Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been writing most of my life, but it took awhile to get good at it. While waiting for that to happen, I’ve paid the bills as a software developer. I’ve published a couple of technical articles and two essays in Sky & Telescope magazine. I’ve also written a lot of essays for my website Planet Baha’i. Three books of those essays, along with a number written by my wife, have been published. My first mystery novel, “The Fibonacci Murders,” was published in October 2014 by Serpent Cliff.
Aside from that, I’m also an amateur astronomer and a bonsai-artist-in-training and (in case you hadn’t guessed) a Baha’i.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Well, I just said that. “The Fibonacci Murders” is a mystery novel based on a mathematical sequence, the Fibonacci series, in which each number is the sum of the preceding two. A few years back, I got the idea for a mathematician as a key character in a mystery novel. I don’t really remember where it came from, except I vaguely remember being stuck at a red light at the time. A couple of years passed before the character connected with a story.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Probably not, but I don’t get out much, so I’m not sure what counts as “unusual.” I do a fair bit of writing on my lunch hour at work, but I also write sometimes in the evening or on weekends. These days I use a laptop, so it’s a fairly portable activity.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Being terrible with names, it’s a foregone conclusion that I’ll leave out someone important. But I think first on my list would be Ray Bradbury. Not that I can write like him–who can, really?–but I hope someday to be almost half as good as him, in my own way. I’m also a fan of Martha Grimes, and there are many other authors I have enjoyed over the years.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently at work on a sequel to “The Fibonacci Murders” titled “True Death.” It brings together the detectives and some of the other characters from the first novel and gets more into their backgrounds.
I also have a humor/science fiction novel in the works, about the misadventures of a space-faring opera company (roughly speaking).
I’ve started a cozy mystery with a little old Baha’i lady as the main character, but that one is presently stalled. Maybe I’ll get it restarted later in 2015.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Since I’m new to this, I don’t entirely know yet. I can say that getting the word out can be hard, but ultimately it seems those authors who figure out how to do publicity are the ones that sell the most books. We used a Kickstarter project to fund the print run for “Fibonacci,” and that worked out quite well. I’m also getting a fair bit of notice on GoodReads, although it’s not yet clear how many people will buy/read the book. I do have three good ratings there so far, which is encouraging if small.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. Write. Read. Write. Read. Write. Write. Etc. It takes time to become good at something, and writing is no exception. I’ve heard it said that a person has to write about a million words before becoming really good at it. The number probably varies from person to person, but the idea is the same. Practice makes perfect.
While practicing, have confidence in yourself, but don’t assume that you have nothing to learn. If you can find a small number of objective, honest knowledgeable readers to critique your work, it will help. My rule of thumb is that if one person points out a problem that I don’t see, it’s probably just that person’s perception, but if a group of people all point out a problem that I don’t see, then it’s probably real.
Did I mention write? And write? And write?
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
An editor once gave me a critique that changed my writing life. Literally. They said of one of my short stories, “It reads like a tape recorder on fast forward.” Almost overnight, I found myself paying a lot more attention to details and writing much richer stories as a result.
What are you reading now?
I’ve been going back to some old material: some Agatha Christie that I’d missed, some Ray Bradbury that I probably read but don’t remember, and a really fun mystery writer by the name of William Marshall whose books are often hard to find, for reasons I can’t fathom. At the moment
What’s next for you as a writer?
Promotion and writing. That should keep me busy for awhile.
If you were going to be stranded on a desert island and allowed to take 3 or 4 books with you what books would you bring?
Ouch. That’s going to pose a problem. A Christian might include the Bible. For Baha’i, it’s not that simple, because the various books that comprise the Baha’i Holy Writings are published as separate volumes. Between that and books I like and would want along and books I haven’t read and would like to take . . . sorry, no. It’s impossible. I just can’t get stranded, that’s all.
Author Websites and Profiles
Dale E. Lehman Website
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