Author Interview With James Quinn
[image error] Welcome everyone! Pull up a chair and have a seat as we chat with James Quinn and learn more about his writing and books.
Tell us your name or pseudonym: My name is James Quinn and I am the author of the “Gorilla Grant” series of spy novels.
What genre/s do you write in, and why? I write in the espionage/thriller genre. It’s something that I have always enjoyed reading, certainly from my early teens, and it’s something that has fascinated me ever since. I’ve become a bit of a collector of old spy novels but like most people my favorite writers in the genre are John LeCarre, Len Deighton, Frederick Forsyth, Ian Fleming and Graham Greene.
When did you begin writing, and was it something you’ve always wanted to do? I have always loved writing. I remember winning competitions in school for short stories and it has never really stopped. I hit my 40’s and figured out that if I was ever going to write a book then it had to be now or I never would. I’ve done some amazing things in my life but above all I always wanted to be a writer and have books published. The day that my books were published it was an amazing feeling, as if I’d joined a secret, elite club.
What type of research goes into your writing? It depends, but it is usually about locations that I’ve never been too or that no longer exist. People always assume that it’s the “secret” stuff relating to espionage, but as I work in a related field that has never been an issue and I’ve never had to worry about trying to figure that aspect out.
I remember for my first book, A Game for Assassins, which is set in the 1960’s that I seemed to spend an awful lot of time trying to find out what gadgets were available to intelligence operatives during that time period, which was kind of fun.
How do you develop your characters, plot, and setting? For me it’s always the characters that come first. It’s the characters that I find the most interesting, and then I build the story around them. I may have a rough idea of the story and where I want it to go, but really it’s an organic process and I let the characters lead the way.
From there it becomes a case of letting the story “brew” in its own way – we take some wrong turns, we get back on track, and finally, hopefully, everything works out and makes sense to the readers.
What is your creative process (i.e. inspiration, where do you write)? For me it’s about delivering a human aspect to a fantastical story and making the characters fit seamlessly into that world. So as I say, characters are paramount, then it’s a story that highlights a threat or an issue, (exposed spy network, terrorist attack, eliminating a rival assassin) and then see how the characters react within that environment.
When I write it’s usually in my upstairs office where no one can disturb me. It has to be quiet – I can’t do music or background noise – and coffee, plenty of coffee. I never force the story, it either comes and flows naturally or I leave it alone. But when it does come it comes in bursts like machine gun fire…until the next time when there is a pause and then the whole process starts again. I’m not one of those writers that has a dedicated 9 to 5 regime.
Have you ever dealt with writer’s block? If so, how do you find your creative flow again? Not so much writers block, more about not sure if certain ideas will work. If that happens I step away from the writing, a day…a week…a few months and go and do other things. Walking has always helped me clear my head and think things through. It gives me perspective. Plus I live by the coast so it’s always a pleasure to walk along the beach.
Are you self-published or traditionally published? Can you give us your experience in either or both of these types of publishing? I’ve been both. I started off as a self published writer, and then quickly moved over to a publishing house – Creativia (now Next Chapter) – and I’ve never looked back. It’s been an amazing learning experience about how the industry works and the pitfalls for new writers. Luckily I’ve had some good people around me to help me navigate everything.
Do you market your own books? If so, how easy or difficult is this for an author? I usually do my own marketing and I leave the publisher to do their marketing for the books – between us we seem to do very well. Marketing is vital for a publisher; it’s having that team on hand and a strategy and budget that can make the difference. But that’s only half the story; these days all authors should be marketing their books as well. It’s more of a full time job than the actual writing!! The days of sitting back and letting the publisher do everything are long gone – even for the big publishing houses!!
What advice would you give other writers/authors about receiving negative reviews? Read them if you want to but don’t become obsessed by them. It’s only one person’s opinion. If the critique is valid, then learn from it and improve for next time. But the golden rule is that you never, and I mean NEVER, respond to a negative review. There is no good news to be had from that.
What advice would you give to wanna-be writers who are trying to get a book published? Don’t quit!! Keep going! There are enough resources out there these days to make it happen for you. If you have a story to tell and you want to share it with the world then a good mindset and determination will get you through.
If you had a chance to meet one of your favorite authors, alive or dead, who would it be? And what questions would you ask? I always used to say the spy writer John LeCarre, and that’s still valid. But after reading his memoirs and biography I think I’ve gotten to the heart of him. The only other one that I would like to share a coffee with would be the late William Goldman (author of Marathon Man and The Princess Bride) just to talk about his Hollywood screenwriting experiences.
List your book links and where we can find them to purchase:
The James Quinn books are available through all good and reputable retail platforms:
https://books2read.com/b/bzZpMq
https://www.nextchapter.pub/authors/james-quinn-british-espionage-thriller-author
http://mybook.to/clandestinejq
Thank you for chatting with us today at RWS, we appreciate your time.
It was my absolute pleasure and thank you for hosting me. Best wishes, James.
Tell us your name or pseudonym: My name is James Quinn and I am the author of the “Gorilla Grant” series of spy novels.
What genre/s do you write in, and why? I write in the espionage/thriller genre. It’s something that I have always enjoyed reading, certainly from my early teens, and it’s something that has fascinated me ever since. I’ve become a bit of a collector of old spy novels but like most people my favorite writers in the genre are John LeCarre, Len Deighton, Frederick Forsyth, Ian Fleming and Graham Greene.
When did you begin writing, and was it something you’ve always wanted to do? I have always loved writing. I remember winning competitions in school for short stories and it has never really stopped. I hit my 40’s and figured out that if I was ever going to write a book then it had to be now or I never would. I’ve done some amazing things in my life but above all I always wanted to be a writer and have books published. The day that my books were published it was an amazing feeling, as if I’d joined a secret, elite club.
What type of research goes into your writing? It depends, but it is usually about locations that I’ve never been too or that no longer exist. People always assume that it’s the “secret” stuff relating to espionage, but as I work in a related field that has never been an issue and I’ve never had to worry about trying to figure that aspect out.
I remember for my first book, A Game for Assassins, which is set in the 1960’s that I seemed to spend an awful lot of time trying to find out what gadgets were available to intelligence operatives during that time period, which was kind of fun.
How do you develop your characters, plot, and setting? For me it’s always the characters that come first. It’s the characters that I find the most interesting, and then I build the story around them. I may have a rough idea of the story and where I want it to go, but really it’s an organic process and I let the characters lead the way.
From there it becomes a case of letting the story “brew” in its own way – we take some wrong turns, we get back on track, and finally, hopefully, everything works out and makes sense to the readers.
What is your creative process (i.e. inspiration, where do you write)? For me it’s about delivering a human aspect to a fantastical story and making the characters fit seamlessly into that world. So as I say, characters are paramount, then it’s a story that highlights a threat or an issue, (exposed spy network, terrorist attack, eliminating a rival assassin) and then see how the characters react within that environment.
When I write it’s usually in my upstairs office where no one can disturb me. It has to be quiet – I can’t do music or background noise – and coffee, plenty of coffee. I never force the story, it either comes and flows naturally or I leave it alone. But when it does come it comes in bursts like machine gun fire…until the next time when there is a pause and then the whole process starts again. I’m not one of those writers that has a dedicated 9 to 5 regime.
Have you ever dealt with writer’s block? If so, how do you find your creative flow again? Not so much writers block, more about not sure if certain ideas will work. If that happens I step away from the writing, a day…a week…a few months and go and do other things. Walking has always helped me clear my head and think things through. It gives me perspective. Plus I live by the coast so it’s always a pleasure to walk along the beach.
Are you self-published or traditionally published? Can you give us your experience in either or both of these types of publishing? I’ve been both. I started off as a self published writer, and then quickly moved over to a publishing house – Creativia (now Next Chapter) – and I’ve never looked back. It’s been an amazing learning experience about how the industry works and the pitfalls for new writers. Luckily I’ve had some good people around me to help me navigate everything.
Do you market your own books? If so, how easy or difficult is this for an author? I usually do my own marketing and I leave the publisher to do their marketing for the books – between us we seem to do very well. Marketing is vital for a publisher; it’s having that team on hand and a strategy and budget that can make the difference. But that’s only half the story; these days all authors should be marketing their books as well. It’s more of a full time job than the actual writing!! The days of sitting back and letting the publisher do everything are long gone – even for the big publishing houses!!
What advice would you give other writers/authors about receiving negative reviews? Read them if you want to but don’t become obsessed by them. It’s only one person’s opinion. If the critique is valid, then learn from it and improve for next time. But the golden rule is that you never, and I mean NEVER, respond to a negative review. There is no good news to be had from that.
What advice would you give to wanna-be writers who are trying to get a book published? Don’t quit!! Keep going! There are enough resources out there these days to make it happen for you. If you have a story to tell and you want to share it with the world then a good mindset and determination will get you through.
If you had a chance to meet one of your favorite authors, alive or dead, who would it be? And what questions would you ask? I always used to say the spy writer John LeCarre, and that’s still valid. But after reading his memoirs and biography I think I’ve gotten to the heart of him. The only other one that I would like to share a coffee with would be the late William Goldman (author of Marathon Man and The Princess Bride) just to talk about his Hollywood screenwriting experiences.
List your book links and where we can find them to purchase:
The James Quinn books are available through all good and reputable retail platforms:
https://books2read.com/b/bzZpMq
https://www.nextchapter.pub/authors/james-quinn-british-espionage-thriller-author
http://mybook.to/clandestinejq
Thank you for chatting with us today at RWS, we appreciate your time.
It was my absolute pleasure and thank you for hosting me. Best wishes, James.
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