Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I grew up on Perdido Key, Florida.I have written four of the five books in the Perdido Key novels. Finishing up the last one. I currently reside with my childhood sweetheart and our five children just a few miles from there.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Perdido Key books are inspired by the place I call home and the locals. Places and people who are no longer there. I attempted to preserve the memory of some of them.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Like many writers I have pieces and parts of stories, novels, and poetry. I have scraps of characters, plots and settings all over the place. They are written on scraps of paper and in notes on my computer and in my phone. Most of which are complete ideas but not completely written. As I work through actually completing a novel I have learned just as much if not more about myself as I am about the process of writing. For instance, did you know that you can procrastinate for several minutes just by staring inside the refrigerator even when you aren’t hungry? Or that If you snuggle your loved one, taking a nap is easier than forming sentences?
I guess my most unusual writing habit is writing at a table where my love and his friends are playing D&D. It is loud and the creative energy is amazing.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
I love Hemingway and his no nonsense straight forward writing style. Also, I like poetry, though I can’t write it. I like the Brownings, Robert and Elizabeth. I feature Robert Browning’s poetry in my book Almost There (Perdido Key book 2). I am a closet Sylvia Plath fan. She was incredibly insightful.
What are you working on now?
Currently we, my partner and I, are collaborating on a high fantasy series to include the band of travelers you can meet in his cookbook (Gadlin O’Hale’s Fantastic Recipes by Brendan O’Gara) more like cookbook fantasy exploit. Think princess bride meets the everyday gourmet. The story will take you ,dear reader, on a journey through strange new lands where you will meet fantastic creatures and witty characters.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Still looking for a magic place for promoting. I am no marketing genius.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep writing. Do not give up!
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Listen to your heart. Trust your heart. Your mind will lie to you but your heart will always tell you the truth. It will always tell you what you need. Your heart is always right. Easy yet not. Simple yet complicated. Predictable however unfathomable.
Listen to your heart. Always.
What are you reading now?
The Keeper of Lost Things
A Novel
by Ruth Hogan
What’s next for you as a writer?
I plan to keep writing and publishing books. One every six months…at least. Finish the Perdido Key novels, write amazing fantasy stories and then work on a new drama series called The Last Ones. I will write whether anyone reads them or not. I hope they do find readers. It would be sad if my book friends just hang out on the shelf and no one loves them.
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?
Oh this is a difficult question. I would have to bring The Hobbit, The House at the Edge of Night, and at least two Doctor Who novels.
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