Dave Wall

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I retired from my engineering career in January 2020. Since high school, I’ve wanted to write creatively, but being a nuclear engineer didn’t let me scratch that itch professionally. After retirement, I took the plunge. I had the time and the inspiration, so I finally got to work. At first, I thought I’d be a gig-writer, making money writing for others on a contract-to-contract basis. It took me three months to decide I just did not want to do that. I wanted to write for me. In April I started my first novel and finally published it in December. I’ve written the one book, On American Soil: Jihad. It’s the first in a series I named Preserve, Protect and Defend.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
On American Soil: Jihad is my first and only book, but I plan to complete book 2 in the series by June 2021. It is an action-thriller about a terrorist attack in Norfolk, Virginia — the home of the world’s largest naval base. The many books I’ve read over the years in the genre and my desire to create fiction inspired me to write. Now, I’m fulfilling the dream I’ve had since the 11th grade.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t think I have unusual writing habits. I try to maintain a set schedule every day, writing in the morning and doing other things in the afternoon. I sit at the computer and start slugging through it until I’ve met my word count goal for the day. Sometimes the story is flowing, and I can’t leave the computer. Many other times, though, I walk away from my desk and do some mindless task that needs to get done, but I’m working through the scene in my head. When I get back to the computer, the words come more easily.

What authors, or books have influenced you?
Tom Clancy was the first. I loved The Hunt for Red October and read most all the other Clancy novels that came after that. More recently Sean Parnell’s Outlaw Platoon (a true story that reads like a novel), and A. M. Adair’s Shadow Game inspired me. A. M. Adair drew my attention because she’s a writer who lives in my city and started her journey like I wanted to.

What are you working on now?
I published On American Soil: Jihad on December eleventh. I’m focusing on marketing that book and taking a break for the holidays. But, come January, maybe before, I’ll start writing book 2 of the Preserve, Protect and Defend series. I’ve been writing scenes in my head and taking notes, so it’s ready to come out. I have tentatively titled it On American Soil: Anarchy.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’m too new at this to know the answer. So far, I’ve updated my LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter profiles to include an image of my book and a link to my website, and a universal book link to click if someone wants to buy it. I also blasted friends and family with an email announcing the book. That has gotten a pretty good response, but I know that is just a temporary bump. So, I’m exploring websites like Awesome Gang.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice I took was to hire a professional designer to create my book cover. I think it’s awesome, and when I can get the image in front of people, I think it will inspire them to click on it. The company that did my cover was fantastic to work with, and their prices were great.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Besides hiring a professional to design my cover, I followed the advice of Joanna Penn, a prolific indie author, publisher, and blogger. I made a simple outline of my story and characters and then let my writing emerge. Most of the time, I didn’t’ start a chapter or scene knowing exactly what I was going to write. I let my imagination take over as I was writing.

What are you reading now?
At the moment, I’m between reads, but it’s Christmastime, and I put a few books on my gift list, including: The Deeper Shadow by A.M. Adair, and All Out War: A Novel (Eric Steele Book 2) by Sean Parnell.

What’s next for you as a writer?
I intend to focus on books 2 and 3 of my Preserve, Protect and Defend series, with the goal of publishing them both by January 2022.

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?
This is kind of funny. In 1987 (or ’88?), I applied to the MBA program at the College of William and Mary, and a question very similar to this was an essay on the application. William and Mary is in the historic village of Williamsburg, Virginia. The question asked what three books would I bring with me if I traveled back in time to Colonial Williamsburg. I don’t remember my entire answer, but I know the books I chose were very practical — I’m an engineer, after all. I remember I chose a history book so I would know what’s ahead of me, and a cookbook so I could eat my favorite dishes. On that practical note, I would bring some sort of survival guide with me to the desert isle. My other two choices would be something to pass the time — maybe the entire Harry Potter series for pure entertainment and escapism, and Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged, because I’ve wanted to read it for years but haven’t devoted the time to it.

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Dave Wall Website
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