Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’ve been writing all my life, but mostly for news/entertainment websites and blogs. Some pretty heavy stuff happened in my life a few years ago, and I needed to deal with it somehow. I guess writing a book about all the crazy shit that happened to me was my way of coping with it.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called Bad Choices Make Good Stories. It’s hard to classify. Technically it’s a memoir, but if you didn’t know it was a true story, you might as well consider it a coming of age novel, or a contemporary romance, or even a romantic comedy, I guess. What can I say, my life has been pretty absurd.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m a procrastinator with a touch of OCD. I don’t do things until the last minute, but then, when I finally tackle a new project, I have a laser-like focus. I think about nothing else, from morning until night, until it’s finished. I can’t sleep at night because I’m writing half a book in my head, and I often get up at 2 am to write it down, before I forget half of it by morning. Sometimes I don’t leave the house for days, and forget to eat all day, because I’m so focused.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Growing up, I used to love reading Stephen King, Dean Koontz, David Morrell, Dave Barry and Peter Straub. I guess out of those, Stephen King has been most influential to me. But I think
What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a sequel to Bad Choices Make Good Stories. This one has the tag line “The Heroin Scene in Fort Myers.”
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve been pretty successful promoting my books on Facebook. My personal page has over 12,000 fans: https://www.facebook.com/oliver.markus.malloy/
And the page about Bad Choices Make Good Stories has over 22,000 fans:
https://www.facebook.com/badchoices.us
I’m always looking for link exchanges, so if anyone would like to swap links, hit me up! ๐
Do you have any advice for new authors?
The secret to good writing is to use small words for big ideas, not to use big words for small ideas.
Albert Einstein once said: “Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler.” and “If you can’t explain it to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself.”
I think effective communication is all about the art of expressing complex thoughts in simple language that anyone can understand.
I hate it when people who have absolutely nothing original or thought-provoking to say, try to use big words to sound smart, and then write a bunch of trivial garbage, while hiding behind a facade of high falootin’ vocabulary.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.”
-Plato
What are you reading now?
To be honest, I haven’t read a book in years. I think my attention span is getting shorter as I get older. I just end up reading articles on news websites before I go to sleep. The last book I read was The Perks of Being a Wall Flower. I loved it. I guess I relate to damaged outsiders and flawed heroes.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I moved to Los Angeles a few months ago. Why not make the most of my location and try to get a movie deal for my book. Hey, I can dream, right?
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?
Hmm… I think the Lord of The Rings trilogy would keep me entertained for a while. I was still in high school the last time I read it. Running Man, for sentimental reasons. It was the very first book I ever read by Stephen King. America, by Jon Stewart. He’s gotten me through some dark times during the Bush presidency. And the phone book, so I could call every random stranger in there and ask them to rescue me off the island. (You didn’t say I can’t take my cell phone with me on the island.)
Author Websites and Profiles
Oliver Markus Malloy Website
Oliver Markus Malloy Amazon Profile
Oliver Markus Malloy Author Profile on Smashwords
Oliver Markus Malloy’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
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