Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I was born in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., but grew up in St. Petersburg, Fla. I graduated from the University of South Florida (Tampa) in 1979 with a B.A. in Journalism. I now lives in South Carolina near the Blue Ridge Mountains, a pleasant setting for writing, to say the least.
I was an award-winning journalist at the St. Petersburg Times for twenty-five years. I am married with five daughters.
I have written nine novels and am halfway through a 10th.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest published book is titled Healed by Hope. It is the sixth and final installment of The Death Wizard Chronicles, my six-book epic fantasy for mature audiences published by Bell Bridge Books.
I wrote my first novel when I was 21 years old and Jimmy Carter was president. Sarah’s Curse was an artsy murder mystery bursting with passion and intensity. I shopped it around to various publishers and got no bites, but I wasn’t particularly concerned at the time. It’s usually the second or third novel that hits it big, right? So I went about the business of writing my second book.
At this point in my life, I was in love with J.R.R. Tolkien (and still am), so I decided that my second novel would be a high fantasy. My roiling imagination gave birth to a character named Torg, and he was to be king of a band of desert warriors called Tugars. I made up these names just because they sounded cool.
Needless to say, I was full of zest and excitement — but not necessarily of worldliness or maturity. Over the next several years, every time I sat down to write about Torg I’d get a few pages in and then hit a wall. Each time, my excuse was that I was just too busy. I already was married, raising a family, and working a challenging job at a big newspaper. That’s a lot for any young person to handle, right?
Years turned into decades. As I said, I wrote my first novel at 21. It wasn’t until age 45 that I wrote my second one. And my how things had changed over the course of that time. George Bush now was president, for one thing. I was remarried and had five daughters, the youngest three of whom were adopted from Cambodia. But most importantly, at least as far as my writing career was concerned, I finally had developed the worldiness and maturity to bring Torg and the Tugars to life at the level of quality they deserved. After almost 25 years of starts and stops, The Death Wizard Chronicles was born for real. I wrote the first page of Book 1 in September 2004. Almost 700,000 words later, I wrote the last word of Book 6 in late 2007.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I am very disciplined about writing every day, rain or shine, sick or on vacation. I’m not the type who can pound out 10,000 words in a day, but I do consistently write 1,000 or more each day.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien. The Game of Thrones series by George R.R. Martin. The Thomas Covenant series by Stephen Donaldson. The Book of the Malazan Fallen by Steven Erikson. And all things Stephen King.
What are you working on now?
I am writing a book about a series of dragon wars that nearly decimates a planet. It will be called Bhayatupa the Great. I’m about 50K words in, thus far.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I find Twitter to be my best promotional device. It’s the only venue where you don’t anger people by over-promoting.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t wait for the muse to strike. Set a schedule and stick to it. Learn as much about the craft of writing as you can. Do your research! And finally, write from the heart.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Don’t be afraid to write crap during your first draft. You can always revise.
What are you reading now?
The Last Dark by Stephen Donaldson.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I have written the first book of a young adult epic fantasy series. Once I have written the dragon book mentioned above, I plan on finishing the young adult series.
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?
Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien. Rabbit, Run by John Updike. Anything by Stephen King.
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