Interview _ Ellie Stevenson

Ellie Stevenson was born in Oxford and brought up in Australia. She is a member of the Careers Writers' Association and the Alliance of Independent Authors.

She writes feature articles and short stories.

Her first novel, Ship of Haunts: the other Titanic story (Rosegate Publications, 2012), which is available as an e-book and as a paperback, has been described as "engaging and lively ... a real page-turner" and as "thoroughly enjoyable".

In this interview, Ellie Stevenson talks about her concerns as a writer:

When did you start writing?

When I was 10.

I spent part of my childhood in Australia, and I would lie in bed and listen to the sounds of the Australian bush, and think about what I could do with my life. My first published work was a poem published in an Australian state newspaper. Then came a hiatus, quite a long one, but fortunately, that’s over now.

How would you describe your writing?

Fairly eclectic.

Primarily I’m focused on writing more novels but I also write stories, articles and poetry. The poetry's more of a leisure thing, but I like to think it informs my work!

I always wanted to write books, but life and a need for cold, hard cash got in the way. When I finally took my ambition seriously, I started with articles, as a way getting some hands-on experience. But I always planned to be a novelist – I just wasn’t sure if I had the stamina.

Who is your target audience?

Anyone who wants to read my work!

No, seriously, I write for people who love mysteries and a sense of something other-worldly. I love to read ghost stories and books that take us across time and space. Maybe some time travel, or something that haunts or has a bit of a twist.

I write the stories I want to read.

I like novels which speak to the reader, are emotionally strong. And those that challenge the reader’s concepts, while still maintaining a page-turning story. Lyrical language is also important. I love to read books by Maggie O’Farrell and Douglas Kennedy.

Have your own personal experiences influenced your writing in any way?

My novel is a ghost story about Titanic, child migration and living a life under the sea. I’m an historian by nature and I love the past. Three of my family were child migrants and I’ve been heavily influenced by the time I spent living in Australia, an amazing country. I’ve always been passionate about Titanic. As for the ghosts, I can’t really say...

What are your main concerns as a writer?

Making my work the best it can be and improving its rhythm and the way it flows. Having integrity in my stories. Making people wonder if what we know isn’t all there is. Reaching readers.

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

Marketing my work. In order to be read, readers need to know you exist. I enjoy promoting my novel and articles but it takes a lot of time, which means less time to write. It’s a constant trade off, especially if you’re an independent author. Every day I do a little bit more.

Do you write every day?

At the moment I’m focused on promoting the novel. But when I’m writing, yes, every day, in allocated time slots until I have to do something else. I stop at that point, or when I come to a natural break. The initial writing isn’t that hard, the real work comes with the plot corrections, improvements to language, and the many revisions. I’m naturally self-critical and my work is never good enough. It’s not a happy trait for a writer to have!

How many books have you written so far?

One so far, Ship of Haunts, although a collection of short stories will be coming out in late September.

How long did it take you to write the novel?

Far too long. The next one will be quicker.

Where and when was it published?

Initially, as an ebook on Amazon (Rosegate Publications). It was published in April 2012, to coincide with the 100-year anniversary of Titanic’s sinking. Print copies are also available, via Amazon.com, or via me if you live in the UK.

How did you choose a publisher for the book?

Because it took so long to write, and I had to meet the April deadline, an ebook was the obvious choice, with printed copies following later. That’s the beauty of independent publishing: the author has control of the book. It’s also the downside – you have to do all the work yourself. Commissioning a cover, getting it proofed, getting it out there. I’d do it again, but it’s a steep learning curve.

Which were the most difficult aspects of the work that went into Ship of Haunts?


The book was organic, it developed as I wrote it. And then of course, it needed reworking. I spent much of my time rewriting the novel. Again and again. Next time round, I’m planning the book before I write it!

What did you enjoy most?

Creation of the story, thinking of the plotlines, doing the research. The creative side is why I write. Editing and rewrites are hard work, especially when you’re several drafts in.

What sets Ship of Haunts apart from other things you've written?

It’s my first novel, so in that sense it’s totally different. And Titanic, of course, is quite unique. And the novel encompasses reincarnation, which is a little bit out there (in the West, anyway).

In what way is it similar to the others?

The broader themes are fairly similar to the stories I’ve written: mysteries and loss and a sense of something unexpected, perhaps paranormal. The odd twist or a bit of a chill...

What will your next book be about?

A lost place and a man who... (well that would be telling)

What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?

Having the book in my hands, and seeing it as something outside myself. I wasn’t sure I could ever do this. And now, of course, I’m going to do more...

Related articles:

• Ship Of Haunts by Ellie Stevenson [Book Review], Rennie's Book Blog, November 1, 2012
• Author interview: Ellie Stevenson, by Rachel Pictor, rachelpictor.co.uk, October 8, 2012
• 'Ship of Haunts: the other Titanic story,' by Ellie Stevenson [Book Review], by C L Davies, cldavies.com, September 28, 2012

[Interview] Harry Whitehead

by Nick Edgeworth, The Grassroutes Project*

Harry Whitehead is a novelist, a short story writer and a creative writing lecturer at the University of Leicester. Before that, he worked in the film and TV production industry.

His novel, The Cannibal Spirit (Hamish Hamilton, 2012) is set among the First Peoples of Canada at the turn of the twentieth century, and has been described as "“Unflinching and rigorously unsentimental ... a thought-provoking and impressive read.”

His short stories have appeared in magazines and anthologies that include London Lies (Arachne Press, 2012), The Storyteller Magazine and Whimperbang.

In this interview, Harry Whitehead talks about the concerns that inform his work as a novelist and a creative writing lecturer:

To start off, thanks very much for agreeing to be interviewed.

Pleasure.

My first question is: where did the creative writing process begin for you? When and why did you start?

Well, I used to win the prizes at primary school at creative writing exercises and competitions, and I think that started it for me. And I always wrote. I never took it seriously I don't think – but I guess everyone who writes stories sort of does take it seriously, don't they?

I did an undergraduate degree in Anthropology when I was 24 – I had been in the Far East for many years – and I read a story whilst I was there: an anthropological story that stuck with me. I won't explain it immediately because it might go back to a question you ask me later, but that story just played in my mind and I ended up doing a Masters degree in Anthropology to follow the story, and then it wouldn't go away, and I did a Creative Writing MA as well, and got sidetracked and wrote a load of other stuff before I eventually came back and wrote that. So I've always written, and enjoyed storytelling from the earliest days, and I got serious about it in my thirties.

Anthropology is a big part of your début novel The Cannibal Spirit. Do you think you're the sort of writer who looks very widely for ideas in interdisciplinary fields?

Yeah, for sure.

Before I joined this department [UoL's School of English] I had an O Level in English Literature so I haven't come from a focused reading past, in the way that English Literature trains you, at all. I come from a much broader space and have read much more multifariously, shall we say. But living abroad for so many years and then studying Anthropology has made me look all over the place for stories.

My book has been reviewed well and badly, and when it's been reviewed badly it's often in terms of its cultural authenticity and arguments about that. I was treading on some pretty delicate ground writing about First Nations people in Canada and people either loved me or hated me for it. Which is all right – that's fine by me.

What was it that attracted you to that setting at that point in time?

Well, I was 25 and I'd just broken my back, and I read this story, actually in a piece by Claude Lévi-Strauss, one of the founders of structuralism – so a pretty unlikely spot to originate. I read this story about a nineteenth-century north-west coast shaman who wanted to become a shaman in order to expose the lies and trickery of shamanism. And he learns all these acts of prestidigitation and fraudulence as he saw them, and then a local chieftain has a dream that only he can save his sick grandson. So very reluctantly the guy performs the ritual, and lo and behold the child is cured.

So, this guy, whose name is Quesalid in the story – Quesalid's dilemma fascinated me. It was about belief; it was about the placebo effect; it was about what healing means; it was about rationality – all these kind of things. And it was that story that just wouldn't go away. So I decided when I did my Masters in Anthropology that I wanted to find out who this shaman actually was. And what I learnt about who he actually was was that he was half white, half Native Canadian; he was an anthropologist's assistant as well as a shaman and a chieftain; he was tried for cannibalism in 1900 – and there I had a great story of a man who exists between worlds, as we all do to one extent or another. How do we fight those conflicts that we have inside ourselves?

So it was that that really kind of stuck for me. And it was 18 years, really, from when I first read that story to when I was published.

Was it quite research-intensive?

Yeah, it was. I wrote a draft of the novel in nine months, so in a flash really. My wife, who you just heard texting me, I had just met and I was doing this Ph.D. and I was trying to write this novel, and I'd been researching for 10 years. Just about everything: into the life and the history of the region, the history of the Canadian First People. And I was sat in the British Library surrounded by books piled high. I'd just met her and I was sitting there going, [mock-sobbing] “I can't write my novel! I can't do it – I don't know what to do!”

And she said, “All these books: send them all back,” like that.

And as soon as I threw them all away and started to make it up, it flowed and came out in a burst. But without all those years of them filling me up and then stepping away and being free to just create, one would not have allowed the other, if that makes sense.

Did you find it difficult to arrive at what you felt was an authentic voice for George Hunt [the shaman], or was it more of a difficult labour to get something that sounded right?

This question has been debated since by people. There have been some critical responses to his voice, and some people loved it, others have hated it. There's about 40 years of his letters – of this anthropologist's – that still exist, but they're very tentative and very polite and rather obsequious, and actually not as interesting as the character I was reading about. They always used to put me off.

And then I read this story by Edward Curtis, this famous American photographer who worked with George Hunt, who said that Hunt was prone to murderous rages: he would lose his mind and come stomping down the beach to kill you sometimes, and he was this terrifying huge man. And as soon as that happened he came alive as a person to me - someone I could use and construct. And then I made up his voice.

There are bits of his speech from his letters; there are bits and pieces from the slang of the time; from other people's writings; and it kind of evolved as I wrote. The first draft I wrote in the third person actually, and it was only the second draft that I turned it into the first person. His voice started to come into being. But it was born of all those bits and pieces, and also the flora and fauna of the place and how I imagined the experience of being a hard old bastard of a man, like he was, who lived in these worlds; it would've made him gruff but articulate, if you like.

You mentioned a minute ago writing in the British Library. How do you think living and working in Leicester has altered your approach to writing, if it has at all?

Well, it means I don't have access to the British Library. [Laughs.] That's a pain, because I loved the silence amid the chaos of the city. My own office up here is not quite the same. But the book I'm writing at the moment is thematically a book about psychogeography, and it's set now, in the present. And it's set in the kind of edgelands: there are many different marchlands, edgelands; the urban countryside; the margins of the town, if you like, of the city; those bits inbetween. Everywhere that's inbetween; the forgotten bits around the back of new retail parks and the nowhere scrublands between one building and another. It's all about that.

Of course, Leicester is packed full of that sort of decaying, half-forgotten, inbetween places, so I've been sniffing out the underbelly a bit, walking along the canals and things like that. So it's been quite useful to me actually here. I mean, I'm a Londoner: I was born in Dean Street, above the Pizza Express, in 1967, so it's been tough moving away from what I know in the city, but actually as well it's been quite liberating because the subject of my novel fits the surroundings at the moment.

Would you like to say anything more about your new work?

Yeah, sure.

Well, it's called Nowhere. It's premise is, it's the story of a location scout in the film business who's set the brief to find Nowhere by a film director. And in the middle of nowhere he meets this lady anthropologist who has been diagnosed as having had a nervous breakdown, but actually hasn't at all – she's just seen through how everything is. And they have this furious love affair whilst searching for Nowhere along the edgelands of society, if you like.

It's all set in a very short period of time: a few days of their affair and this guy's location scout. So there you go: I've told you all about it now.

You recently organised this year's Annual Creative Writing Lecture with Laura Esquivel, the hugely popular Mexican writer. As an author yourself, what do you feel you gain with this dialogue, if you like, with authors from completely different cultures?

My remit in having this lecture take place each year is that Creative Writing as a taught subject here in the academy, the enormously popular subject that it is, grew up in the 1880s in Harvard and other American academic institutions and was born from English Studies, and has as its craft tools critical ways in which we approach literature in English Studies. So, it's somewhat blind to itself, given what its supposed universality is.

So, what I am hoping to gain from these kind of dialogues – we had Ben Okri last year, who is based in the U.K., but has a very broad kind of take on what literature is, and then Laura Esquivel, who I thought was fascinating actually in how revolutionary she saw creativity – I mean, real Latin American stuff – what a revolutionary take she had on it. She said we have to get away from telling the same stories, and when we are looking at archetypes, look in a quantum-mechanical way at the mirror of an archetype, the opposite, the negative charge, the opposite character to the character you're writing and see if that's more interesting. That was really something important and new that she had to say. It was all about what I'm trying to do in making a Creative Writing lecture bring people in from outside the Anglophone tradition. So I felt, even though she went off in all kinds of directions, and I think a few people went, “What is she on about?”, I thought it was great, you know. I thought she was really doing something different to what any British writer would've done if they'd been invited to give this lecture.

What do you think? Do you agree?

I would agree: it was not what I was expecting at all, but I found it a really interesting, a really original take on it.

Yeah it was. She was as mad as fish, bless her, but also fantastic! I got to spend a couple of days with her and talking to her, she was so wonderful and engaged, and she really does absolutely believe in what she was talking about. And flipping things upside-down; inverting them, turning them round; you know, not repeating ourselves and how that's actually an answer to the social condition of supermodernity, of the modern condition, a passive consumerism. And how the creative process of writing stories can actively become part of that.

It's not something we talk about in Creative Writing classes in the Anglophone tradition. We just talk about point of view and doing this and doing that. We don't – I don't as a teacher – I've not been taught to say to you guys, “Let's use this to tell some story that really is about something else.” To really plunder the depths. I'm hesitant to do that: classes I'm teaching tend to be introductory classes and I don't want to scare people off, but then after watching Laura Esquivel a bit of me thinks that actually, yeah, maybe I should be scaring people off and engaging the people who want to be engaged.

You know what I mean? What do you think about that? Interesting to throw that at you, since you're one of my students.

I think the classes so far have been valuable and I think I would've felt a bit out of my depth. But then it's interesting to think – I was about to call them the “basic tools” of creative writing, but is that an objective thing, or is that something ingrained in how we think about it in the Anglophone tradition?

I started on about it a little bit in the class on Monday. With Jamaica Kincaid, everything is kind of like what I've been explaining – until it ain't. But when it still works, it still works.

And Alain Robbe-Grillet's take on the nouveau roman – I don't know if you guys have come across him or not - but he says, “I'm not interested in character or plot, point of view, structure, any of this kind of thing. I'm interested in tone, colour, suggestion,” - all those completely different things.

For someone who comes along to these events, or the Grassroutes exhibition and thinks, “That looks fun – I want to do that”... what advice would you give to an absolute beginner who wants to write?

Be wary of your own ambitions. Be absolutely honest that you're not fooling yourself by your ambitions.

Isak Dinesen said something that I have pasted up in my office. She said, “I write a little every day, without hope, without despair.” And that's it.

I mean, Laura Esquivel says, “What should a writer do? Write.”

If you're an absolute beginner you think, “Oh I'd like to be doing that.”

“Why aren't you?” is an important question. What is it that you want? Because there is a degree – not so much in universities, and I haven't found it so much in reality in my students as I thought I might – but there's a degree of a culture of narcissism at writing schools.

In a secular age, how do we answer our extinction after 4,000 weeks of life? By showing the world how authentic, deep and meaningful we are by writing a Great Novel.

Like Nick Cave says, “We call upon the author to explain.”

My advice for a starting writer is have a good look at what it is you want to do. Don't fantasise it too much too soon.

Don't become a writer before you write.

Yeah, that's exactly right. Don't seek to become a writer: seek to write. And then ask yourself what it is you write: what is your purpose? Why? Do it without hope or despair. [Laughs.] Because God knows it's a long process!

I got lucky. I did an MA from 2004 to 2005 and I got my first novel published in 2011: six years, I mean, that's remarkable. I'm not bigging myself up, I'm just saying it's remarkably fortunate how quick that happened. Also, I'd been writing since I was eight and I've always written stories, hundreds of short stories that are rubbish.

So, it's a long old grind and you've got to enjoy the process.

I met this guy when I was on this book tour in Canada who did a survey of 1,500 novelists, and he asked them how old they were when their first novel was published, and the mean age was 42, which is a real surprise I think.

Thanks very much.

A pleasure.

*Nick Edgeworth is a volunteer at Grassroutes: Contemporary Leicestershire Writing, a project that aims to promote Leicestershire's diverse literary culture.

Related books:

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Related articles:

• Harry Whitehead, Writers Gallery, Grassroutes: Contemporary Leicestershire Writing 
• Harry Whitehead on The Process of Writing [Video Interview], CivicLeicester, May 29, 2012
• The Cannibal Spirit taps into mystery: Novel examines the inner life of a shaman moving between cultures [Interview], by John Goodman, North Shore News, February 24, 2012

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[Interview] Lorette C. Luzajic

Lorette C. Luzajic lives in Toronto, Ontario where she works as an artist and an author.

Her books include The Astronaut’s Wife: Poems of Eros and Thanatos (Handymaiden Editions, 2006); Goodbye, Billie Jean: the Meaning of Michael Jackson (Handymaiden Editions, 2010) and Fascinating Writers: twenty-five unusual lives (Idea Fountain Editions, 2011).

In this interview, Lorette Luzajic talks about her writing:

When did you start writing?

The cliché but true answer is that there was never a time I didn’t write. I started making up stories and researching projects as soon as I could read, which was very early on. There was never a time for me outside of that identity.

I was very earnest in my childhood, dutifully preparing my double-spaced typewritten poems for submissions to literary journals, complete with the obligatory self-addressed stamped envelopes, in the days before email submissions.

It never dawned on me that submitting my youthful-hearted works to adult literary journals was a waste of time. I saved each rejection and kept track of what pieces were sent where. Many editors kindly took the time to encourage my talent and direct it to more appropriate venues – for years I treasured these handwritten rejection slips as meaningful.

It wasn’t all for naught, however - quite a few childhood poems made their way into the pages of small zines and journals, and I wrote a few religious articles for magazines that had no idea I was a teenager. I won a contest in a Christian magazine when I was twelve. Since adulthood, hundreds of poems, stories, and articles have been widely published in zines, journals, blogs, magazines, anthologies - from Modern Poetry to Dog Fancy.

My colleague, writer Crad Kilodney, who is brilliant, once wrote that getting accepted by a magazine or publisher at a young age is the worst thing that can happen to a writer. Ever after that, they are sure they have what it takes and don’t prepare for another life.

How would you describe your writing?

Right now I am wrapping up a collection of short fiction stories.

I also just released a collection called Fascinating Writers: twenty-five unusual lives.

The topics I write about range extensively, but I think what my favourite and most inspired works are people stories. The best response from my audience so far has been about my Fascinating People series - which are subjective, experiential essays about interesting personages throughout history, especially artists and writers. People who are curious about culture and history and people are the readers who most appreciate these pieces.

I confess that I go about everything backwards.

To be successful, you should probably decide on your audience and write for them. I tend to write what interests me most and hope for an audience. I don’t recommend this approach to writing or art, not unless you are independently wealthy or have a day job.

Which authors influenced you most?

Isabel Allende was a true inspiration in her way of experiencing the magic of life.

Ray Bradbury inspired me because he has written every single day for some eight decades, and striving for this kind of tenacity has helped teach me great discipline and focus, which are not in my nature.

I admire the way different authors use language, from e. e. cummings to Donna Tartt to Haruki Murakami - I am given permission to use the language I see fit and see if I can’t create something of my own, something original.

I read Oscar Wilde when I need to regain a caustic sensibility and a dose of courage. But by and large, I devour non-fiction on nearly every topic under the sun... Mark Kurlansky, Camille Paglia, Matt Ridley, Michael Shermer, Thomas Moore... I believe in unlimited thinking.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

I have lived a life of great passion and intensity. I think those things come through in my work, both my writing and my visual artwork.

Since I am quite averse to wasting any part of my life doing something banal that I don’t wish to do, my concern is how I can find my own place in the business of art and publishing. I don’t play the game well. I want complete creative control. I studied journalism in university but I have no interest in strict reporting. I am impatient and want to write about what I want to write about, as opposed to following a reasonable plan. It would have been much easier if I had just gone to work for a single newspaper or if I followed the advice of a literary agent who sought me out. But I didn’t want to stop all the things I have going on in my head to try to adhere to the tried and true methods of working as a writer.

I don’t want to wait or switch gears. I’m not saying this is wise, but it has made me incredibly innovative. I rose to the challenge by creating a creativity portal, the Idea Fountain, which combines my work as an artist and as a writer, along with my pet cause, freedom of expression.

Since I feel so strongly about freedom of expression being the fundamental human right, the foundation of all freedoms, and so grateful for my own freedom to write and paint, I tied all of this up as “fiercely independent.” Now I run the whole show.

I started Idea Fountain Editions for my books and for other people’s books in the future. I sell my art online and promote my ideas independently. I welcome buyers and sponsors and patrons. And I pledge ten percent, a tithe of my product earnings, to promote freedom of expression.

My biggest challenge is that when you do it all yourself, and you don’t play the game, then you actually are on your own. It can be scary. I take credit for everything I do - and that includes the mistakes. I am responsible for every aspect of my work, which includes the stuff I’m not very good at, like promotion and administrative work. But I’m learning, and I’m so happy and so grateful. And I feel a sense of authentic connection with my small but loyal fan base. Those who enjoy my work don’t want me to be anybody but myself.

Do you write everyday?

Yes. Around seven a.m. I bound out of bed and leap to the coffee machine. I can’t wait to wake up and get to my desk, starting even as I wait for the coffee to brew. I work for several hours on a particular project, determined in one of my many lists of things to do. Important emails and interviews and research are all part of it.

Then I spend several more hours working on a bunch of different projects for a half hour here, ten minutes there, an hour here. There are always many things underway. I thrive when working on fifty things at the same time, but each one advances slowly.

Deadline items take front seat in the morning. I also work in my studio in the afternoons, often moving back and forth from my desk to my easel in half hour shifts. I only stop working when my carpal tunnel syndrome forces me away from my desk or I have a meeting or some other obligation or commitment.

I try to take walking or stretching breaks and get a bit of exercise since the work is sedentary.

In the evening I make plans with family and friends, get some exercise, cook, and sometimes I stay home to read and to keep working. I am totally obsessed with creating. I can’t seem to create enough. I am trying to make up for lost time when in the past, I was not focused or disciplined or didn’t know how to go about what I wanted to do. But I remind myself that the well will run dry if I don’t get out and live, too.

How many books have you written so far?

• The Astronaut’s Wife: Poems of Eros and Thanatos, Handymaiden Editions, 2006. Poetry about love and grief.
• Weird Monologues for a Rainy Life: irreverent ramblings from the end of the world, Handymaiden Editions, 2008. Assorted essays and blogs about grief, addiction, literature, people, popular culture, food, bipolar life, art, and more.
• Dendrite Pandemonium: hits, misses, and random b-sides, Handymaiden Editions, 2009. The sequel to the above.
• Goodbye, Billie Jean: the Meaning of Michael Jackson, curated by Lorette C. Luzajic, Handymaiden Editions, 2010. An anthology of diverse reflections about Michael Jackson, by 51 different writers, including a monk, a drag queen, a communist, a Jungian therapist, a Pulitzer prize winner, a reverend, a senator, and many more.
• Michael Jackson for the Soul: a fanthology of inspiration and love, Handymaiden Editions, 2010. An anthology of heartfelt pieces about Michael Jackson by regular fans.
• A Heartbreaking World of Staggering Glorious: the visual imagination of Lorette C. Luzajic, Idea Fountain Editions, 2011. This is an anthology of my paintings, collages, and photography.
• Fascinating Writers: twenty-five unusual lives, Idea Fountain Editions, 2011. A collection of 25 essays on Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf, Dr. Seuss, Carson McCullers, Danielle Steel, Arthur Miller, and many more.

How long did it take you to write Fascinating Writers?

My latest book is about fascinating writers, exactly as titled. I get to know 25 writers and share my experiences in a gossipy, personable style that invites everyday readers into literature, rather than limiting enjoyment to a more scholarly crowd.

Technically it has taken about three years to compile the 25, since I am never working on one thing at a time.

How did you find a publisher for the book?

As I mentioned above, I started my own publishing company, Idea Fountain Editions, as an initiative of Idea Fountain Productions.

The advantages of small press publishing include creative control, expediency, and innovation.

The disadvantages are stigma and the lack of marketing support. The stigma that self-publishers or small presses have is the idea that someone couldn’t find a traditional publisher because the books are sub-par or unprofessional.

This stigma is often founded in reality - there is a veritable sea of bad books drowning the populace with atrocious poetry from hopefuls everywhere.

With small presses, there might be only one or a couple of people working on everything from overall design to proofreading, so there might be errors that companies with millions of dollars to work with won’t make. But it’s all relative, since the independent press is also highly innovative, offering more variety since its investments and expectations are not necessarily to hit the New York Times Bestseller list (though no one would scoff at making it!).

Creative control in my small press means I get to decide what goes in and what goes on the cover - frankly, I can’t believe the terrible cover art of the vast majority of large press publishing.

Also, bad books are not exclusive to the small press. The vast majority of books are forgettable, and the vast majority of books are poor sellers. But to me, that doesn’t matter. If someone puts themselves out there, I admire that. Only a few people will have a million fans. Only a few books will be brilliant enough to transcend history as classics. And who cares if someone wants to share their bad poetry with their friends and family? We sneer at the gall of someone who dares to put their stuff out there, when we don’t have to buy it. But we all pay taxes that go into grants that pay for so-called legitimate writers to write boring books that no one will read.

We just as often sneer at the big best-selling writers for their mass-manufactured approach to writing - but it is these few who allow the industry to exist, since nearly every writer, old and new, loses money for its publishers. Publishing is a losing game.

I try to accept all of it, and believe there is room for all of us. This doesn’t mean that I think all literature is equal - quite the opposite. I think literature serves many different purposes. No one is forced to be an audience to what they don’t like - but I can’t see any harm in people expanding their horizons in different directions, either. Academic readers might do good to relax with sentimental mush from time to time - and readers who are intimidated by the elitism of classicists shouldn’t be discouraged from trying to experience the joy of hallmark literature. Everyone can benefit from reading from the opposite end of their political spectrum and learning something about their own confirmation biases.

I work hard at my art and writing. I try to find an audience that appreciates my work. I live humbly thus far, but I live in a “room of my own” and spend each and every day doing what I love.

What will your next book be about?

My next book is a collection of short fiction stories. It will be out this year. My second poetry collection is also pending and will probably be out this year, too.

The companion to Fascinating Writers is underway - Fascinating Artists: twenty-five unusual lives. I’m hard at work on it, and hope to see its completion this year, but it takes a considerable amount of time to write each piece and I don’t want to rush them. I want them to be inspired.

What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?

The Idea Fountain, which merged my visual art work, my writing work, and my passion for freedom for all people - freedom of expression - is my most significant achievement.

The Fountain will, I hope, continue to flow with new ideas and generate new ways to work, to market myself, and to support creativity and freedom for people who live under tyranny. Through the umbrella of the Fountain, I want to continue to learn about history and politics and promote the art of people who are not as fortunate as I am. It is a tremendous blessing to be born free, to 20th century Canada.

I used to feel guilty for “frittering” my time away on art and writing when I should have been doing useful tasks - “real” work. Now I know that it is a privilege wasted to not pursue my creative potential when historically I wasn’t allowed to do so. I would not have the same privilege if I were born into socialism or theocracy. In a way, I feel committed to making the most of my writing and art because it is a privilege few have.

I hope for the day that all men, women, and children will be free. And I’m optimistic, despite the atrocities and censorships and torments and war that people endure. The Idea Fountain is about my hope and optimism, and finding that place of gratitude is my most significant achievement thus far.

Related books:

,,

Related articles:

• Lorette C. Luzajic [Artist Showcase], Epiphany Magazine, Issue 9
• The Summer of Michael Jackson: An interview with Lorette C. Luzajic, Open Book Toronto, January 21, 2010
• Reading, Writing and Self-publishing: What's Your Experience of It?Conversations with Writers, April 13, 2007

[Interview] Thomas D'Arcy O'Donnell

Canadian script writer, Thomas D'Arcy O'Donnell is the author of Diamond Walker, a blog novel about an 18-year-old shaman baseball player.

The novel's protagonist, Jimmy Walker, is a provocative anti-hero who brings a fresh and disturbing capability to America’s Game. He is a cutting-edge warrior and a throwback to old-school modes and values who swims with killer whales and seems to project grace and brightness wherever he goes.

In this interview, Thomas O'Donnell talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

Diamond Walker started off (in my head) as an idea for a film.

I had the idea that if I could create a 'property' or story based in Vancouver, British Columbia, I could come back some day and, instead of working for someone else as a waiter or bartender, I could go to the places that amazed me and the work I did would be making the film that was in my head.

Through a strange turn of events, year later, I decided to write the story as a novel, after a synopsis for the film disappeared during the Pitch This competition at the Toronto International Film Festival.

All conspiracy theories aside (who took the synopsis and why?), I also realized it would be a very expensive film to make, so why not create it as a novel?

How would you describe your writing?

The stories, Diamond Walker, particularly, tend to be action or adventure with an ecological basis.

Nature and the environment are always in play and the principal characters are either for or against nature and the environment. The 'good guys' are highly in tune with nature, the 'bad guys' are completely oblivious and/or destructive regarding nature.

Who is your target audience?

I write for a very broad general audience ... all ages.

I like the idea of people reading about good ideas, good actions and characters (exemplars) who have the right ideas and values and know how to go about life with actions that reflect this accordingly.

On the converse side, I really don't see the value in slasher or mangle horror titillation, i.e. Bad (Fear) triumphs over Good. Though I see it has been a very successful theme for many writers.

So, in a way, I could say I write to present 'positive' alternatives to 'negative' stories.

Which authors influenced you most?

I've read thousands of books.

It's very hard to single out influence but I'll admit it's inevitable.

I've read every John D. MacDonald book, including the Travis McGee series; every Louis L'Amour book (westerns); the True History of The Kelly Gang (Peter Carey) blew me away and made me realize that prose or literary form did not have to conform to my perceptions just as the original Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain should have taught me.

The Horse Whisperer (Nicholas Evans) certainly inspired me and I hope my 1st book touches similar themes of man/creature/environment.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

Nat Bailey is known as the grandfather of baseball, in Western Canada. While staying in his home (I had worked with his grandson in Banff, Alberta), he told me of his youth and selling peanuts and popcorn during semi pro baseball games. At his suggestion, I visited the stadium named after him, stood on the infield grass one morning and the idea (for Diamond Walker) poured into me as I looked up at an eagle riding an updraft overhead.

It was a magical morning.

The baseball diamond was like a jewel of green, set in an urban environment and Nat's words and storytelling from the night before were floating with the eagle ... yet in my head as well.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

Getting the ideas out of my head, filtered through my clumsy fingers, onto paper (or text file) and then refining or resolving those primal ideas into prose or literary form and being satisfied, is really the challenge.

My only concerns as a writer are satisfying myself ... and that means there should be ideas of merit ... and if there's going to be conflict, crisis or resolution, my lead characters should be exemplars. They should define 'Winners'.

I can't in any way control what a reader of my work thinks ... though I hope they enjoy reading it. I hope they find values they can embrace ... or that make them feel good.

Do you write everyday?

I can only write when it comes to me. It either flows or it doesn't.

I don't see it as writer's block, I see it as a gift that comes to me, often via happenstance or intermittently.

At the same time, I do believe there's a laziness, mixed with self-doubt, to my writing. It's that smidgen of belief and creativity that keeps the small flame alive ... and so ... I write.

How many books have you written so far?

Diamond Walker is my only completed novel and its unpublished.

Keep in mind, that Diamond Walker came into my head ... before there was an 'internet' and I wrote on sheets of paper, then in spiral notebooks, or on napkins in bars or restaurants ... then as text files, eventually even as emailed memos to myself.

I sent queries and sample chapters to publishers, agents etc ... and finally decided to put the entire novel online as a blog novel ... It's kind of apropos actually, since it was written in fits and starts ... intermittently ... over the years.

I think my talent lies in writing. It certainly does not lie in effective contact with literary agents or publishers, though I've tried mightily, to pour effective effort into that Catch 22 endeavor.

Without complaint I can truly say, that an unpublished author in Canada faces an extreme uphill climb and I've constantly tried to reach outside of Canada for representation or interest. Others have succeeded and I'll always keep trying.

I'm self published ... I migrated the book to Wordpress as a blog novel. It's now driven mainly by serendipity, though I utilize its presence on the web via continued queries to the literary or publishing world and of course alternatives such as Conversations with Writers.

Which aspects of the work you put into the book did you find most difficult?

I remember one day when I was writing Diamond Walker and I was creating dialogue and the thoughts of a 45-year-old woman. I was almost overcome with doubt, thinking, 'Who am I to create the thinking process of a woman ?'

The same thing occurred one day when I was writing a treatment for a children's TV program and I was writing dialogue for a 6-year-old girl, but it was more of a feeling inside me of, 'Where the heck is this coming from?'

What will your next book be about?

My next book will likely be a sequel focusing on Hunter Walker (Jimmy 'Diamond' Walker's father).

I like the idea of a hunter, tracker Navajo, based in British Columbia who tracks missing or abducted people in wild or urban environments, and can deal with adverse weather, environments or dangerous adversaries.

What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?

Getting Diamond Walker finished. Uploading it to the web, as a blog novel was a huge milestone for me. But, as I mentioned earlier, satisfaction comes from feeling I've met, or come close to what I believe are necessary levels of creativity, competence and merit.

I wrote a poem, in support of a documentary project I'm developing, and I'd never undertaken a long poem before. Seeing that poem online within my research/development blog for Ann Harvey really made me feel good. Kind of that creatively exhausted satisfaction and, I guess, I should say that the whole process of trying to breath life into a documentary about a historical event, i.e. the attempt to write eloquently about an amazing story that actually happened, but is little known, is a pretty special challenge and opportunity.

Possibly related books:

,,

Related articles:

• Unemployed Harvard Man Auctions Baseball Novel for $650,000, By Philip Boroff, Bloomberg.com, March 31, 2010
• 'Blockade Billy' by Stephen King [Book Review], By Wayne C. Rogers, Las Vegas Review-Journal, May. 25, 2010
• Alma Kroeker [Interview], Conversations with Writers, April 24, 2010

[Interview: Part 2 of 2] Dave and Lillian Brummet

In the first part of this interview, Dave Brummet talked, among other things, about how most writers today are also having to play a bigger role in promoting and marketing the work that they are producing.

Lillian Brummet now gives her views on the work she and Dave are doing. Together they have written and published two "how-to" books, Purple Snowflake Marketing: How to make your book stand out in a crowd (2nd edition, BookLocker, 2009) and Trash Talk: Learn how you can impact the planet (PublishAmerica, 2004) as well as Towards Understanding (PublishAmerica, 2005) a collection of 120 poems on society, the environment and overcoming trauma.

They also host two online radio programmes, Conscious Discussions talk radio show and Authors Read radio program.

How would you describe your writing?

I began with the Trash Talk column because I really believe in the individual’s power to impact the health of the planet with really simple actions. The success of this column, and later the book that Dave and I wrote, was the fuel that got us going on the road we are traveling now.

For me, writing is about leading others by showing them just how easy it is to create a more peaceful, healthy world. Each of us has a legacy to leave behind and we already have the tools to do it, what we need is some inspiring, positive information that will urge us to get out of the rut of apathy and become more proactive in life. That is my passion, when it comes to writing. Our first two published books and most of our articles reflect this passion. The most recent book is a slight diversion from this focus in that we have provided a marketing plan development guide for fellow authors.

When you were thinking about Purple Snowflake Marketing, which authors would you say had the most influenced you?

Initially it was conversations on writer’s forums that got us thinking about releasing a book like Purple Snowflake Marketing. People were constantly asking us questions on how we were able to build the name recognition we have and how to go about each step of the marketing process.

As book reviewers and self-education enthusiasts we had ready access to writer’s resource materials, and from this we saw several areas that were really lacking in providing the key skills that help a writer develop a plan that suits their particular situation. We made note of any area we felt was lacking in other resource materials and made a great effort to create a well-rounded resource for writers, one they can use indefinitely to promote each piece they create.

We cover emotions, writer’s block and even how to handle the responses from the family and friends in our lives. Every writer we’ve ever met, either in person or Online, has been an influence in this regard.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

Time management is a real biggie for me. There is always so much to do. Someone wants a banner ad, another radio show needs a promo ad, there’s guests to book on the radio show and outlines for their interviews to create… writing the column for Poetic Monthly Magazine, and articles for newsletters or blogs… emails popping in every few minutes for an interview, or networking opportunity.

Keeping records of all of this and making sure that everyone has been followed up on, while finding new contacts, new opportunities to reach an audience that has not yet heard of our work -- this can eat up a lot of time.

Part of the struggle is keeping up with the new technologies, each of these takes a little time to become accustomed to.

New book releases are the most time-constraining for writers, we need to find patience through this busy time and know that there will be time for writing again soon enough. Besides being patient, keeping good records is essential to ensuring nothing is left behind along the way.

How many books have you written so far?

To date we have three books available to the public.

Trash Talk discusses the 4-R’s of waste management and the proper order for them. This being Refuse, Reduce, Reuse Then Recycle… before we even consider sending the item to the trash bin. Trash Talk focuses on the third R, Reuse – which also saves people a lot of money (through reduced shopping, reduced utility bills...) and provides a way to make a real and measurable contribution towards a healthier planet - enabling readers to feel more positive in life and leave a lasting legacy. Trash Talk is currently available in both paperback & hardcover formats.

Towards Understanding’s revised edition is a collection of 125 non-fiction poems written in chronological order. It is a true story of a young pre-teen female growing up on her own, struggling to survive, breaking the chains of inner demons and finally growing towards understanding of her value & purpose in life -- but not quite reaching it. Thus the title… Towards Understanding.

The original version of this book is still available in paperback & hardcover. This new revised edition offers 5 new poems, creating an ending the author is more comfortable with, and updated author information – and is available through booklocker.com.

Purple Snowflake Marketing: How to make your book stand out in a crowd, is a reference guide for self-marketing authors who want to be noticed in a snowstorm of writers. This book provides reassurance to authors along with ample advice for avoiding pit-falls and setting a pace for marketing endeavors.

Which were the most difficult aspects of the work you put into Purple Snowflake Marketing?

I turn to Dave (she laughs). It is true! You see -- the benefit of our working relationship is his skills take over where mine falter, my abilities rise where his are not so strong, his talents shine where mine are listless. When he is feeling tired, I take over -- and vise-versa. I don’t think there is one thing that our office produces that hasn’t had both of us working on it in some way -- whether or not both our names are in the by-line.

What sets the book apart from the other things you've written?

Purple Snowflake Marketing, although it is a self-help, how-to book -- it is quite different from the other products we’ve produced in the past. This is a book geared for a specific audience -- writers… rather then a general audience of individuals looking for inspiration.

What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?

Getting published (she grins)! Winning all these amazing awards is pretty cool, all the acknowledgments from leading environmental and writer-education organizations continues to be a huge honor -- getting thanked by the Premier of BC for our environmental efforts was really amazing. But honestly when you strip all this away, the real addiction to this drug we call writing is the fact that it offers both Dave and I an avenue to leave a real legacy behind.

Now, let me clarify here that I don’t mean having our name in print and being ‘known’ or famous. When I say the word legacy I mean this -- answering questions like: Why we exist in this moment… What is the value of our life… How did this world benefit from our existence? These are the questions we hope to answer through our writing.

Possibly related books:

,,

Related resources:

• Authors' website
• Authors' blog

[Interview: Part 1 of 2] Dave and Lillian Brummet

Canadian authors, Dave and Lillian Brummet have written and published two "how-to" books, Purple Snowflake Marketing: How to make your book stand out in a crowd (2nd edition, BookLocker, 2009) and Trash Talk: Learn how you can impact the planet (PublishAmerica, 2004) as well as Towards Understanding (PublishAmerica, 2005) a collection of 120 poems on society, the environment and overcoming trauma.

In addition to writing, the Brummets host two online radio programmes, Conscious Discussions talk radio show and Authors Read radio program.

In this, the first of two interviews, Dave Brummet talks about the work they are doing:

When did you start writing?

I’ve been writing all my life.

I decided to become published around 1999 after taking a writing course and learning, most importantly, how to present one's self to a publisher. I just felt that writing was my calling and wanted to “follow my bliss” (from Joseph Campbell) -- so to speak. I also educated myself on the business and politics side of writing in order to query in a professional manner.

Who is your target audience?

Our target audience, with Purple Snowflake Marketing, is any writer -- because every writer needs the knowledge to be able to promote their work.

These days, as a writer, publishing companies expect authors to be willing to market themselves and their work, often with their own resources. We realized that there is a huge void in the information available for us, as writers, to do this.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

Because we like to write about the things we love in life, for example gardening, cooking and outdoor recreation, these experiences become a part of each and every story. Even if it is a how-to article, I try to relay through the writing how I learned myself, as a first-timer, thus connecting with the reader.

I tend to write as if I am speaking to a person, often with some humor, rather than a textbook dictation-like approach. This seems to come across as more reader-friendly this way.

Do you write everyday?

Ideally I would like to write everyday but unfortunately editing, graphics, web maintenance, ads, radio promos, voiceovers, interviews (he laughs)… and life in general all have to maintain a balance as well.

When I do write I begin with outlines and well-thought out plans, I then extrapolate from there and size the article accordingly to the specified word count.

After the initial writing, an article or a book will need edits (often over and over) and the writers must take the time to get away and let their minds recover -- to come back to a piece fresh and proofread it.

At some point you have to stop editing because, with our ever-flexible English language, you could go on for forever. You need to trust in your talent and believe that it is going to be good enough for your market.

How would you describe your latest book?

Purple Snowflake Marketing: How to make your book stand out in a crowd, is our most recent release. The first edition was put out in 2007 and within 18 short months it had made the recommended reading list of a dozen writing courses.

We’ve created this new revised edition with updated information, hundreds of new resources and several new sections -- which is now available through booklocker.com We compiled it from our own market plans for our articles and books, which started back in 2004 with our first book Trash Talk.

We chose to create this project as an e-book specifically because writers are already at their computers and they benefit from the live links that link them to promotional opportunities and well-researched resources with the click of a mouse.

Which aspects of your work do you enjoy most?

I like the creative process of writing -- crafting a sentence out of nothing in order to convey what you want the reader to get out of the piece. To me this is the true art of writing, the reason why I got into it at first… this creative aspect of writing.

I also now enjoying the graphics and creative design of book covers, bookmarks, ads, business cards, radio promotion blurbs -- everything a writer needs to promote. I love the fact that we have more control and save a lot of money by doing this in-house. Graphic design work is not cheap.

What will your next book be about?

We have a series of garden, cookbook, animal rescue and landscaping books that we are currently working on.

As a musician and a drum-maker, I also have plans to share my years of knowledge and experience in these rather unique fields. I’ve repaired and refurbished a wide variety of instruments, built drums and taught students for 25 years -- this has given me a unique insight into the trade that I feel is worth sharing with readers.

Which one is next is a good question!

Related resources:

• Authors' website
• Authors' blog

Possibly related books:

,,

[Interview] Jason Blacker

South African author, Jason Blacker was born in Cape Town but grew up in Johannesburg. He moved to Vancouver, Canada when he was 18 years old and currently lives in Calgary.

He spent some time at art college before getting a degree in English Literature. He has worked, among other things, as a police officer, a privacy analyst, a school bus driver and a Starbucks Store Manager.

His first novel, Black Dog Bleeding (Lulu, 2008) explores South Africa's apartheid era and the personal cost paid by individuals who found the policy abhorrent and resisted it.

In this interview, Jason Blacker talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

I started writing as soon as I could pick up a crayon. In the early days, kindergarten, I started off drawing and exploring colours before learning to write letters and and words.

I think, for me, writing was a natural evolution from drawing. I love drawing and took a couple of years at art college. But to write words that are transformed into images in the reader's mind is a great thrill. Especially if you get that poetic turn-of-phrase.

In grade 7 or 8 I wrote a poem about a man looking into a mirror and the poem was written as a mirror-image of itself. My teacher loved it, gave me an "A" and wrote some really generous comments. It was that experience that really turned on the light bulb for me. My A-ha moment where I thought: "Wow, people can really enjoy this thing I do with words just for fun." And that was the beginning of my journey to being a published and financially successful author. Prior to that, I had just messed around scribbling my own comics -- in the vein of spiderman and star wars. Huge fan of both. I'd do the drawings and writing and just dunk myself deeply into those imaginary worlds. Still today, there is nothing I like better than getting immersed in the story of my characters.

In university I took an undergrad in English Literature to explore some of my favourite authors. One class was on mystery fiction and we had the option of writing our own story. I did this and the professor loved it. She gave me another "A" and encouraged me to publish [the story]. It was at this time that I decided to write my first novel. Up to this point I had written poems and short stories.

My first novel, Black Dog Bleeding, was born during these days. It has been self published and is available at Lulu.com. It was important for me to write it. It deals with the life of someone like Stephen Biko who I greatly admire. Although fictitious, I needed to come to understand the sacrifice and courage of the heroes -- both men and women, black and white of the apartheid resistance. And I wanted to share that with the world.

How would you describe your writing?

My writing is informed by my poetic experience. And what I mean by that is that because I started out writing poetry in its various forms, poetry infuses my prose. I'm very interested in imagery and metaphors. And I love finding that phrase that captures an image in a poetic and original way. Some of my influences would be the poets -- Dylan Thomas, e. e. cummings, [Charles] Bukowski and Walt Whitman to name a few.

Some of the writer's I've enjoyed would be [John] Steinbeck, [Ernest] Hemmingway, [Chuck] Palahniuk and Dashiell Hammett. I think all of these folks have influenced my writing to degrees.

Who is your target audience?

This is an interesting question, as I have two answers to it. I started out writing literary fiction and wrote stories that I wanted to tell. I had no real audience in mind. These stories were character-driven. Based on characters that came to me and wrestled with me like a monkey on my back. I had to tell their tales without much thought to who would read them. But if I was pressed I'd say my stories focus on the theme of the triumph of the human spirit under duress. I write about the hopeful and optimistic potential of humanity. Although my stories are infused with suffering. I guess my audience would be those seeking more understanding of the human condition, and what it means to live this human existence.

On the other hand, I have started to write hard boiled detective novels too. My audience there is certainly for detective fiction fans. Especially those who are more interested in character than tricky story development.

You mentioned a number of authors who influenced you most. In what ways did they influence you?

The poets, as mentioned above, influenced me not only in their wonderfully fresh and innovative imagery but also in their understanding and compassionate take on life. I think, that is, the most influencing flavour is the writer's understanding and ability to relate, through his characters, the struggles of what it means to be human.

I love to be entertained too. And for me being entertained is enjoying the writing and the characters. The style the author has. These, too me are more important than tricky plots or clever red herrings.

With Hammett, he infused in me an abiding love of the hard boiled detective genre, escalating to the level of literary fiction, in my opinion. Also, I have yet to find many others who can write dialogue as forcefully and ironically as he does.

A couple of others I should mention are Nadine Gordimer, J. M. Coetzee and Alan Paton. All three being South African writers and their styles and empathy and my affinity for them as a fellow South African expat draw me into their works. A fourth South African writer deserves separate mention. K. Sello Duiker, a bright flame extinguished too soon showed great promise and is a sad loss to the global literary scene.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

My main concerns as a writer are what I would hope concern any caring and compassionate creative person. I am deeply concerned with the human condition. Especially the inequities and inequalities rampant even to this day within society. These affect me deeply and are what flavour most of my writing.

My goal in writing is one of uplifting the human spirit to greater heights, if that is possible, through writing -- which I hope and believe it is. I deal with my concerns through my artistic endeavours. Be they art, poetry or prose.

The concerns for my fellow man drive me in the pursuit of more generosity, more compassion and more equality as themes in my novels.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

Well, as a first generation, white South African I have been affronted by the glaring disparities forced upon my countrymen. And both white South Africans as well as black South Africans were, I believe fractured by this disjoining. And to this day it creates difficulties that South Africa is confronted with and struggling to fix.

For me, even now living in Canada, I rage daily against these unacceptable disparities and they continue. I find solace in this sad state through the struggles my characters go through in their day-to-day lives.

Perhaps writers are mirrors to which society can see its faults and hopefully remove them.

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

On a professional level, the biggest challenges faced are trying to find publishers and agents. The road at times is long and the incline terribly steep. This is likely the biggest challenge to most emerging writers.

On the personal level, it is finding the time and energy to continually stay focused on a daily basis. Especially when there are multiple distractions and expectations attached to me. My family and employment income are challenges that continually need to be juggled in order to find the motivation and time to write.

Do you write everyday?

When I have a book on the go I do write every day except for weekends. But if I'm in the groove I'll write then too. I just sit down with my laptop to write and I review the previous day's writing and make very brief edits. I'm just looking for spelling and grammar mostly. Doing this review gets me into the character and it is easy to start up again.

Once I've done that I just start writing away on my laptop with the goal of 1,000 words. I use words rather than time as I occasionally will drift off. So some days it may take me an hour and others it might take two. I will write at least 1,000 words and I find I like to stop when I'm really into the story and things are going along smoothly. It is then easier the next day to pick up again if I've left off when I would have liked to continue on.

How many books have you written so far?

I have written three so far. The first Black Dog Bleeding is self-published through lulu.com. I published it in 2008.

As mentioned above, Black Dog Bleeding is a fictitious account of what I imagined the life of Stephen Biko might have been like. It follows my protagonist (Steven Bankulu), same initials on purpose, as he deals with immense personal loss but yet even in the midst of all of this finds a way to fight for the justice of all South Africans. Even though he ends up in jail on trumped up charges of treason. The novel is set in the 70's and 80's in South Africa.

Livid Blue is my second novel. It is not yet published though I continue to seek publishers and representations. It is a novel that follows two protagonists. The first is Janko who is dying from complications related to AIDS. The second is Michael, the psychiatrist who spends many sessions with Janko in order for him to come to terms with his difficult childhood in order to prepare for a peaceful death.

Janko carries a lot of anger and resentment having been abandoned by his mother and not knowing who his father is.

The novel explores different types of relationships and the validity of them. Why are blood relations seen as so strong when in fact they are often the weakest and most antagonistic? These are the kind of questions the novel deals with.

First Feature is a hard-boiled detective novel and has also not been published. Anthony Carrick is the main protagonist who is an ex-LAPD homicide detective now working on his own. He has been hired to find out who killed a high-powered Holllywood producer.

All is not as it seems in pristine Beverly Hills. And Anthony's employer (the production company) are eager to find out any skeletons before the mass media have a chance to feed on them. This novel follows Anthony through drug-adled Echo Park, a hippie vegetarian restaurant with the coroner and a fashionable gay bar all for the sake of solving a murder.

An interesting tidbit about this novel is that Anthony is named after my father and Carrick in Ireland where my ancestry is from.

What is your latest book about?

I'll talk about my fourth book, Red Reign, which I am in the process of writing. It will likely take me about a year for the first draft. Six months, if I could focus on it full time. And perhaps another six months to do all the edits where I feel it is well-dressed and presentable to the public. And the public in this case being agents and publishers.

I would likely choose a publisher based on a number of factors. Most often how well I get along with their representative I am dealing with. Oftentimes money will also be a factor as well as some of the other authors they publish too.

Which are the most difficult aspects of the work you put into your books?

The most difficult aspects of my books for me is the researching. I usually start a novel with a character and they will present their story to me and I head off under the bunker and start writing.

I research as I find it necessary to do so. But the major drawback of this is the break of continuity and rhythm that occurs when this happens. I deal with this by stubbornly sticking to only the research I need to do and ignoring any drifting or extraneous research that might catch my eye.

What do you enjoy most?

I enjoy really getting into the story of my characters. I enjoy the times when the writing flows and time stand still. It is at times like this when the character's really take on a life of their own and it is as if I am getting to know real people. When this happens it is magic. And I'm at the top of my game.

What sets Red Reign apart from other things you've written?

I'm getting better at writing all the time. My writing feels more fluid and the character more palpable.

What sets this book apart is also the fact that it takes place under more current political conditions. It deals with terrorism and corporate greed.

It [is similar to the others in that it] deals with the similar themes that infuse all my writing. That is human suffering and indifference and lack of compassion. But also the overcoming of these things to a spiritual salvation if you will.

After Red Reign, what will you work on next?

I will return to my hard boiled detective novel. It will be called Second Fiddle and will have intrigue, death, perhaps some romance and, of course, greed and fear.

What would you say has been your most significant achievement as a writer?

Just to be able to keep going under difficult circumstances. To keep it up after hundreds of rejections and many personal difficulties and changes in personal environments. To keep going at it while so many things rail against me. To not go gently into that good night as Dylan Thomas would say. And in the end... frankly, I'm just a stubborn bugger.

Possibly Related Books:

,,

Related Interview:
[Interview] Jennifer Armstrong, author of 'Minus the Morning', Conversations with Writers, September 27, 2009

[Interview] Carol Windley

Award-winning author Carol Windley has worked as a radio station copy writer, a librarian and as a creative writing instructor at Malaspina University College in Nanaimo, where she now lives. Her fiction has appeared in literary journals, in The Journey Prize Anthology and, on several occasions, in Best Canadian Stories. Her books include the award-winning collection of short stories, Visible Light, the acclaimed novel Breathing Underwater, and Home Schooling, which has been shortlisted in this year's Scotiabank Giller Prize.

Carol Windley spoke about her latest collection of short stories and the challenges short story writers face.

The short stories in your most recent collection, Home Schooling, are set against the rural landscape of Vancouver Island and the cities of the Pacific Northwest. Why is this so? Is there a particular reason for this?

I've always felt incredibly lucky to have grown up on Vancouver Island. The landscape is in one way quite gentle and benign, but it's also complicated and dense and mysterious - an ideal setting, I think, for fiction.

Some of the stories in Home Schooling are set in Washington State because it's an area with strong geographic and historical connections to [British Columbia] B. C. The international border adds a note of interest and complexity - another demarcation, like the edge of the sea.

In these stories, what would you say is your main concern?

I wanted to look at how family is the place where we first learn about relationships and community. Parents hope to give their children a sense of family history as well as certain attitudes and values, and while children are very receptive, very willing to learn, they're also very critical and skeptical.

In a child's imagination, received wisdom can undergo startling changes. And in a family, everything is fluid and mutable, anyway, as a result of personality and temperament and circumstance, so trying to give off a sense of this in the fictional families in Home Schooling became my main concern.

What motivates you to write?

What motivates me, I think, is a desire to capture something of human experience in language. Fiction works like a mirror that reflects our moral and emotional truths and it's one of the few ways available to us to get a glimpse into someone else's interior life.

How long did it take you to come up with the stories that make up Home Schooling?

It took a long enough time that I often felt impatient with myself. I knew I wanted to grow as a writer; I had some clear objectives in mind. I wanted to get more of a sense of movement and activity in my writing - and plot was always a weakness for me.

I think I managed to learn something about plot. At the same time, I wanted the characters in the stories to connect with each other in a way that was energetic and authentic and touching.

Which would you say was the most difficult story to write? Why is this so?

"Sand and Frost" was difficult because it involved two separate stories, that of the narrator, Lydia, and that of the grandmother, Pauline, and the way in which Pauline's story entered Lydia's mind.

I was intrigued by what a horrific event like the one in the grandmother's past would do to subsequent generations, how it would cast a dark shadow. Lydia is young and yearns to be in a loving relationship, but her attempts to connect with people are undermined by what she knows of her disturbing and violent inheritance. She can see from her grandmother's example that survival is possible, but she has to find her own way to transcend her family history.

Which did you enjoy most?

I enjoyed writing "The Reading Elvis," partly because it's the only story in this collection with a male narrator and getting the voice right was a challenge.

In the story the central character, Graham, is always somewhat off-balance, trying to find his footing but not being very successful, and it was a little like a game to keep this going. The story is also about rebirth, in a way, and I liked seeing in how many different ways this image could be examined in the story as part of Graham's life.

How different is Home Schooling to the other books you have written?

The stories in Home Schooling are darker, I think. I hope they're richer and more complex.

In what way is it similar?

All three of my books share a west coast setting and all three are concerned with ordinary people and the way in which dreams and the imagination rework reality. Many of the stories are told from the point-of-view of a young woman and this is true of the novel, as well.

When you look at the history of the short story, you notice that the number of magazines that publish short stories has declined. Why is this?

It's been said people are too busy to invest time in a story that will end after 20 or 30 pages, just as the reader gets to know the characters and setting. Fortunately there are still magazines that publish and encourage short story writers and there are fabulous writers like Alice Munro, Lorrie Moore, Charles D'Ambrosio and many others who are reaching a wide audience.

How can the writer of short stories make a living from them?

Only a very few writers can make any kind of a living from writing short stories. In fact, most fiction writers have to subsidize their writing at least some of the time with other work or with grants or with the generosity of their partners and families.

From your own experience, how easy or difficult is it to write short stories compared to longer works of fiction like novellas or novels?

I think it's completely possible the same amount of toil and angst goes into each of these forms, although for some reason I have the idea a novella would be the most difficult to write.

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