Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I’m a Southern guy, independent and hardheaded. Been around a good while and seen some crazy stuff. I currently split time between Lake Wedowee in Alabama and Rome, GA.
I’ve always been a do-it-yourselfer, finding ways to fix or repair most of the things I need. I guess I’ve approached writing in the same way. I’ve been learning how to do it for a long time, having whipped out good essays in high school and earning a couple of English degrees. I didn’t make much progress, though, with my creative writing until I enrolled in the MFA program at Queens University of Charlotte. I needed other aspiring writers to workshop with and instructors who were smart, accomplished, and honest. Persistence and hard work do pay off. I’ve had two books of fiction published so far and a dozen or so short stories in various journals.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
Ben Stempton’s Boy is a coming-of-age novel set in the rural south of the early 70s that fits loosely in the Southern Gothic genre. I wanted to chronicle the South that I grew up in during a transitional period in American history, and I wanted to share some of the experiences that shaped me as a young man. The initial draft took about ten years to complete while I was earning a living as a high school English teacher and raising a daughter and a son.
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I try to capture images and scenes from my dreams during the magical moments between sleep and waking, before the concerns of the day erase them.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
Richard Yates, particularly Revolutionary Road; Hemingway; Raymond Carver; Elizabeth Strout, especially Amy and Isabelle; Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome; Joyce Carol Oates; John Updike; and Jame Smiley, to name a few.
What are you working on now?
I’m revising and organizing a baker’s dozen of my stories into a collection tentatively titled Ourselves Again. I’m also playing with turning the titular novella in my published collection, Make It Right: a Novella and Eight Stories into a screenplay.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
I’ve mostly promoted on Facebook and Goodreads. Still exploring other options.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Revising is writing and vice versa. A writer (who succeeds) is someone who manages to find enough time at the writing desk to produce enough writing so that some of it is good.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
Get feedback from folks who aren’t friends or family members.
What are you reading now?
A newly released novella titled The Distance of Mercy by Shelly Drancik.
What’s next for you as a writer?
I hope to follow my own advice about spending time at the writing desk. I’d also love to see my books find a wider audience, perhaps leading to a contract with a major house in the future.
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?
The Bible, The Sun Also Rises, Updike’s Rabbit at Rest, and maybe a story collection or two (Andre Dubus II and Raymond Carver come to mind).
Author Websites and Profiles
Ron Yates Website
Ron Yates Amazon Profile
Ron Yates’s Social Media Links
Goodreads Profile
Facebook Profile
Twitter Account
Pinterest Account