setser | Authors
R.J. Setser is a pseudonym for wife and husband duo, Rayleigh and Joshua Setser. High-school sweethearts who found their happily-ever-after in 2019, Rayleigh and Joshua have been writing together since 2015 and published their debut novel, A Queen is Knighted in 2021. Since then, they’ve released Program MIRA (2022) and the sequel to A Queen is Knighted, A Prince is Lured (2023).
1. What inspired you to start writing/creating art, and how has that inspiration evolved over time?
Writing has always been part of me. I have notebooks filled with stories that I penned at 6 years old; the tales scrawled in a child’s handwriting and every word misspelled. The inspiration for my stories come from experiences that I’ve gone through or things that I like. As a kid, the stories derived from my adventures on our 30-acre-wood, my dogs and goats as companions as I pedaled my bike through the trails. As an adult, the experiences have, obviously, shifted to a more “grown up” setting as my characters battle real-life emotions such as anxiety, grief, or obstacles that seem too large to move. But the beautiful thing about writing, for me, is that it’s a constant reminder of my childhood; it’s a safety net that lets me breathe when the world becomes too much.
2. Can you share the story behind your latest work? What was your creative process like?
My husband, Joshua, and I write together so we have a bit of a unique creative process. While I do the drafting, marketing, etc, he is truly the backbone of the plot. We usually bounce ideas off of each other for months before the drafting process begins, and then we work together on the outline. With our current book, A Knight is Crowned, which is book 3 in our series, I’m finally in the drafting stages and my husband is continually fact-checking scenes and acting out sword-fights to ensure the accuracy of what I’m writing. We have a lot of fun during the planning and outlining stages!
3. What themes or messages do you aim to convey through your work, and why are they important to you?
Our books primarily focus on stories that are captivating while illustrating characters who continue to push through awful circumstances and where light always overcomes the darkness. As I mentioned earlier, I write from experiences, and it’s so common for readers to find hope or inspiration or motivation to keep fighting the dragons in their lives from stories. My characters face diverse obstacles in a fantasy setting, but I hope that our stories inspire readers to never give up. My husband and I lost our daughter a few years ago and the book that pulled me through the darkest moment of my life was none-other than a YA fiction inspired by the 2011 tsunami that hit Japan; purely because of its themes of “water children”. It was exactly what I needed at that time and as a writer, I hope that my characters and stories will affect my readers in a similar way. And if they don’t, then I hope my readers have a great time on the adventure!
4. What advice would you give to aspiring authors/artists who are just starting their journey?
Avoid comparison; your journey is unique to YOU. Comparison will discourage you and try to convince you to give-up.
Celebrate small successes; this will get you through those draughts. If you like spreadsheets or lists or mood boards, create something where you can collect those wins so that when you feel like giving up, or a negative review ruins your day, you can visually see your wins.
Don’t edit during a first draft; you have to keep moving forward. One of my biggest struggles as a writer is the first draft, and I hear many new authors echoing the same struggles. We get hung up on one chapter and want to scrap the whole thing because a scene doesn’t sound the way we want it to. Restart after restarting the manuscript, over and over; it’s an endless loop that you have to break. You have to accept that a first draft isn’t going to be the final product. Keep moving forward in the story. Don’t go backwards. You can fix that spelling issue, or find a better synonym for that word, or fact-check your statements during the editing process. Get the first draft finished so you have something complete to work with.
5. What role has self-publishing or independent production played in your career, and what have you learned from the process?
We self-published the first book in our YA Fantasy series, The Tunockian Chronicles, in 2021 and have released the second book in that series and a standalone book since then. With each book publication, I’ve learned something new, and I’m sure I’ll continue to learn as the journey continues. But I enjoy self-publishing because of the control I have over our art; I have the last say in titles, covers, and deadlines. We both work full time and I’m also a part-time college student, so the flexibility of being able set my own deadlines and maintain control over our books is primarily why I chose self-publishing.
6. How do you connect with your audience, and what has been your favorite moment of reader or viewer feedback?
I love connecting with readers! We, of course, have Facebook, Instagram, and Threads (@rjsetserauthor). However, the most meaningful connections are made through our monthly Newsletter (SubStack) and in-person events. We average about 6 events a year across Texas, so I have to say that book festivals and signings are my favorite ways to meet new readers. As far as a specific moment of reader interaction that I’ll never forget, I remember sitting at work one day and I received a text from a friend with a picture of her son (11 or 12 years old at the time) holding a copy of his kindle in one hand and his paperback copy of A Queen is Knighted in the other. In the text, she said her son had burst into the room and excitedly shouted, “This book is famous, Mom!” and explained that he’d been scrolling on his kindle and the ebook of A Queen is Knighted had been advertised on the page, so naturally, it must be famous since it was also in his kindle. I still think about that text on bad brain days and it never fails to make me smile.
7. How do you handle challenges like writer's block or creative burnout, and what motivates you to keep going?
I think it depends on the season I’m in. Because I do work full-time on top of being a college student, writing is often what gets pushed to the wayside just because of life priorities. So, my biggest challenge isn’t what to write or creative burnout, it’s usually, “I have so many ideas and I literally can’t do anything about it unless I stop sleeping or eating”. But I have experienced moments of writer's block where I sit down and don’t know what to work on, because I’m just frozen by the options. In those instances, I set daily writing goals, but I allow myself to remain flexible about what I work on, unless I have a major deadline. I’m a mood reader and I attack writing in a similar fashion, where I write what I’m in the mood to write, especially if I’m just trying to maintain a creative habit. Obviously, if I have a publishing deadline I’m working towards, that becomes a higher priority, but as far as maintaining my creativity, I’ve learned to take the expectations down and just let myself write.
8. What’s next for you? Can you share any upcoming projects or future creative goals you’re excited about?
On the immediate horizon, we’re working on the final book in The Tunockian Chronicles, A Knight is Crowned. We’re still in the early drafting phase, so I haven’t released any hard dates, yet, but we’re hoping to publish that sometime in 2025. We do have a few other top-secret projects planned and outlined that are patiently waiting their turn, but I don’t have dates for those and I’m not sharing too much about them just yet. In the meantime, we attend book festivals and cosplay our characters while meeting new readers! You can always check out where we’re going to be next on our website RJSetser.com!
9. Who are some of your biggest creative influences, and how have they shaped your work or style?
As far as style goes, the Narnia series and Harry Potter series may have originally influenced my love for in-depth world building and realistic characters, paired with that childlike wonder that I try to keep alive in our books. As I’ve grown older, though, I just love fantasy as a genre, and now, Sanderson and Sapkowski, for example, are some of my favorite writers. I honestly think that any book that becomes a favorite may influence my writing in various ways.
An unconventional influence of mine, who isn’t an author, is Taylor Swift; specifically in owning her work and her marketing tactics. I do not deny that my book playlists have a few Taylor Swift songs on them, but part of the reason I chose to self publish is because Taylor is re-recording her old albums. I interned for a literary agency right out of high school with every intention of trying to go the traditional publishing route, but it bothered me that I would be giving up my rights to something so precious to me. I went back and forth, reasoning with myself that it was no big deal, authors do it every day. But during this war with myself, Taylor announced that she’d be re-recording her albums and why, and I watched several interviews where she completely validated my desire to own my work. I thought, “If someone as successful as Taylor Swift has the desire to own her own music and is willing to re-release all of it just so it belongs to her, then I’m not crazy for wanting to keep the rights to my characters and books.”
10. How has your personal life or experiences influenced your writing/art, and are there any particular moments that stand out?
I kind of answered this in an earlier question, but I write from my experiences quite often. While the characters may not be exact duplicates of real-life scenarios, I often work in general themes of whatever I’m facing in life, good and bad. My childhood love for horses influenced the fantasy breed of horses that I created in The Tunockian Chronicles, the sibling rivalry is inspired from my 5 siblings and our different paths in life, and Lauraine’s visualization of water during anxiety attacks is often a reflection of how I feel during moments of anxiety. Pieces of what I notice and love are always sprinkled throughout the books.
