ABOUT ME
Josiah, aka J.D.L. Rosell, was swept away on a journey when he stepped foot outside his door and into The Hobbit, and he hasn't stopped wandering since. In his writing, he tries to recapture the wonder, adventure, and poignancy that captivated him as a child. His explorations have taken him to worlds set in over a dozen novels and five series, which include Ranger of the Titan Wilds, Legend of Tal, The Runewar Saga, and The Famine Cycle.
When he's not off on a quest, Josiah enjoys his newfound hobby of archery and older pastimes of hiking and landscape photography. But every hobbit returns home, and if you step softly and mind the potatoes, you may glimpse him curled up with his wife and two cats, Zelda and Abenthy, reading a good book or replaying his favorite video games.
Learn more about him in the informal interview below.
A SERIOUS INTERVIEW OF THE AUTHOR, BY THE AUTHOR
First question: do you actually do anything other than write?
I feel attacked.
I’m sorry you feel that way. But with all the books you write…
Okay, yes, I do spend a lot of time writing. But I swear I have a life too!
I love reading — I mean, it’d be weird if I didn’t, right? And I like reading especially outdoors, in the sun, a nice drink in hand, maybe by a mountain lake…
Ahem. Got a little carried away there!
I do a fair amount of hiking — it’s required to live in Colorado — and recently picked up archery, partly because of a recent series I started writing, partly because I’d always wanted to. Turns out, it’s a blast, even though I still have a long ways to go!
I also love video games. I’m a big fan of the classics from my childhood like Legend of Zelda and Pokémon, but I also love a lot of more recent favorites. Some of these include Horizon, Skyrim, The Last of Us, and A Plague Tale.
Okay… so why do you write?
Is that supposed to be another jab or something?
No.
If you say so… I write, first off, because it brings me immense joy. I'm inclined to believe everyone needs to be creative in some form or another to be fulfilled, but I at least know it's true for me!
I do also feel a compulsion toward writing particularly because I have a love for language and story, and find it the most fun to play with. And I like to think I have a thing or two to say about the “human condition” to boot!
Who’s your favorite author?
Does anyone have a single favorite author?
I’m the one asking the questions.
It was rhetorical… Anyway, I split these into “old” favorites and “new” favorites.
My old favorites, and thus will always be favorites, are J.R.R. Tolkien for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, which I must have read half a dozen times each, if not more. J.K. Rowling for Harry Potter which I also read a bunch. Also, R.A. Salvatore for his Drizzt books, and Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman for their Dragonlance novels.
My new favorites are Robin Hobb for all the FitzChivalry books, Joe Abercrombie for The First Law series, Mark Lawrence for Book of the Ancestor, Robert V.S. Redick for Master Assassins, and last but not least, N.K. Jemisin for especially The Fifth Season.
You sure do give long answers.
Is that supposed to be a question? Never mind, next please…
Say I'm a new reader. Where should I start with your books?
That's a bit of a tricky question. Different people like different series better. That being said I'll try to give a little guidance.
As of right now, none of my series are connected, so you can start in any order.
Ranger of the Titan Wilds is my newest series—and, in my opinion, my best one yet. I’d recommend trying it first.
Legend of Tal, however, remains my most popular series, so that's also a great place to start.
The Famine Cycle is a complete trilogy, so that might be a better fit for others.
For more points of view and a grander plot, The Runewar Saga is your friend.
And lastly, if you're in the mood for a light-hearted adventure, you might pick up Godslayer Rising, my YA LitRPG trilogy (also complete).
I also made a graphic guiding people to select their series, which you can find at the bottom of my books overview page.
(Finally he's done…) Anything else people should know?
That's pretty much it! Just thank you to each and every one of you who has taken a chance on my books. You help me keep doing my dream job! And I'll do my best to keep you engaged and entertained.