Challenge Faves

Ask the Author: Samuel Hawley

“Ask me a question.” Samuel Hawley

Answered Questions (5)

Sort By:
Loading big
An error occurred while sorting questions for author Samuel Hawley.
still not recived my copy of Bad Elephant Far Stream i won on dec 6th??
Samuel Hawley Dear Margaret,

I'm very sorry to hear the book hasn't arrived yet. I went back and checked and the order (#77485812) was placed on Dec. 6 and shipped on Dec. 31 (pretty long delay there).

I'm away from home now (went south for the winter) but will be back the middle of next week. If the book hasn't arrived by then, I will get in touch with Amazon and see that a replacement gets sent.

Again, my apologies.

Sam Hawley
flag
How do you get inspired to write?
Samuel Hawley I research. That's my background (MA in history and author of several nonfiction books). The first step in creating a good book is to research the hell out of a topic, to immerse yourself in it. Do enough of it and a story starts to emerge--plot lines, character backgrounds, motivations, and a myriad of details, sights and colors, smells and sounds. I use this approach with my novels as well as my nonfiction books. No matter how active my imaginative might be, it pales next to what has actually happened, to what people have actually done, to events that have actually occurred. The cliche "the truth is stranger than fiction" is in fact totally true.

If you want ideas for compelling fiction, therefore, start by exploring the truth. Start digging by reading history books, biographies, memoirs, newspaper stories. Do that with your mind attuned to identifying interesting material and you will soon amass more story ideas than you can ever turn into books.
flag
Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?
Samuel Hawley I've returned to nonfiction with the book I'm working on now. It's a history of how boxing played an integral role in the early development of motion picture technology in the 1890s. The title is THE FIGHT THAT STARTED THE MOVIES: THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP, THE BIRTH OF CINEMA AND THE FIRST FEATURE FILM. It’s a little known story that I stumbled across several years ago and thought would be an interesting subject for a book. As with most book ideas, it came from reading, poking around, dipping into this book and that.
flag
How do you deal with writer’s block?
Samuel Hawley I generally try to shake things up. For example, I'll elevate my keyboard and mouse so I can write standing up. With the internet being such a distraction, sometimes I'll unplug the ethernet cable from my computer so I can't "just quickly check my e-mail" when the going gets tough. (The internet and the demands of book marketing can be a huge distraction from actual writing.)

I also meditate in the evenings before going to bed. This is more of a relaxation thing, but I find that when I sleep well (and especially when I have vivid dreams) I am more creative the next day.
flag
What are you currently working on?
Samuel Hawley It's a nonfiction book, a history of how boxing played an integral role in the early development of motion picture technology in the 1890s. The title is THE FIGHT THAT STARTED THE MOVIES: THE WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP, THE BIRTH OF CINEMA AND THE FIRST FEATURE FILM. Once I get it done (first draft hopefully by the end of this year, 2015) I plan to return to fiction with an idea I've been working on for a possible detective series.
flag
Samuel Hawley
165 followers
To ask Samuel Hawley a question, please sign up.

About Goodreads Q&A

Ask and answer questions about books!

You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.

See Featured Authors Answering Questions

Learn more