Mystery Thriller Week - Featured Author Interview #1: Nicholas Nash

To celebrate Mystery Thriller Week, I'll be interviewing a few featured authors on my journal and podcast in February 2017. Starting us off isNicholas Nash, author of The Girl At The Bar (01/02/2017).You are living in the world from your latest novel. Where are you? What is it like?In all likelihood I’m the unemployed, down-on-my-luck trader and math whiz Ragnar Johnson getting into all sorts of trouble. Alternatively, I could be a cancer researcher in the labs of Atticus Biopharma working close to the incredibly beautiful and talented Rebecca Chase. I’d probably never leave her side.You are your most recent protagonist. Who are you? What is the first thing you do?That would be Ragnar Johnson, someone who is based in some respects on me. Ragnar is a brilliant math whiz but slightly socially awkward. He is very intelligent and thinks out of the box. He does not have the best luck in the world despite how smart he is. He makes wrong choices, gets into all sorts of trouble but still thinks off his feet, trying to make the best of circumstances that are handed to him.Some of the choices Ragnar makes in the book are in several respects how I would react to circumstances, so I would pretty much do what he does in the book. It’s eerie how I subconsciously created him and several chapters later I realized he was me! Hmm…Who is your favourite author? Why?I enjoy reading Ayn Rand (Atlas Shrugged) and Daniel Yergin (The Prize). Their work is sweeping in vision with a whole bunch of interesting characters and intriguing story lines that are grand. In the case of The Prize, those are real people and real history. I enjoy reading stories with multiple characters and complex intertwined story lines. Simple two or three character stories don’t appeal to me much.Where do you get your ideas?They come from all sorts of places. I try to create a mosaic of ideas based on my personal experiences, people I’ve met, places I’ve been, things I’ve read and things I’ve heard. I try to be original and creative about my ideas. I hate trying to rehash something that’s already been written before or try to please the ideal reader in my head. I don’t know what readers like to read but I do know what I would like to read. That’s what I write about.Why do you write?Writing is a form of creative expression for me. Writing gives me the freedom to express my ideas, thoughts and emotions on paper. It is a liberating experience that I enjoy quite a bit.How do you deal with bad reviews, rejection and criticism?I don’t. It’s not my place to judge the reviewers. They are entitled to their opinion and I’m extremely glad to get feedback, positive or negative. Criticism is absolutely great as well. No one improves with a constant stream of positive feedback. Criticism and negative feedback is what prompts me into action, so I welcome it. I’d rather know what was not good, not appreciated or could be improved upon.What do you find difficult about writing?Writing a mystery is a balancing act. The author has to hide the facts and the mystery enough while writing the story that the reader does not guess the climax. At the same time, the author has to reveal sufficient clues such that when the reader reaches the end, she feels like it was all there but she did not guess it. She feels stumped, surprised and excited at the same time. Getting that right balance while writing the mystery is probably the most difficult part.What do you love the most about writing?The outreach to readers is the most exciting part. Once the writing is complete, getting readers to read your work and knowing that they enjoyed it is exhilarating.Do you ever outsource (editing and cover design) your work?There are some things that I’m not good at, cover design being one of them. I provide inputs on what I think the cover should look like, but use the help of a graphic designer to translate my ideas into a real cover. For THE GIRL AT THE BAR, my publisher at Fireflies Publishing and I worked on the idea together with a graphic designer to get the final cover. We started with an initial draft and after 13 different sets of changes got to the final cover. I love the final cover. It is dramatic and intriguing, pulling in readers visually.What is your opinion on the indie vs traditional publishing argument?I don’t have any strong views or opinions on that topic. I do think though that authors should be entitled to a higher royalty amount from traditional publishers. They are the talent after all and deserve a bigger cut of the economics.Talk us through your creative process from start to finish.I write in the moment mostly. I start with an idea for a story without the whole story sketched out. I want to see where the story goes as I write it. I sketch out the events of the next 4-5 chapters on a storyboard and transcribe that on paper. I read and re-read those. That’s when it clicks me – “Of course, this is what needs to happen next,” or “If I were a reader, this is what I’d like to know next.” That forms the basis of the story outline for the next 4-5 chapters. I keep doing this till I get to the end.The difficult part about not having the entire story line worked out in advance is that you leave loose ends behind or ideas that were drifting in one direction but you ultimately end up going in another direction altogether. I then go back and iron out all those issues to make sure the story is consistent and flows correctly.What advice would you give to aspiring writers?Write what you know about and never give up.Give us your top three book marketing/ promotion tips.I’m a first time author and still learning the tricks of the trade. No secret sauce yet. I try to engage with readers on social media. Hopefully the book speaks for itself and stands apart on its own merit.Would you agree a good book must withstand more than one read?Not exactly, but I do think a book must be able to withstand one full read from start to finish. I’m surprised at how often I lose interest midway through a book and I just let it go. That’s the most frustrating part as a reader, investing time in a book that goes into your “stop reading midway” pile.What do you look for when shopping on Amazon for a Kindle book? Are any of them more important to you than others?Good question. I follow a multi-stage evaluation process before picking a book. I secretly hope all my readers are not fussy shoppers like me. At first, I look at reader reviews of the book. More reviews are good. A higher percentage of four and five stars is good. The second step is the description. I read the description to make sure it holds enough water for me to be interested. The third step, I download sample chapters for multiple books that pass the first two tests for me. I read the sample chapters as and when I get time.If a book hooks me after I read the sample chapter, I will buy it. If not, I don’t. Price and some of the other factors are a bit less relevant then. E-books are priced very attractively and don’t necessarily burn a hole in your pocket.Do you have a favourite genre?My tastes keep changing all the time. I like science fiction (Isaac Asimov, Michael Crichton), non-fiction history (Pulitzer-winning history books) and mysteries (Paula Hawkins).What would it take for you to leave a book review?Not much. Though I’m not someone who leaves detailed written reviews. I prefer writing crisp and to the point reviews.After downloading book one of a series for free or discounted on Amazon, do you ever go back and pay more for book two? If not, why?Of course, if the book is good, I certainly do so. It’s actually a pretty good deal. You get to read a whole book for free or at a discounted price to decide if you want to invest time in reading the series.Do you ever visit an author's website? If so, what do you look at?I sometimes do so when I like a particular book. It would be mostly to see what else the author has published and what is coming up. An interesting author interview is always welcome.If an author offered you a free book, would you sign up to their mailing list?Of course I would.Do you ever enter giveaways and/ or order signed copies?I don’t but I know I should. The lottery aspect of it turns me off a bit. Theoretically you could do this for years and years and never get even one copy. If I want a signed copy, I try and find a not so expensive version online and buy it.Are you more likely to buy a book if there are various formats available?I haven’t thought oif it that way, but that’s probably true.What are the biggest giveaways that a book is self-published?Self-published books more often than not have amateur covers, often designed by the author. That gives it away.Thanks to Nicholas Nash for this interesting interview. To support the author and Mystery Thriller Week, please consider purchasing a copy of the book (see below).