Interview with author of SOLDIER'S GAP
Q. What's your work schedule like?
A. I do about three hours a day. I used to think I should be able to do at least eight hours as I did as a teacher, but it's just so draining. After you hit, three hours you're basically just typing. There are exceptions. John Gardner was a working fool. Everybody should read ON BECOMING A NOVELIST.
Q. What's your process?
A. I make a scene outline for just about everything I write, including short stories. Sometimes I barely glance at it, but if I get stuck it's always there. I change it a lot as I write.
Q. Do you write on the computer?
A. Yeah, I don't have a problem with that. I know some writers work in longhand or on the typewriter, but I just see that as redundancy. I was a teletype operator in the Navy and being able to edit the tape as I drafted messages was such a gift. I also started writing before computers and
being a lousy typist makes me appreciate workprocessors even more. Then there's rewriting. You can move things around so easily on a wordprocessor and you can save your chapters as stand-alone projects. I like to think my chapters sound like short stories.
Q. What's the best movie you've seen based on a novel?
A. I have a special place in my heart for TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. I taught that book every year for sixteen years and never got tired of it, and the movie was almost as good. I used to do an exercise in class where the kids watched the movie, then picked out the elements from the novel that were missing in the movie. No Aunt Alexandra was the biggest complaint. No Uncle Jack.
Q. Do you have Kindle?
A. Nope, but I might have to get one if the Minneapolis Star Tribune stops delivery. Hopefully they'd still provide computer access. I must have a morning newspaper!
Q. What about women characters? How do you deal with them?
A. Well, they're just human beings, but I won't say I'm not influenced by stereotypes, mainly the women's intuition thing and that permission to change their minds thing they've got going on. My old girlfriends are always sneaking in there, too. One of them threatened to sue me if I ever wrote about her, but she's an old lady now so I doubt that she'd even care anymore.
Q. What male author do you think handles women the best?
A. There's a joke there someplace, but I'll play it straight. That would have to be Wally Lamb in SHE'S COME UNDONE. One would think that was written by a woman. Oprah put it on her list so she must not disagree.
Q. I see quite a few references to quirkiness in your Amazon reviews. Where does that come from?
A. I was a class clown so there's somewhat of a smartass component in my work. Then there's the Joseph Heller influence. If you haven't read him, just about everybody in CATCH-22 is quirky. And to think, I didn't like it at first. I was assigned the book in an English Humanities class; I guess I just wasn't used to something that original. Hello, Mr. Schell! I hope you're still kicking.
Q. You were a journalism teacher. Any influence there?
A. Not like Hemingway. Just a check your sources thing and double and triple checking your spelling. I still have trouble with research. I never know how much I can use or how much to paraphrase.
Continued.
Dave Schwinghammer's published novel, SOLDIER'S GAP, is available at Amazon.com.
A. I do about three hours a day. I used to think I should be able to do at least eight hours as I did as a teacher, but it's just so draining. After you hit, three hours you're basically just typing. There are exceptions. John Gardner was a working fool. Everybody should read ON BECOMING A NOVELIST.
Q. What's your process?
A. I make a scene outline for just about everything I write, including short stories. Sometimes I barely glance at it, but if I get stuck it's always there. I change it a lot as I write.
Q. Do you write on the computer?
A. Yeah, I don't have a problem with that. I know some writers work in longhand or on the typewriter, but I just see that as redundancy. I was a teletype operator in the Navy and being able to edit the tape as I drafted messages was such a gift. I also started writing before computers and
being a lousy typist makes me appreciate workprocessors even more. Then there's rewriting. You can move things around so easily on a wordprocessor and you can save your chapters as stand-alone projects. I like to think my chapters sound like short stories.
Q. What's the best movie you've seen based on a novel?
A. I have a special place in my heart for TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. I taught that book every year for sixteen years and never got tired of it, and the movie was almost as good. I used to do an exercise in class where the kids watched the movie, then picked out the elements from the novel that were missing in the movie. No Aunt Alexandra was the biggest complaint. No Uncle Jack.
Q. Do you have Kindle?
A. Nope, but I might have to get one if the Minneapolis Star Tribune stops delivery. Hopefully they'd still provide computer access. I must have a morning newspaper!
Q. What about women characters? How do you deal with them?
A. Well, they're just human beings, but I won't say I'm not influenced by stereotypes, mainly the women's intuition thing and that permission to change their minds thing they've got going on. My old girlfriends are always sneaking in there, too. One of them threatened to sue me if I ever wrote about her, but she's an old lady now so I doubt that she'd even care anymore.
Q. What male author do you think handles women the best?
A. There's a joke there someplace, but I'll play it straight. That would have to be Wally Lamb in SHE'S COME UNDONE. One would think that was written by a woman. Oprah put it on her list so she must not disagree.
Q. I see quite a few references to quirkiness in your Amazon reviews. Where does that come from?
A. I was a class clown so there's somewhat of a smartass component in my work. Then there's the Joseph Heller influence. If you haven't read him, just about everybody in CATCH-22 is quirky. And to think, I didn't like it at first. I was assigned the book in an English Humanities class; I guess I just wasn't used to something that original. Hello, Mr. Schell! I hope you're still kicking.
Q. You were a journalism teacher. Any influence there?
A. Not like Hemingway. Just a check your sources thing and double and triple checking your spelling. I still have trouble with research. I never know how much I can use or how much to paraphrase.
Continued.
Dave Schwinghammer's published novel, SOLDIER'S GAP, is available at Amazon.com.
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