Interview With Author Linda Shirey
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I started reading around age three (so I’m told), and writing at the age of five – it really hasn’t stopped since. I blame Mum; she’s an Anglophile and a bibliophile. None of her gaggle of girls had a shot at escaping the world of words. (Dad thought Charles Dickens needed an editor, but we all agreed it was because his English teacher warbled on about the glories of “Great Expectations” instead of starting with “A Christmas Carol”.)
I’ve written at least three books, with partial layouts for two more. I’ve published one so far.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
“Wolves Among Us” was inspired by….loss. And a lifelong hatred of bullies.
Specifically, I grew up in a small church in the middle of a city, and the number of people who thought “I can turn this around” was truly overwhelming. Some of them merely wanted a church crafted in their own image – they might talk about Jesus or do mighty works in His name, but it’s not really for His sake or His glory.
Prior to the pandemic lockdowns, I’d written some ideas. Once I wrapped up a part-time job and had a surgery, it was time to finish the book. Tie up loose ends.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Once I get into the groove of writing, I hate being interrupted. This makes the classic time-blocking method really difficult, because I just. want. to. finish. (Anyone is allowed to tentatively tap on the door and offer coffee, though, and blessings be upon you.)
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Too many to count. Early on, classic kid lit from Roald Dahl and C.S Lewis and L.M. Montgomery, with sidelines into adventure stories by Jim Kjelgaard and Jack London. Teen years included some theology (John Calvin really could write simply), more British fiction (Dickens and Austen and both Stevensons), and a high content of mystery novelists (Dick Francis, Ngaio Marsh, Agatha Christie, Conan Doyle, Edgar Allen Poe, Josephine Tey). Then a few grittier authors, like Raymond Chandler and Chaucer – and Shakespeare. By my third decade, dystopian novels and history had crept in, so St Augustine was rubbing elbows with Harry Potter and biographies of Winston Churchill were engaging in space campaigns with Mao Tse Tung and general philosophy…so when we moved to North Carolina, half the space we needed was for books and bookshelves.
What are you working on now?
“Cults Among Us” should be out mixing it up with the puck lid in another six months (or so). Stay tuned!
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Probably AllAuthors for now, but who knows -possibly Awesomegang!
Do you have any advice for new authors?
If you’ve sat on the idea of publishing a book for 10 years, just take a weekend and press the button. You can always roll out a second edition.
Just. Do. It.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
A dollar saved is more valuable than a dollar earned, because of taxes. (They didn’t say inflation, but it operates as well.)
What are you reading now?
A few nonfictions by self-published authors, and at least one paranormal murder mystery from Christian Authors Unite. I’ll finish it today and post a review.
What’s next for you as a writer?
After finishing book two, I’ll need some time to put together a short guide: “How to Spot a Liar”. So far, I’ve watched videos on FBI techniques, a podcast with a former Secret Service Agent, and did an impromptu interview of my eye doctor (it was a slow day for him) on how liars give themselves away. It’s the eyes, you see.
Truly, I get into philosophical discussions of spiritual maladies with medical people. They need variety too.
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?
That is NO FAIR but probably the Bible (ESV or NKJ but not ‘The Message’), a complete volume of Shakespeare, a complete one-volume set of Rudyard Kipling, and some how-to survival manual included McGuyver methods on making fires and ponchos out of small animal skins.
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