Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am sunshine loving desert rat from the state of Nevada in the USA. I enjoy exploring the under-explored areas of the West, have a fascination with worthless rocks which my mother always referred to as “leverites,” and do my small part in training military fighter pilots. I have published two novels so far, though I have four completed ones on my computer just waiting for their turn in the spotlight.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
It’s less than 3000 miles to hell. The last book I published is titled “Exit Strategy,” a dark, adult psychological/paranormal/thriller that delves into the mind of a man in possession of too many secrets–a wild, sea-going excursion into a realm of the fantastic, as Jonas Dumar comes to realize that some secrets are better left unknown. A man really can learn more about himself than he ever wants to know. It was inspired by my need to escape the medieval/fantasy world I’d been immersed in for so many years. My mind needed to go somewhere entirely different for a time.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I don’t know if it’s unusual or not, but my first rough draft of anything has to be handwritten. But I have to hurry to transcribe my chicken scratches into the computer for I’m often unable to read what I’ve written. Maybe I should have been a doctor. My handwriting is atrocious.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
This is an impossible question to answer. My reading tastes are all over the place and I’ve enjoyed so many different books and authors, I doubt I could narrow it down to a few. I do believe that most everything I’ve read has influenced me in one way or another, whether I’m aware of it or not.
What are you working on now?
At the moment, I am in the process of publishing the sequel to my first novel. There were so many readers that requested to know more of Collie’s story, I had to appease them. It is titled “Hope Rises from the Ashes,” and is loosely categorized as a romance/fantasy, like its sister novel, “Hope Flies on Broken Wings,” though neither one strictly adheres to either of those genres. But they are both love stories of a sort, set in a medieval, fantasy world. I am also madly scribbling out another horror/thriller.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I think it is a secret that I wish someone would let me in on. I’ve done book-signings, magazine ads, blog tours, and giveaways, but have seen no appreciable results. Without a huge marketing budget, I still believe that word-of-mouth, friend recommendations are the most effective. And it all takes time and persistence.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
The best advice I can give to a new author is: Don’t get discouraged. Keep learning your craft, keep reading, and most of all, keep writing.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
This was something I learned from my daddy, long ago: If there’s no road to get from here to there, then make your own. In essence, there are no obstacles that cannot be overcome.
What are you reading now?
At this very moment, I am reading “Until Tuesday,” by Luis Carlos Montalvan, a nonfiction work about a wounded veteran with PTSD and the benefits of his having a service dog. Quite an interesting book.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I guess what’s next for me is to get busy and finish publishing the novels accumulating on my computer! I have a series of short stories I’m working on as well. With so many irons in the fire, I should never be lacking for something to work on.
What is your favorite book of all time?
This is another impossible question! If I think about it, I suppose, were I stranded on a desert island with only one book in my possession for in indeterminable amount of time, I might choose “Arabian Nights,”–a wealth of fascinating stories that I’ve never tired of.
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