Tell us about yourself and how many books you have written.
I am a 21-year veteran of the scientific publishing profession and am just starting out in the commercial publishing world. I wrote my first book, a children’s storybook, but so many commercial publishers are only focused on the bottom line, and I wanted to do things a little differently. So I’ve started a publishing company, Preston Worldwide, LLC, that focuses on family-friendly content. My book is the first one to be published by this company, and I hope to grow this company over time to include not just my content, but content from other authors who want to publish family-friendly books.
What is the name of your latest book and what inspired it?
My book is called Preston the Penguin’s Flight Before Christmas. While discussing our favorite Christmas movies with some colleagues at work I had the idea for a story where Santa’s reindeer fall ill on Christmas Eve, and Santa has to recruit a group of penguins to pull his sleigh instead. The idea got stuck in my head, and since I don’t know how to make a movie, I decided to write it as a book instead!
Do you have any unusual writing habits?
I can’t write the story until I have the title. No matter how good the idea is for the story, if I don’t have a title ready, I can’t sit down to write it. But once I’ve settled on a title, the words just flow.
What authors, or books have influenced you?
This is a tough question, since I never thought I would write a children’s book. Some of my favorite books from childhood were The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey and Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss, and I wanted to create a book that could be as timeless as those. And as a long-time science fiction fan, I’ve also been influenced by authors like Peter David and Andy Weir.
What are you working on now?
I have a list of about a dozen story ideas for more books in the Preston the Penguin series, where Preston will explore different parts of the world with his friends and meet new animal friends along the way. I hope to release at least two or three more books in this series in the coming year. I’m also working on a new series, which will be an early reader book series for children. I don’t want to give too much away there, but it’s inspired by the best friend I ever had, and I’m really looking forward to bringing it to life.
What is your best method or website when it comes to promoting your books?
Since I just published my first book I’m still trying to figure this one out! I’m not a big social media user in my personal life, so I’m trying to get the hang of that now, and I’m doing everything I can to get the word out. I definitely appreciate sites like Awesome Gang who offer new authors a free way to help spread the word.
Do you have any advice for new authors?
Don’t stop believing in yourself. There will be a lot of people along the way who tell you that you can’t do it, but there’s nothing quite like holding your own book in your hands for the first time. I was so proud that I even had the cover blown up to poster size to hang on the wall of my office! If you think your idea will work, go for it. If you’re right, great success may come your way. And if not, at least you tried, and that’s what matters.
What is the best advice you have ever heard?
That it’s better to execute 100% of the way on a partial idea than to try and wait for the idea to be perfect. Nothing is ever perfect and you can’t anticipate every potential problem or outcome, so once you have the basics down, start working. You’ll figure out the rest as you need to.
What are you reading now?
For entertainment, I’m currently reading The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant trilogy by Stephen R. Donaldson. But I’m also reading an interesting book by Susan Cain called Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. This one was highly recommended in a leadership seminar I recently attended, and I’ve really enjoyed its message about how much we introverts have to offer to world, and how we can do it.
What’s next for you as a writer?
Developing consistency as I continue the Preston the Penguin series, while also having the ability to use a different voice for different types of content.
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?
1. How to Survive on a Deserted Island (Prepare to Survive) by Tim O’Shei (obviously)
2. The Big Roads: The Untold Story of the Engineers, Visionaries, and Trailblazers Who Created the American Superhighways by Earl Swift
3. He-Man and the Masters of the Universe Minicomic Collection (this was one of my favorite toys as a kid, and I loved reading these comics to understand the characters better; and if I were stuck on a deserted island I feel like I would have a lot of time on my hands to re-live childhood memories like this)
Author Websites and Profiles
S. R. Halloran Website
S. R. Halloran Amazon Profile
S. R. Halloran’s Social Media Links
Twitter Account
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