Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I write for the fun of piecing together a story. This isn’t as easy as it seems and I don’t know why. We can all tell relatively coherent anecdotes but when you start writing it down, things get hinky. In part, it’s a result of everyone liking different things. I like short endings – The Return of the King (I love Tolkien, don’t bash me) had so many false endings that when I finally got to the last one, I turned the page and was surprised there wasn’t more. Consider this foreshadowing, I like short endings – ergo – I write short endings. Folks who like long endings, hate that. Sorry. Another reason writing a story gets to be messy – you have to extract all the stuff in your head and plop it on a page in such a way that readers can see it the same way. That’s tough to do, at least for me.
I keep trying and when I feel like I’ve got a story someone else might like to read, I make it available. Most go into the box under the bed, but a few see the light of day.
I have half a dozen books available through sales channels and another six that will be releasing in the next twelve months. Some are short story collections, others are novellas, a few stand-alone long short stories, and full length novels. Eventually, some will become series featuring recurring characters. The next release is actually a collection of bedtime stories I wrote for my son – I’m only releasing it as a print edition. Most of the rest of my work is available is digital and print formats.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The book I’m promoting now is called The Vitae. This is a novella that introduces a character named Rose Brashear. She has a novel releasing later this year and this shorter story leads into that one. There is a companion novella called The Trade which just released and introduces a second recurring character (the love interest), Savio Mendes. Each story traces their progress into and out of struggles until they wind up in the same place… and eventually meet.
Yes, it’s probably a backwards way to introduce a story but I dislike reading about before characters knew each other once they’ve met – I like to see it happen.
The Vitae is a story about making choices in your professional life that resonate for your future – something we all have to do without knowing the outcome. There are no major events, no world-shattering admissions, no saving the planet from alien attack – but it’s familiar and fun nonetheless. It’s a story about a woman trying to land a coveted spot in academia. As an anthropologist myself, I know that’s a hard target. The competition is intense and the pressure is ugly. Sometimes you get what you wish for and sometimes you don’t. I’ve conducted fieldwork all over the American west and so it inspires a lot of the locales and people I write about. Rose’s story makes use of my experience in archaeological survey, historic mines, and other odd stuff but also touches on how friends and colleagues help drive us toward goals we didn’t know we had or want.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m opportunistic. I write when and where I have the opportunity. I have a regular writing group that meets every week and we swill coffee and write together for inspiration and to hone our craft (I laugh because I’m not sure how much honing happens – but we have fun). Fiction writing is a reward I offer to myself. Once I’ve completed work, then I allow myself time to write. Which, I suppose, explains why my writing gets influenced by some unique topics that have to later be edited out….
When I get stuck on a scene or feel like I’m spinning my wheels, I resort to writing in longhand. Since I write slower than I type, the end-result is different, more focused and less likely to dive down a rabbit hole.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m an opportunistic reader too. I’ll read anything that catches my interest. I’m particularly fond of Anne Rice, Elizabeth Peters, and Lincoln & Childs, but I also read lots of classic literature – especially the really old stuff like Euripides and his buddies. I also like romance: Amanda Quick’s period historics, JD Robb’s futuristic, and Kressley Cole’s paranormals, among others. So many of the authors I grew up reading have passed away in recent years and I miss reading new work from Tony Hillerman, Elmore Leonard, and Kurt Vonnegut. I’m sure there are others, but I also have fond memories of Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, and Ursula LeGuin.
I’m not so fond of books that question the human condition and then find nothing of value to celebrate because I think they shortchange the ability of people to alter and grow. I like to be entertained when I read and prefer a story that has a satisfying ending – preferably happy, but I’m content with a solid resolution too.
What are you working on now?
I’m working on a paranormal romance/adventure sort of thing right now. It’s set in modern-day Chicago and features faeries. I’m trying to keep it a long short story of less than 15,000 words because there isn’t a lot to it but it keeps threatening to grow into a longer work.
Come to think of it, I also just finished plotting a thriller, also set in modern-day Chicago (I must need to take a trip), that involves lots of misinterpreted assumptions and a little ghostly intervention. That one probably won’t hit the sales market till next year.
Other than that, there are a lot of other stories in various stages of completion.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I think word of mouth is the very best method of getting people to share your work, so any solution that allows people to read and share, is the best one. Being published means learning to be patient because it’s smarter to concentrate on the long-term goals than it is to seek the elusive immediate success. I’m fortunate in that this is something I pursue for the enjoyment factor and that means I have the luxury to be patient and let my stories find their way to readers. Not every writer has that opportunity. It also means I get to be less intense about marketing and promotion. I want people to read my work, but I’m okay with it taking a while for them to discover it exists.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Write. Write some more. Stick to topics and subject that interest you for real. Be genuine. Of course every single person on the planet isn’t going to want to read it – that’s okay. Someone will. More than one someone. Read a lot. Read lots of different things. Write lots of different things. Explore genres. Try different lengths of finished work. Find your voice. Own it. Learn the rules and then break them if that’s what works for you.
The only rule I believe when it comes to writing, is find what works for you.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Write. Finish what you start. Get the words on the page. You can edit the most ridiculous nonsense into something wonderful but you’ve got to have the carcass first. Sorry, bad roadkill analogy.
What are you reading now?
This’ll probably sound like a pretty bad mix, but you asked: an encyclopedia of poisonous plants, a biography of a 19th century Canadian fur trapper, a literary novel that won great acclaim and is putting me to sleep every night, a volume of historic haiku, and a fun series of humorous murder mysteries. And probably others, but that’s what I can remember right now.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I cycle through projects, moving from one to another when I feel like. I’ve got an idea for a thriller/ghost story that I’m thinking about plotting, but there’s also a story I’ve been stuck on for months and I’ve finally figured out how to cut it apart and restructure it so the problem becomes a solution. That one probably needs re-plotting to fill-in gaps now that I’ve changed one of the primary characters into a spirit. Logistical issues abound.
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?
I’m going to completely Kirk this and say: Kindle, Nook, and Kobo, followed by the OED. That way I get hundreds and hundreds of books as well as the Oxford English Dictionary. That would keep me busy for a long time and I’d know so many more useless words by the time rescue arrived. If they came too late, then I could write the ultimate self-obit!
Oh, okay, I’ll play fair. I would bring a volume of classic American poetry, the collected works of Homer because he touched on all the archetypes, and a history of world mythology.
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