Trisha Sugarek's Blog, page 93

An Interview with Author, Andrew Grant

Andrew is a slick, clever mystery writer with tight interesting plots.  I 'met' him through his writer/wife, Tasha Alexander.  Can't wait for his newest release coming out in the fall of 2014.

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing? 

A. Whenever possible I write in what was originally the maid’s room in our apartment in Chicago (there was no sign of the maid when we moved in, so I figured someone may as well use it...) but due to the amount of traveling I have to do, I often find myself working on planes or in airport lounges, or any other place where I won’t get either wet or arrested!

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas)

A. I’m an obsessively tidy person, so I guess that tendency extends itself to my work space. Other than tidiness, all I need to get started in the morning is a giant pot of coffee. Followed by several more giant pots of coffee as the day (and sometimes, the night) progresses.

Q. What is your mode of writing? 

A. I write on my computer (MacBook Air – good for traveling) and revise on paper, scribbling notes with a different coloured pen for each book. There’s no rhyme or reason for the colour choice – I just pick whatever I feel like at the time. It was purple for the book I just finished, green for the one before that...

Q. Do you have a set time each day to write or do you write only when you are feeling creative?

A. Time is the scarcest resource for a novelist, so waiting to feel creative is a luxury I can’t afford. I just start in the morning and keep going until I hit the milestone I’ve mapped out for that day. I like to work for fifty minutes and then break for ten out of each hour – a habit my father passed on to me from his days in the army.

Andrew and author/wife Tasha

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

A. What I do whenever the urge to procrastinate strikes is to tell myself I can write one of two things that day: my current novel, or a letter to my old boss asking for my previous job back. That’s generally enough to get the words flowing!

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing and for how long?

A. I certainly find it hard to switch between the world I’m making up in my head – and all the strands of story I’m trying to keep straight – and the real world. This is at its worst when I have to leave the house and run any kind of errand. People see me wandering around the grocery store or the post office in a complete trance and assume I must be possessed or in need of psychological assistance.

Andrew Grant was born in Birmingham, England in May 1968. He went to school in St Albans, Hertfordshire and later attended the University of Sheffield where he studied English Literature and Drama. After graduation Andrew set up and ran a small independent theatre company which showcased a range of original material to local, regional and national audiences. Following a critically successful but financially challenging appearance at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival Andrew moved into the telecommunications industry as a ‘temporary’ solution to a short-term cash crisis. Fifteen years later, after carrying out a variety of roles, Andrew escaped from corporate life, and established himself as the author of the critically-acclaimed David Trevellyan series of novels--Even, Die Twice, and More Harm Than Good. He is married to novelist Tasha Alexander, and divides his time between Chicago, IL and Sheffield, England. Further information is available on his website--www.andrewgrantbooks.com

Andrew and his wife, Tasha

Don't miss Part II on February 8th



For more about Andrew and his books: http://andrewgrantbooks.com/andrew.php

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. This month Andrew Grant will join us.  Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods in the coming months.   Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

Where to Find a Narrator for my Audio book? (Part 2)

Part II An Interview with VO professional and actor, Daniel Dorse       (Part I, click here)

It's Easy!  I use www.acx.com.  The platform is simple to use and they have a terrific 'stable' of professional narrators.  Your book is published in audio form at amazon.com/audio, audible.com and iTunes.com.  You can pay your narrator/producer a percentage of sales or a one time fee.  The one time fees are on a sliding scale depending on what the narrator requires 'per finished hour'.  With acx.com you will know what you will be paying (it's based on the number of words in your manuscript.) before you commit. Tip. Eliminate all extra words like copyright page, acknowledgements, title, etc. and count only the words of the manuscript.

My one and only complaint about acx.com is the length of time they take to do the final quality control bit.  Two weeks.  Now sit back and enjoy the second part of my chat with Daniel.

Daniel working in his studio

Q. Can you tell us about your process when you get a job to narrate a book?

A. When I'm hired to produce an audio book, I should read the entire book, making character notes, notes on pronunciation, mood, transitions, accents, etc. In fact, I like to live dangerously, reading only a few chapters ahead (to avoid too many unwelcome surprises, like , "Uh-oh! This character I've been voicing for 15 pages is supposed to be Irish. Now I have to re-record."). I do this, I tell myself, because I like to retain an element of spontaneity in my read, but it's probably also because I'm both lazy & overly cocky about my sight-reading abilities.

Q. Do you have a separate studio for this work?

A. I work out of my home studio, which is at present an office room in my home, with a computer & monitor (with editing software), speakers, a mixing board, a mic on a stand, a music stand to hold my iPad (from which I read all of my scripts) & a "booth" made from special sound-dampening fabric suspended from the ceiling. (also massive amounts of clutter--there's that laziness again) I also have a decent work ethic, recording & editing several chapters a day, often from more than one book, along with several auditions & a few commercials, promos, or video game characters each week. I also do some mentoring of other fledgling VO or audio book performers, & spend some time marketing my work.

Q. Do you have a favorite genre of fiction when you narrate?

A. As a reader, I'm an omnivore--everything from mysteries, to sci-fi, to military fiction--tho' I favor legal thrillers & alternative history. I don't read romance novels myself, but I enjoy performing them for their energy &, of course, "the naughty bits". Huge fan of Robert Parker, his wry humor, economical, yet vivid writing, 1st person narrative, strong characters, & cynically optimistic world-view. I especially like performing works with an ironic, dead-pan style, & think my voice is especially suited to it, tho' I also like things that stretch me as a performer, & expand my knowledge as a person--tho' I've yet to book any educational non-fiction projects. I like working with Trisha not only because I enjoy the characters, genre, & plot development, because it's very much a collaborative process. We trade ideas on characters, dialogue, & background info, creating a finished product that's better, I believe, than the sum of its parts.

Q. Do you have a particular genre that you dislike?

I don't really have any genres that I dislike as a performer, but I hate bad writing, & have turned down several projects by would-be writers who can't write a grammatical sentence or shape a coherent thought, let alone establish mood, sense of place, or character.

I invite those who do like my voice & storytelling style to check out some of my work on Audible or Amazon.com, or my web-site: www.danielvox.com.

Here's a little taste of Daniel's work on my murder mysteries:  Dance ofMurder--RAS

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. This month Andrew Grant will join us.  Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods in the coming months.   Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

Ready to Find that Ideal Narrator for your Audio-book??

Choose a narrator for your audio books….sounds easy doesn’t it?  I’d like to share my hit and miss experience and some tips about finding those perfect narrators for your audio books.  The good news is that now that I’ve learned a few things I have two wonderful reliable ‘voices’ for the production of my books.   The miss (when I didn't know what I was doing and was new to the audio book world)  was the situation where I found my first narrator wasn't willing to collaborate and work with me. She said that she was hired and paid to narrate the book that I sent, nothing more.  Sigh!

You will find, as I did, that your book 'sounds' far different than the written word on the page and how it sounds in your head.  You, the author, will need a narrator that will allow you to make changes.  You might remember my interview with my childrens' book narrator and gifted opera singer, Carin Gilfrey.  Now I thought it would be interesting for my readers to get to know, Daniel Dorse,  the voice of Sergeant Detective Jack O'Roarke.  (The World of Murder Series).

An Interview with Voice-over Actor and Producer, Daniel Dorse

 Q.  Tell us about your acting/directing career.

A. I was an early reader, quickly reading several levels above my grade, because to me, it was all about the story.

I cared less about seeing Dick run ("Run, Dick, run!"), than about seeing Dick run after Jane, hoping for a kiss, until she sicced Spot on him ("Run, Dick, run, you little perv!"). & along with that, because early reading lessons always involved reading aloud, it was for me all about telling the story expressively, in a way that it was interesting to listen to. Fast forward to the same sort of thing in high school English class, & reading aloud from Romeo & Juliet or Great Expectations, & then inevitably, to high school drama class.

I was then involved in theatre for many years, both academically & professionally--mostly acting, but also some directing, play writing, criticism, & teaching--culminating in a B.A. from UCSB (Michael Douglas & I were classmates who did several shows together), an M.A. from UCLA, & a Ph.D. from the University of Washington.

Q. When did you begin professional voice-overs and narrations?

A. I was performing in dinner theatre in Buffalo, NY, the producers got a call from an ad agency asking for recommendations for actors for some TV commercials, which I did, & when, a few months later, I was back in Seattle, working on my Ph.D. again, I heard of some actor friends making extra money voicing radio & TV commercials through a local studio, I chatted them up, cut a "spec" demo with copy I'd clipped from newspaper & magazine ads, & quickly started booking commercials. When I had a national spot running for Roman Meal Bread, I felt it was time to try the "Big Pond", & moved back to Southern California, got an agent, & booked a few things there ( a United Airlines commercial, a Disney trailer, etc.). I also did some stand-up comedy during these lean years.

Q. What led you to start a voice over career?

A. Because I was in "Show Business", I was also in the restaurant business--waiting tables, bartending, managing--until, pushing 40, I decided it was time to get "a real job", & because the gaming industry had always interested me, I went to Dealers' School, moved to Vegas, & dealt & supervised craps games for the next 25 years, still doing VO for extra money, including 3 seasons as the unseen play-by-play announcer, "Motor Mouth Mike Morgan", for G.L.O.W.--Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling. A little over 2 years ago, I sort of returned to my grade school roots, & started doing audio books from my home studio, & have since produced nearly 50 (thus far), all fiction, ranging from sci-fi to mystery/thrillers to horror to medieval romance. While it can certainly be a challenge at times, I really enjoy playing all the characters & bringing a story to life for the listener.

Part II next Tuesday February 4th

Click here ArtofMurder--RAS for a sample of Daniel narrating my murder mysteries

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

'Home to Seaview Key', A Review (author, Sherryl Woods)

A REVIEW!     (5 out of 5 quills)

Sherryl Woods, once again, plunges her reader into a love story, on the first page, with a sexy kiss shared by strangers on a beach.  The story keeps us interested with love fraught with complications, small town politics, and charming and funny characters.

I am a reviewer who does not give the reader the entire story in my review.  I hate when that happens, don't you?!  But I will promise you that you will be rooting for Abby and Seth by Chapter two.   They both deserve 'forever' love, but with the baggage that they both carry (and I'm not talking trains here) will they be able to find a common ground?

And the little town of Seaview Key....every one of us wishes we could live there.  Surrounded by ocean, salty breezes, ice tea on the wrap-around porch and populated by folks that care about their community and each other.

'Falling for a handsome stranger on the very morning they meet is hardly what recently divorced Abby Miller planned for her return to Seaview Key. Hoping to mend an old friendship and to give back to the community she loves, Abby's definitely not looking for love.' (excerpt from amazon.com)

I have been reading Sherryl Woods for decades.  Her quality of writing never waivers.  You can always count on a good story filled with interesting people.  Highly recommended.

Don't miss my interview with Ms. Woods coming this April!

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

Interviewing Best Selling Authors...looking back!

This is my one year anniversary of interviewing best selling authors and I'm amazed at the success of it!!  Authors have been so generous with their writing process and their time.  The interviews are on-going and currently we are booked through April, 2014.  It's always a thrill for me when busy, well-known authors are so generous with their answers that I must break it up into 'parts'.

The common threads from all the authors were:  discipline, consistency, and hard work.  That no process is right or wrong as long as you have one.  Never give up, keep writing.  Rewrite, rewrite, rewrite!  I've said it before and it bears repeating: 'Writing is not for the faint of heart.  As Hemingway said, "Writing is easy.  You just sit at the typewriter and bleed...'  

Here is a list of authors who have shared with me...and you....past, present and the ones we have to look forward to: (Click on their names if you'd like to read the interview)

Jeffrey Deaver

Sue Grafton

Dean Koontz ** coming soon

Sue Grafton

Jeffrey Deaver

Tasha Alexander

Rhys Bowen

Mark Childress

Patrick Taylor

Sherryl Woods  * coming soon

Barbara Delinsky * coming soon

Raymond Benson

Raymond Benson

Patrick Taylor

Andrew Grant  * February

Janet Evanovich * coming soon

Charles Bukowski (posthumously)

Caroline Leavitt

Heidi Jon Schmidt

Amber Winckler

Robert McCammon

Robert McCammon

Karen Robards

Elizabeth Gilbert

Ann Purser

Susan Elia MacNeal

Jo-Ann Mapson

Thanks for visiting my blog!

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson is my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

How to Write a Novel....the writing Process...Is there a Wrong Way?

NO!  There is no 'wrong' process when writing your story....but, as I and other authors (I've interviewed) have stressed....be certain that you HAVE a process.

1.  Write about what you know.  If you are a beginner...and we all were at one time...write a story about something you know or have had first hand experience with.

2.  If the idea of writing a novel  (75,000+ words)  is way too daunting,  write a short story (3,000 words) or a series of short stories.  Write a novella. (16-25,000 words).   After writing three full length novels, I decided that my mystery series The World of Murder would be short novels.  I didn't run out of story,  I just believe that there is a market for short novels (24--35,000 words).

3.  If your subject is something that you know nothing or very little about the Internet is a powerful tool.  Let me give you some examples:  My aunt ran away to Alaska in the 1920's to homestead.  I knew her story but I knew very little about Alaska at the turn of the last century.   What did Fairbanks look like then?  It was little more than a trading post.  How many acres did you get when you homesteaded?  80. What tribe of native Alaskans were in my story-area and what language did they speak?  Were there hunting 'tags' or seasons for hunting in those days?

Another example is my murder mysteries that are very heavy with police procedures.  I know a lot but certainly don't know everything.  Between the Internet and my mentor, Vincent Parso, PI, (ex-cop)  I have pretty much everything I need in the way of research.  My latest book (4) that I am working on now is about the Catholic religion and confession.  I am not a Catholic so I called my friend's priest, Father Gabe, and he was incredibly kind and helpful.  DON'T BE AFRAID TO ASK FOR HELP!  I asked a private detective and a priest, BOTH STRANGERS, and they gave willingly of their time and knowledge.

4. What if my writing process is wrong?  NO!  There is no wrong process. Just be certain that you have a writing process.  Whether it's with meticulous outlines and story notes or just writing from your gut. My process is this:  An idea forms and begins writing itself in my mind.   I joke about 'slamming  my story down first'.  It's more than an outline (which I don't use) and less than the finished product.  I type 80 words a minute so when I say I slam it down, I mean I slam it down.  I frequently write out of sequence.  Sometimes the Epilogue is written before the end of the story.  Sometimes the prologue is written after the first few chapters. ' That's WEIRD', you say?   No, not really,  the story such as it is at that point is feeding me.  Right now, as I am writing The Angel of Murder, some chapters are un-numbered as I'm not certain where they fit, only that they are part of the story.

5.  Have people you trust read your manuscript.  They aren't standing as close to it as you are.  But, be certain that they can look at the work and give a constructive critique.  When I say trust, I'm not talking about them stealing your work,  I'm talking about trusting that they will be honest with you.  I have two such people in my circle;  one in particular.  He is honest and wants the very best for me and out of me. 

6. Poor Man's Copyright:  I've done this for years.  When I have four or five pages of a manuscript completed, I make up a title page, date it and then mail it to myself.  When you get it back in the mail, be certain you DON'T open it.  Just tuck it away in a safe place.  Courts (if it ever came to that) will honor the post marked and unopened envelope.  Of course you have saved the date of the saved draft of the first time you worked on it in your computer.

7.  Re-write, re-write, then re-write some more!   Read your work over and over.  You don't have to read it from start to finish....that will make your eyes cross and make you want to give up.  Read sections,  edit, re-write, make it as good as you can.

8.  Self-Publishing.  Not too many years ago this was a dirty word.  People who couldn't write well would put a 'vanity book' out there and never write another thing and certainly wouldn't hone their craft....which takes years.  Writing is not for the faint-hearted.  Now self publishing is accepted and even respected.  I am in both camps; I have had the honor of Samuel French, Inc. accepting and publishing some of my play scripts.  For the most part I self publish with Amazon.com (worldwide) on their publishing platform, CreateSpace.com.  I have gone on to put my work on e-Books and Audio-books.

Be sure to check out my other postings about writing a stage play or writing Haiku poetry.

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

Famous Quotes....and What I Think!

Dylan Thomas

"My education was the liberty I had to read indiscriminately and all the time, with my eyes hanging out.” - Dylan Thomas

"When I'm not writing, I am reading....and I think, along with many other authors, that it makes me a better writer." Me

"I went to brush something off my cheek and it was the floor."  Unknown.

"But it had to have been said by one of these famous drunks.  Hemingway? Tennessee Williams? James Joyce? F. Scott Fitzgerald? Bukowski?"  Me

Ernest Hemingway

 "There is nothing to writing.  All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed."  Hemingway

"Bleeding words.....things could be worse. I live for those days."  Me

 

 

H.G. Wells

"If you are in difficulties with a book, try the element of surprise; attack it at an hour when it isn't expecting it." 

H.G. Wells

 

"Yes, that's why my light flickers on at three in the morning and I make notes on a tablet by my bed.  And surprisingly it makes sense the  next morning."  Me

"Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose or paint can manage to escape the madness, the  melancholia, the panic which is inherent in the human condition."  Graham Greene



"If only more people would not fear their artistic side, but instead embrace it, it is truly therapy."  Me

Alice Ellis

"There is no reciprocity. Men love women. Women love children. Children love hamsters. Hamsters don't love anyone; it is quite hopeless" - Alice Thomas Ellis

"I can't reply, I'm laughing too hard."  Me

Lewis Carroll

"If everybody minded their own business, the world would go around a great deal faster than it does."  Lewis Carroll

"I love this quote and to think it comes from the rabbit hole that Alice fell down."  Me

 

Jacob Nordby

Blessed are the weird people–poets, misfits, writers, mystics…painters & troubadours–for they teach us to see the world through different eyes." - Jacob Nordby

"I am in such good company as I am, myself, a poet, misfit, writer, painter, and, at times, a mystic.   And I can only hope that I teach a few to see the world through different eyes and heart."  Me

Miles Davis

"Do not fear mistakes.  There are none." Miles Davis

 

 

 

 

Me

" So-called mistakes visit my writing all the time.  So frequently does some amazing little bit show up that I have nicknamed them 'happy accidents'

and I will take them all day long."  Me

Want more? Click here

 

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson was my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

'What does No Book to Finished book Look Like? Part 3 with Raymond Benson, Author

My Interview with best-selling author, Raymond Benson (part 3).  It's always a thrill for me when busy, well-known authors are so generous with their answers that I must serialize the interview.  Don't miss Part 1 or 2.

Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from "no book" to "finished book" look like? 

Raymond at the keyboard

A. There is no set in stone process that writers should follow except the process they fashion themselves—the process that works for them. As I said (see Part 2), I happen to outline, it’s part of my process. I know writers who don’t outline, and that’s part of their processes. Everyone is different. That said, you do have to develop a process, and it must be a productive one, for the most important thing about writing a finished book is to indeed finish it.

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters ?

A. My books tend to be plot-driven—I think of the storyline before I cast it with characters. They develop with the story, usually. This hasn’t always been the case. With The Black Stiletto, the character came first. My literary manager and I were having lunch one day, and he advised me to create something women would like, since the vast majority of book-buyers were women. I facetiously suggested creating a female superhero, and we laughed for a minute. And then he said, “You know, that’s not a bad idea.” At the same time, I already had a story brewing in my mind about a grown man who discovers some dark secret about his dying mother (who has Alzheimer’s). I didn’t know what that secret was yet. So I put the two ideas together. The dark secret was that the man’s mother was once a masked vigilante known as The Black Stiletto, who was active in the late 1950s and early 60s, and then mysteriously disappeared. As a result, there are five Black Stiletto books that tell this woman’s tale—in many ways she was a feminist before that word was in our vernacular. And then there is my tie-in work—of which I do a lot—where I’m given the characters or the universe or the actual plots. For example, I wrote six original James Bond novels, and three movie novelizations. In a case like that, the character is set, and the writer’s job is to create original plots and villains.

Q. What inspired your story/stories ?

A. Various things. With the Bonds, I’d study a map of the globe and note the hotspots the United Kingdom would be concerned about. By zeroing in on a country and its history, and England’s motivation for being there, I usually found a plot tied in to real-world events in history or the present. With my own novels, I’m usually inspired by news stories I’ve heard, true crimes, or, more often than not, just my imagination.

Q. When is your next book coming out? (or) What are you working on?

Raymond in Houston

 

A. The fourth Black Stiletto book, The Black Stiletto: Secrets & Lies will be published in January 2014. The fifth and final book, The Black Stiletto: Endings & Beginnings, will be published November 2014. In between is a Mystery Writers of America anthology I co-edited (with Jeffery Deaver) and contributed to: Ice Cold—Tales of Intrigue From the Cold War, featuring a number of terrific authors.

Q. Have you? Or do you want to write in another genre`?

A. I’ve written thrillers, mysteries, science fiction, horror, historical fantasy, and non-fiction. What else is there? I have no burning desire to write romance. I suppose attempting to write a novel-novel, one of those “Great American Novels,” the kind Oprah talks about and becomes a worldwide bestseller—I haven’t done that yet!

Q. Is there anything else you’d like our readers to know?

A. You can find out everything you wanted to know about me, but were afraid to ask, at my website www.raymondbenson.com. You can learn more about the Black Stiletto, see videos, hear Black Stiletto music, and read a free teaser short story, at www.theblackstiletto.net. Find me on Facebook. Oh, and a recent series of blogs I wrote go into more detail about my writing process and the things I’ve learned about writing... by writing. You can access Blog Benson through my website.

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  Missed Part one or two?  Click here

DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!     Raymond Benson will be my January author. In the coming months, Andrew Grant, Janet Evanovich, Barbara Delinski, Loretta Chase and Sherryl Woods will join us.  Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

A Chat with Raymond Benson, Author (part 2)

Raymond at the Spy Museum

TS. 'This photo speaks loudly about the rewards of overcoming procrastination, doesn't it??'

Part 2 of 3 ** My Interview with Raymond Benson

Q. What’s your best advice to other writers for overcoming procrastination?

A. If you don’t have a real deadline from an employer, then make one for yourself. Just tell yourself, “I’m going to finish this by the holidays,” or whatever, and stick to it. It takes discipline, and you might have to work at it, but hey, being a writer is, after all, a job.

Q. Do you ‘get lost’ in your writing and for how long?

A. Never, because I take care of all the instances of getting lost during the Outline phase. I’m a firm believer in outlining a novel prior to writing it. I know many writers don’t, and that works for them, but for me, I find it to be an invaluable tool. I spend a month or two on it, and it’s in that document I work out the plot, the twists and turns, the red herrings, and I structure the story into a dramatic piece, the entirety of which I can look at with a bird’s-eye view. It’s like doing a prose storyboard for the novel. Believe me, it’s easier to throw out a few paragraphs of an outline when you don’t like the way the story is going, than it is to throw out two or three chapters. So I do all of my hair-pulling and angst-spouting during the Outline phase, which then makes the longer, more tedious phase of Writing much easier.

Q. Who or what is your “Muse” at the moment?

A. My character The Black Stiletto became a muse after I created her. She was so much fun to write, I couldn’t wait to get back to giving her more to do. I just recently completed the fifth and last Black Stiletto book, though, so I’m searching for a new muse. If you know of any muses looking for work, let me know.

Q. When did you begin to write seriously?

A. I tell a joke—There was no money in theatre, so I became a writer. Actually, though, I fell into writing, it wasn’t on my Grand Plan of Life, although I had written stuff as a kid and in college. It was several years later, when I was in Manhattan working as a theatre director and music composer, that I decided to write a book for fun, as a labor of love, because it was about a subject close to my heart. This was The James Bond Bedside Companion, first published in 1984. That made a left turn in my career path that I didn’t expect.

Q. How long after that were you published?

A. It took three years to complete The James Bond Bedside Companion from conception, getting a publishing contract, researching and writing the book, and eventual publication after a series of unforeseen bumps in the road, such as the first publisher going out of business and having to sell their properties to a new one.

Q. What makes a writer great?

A. Who one reader thinks is great, another reader might not like at all. And vice versa. Who can say someone is “great” except when expressing one’s own opinion? Instead of saying, “that’s the best whatever,” I try to say “my favorite.” My favorite movies of the year, not the best movies of the year. No one is really qualified to say what is best. But I can tell you some of the authors I admire: Ian Fleming, Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine, Michael Connelly, Lee Child, Richard Adams, Jim Thompson, James M. Cain, Greg Iles, Will Graham, Tess Gerritsen, Philip K. Dick, William Kent Krueger... that’s just off the top of my head.

Don't Miss Part 3 of this fascinating Interview  January 14th.

Click here to read Part 1

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!    Patrick Taylor joined us in November.  Heidi Jon Schmidt will be under your Christmas tree.  Raymond Benson will be my January author. Slick mystery writer, Andrew Grant will join us this winter. Janet Evanovich and Loretta Chase will be featured . Sherryl Woods is our Valentine author. Dean Koontz just granted me an interview and will be featured here this spring!

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!

 

Interview with Raymond Benson, best selling Author (1of3)

RAYMOND BENSON is the internationally-acclaimed author of thirty published titles. The third book in his most recent thriller series—THE BLACK STILETTO: SECRETS and LIES— was  released today.   He took out time to interview with me and generously talked at length about his writing process and world.

Q. Where do you write? Do you have a special room, shed, barn, special space for your writing?

A. I have an office at home, and it’s exclusively used for that purpose. It’s full of books and filing cabinets, artwork, trinkets, a CD player, and of course, my desk and computer. There’s even a lava lamp, although I don’t use it as much as I should! On my desk is a photo of my wife, an “action figure” replica of the black monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey, and a pebble from the beach at Goldeneye, in Jamaica, the home where Ian Fleming wrote all the Bond novels. And a slinky, to play with during the times when I have to sit there and ponder.

Q. Do you have any special rituals when you sit down to write? (a neat work space, sharpened #2 pencils, legal pad, cup of tea, glass of brandy, favorite pajamas?)

A. Not really. On a normal day, often I’m in my sleepwear in the mornings up until the lunch hour. The morning is when I catch up on e-mail, do all the promotional and marketing stuff we have to do as writers--website, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+... it’s a wonder we get any actual writing done. I like to break up my day by going out at lunchtime; that’s when I’ll shower and dress and hit the road. I’ll have a nice lunch and do whatever errands I need to do (post office, bank, library, groceries), then work on the real stuff in the afternoon. I sometimes play music, depending on my mood. I don’t have any trouble concentrating on the writing when music is playing, even vocal songs.

Q. What is your mode of writing?

A. Definitely computer. Even I have trouble reading my own penmanship.

Q. Do you have a set time each day to write or do you write only when you are feeling creative?

A. It depends upon what phase of the book I’m in. The normal day I described above is pretty typical. If I’m in the Conceptual phase, it might look like

Raymond and Black Stiletto

I’m doing nothing. I daydream a lot and jot ideas down to try and come up with the premise. Then comes whatever research I need to do, followed by the Outline phase, the hardest part. I try to adhere to a normal day for that. When I start the Writing phase, I follow a rule—write a complete scene per day. That might be an entire chapter. If it’s a long scene, I’m at my computer until that night, with a break for dinner. If it’s a short one, and I finish it in an hour, I go to a movie matinee. Of course, life always interrupts “normal days,” so I have to be prepared to improvise.

Don't Miss Part 2 with this fascinating author  January 9th

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DON'T MISS UPCOMING BLOGS featuring INTERVIEWS with  best-selling AUTHORS!   "The Writer's Corner"

In addition to my twice weekly blog I will also feature an interview with another author once a month. These authors have already responded and you can read their interviews by clicking on their name: Janet Evanovich, Ann Purser, Susan Elia MacNeal,  Karen Robards, Mark Childress, Rhys Bowen, Dean Koontz, Tasha Alexander, Patrick Taylor, Sheryl Woods, Jo-Ann Mapson, Jeffrey Deaver, Cathy Lamb, Elizabeth Gilbert, Amber Winckler, Raymond Benson, Andrew Grant, Heidi Jon Schmidt, Robert McCammon, Sue Grafton, Janet Evanovich, Walter Mosley, and many others.

So come along with me; we shall sneak into these writers' special places, be a fly on the wall and watch them create!    Patrick Taylor joined us in November.  Heidi Jon Schmidt will be under your Christmas tree.  Raymond Benson will be my January author. Slick mystery writer, Andrew Grant will join us this winter. Janet Evanovich and Loretta Chase will be featured . Sherryl Woods is our Valentine author.

To receive my posts sign up for my   On the home page, enter your email address. Click on "join my blog". You need to confirm in an email from 'Writer at Play' . Thanks!