Q&A: September 2007

Q: As a writer, do you find that reading other books influences your work? And if so, do you consider it a gift or a curse?

A: This answer might surprise a few people, but I'm actually not that much of a reader. Generally, I don't enjoy fiction. I find that I read very competitively, oftentimes asking myself how I would have written a scene differently. It can be frustrating, because it really takes away from the enjoyment of literature.

However, I am a nonfiction addict, especially nature material. That definitely influences my writing.



Q: How are the books coming along?

A: This is a question that I get a lot, in various forms. It's probably one I'll answer occasionally, just to keep everyone up to speed on what I'm doing.

As most of you know, book two is ready and waiting for its official release. There will be a release date soon, among other things such as a website update. It's looking like early December will be the time.

So far as book three, it's coming along all right, though not as quickly as I'd like it to be. Don't look at that as a bad thing, though. Nothing ever moves as quickly as I'd like it to. The fact that I'm almost halfway done with a book that won't be ready until 2009, most likely, should say enough about my work ethic. I'm currently giving the first half of the book a read through to make sure everything sounds good up to the point where I'm at now. I'm sure I'll feel much better about it once that's done.



Q: When you develop a character for your books, do you develop their "character" before you develop their looks, or the other way around?

A: It goes both ways. Oftentimes both will happen at once. I'll get a mental image of what someone looks like, and the personality just comes with it immediately. It's difficult to explain, but I usually understand who a character is right when they're created, at least to a decent extent. Sometimes characters take a life of their own, though.

I would guess, though, that usually I'll have the look of a character in my head before I come up with a personality, even though the personality comes pretty quick.