Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I have written two books so far: Fairalon an MG/YA Fantasy under the pen name T.J. Roberts, and my current book: The Promise, Adult Sci Fi.
These are actually my fourth and fifth books, the other three never published.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
The Promise (Adult Military Sci Fi)
I like to create 3d images and animation and was thinking about “the movie I would like to see.” I was getting pretty tired of the PC pablum I had been seeing, so I started writing The Promise. The Promise is the name of the first star ship, able to traverse the universe in the blink of an eye.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
Unusual? That implies there are usual habits which I can’t speak to. I DO like to make the images for the scenes I write about. That is probably unusual, as it takes a long time to create them. It helps me see the scene and any problems and improvements I can make to the writing. I included the images with Fairalon which most people liked.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Isaac Asimov’s “I Robot”
I was fortunate enough to meet Harlan Ellison at a showing of A Boy and His Dog at the U of AZ. He signed copy of I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream for me. 🙂 That was really a cool experience. He also talked about the book and the movie. Awesome!
What are you working on now?
I’m working on two sequels: Return To Fairalon (temp title) and The Promise 2 (untitled)
Fantasy and Sci Fi
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
At this point, I’d have to say Amazon. 80% of the market is there so ads placed there seem to work best.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Keep your day job. I like to compare writing books to writing a hit song. There are many talented musicians and song writers. Some actually write a hit song. Very very few actually become successful song writers. Very few get recording contracts with big labels. Both are very difficult fields so brace yourself for a bumpy ride. If you need to eat from your books you’ll probably lose a ton of weight.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
The best thing I read was on Facebook. I wish I could give credit to the author. It was about reviews: Stonehenge only got a 4.5 rating for “too few stones.” That is my shield.
It hurts when someone slams your work, but you have to remember “too few stones.” New authors should remember that.
I don’t like certain types of books, but I probably would never give a review of less than 4 stars simply because I know what the author went through to put it out there.
What are you reading now?
The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
Making Comics by Scott Mcloud
What’s next for you as a writer?
I “might” create a graphic novel of The Promise. I’ve already created a lot of images.
Currently the two sequels are taking up a lot of my time so that’s on the back burner.
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?
How to Survive on a Desert Island by Anyone
The Complete Works of William Shakespeare
Shipbuilding for Idiots
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