Ask the Author: Rob Bauer
Answered Questions (6)
Rob Bauer
I'm a college professor first and a writer second, so I can't speak about writing as a career. When it comes to the process of writing, I enjoy the chance to produce something that will make people happy, make their lives a little more informed (with my nonfiction books) or enjoyable (with the fiction books). I just hope I'm good enough that people feel more informed or happy when they get done because then they hopefully recommend the books to others and I can do the same for a wider audience.
Rob Bauer
It sprung from research for my PhD dissertation. My dissertation was 800+ pages, so there were bound to be a couple good ideas in there somewhere, right? :)
Rob Bauer
After spending as many years in graduate school as I have, I've learned you can't afford to have writers block.
That being said, when I'm stuck sometimes a walk with the dog helps. Or I'll take one or two days away to clear my mind. But no more than that. When you're writing early drafts of something, you'll have plenty of time to think about it and revise before you get to a final draft. So I don't worry if the first draft or two of a certain part doesn't seem very good--there will be chances to get it right before the book gets published.
That being said, when I'm stuck sometimes a walk with the dog helps. Or I'll take one or two days away to clear my mind. But no more than that. When you're writing early drafts of something, you'll have plenty of time to think about it and revise before you get to a final draft. So I don't worry if the first draft or two of a certain part doesn't seem very good--there will be chances to get it right before the book gets published.
Rob Bauer
Writing history is like putting together a puzzle. You get all this evidence, all this good information, and then you have to reassemble what you know into an attractive picture that is coherent, logical, and fits together properly. This is, of course, an enormous challenge. It's also a very gratifying one when you finish and you know you've created the best book you're capable of.
With fiction it's different for me. When I write fiction, I write for the challenge of creating something people will enjoy that's entirely my own creation. Yes, I do research and use real events to help craft the story, but how the characters and plot turn out is all up to me. That's a different challenge than writing history, and I've found that while making up a story sounds easy, it's a lot harder than most people think.
With fiction it's different for me. When I write fiction, I write for the challenge of creating something people will enjoy that's entirely my own creation. Yes, I do research and use real events to help craft the story, but how the characters and plot turn out is all up to me. That's a different challenge than writing history, and I've found that while making up a story sounds easy, it's a lot harder than most people think.
Rob Bauer
With two books to my name I'm not exactly an expert at this point but when I write historical fiction, what helps the most is to base your story off a real story that's really good or really unique. That way, you don't have to work as hard to make your story interesting and unique.
Rob Bauer
Two new books, currently. One is the second half of my first novel, My Australian Adventure, titled The World Traveler. Book 1 leaves little Clarence in Australia, so he still has to find his way back to Chicago somehow. The second is another history book in my Outside the Lines of Gilded Age Baseball series. This one is about why the Players League of 1890 happened. Too often, people view the PL as a footnote in baseball's history, but it should be seen as so much more than that.
Oh, and besides that, I'm revising an article that the Arkansas Historical Quarterly wants to publish, about why Hot Springs, Arkansas, was the site of the first major league baseball spring training.
Considering I'm trying to do all of this and still work my regular job as a college professor, I guess you could say I'm pretty busy!
Oh, and besides that, I'm revising an article that the Arkansas Historical Quarterly wants to publish, about why Hot Springs, Arkansas, was the site of the first major league baseball spring training.
Considering I'm trying to do all of this and still work my regular job as a college professor, I guess you could say I'm pretty busy!
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