Of Mud and Crown by Erik Erikovsky
What led you into writing?
From a young age, I was a fan of books and I read a lot.
At three, I moved to USA and at six I came back to Russia – so from a young age, I had some adventures in me.
At around seven, I started writing tiny “mini-books”, inspired by the books I read. One of them just… kept going!
By age eight I finished my first full-length novel, in Russian, which was later published to all Russian stores.
I really like writing and I’d say I’m a pretty creative person, so even when I finish a book, I can’t keep myself from writing another the next day.
How does a typical day look?
During school, it’s wake up early, endure school, then return and… game and/or write, then on some days I workout. I wrote the majority of the two of my books during summer break, though – Starborn of the Galaxy was written in the summer at my grandma’s, and Of Mud and Crown was written the next summer at my grandma’s as well.
In what ways do your characters test your abilities?
The biggest challenge I think was writing historically accurate sword fighting. I had to make it realistic, how actual people did sword fighting in the 15th century – and luckily, I had my dad, who does HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts), and he helped me with the choreography and realism.
I also had to control the dialogues to make them interesting, and with no “big danger” in the book, this was something I had to spend time on.
What’s your setup?
I wrote both my books at my grandma’s house in Russia while visiting her – simply because I was bored.
Most of the editing, marketing, and other stuff is done from my desk in my room.
I write on a laptop in Apple Pages, and I like to listen to music while writing, and I also like to sip something while writing – coffee, water, whatever.
What lasting effects have your favourite authors had on your writing and style?
I think J. R. R Tolkien had a very big effect on my writing and style.
Lord of the Rings served as distant inspiration for both of my books, and I tried to at least get close to the incredible and vast world building Tolkien had did with Middle Earth. I was reading Lord of the Rings as the same time as writing Of Mud and Crown – so that adventure and different locations is what both of us share.
What do you do for inspiration?
I really like to put some music on while writing, it helps me a lot.
Often, I listen to soundtrack from the video game Kingdom Come Deliverance: 2, and I like to switch them up by mood, so if I’m writing a forest scene I put on nature soundtrack from the game, if I’m writing a tavern scene – taverns soundtrack from the game, and so on.
Sometimes I also listen to psychedelic music like Tame Impala which for some reason helps me focus and write.
What repeating themes do you find yourself pulling into your stories?
Adventure, probably, and finding your meaning.
In my first book, Starborn of the Galaxy, the main character sets out to save the empire but also to discover himself, the new magic powers he discovered and what’s his true role in the galaxy.
In my second book, Of Mud and Crown, the main character its out on an adventure across the kingdom to rid it of bandits, but discovers the road matters more – and finds out more about the world and himself.
How do you wind down?
I don’t really do that, to be honest, as I can be writing an intense scene one minute and a few minutes later be asleep, but I really like myself a hot shower and warm light in a dark room.
What sort of challenges do you regularly overcome while designing your world/setting?
For Of Mud and Crown, the biggest difficulty was the historical research I had to do to get everything right. Almost every page, I would have to research carefully on the layout of peasant homes and villages in that specific time period, what teenagers would do at home, how taverns looked and how dice was played. But I really like the result and the fact that I can confidently say there’s a very small chance I’m not inventing Mark’s story, but rather… re-telling it.
What are you reading at the moment?
Currently, I’m re-reading The Fellowship of the Ring by Tolkien.
I’m reading it at the same time as writing Of Mud and Crown.
What’s the most useful advice you could give to an aspiring author?
I guess, just write.
Don’t worry about publishing, editing, book cover, all that stuff yet – because you can dive deep into all this publishing process and never even finish the book. That’s what happened to me, honestly – and I always tell myself, write at least half, before worrying about publishing.
Tell us about the book you’re promoting.
Well, my primary focus right now is Of Mud and Crown – but I also have my first book, Starborn of the Galaxy, which is currently published as an ebook worldwide. It’s a Sci-Fi Fantasy novel about a teenager that is forced into the imperial army, escapes, discovers he has magical powers and builds a crew to fight against the empire’s rule of the galaxy.
On the other side my newer book, Of Mud and Crown, which will be released September 2026, is a completely different genre – a medieval adventure ‘road’ story. Not a “save-the-kingdom, fight dragons” but rather a grounded, realistic medieval story of a simple peasant teenager who heads out on an adventure across the kingdom, and ends up lost in a forest during a storm, learning lock picking from a shady miller, traveling with a pilgrim, playing dice in a wayside tavern, learning sword fighting from an old retired knight and even watching a sword fighting tournament.
Coming September 2026 as print and ebook to most major retailers worldwide.
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