Seth Campbell on Life, Lessons & Legacy

We recently had the chance to connect with Seth Campbell and have shared our conversation below.

Seth, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: What is a normal day like for you right now?
A normal day looks like waking up between 5:30 and 6:30 when my kids barge into the room to play the Wordle and ask if I remembered to put a treat in their lunch for the day. Then it’s off to the shower, get the kids dressed and fed, take them to school, and head to work.

I work full-time as a project developer for a local construction company, with an independent author business on the side. During breaks, I get a little writing or world building in until it’s time to take the kids to their afternoon and evening activities. Then it’s dinner, bath, books, and bedtime for the kiddos. I try to write at least 3-4 nights a week for 1-2 hours before I go to sleep.

Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I go by S.M. Campbell in my books, and I am an independent author. I started writing dark fantasy with some romantic subplots and spice, and have now branched off into gothic/gothic dark romance. The gothic fantasy and romance genre has really landed for me, and has become the base of everything I do. Most of my stories are very FMC focused, are romance or have romantic subplots, and typically feature broken characters trying to find themselves and heal.

I am currently working on the 4th book in my Eldritch Depths dark fantasy book series, while finishing up the second book in my standalone gothic romance series. The plan is to have two series running alongside each other until the Eldritch Depths is finished, then introduce a new dark fantasy with Western tropes.

Thanks for sharing that. Would love to go back in time and hear about how your past might have impacted who you are today. What did you believe about yourself as a child that you no longer believe?
I’m pretty sure I believed that I was mediocre in most things throughout my entire life, and that I would never be anything more than that. As a child, I tinkered with all sorts of different creative pursuits, but never excelled at any of them. For the longest time I believed I would be lucky to just be average.

Writing gave me the confidence that I didn’t have to settle. While it was never anything I ever thought I would pursue, it opened a passion in my that can’t be put back. I continue to learn and grow every day, striving for that excellence I never thought I would achieve in anything else.

What have been the defining wounds of your life—and how have you healed them?
Most of my childhood was marred by the tumultuous relationship between my parents. Many instances of emotional trauma and fighting led to a self-defense mechanism of becoming fluid, flexible, and not demanding of anything more. That trauma followed me into adulthood, and is still something I battle today.

Now, I heal through writing. Most of my characters have some sort of traumatic history or relationship with a parent figure, and most of their stories are about healing that pain.

I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
I would have to answer no. There are a few different public versions of me, and none of them I would say are the true me. Each version gets pieces, but not the whole thing. Work sees what it needs to see, my social media sees what I give it.

The real me is when I am with my wife and kids, or when I am alone and writing. If you want to get the truest sense of my values and personality, you’ll find it in my books.

Okay, so before we go, let’s tackle one more area. What are you doing today that won’t pay off for 7–10 years?
Writing. It’s a long process building an author brand and a strong backlog. While my books bring in a little, it takes many many years, and many many books to have a larger impact. But that’s the dream!

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