Interview With Author Paul Locander
Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
PL- My writing journey began when I didn’t even realize it. By the time I was in the 5th grade, I was often plagued with repetitive film scenes that looped around in my head. They changed over the years, and by the time I reached my 20s, it had gotten progressively worse as I started a career in IT (a career that had very little to do with creativity). It was only after stringing the scenes that bounced about in my mind into a cohesive story that I discovered a calling to writing, specifically screenplays. It was a format I quickly adapted to and the most expedient in getting a story out. By the time I had written my fourth script, I knew it was time to develop a story of father-son conflict that I had lived with my father. That eventually became Power & Way, which became my debut novel. I spent the last couple of years shaping the story into a richer, more character-driven narrative that could only exist in a novel. Today, I now split my time between writing, aviation, and fractional IT leadership work, but the creative work is where I feel most at home.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
PL- “Power & Way”. The novel is a reflection of the disconnect I had with my father, something that strongly affected me over the decades and something I never got closure on. My father was a puzzle I never solved, so the novel was a vehicle I created to better understand his point of view: why he did the things he did, and to determine that, indeed, not everything was my fault. Or his, for that matter. For the most part, that is what I needed to get out, and it became the heart of the novel. My father and I operated on so many different frequencies, and it was after the initial drafts of the script were read by others I realized I was not alone in my disconnect with a parent. I unwittingly hit a nerve out there I wasn’t expecting, and many hold this story close to their hearts.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
PL- I don’t write every day, which I know is a violation of one of the primary writer’s commandments. For me, that turns writing into a chore like cleaning the bathroom or picking up after the dog, and I will do anything to avoid it. This allows me the opportunity to work out story problems in my rather chaotic brain before laying anything out that remotely resembles a sentence. This makes me a bit of a ‘burst’ writer, whereas I write when content is ready to flow and not before. I also tend to write out of order, which frees up brain space if I have a scene or dialogue that is pushing to get out. I also write in reverse at times, especially when I know where I want to be in a scene, but have no idea how to get there.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
PL- Neil Simon has probably had the biggest impact on me from the beginning. His command of quick dialogue helped shape how I write a lot of my characters today. I also have to acknowledge the works of Aaron Sorkin, while not an author, who continues to have a profound influence on me, specifically in scene depth and conflict. Referring to authors alone, I would have to say Arthur C. Clarke, Stephen King’s book Christine, and Morton Freedgood’s The Taking of Pelham One Two Three continue to have influence on me over the years. I still have many authors and books to discover, though.
What are you working on now?
PL- I have a long catalog of scripts to work into novels. What’s up on the laptop now is a book series I’m converting from a script developed as a limited series a few years back. This one is rather exciting as I am deconstructing my protagonist in a way that shows who he really was from the beginning.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
The best website is https://www.locander.com/
Do you have any advice for new authors?
PL- Write what is true to your heart and from experience. Everyone has a unique story, and no one is going to know that story better than you, and no one can write better if you have the desire to tell it. And deliver a writing style that is unique to you and no one else. And then once you’re out there, be wary of scams targeting new authors. They are plentiful and merciless. Beyond that, find editors you can work with naturally. Not all of them are going to be a fit. Listen to them, defend what you believe in, and be true to your characters. Your success is going to be theirs, so be ready to collaborate on your creation. And more than anything, be patient. Writing takes a lot more time than one would realize.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
PL- Be yourself, everyone else is already taken. And you can’t get from A to Z without going through the entire alphabet.
What are you reading now?
PL- I actually just finished “The Sea-Wolf” by Jack London, first published back in 1904. I inherited a rather impressive collection of books from an aunt who recently passed away. She was quite the book hound with hundreds of books, including an antique edition of Les Misérables, so digging around in classics I haven’t discovered yet is something I’m looking forward to. Coming up is also Christina Kovac’s “Watch Us Fall,” due out in December.
What’s next for you as a writer?
PL- Right now, it’s moving “Power & Way” as a novel more into the light, and with some luck, the film’s gods will smile upon “Power & Way” as a film, and I can be there when the lens caps finally come off. And as mentioned, I have an extensive catalog of scripts to work into novels, so I’m already well behind on everything!
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?
PL- Any survival book that covers surviving on a desert island (excluding Lord of the Flies). Beyond that, I would have to say “To Kill a Mockingbird” and “Dave Barry Slept Here”, only because I’m going to need to laugh while being stuck on a deserted island.
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