James Campion Conway

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About James Campion Conway
James Campion Conway is the author of the literary coming of age novel called The Vagabond King.
"There were times I had to put the book down and simply reflect on how talented this author is." Underground Book Reviews
"...if the world and literature survive into the next age, The Vagabond King will probably be a classic." TM Romero, Goodreads.com
“Thought-provoking and absorbing…a soulful and soul-searching novel of a young man’s coming of age.” Star, Goodreads.Com
If you’ve ever wondered “what it’s all about” or, if you like mythological fiction like American Gods by Neil Gaiman, or visionary fiction like The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield or The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, then this book is for you.
His influences are Tolkien, Kafka, Dinesen, Garcia-Marquez, Calvino, and Chandler. He is also deeply influenced by the historical writings of Winston Churchill and the mythological studies of Joseph Campbell. His favorite poets are Yeats, Keats and Bukowski.
Conway's character's do not exist in a vacuum. They exist within the historical, metaphysical and philosophical contexts that we all exist within whether we are aware of it or not. His work frequently blends mythology, cosmology, history and modern science to reveal a deeper, more complex understanding of the world we inhabit.
He's currently working on a second novel called The House of Smoke Mirrors which follows three different plot lines. Set against the background of 9/11 and the years that follow until the housing crash of 2008. The first plot line follows the adventures of a 10 year old girl without a name who believes she must truly be a fairy tale princess and not just a runaway from the foster care system. She has convinced a conman to take her to find her Godmother so she can learn her real identity, only to realize she had really been abducted.
The second plot line follows her parents, the King and Queen, as they leave their fairy tale kingdom to search for their missing daughter in this strange and foreign world of ours.
The third plot line portrays the real history of the United States, a history that has been purposely erased as successfully as it was in Winston Smith's 1984.
The book blends semantics with a deeper understanding of how our legal and banking systems really work to reveal how reality is not a solid thing but very flexible and that nothing we see is as it appears to be. Through the Looking-Glass meets 1984.
To start reading The Vagabond King for free and to receive updates on The House of Smoke and Mirrors click here. https://www.subscribepage.com/t7f7u4
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Titles By James Campion Conway
"There were times I had to put the book down and simply reflect on how talented this author is." Underground Book Reviews
“A masterpiece” Mel Miles"...if the world and literature survive into the next age, The Vagabond King will probably be a classic." TM Romero, Goodreads.com
Do you love powerfully written, lyrical prose?
Do you love detailed description and clever turns of phrase?
Then you'll love the coming of age story, The Vagabond King.
When his mother dies and he discovers that the man he was raised to believe was his father is not, sixteen-year-old Chris is haunted by a mysterious apparition and flees his affluent surroundings to embark upon a quest to find himself.
Hoping she will “make a man of him” he seeks sanctuary in the home of Magda, a middle aged waitress with a penchant for sex, only to discover that she lives with her father, a cigarette smoking, beer swilling immigrant.
Chris hates his shabby new surroundings at the end of the street and the shabby old man at the end of his life who spends his days listening to old blues records and making Chris fetch him fresh cans of beer.
But, when the old man tells tales of Communist Hungary, torture, escape and the mysterious medallion he wears, Chris learns that, like the old man’s skipping records, history repeats itself and the roles we play have been played many times before.
If you’ve ever wondered “what it’s all about” or, if you like mythological fiction like American Gods by Neil Gaiman, or visionary fiction like The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield or The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho, then this book is for you.
The Vagabond King blends ancient mythology and modern cosmology in a lyrically told tale that will leave you thinking long after the last page is turned.
“Thought-provoking and absorbing…a soulful and soul-searching novel of a young man’s coming of age.”
Star, Goodreads.Com
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AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Though The Vagabond King is billed as a coming of age story it’s much more than that. What is it that makes The Vagabond King so much more and what genre would you place it in?
It is a coming of age story definitely but, because the main character is questioning his life at a deeper level than he had before, it is much more than a run of the mill coming of age book. Because I love for mythology and philosophy, I used those two interests to develop a number of the themes in the book. Mythology is an essential part of the plot as it is in American Gods by Neil Gaiman. But, it is a much more contemplative book than American Gods. It is more like The Alchemist by Paulo Coehlo or The Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield in that it is seeking answers to life at a deeper level. So I would call it a work of metaphysical or visionary fiction.
In American Gods Neil Gaiman actually uses mythological figures as his characters. How to do integrate mythology and philosophy in The Vagabond King?
The main character, Chris, is at a point in his life where he is questioning his very reason for being. So, this lends itself to philosophical contemplation. At this same time he meets Magda who is very well read in the fields of mythology and philosophy. As Chris questions his life and the world around him, Magda is able to use her knowledge of mythology and philosophy to advise him.