R. Scott Tyler

Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
My name is R. Scott, but I also go by Bob. I’m a voracious reader and a technophile. I think the tech part comes from the engineer side of my brain, which is pretty well developed. I’ve traveled a lot of the world and worked with teams from across the globe designing and improving equipment and processes. I love the travel and I love the people I’ve met, but my imagination always wanted more. I’ve published two books as an Indie-author and am at work on the third book in the same series called SMUGGLERS IN PARADISE. The series follows a family from troubled beginnings before World War II through parenthood, sibling rivalry, breaking of ties and reunion. The characters are male, female, gay, straight, young, old, Asian and Caucasian and while there is a lot of travel in the story, the key focus is on smuggling, drugs, human trafficking, kidnapping, and Triad / Mafia connections.

What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My latest book is called ONE FISH, TWO FISH, BIG FISH, LITTLE FISH: SILVER DAWN. This book is inspired particularly by my recent travel to the Philippines and to several past trips to Southeast Asia, China, and Japan. The play on the title, inspired by a well-known children’s book title, was done on purpose because it reminds me of family (each one of the fish are specific characters in the story) and of the sea. This story, more so that the first or third in the series, takes place largely on the sea and at sea ports in Asia.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I’m not sure I know what usual writing habits are so I don’t know if mine are unusual. I’m more productive in the morning and the late afternoon. I do a lot of pondering at my desk with my head turned, facing the window. When I get it in my mind that I need to channel Ernest Hemmingway or F. Scott Fitzgerald I sit and drink bourbon and write stuff that turns out nearly incoherent. It can be fun for an evening, but isn’t very productive

What authors, or books have influenced you?
I’m a fan of the classic murder mystery and action / adventure books, as well as comedy, parody, and, I guess because I’m gay, I appreciate solid gay characters in stories that aren’t classified as GLBT fiction. I’ve read most everything by Lawrence Sanders, David Sedaris, Jean Genet, Agatha Christie, and Anne Rice. I especially like the devices of Agatha Christie, the voice and style of David Sedaris, the grit of Jean Genet and the prose of Anne Rice.

What are you working on now?
At the moment I’m editing the third book in the SMUGGLERS IN PARADISE series, PSYCHOLOGY OF CHOOSING. It is the final book in this series and most of the action moves from Southeast Asia back to the US where one of the original pre-WWII characters still lives. It’s a final battle between the two opposing sides of the family and brings in outside help in the form of a part-time barista, part-time contract statistics analyst who is too nosy for his own good.

What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
To be honest, I haven’t found it yet. Like most Indie writers I’ve used mostly my own platforms so far, including my website, Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Instagram. Of those, I would say having a solid website is essential and Facebook has proven to be the best social media platform.

Do you have any advice for new authors?
Yes, it’s true what they say…write, write, write, and then write some more. Learn habits that allow you time to be inspired and grant you the time to write down your inspirations. Also, keep honing the craft, take classes, don’t get discouraged, and always try to make the next story better than the last one.

What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Oddly enough it is: The worst book ever self-published on-line is better than the one that is still in your head. For me this translates to, “don’t just think about writing your story, do it.”

What are you reading now?
I’m currently reading THE LAND OF DREAMS by Vidar Sunstol which is a crime novel series (translated from Norwegian) set on the North Shore of Lake Superior in Minnesota. I just finished FACELESS KILLERS by Henning Mankell which is also a crime novel (translated from Swedish) set in Sweden, AMERICAN GODS by Neil Gaiman which is a fantasy centered around the old Gods still walking around America, and MASS – ROSALES SAGA #5, by F. Sionil Jose, a historical / political novel written by the Filipino National Artist.

What’s next for you as a writer?
When the SMUGGLERS IN PARADISE series is complete, I’ll begin a new series more focused on crime fiction and try my hand at developing a modern day gum shoe who uses all the tech available to bring justice, or his form of it, to my antagonists. I haven’t decided on the setting yet… whether it will be in the US or in some other foreign neighborhood I have visited or long to visit.

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?
I would have the presence of mind to have on my person the collected works of Sherlock Holmes, John Steinbeck, Edgar Allen Poe and the Treasury of American Poetry.

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