[Interview] Michael McIrvin

Michael McIrvin has five poetry collections, two novels and a collection of essays to his name.

His latest novel, The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time (BeWrite Books, 2009) has been described as an implicit indictment of the use of murder and torture by modern nation states.

In this interview, McIrvin talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?.

My most recent book is a novel, but I have also published poetry collections, and that genre was my first calling.

I started writing poetry at age 12 after my first crisis of faith. I read the Bible like a cabalist in my search for answers, every syllable, afraid I might miss some truth hiding there. When I reached the last page, I started over; but this time I only read Genesis, Revelations, and the Psalms, the Christian creation and destruction myths and the King James’ version of poetry — the good bits in my 12-year-old opinion.

In fact, the intersection of language and mythology remain important to both my poetry and my prose. My first poems were a cross between the Psalms, poetry that looked like that text in terms of long lines (mostly Whitman and Wordsworth) in my father’s old intro to lit textbook from college, and popular song lyrics.

I 'published' my first book a year or so later, a few copies of Xeroxed poems stapled together (I did the cover art too, of course). My first real book came out from a small poetry publisher in New Mexico, USA many years later, and I have published eight books in total since: five poetry collections, an academic essay collection, and two novels.

I can’t claim to actively seek publication like I did when in my 20s and 30s, but rather, I generally send mss to publishers who ask because they have seen my work in literary magazines or because of the previous books. I did send my current novel manuscript to BeWrite Books unsolicited, however, after a friend suggested that the themes in the book would be more readily acceptable to a non-US publisher.

How would you describe the writing you are doing?

The most recent novel from BeWrite Books is about counterintelligence, and it is billed as a literary thriller. It is perhaps as accurate to call it social and political commentary in the guise of literary fiction, but the book is still fiction and so said commentary is implicit in the story, sublimated to story and character.

The poetry collection on which I am putting the finishing touches is about death and war and memory, and I am starting a new one that is made of stories: vignettes of working class life that all seem at this point to be, as a friend said of them recently, transcendent, the stuff of myth and ritual in everyday existence.

I am trying to find the time and energy to start the next novel too, which will be based on a short story I wrote some years ago about a feral child and his memories of his time in that mode. The novel will then follow him through his life as a 'tamed' adult, a man living on the edge of society even as he walks through it. At least that is the plan presently.

Has your personal experience had an impact on your writing?

I am a poet, fiction writer, and essayist with cultural concerns, but all of these genres are connected for me, the writing all of a piece. I frequently write narrative poems, for example, poetry that tells a story or has a character at its center. I also include some of the poet’s most powerful tools in my fiction, especially figurative language, and I use these same tools in my essays as well. And all of my work includes the stuff of modern life, the kinds of cultural issues that figure prominently in our current existence, like what constitutes individual identity in an age of hive behaviour, like how political power functions in the lives of individuals.

Don’t get me wrong. The overriding aims in my poetry and my fiction are still artistic and my poems and novels are not textual soapboxes. But like every writer, the elements of my life, what concerns me, enter the work almost inevitably and I always try to figure out how to make them serve the project at hand rather than the other way around.

Who is your target audience?

I do not aim my work at a given demographic, but if anything, I guess I write for an astute reader, one not only capable of considering the thematic elements but who also appreciates what the poet Robert Duncan called the snakelike beauty of living syntax. A good metaphor is only worth its weight in gold if the reader gets it.

Which authors influenced you most?

The influences for The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time will probably shock my publisher because those influences are perhaps not readily apparent. I am of the age now that influence is not so much stylistic as something tougher to explain, like how a given writer handles a topic or the overall tone of the prose.

Don DeLillo (Underworld) has always impressed me with his ability to include what one might term topical material without waxing didactic, and some of his prose is so lyrical it is obvious that he understands the poet’s toolkit well (again, tools I use in my fiction too). The protagonist in my latest novel is a former CIA agent, and the subject of torture is important to the book, but the book is not a heavy-handed expose on the subject but rather a larger indictment via a dramatization of the practice in historical context — in this case Mesoamerica at the end of the 20th century.

I also love Cormac McCarthy’s terse prose (Blood Meridian may be the best US novel of the 20th century), his ability to make the reader shudder for a long time in few words but also his ability to move the story forward quickly. Many of his characters also rise to the level of archetype and their story to the level of mythic undertaking. The main character and his tale in The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time, I hope, achieve those levels to some small degree.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

I just want to get it right, which is of course a moving target and a writer does not “get it right” via an algorithm. So, the work at hand is always an exercise in problem solving as well as creation. I suppose the key is tenacity, a willingness to go after my own text as many times as it takes to find shortcomings and figure out the necessary fix.

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

These days, time and energy. I somehow manage to find both, and it frequently amazes me to open a notebook or a manuscript file and see how much I have done. But the work tends to proceed more in fits and starts than when I taught because that profession included a known time that one could set aside to write, but fits and starts is the necessary rhythm now.

Do you write every day?

I do not write every day, and I marvel at those who do (my heroes, in a way). However, I am always working on the next poem or novel. I keep notebooks, wherein there are ideas or scenes or drafts, and then I have to find a larger block of time to do “official” work: to put down a draft that is closer to finished with each iteration, to revise, to put together a manuscript in something like the fashion it will look ultimately.

I also think about what I am working on even if not writing something down, which can be a pitfall if one mistakes it for actually writing; but nevertheless, that kind of imagining is important to the finished work if kept in perspective. That pitfall is not a problem I have to worry about, however. I know when it is time to do the writing viscerally, almost as instinctual need, and I will turn over heaven and earth to find the time to get it done.

And a book is a book only when the galleys are proofed. Up to that point, any reading of the manuscript can result in changes. So, I don’t let a project go, so to speak, until it is a half step from being a book.

How many books have you written so far?

I am the author of eight books:

• The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time, novel, BeWrite Books (2009)
• Optimism Blues: Poems Selected and New, poetry, Cedar Hill Publications (2003)
• Déjà vu and the Phone Sex Queen, novel, j-Press Publishing (2003, second printing 2008)
• Whither American Poetry, essays, Cedar Hill Publications (1999)
• The Book of Allegory, poetry, Cedar Hill Publications (1999)
• Dog, Pygmy Forest Press (1997)
• Lessons of Radical Finitude, Pygmy Forest Press (1993)
• Love and Myth, Blue Textual Sparrow Press (1993)

How long did it take you to write The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time?

The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time was started in 2001, but it was put aside for a long time because of the political climate shift that began then (you can read a bit about this decision in an essay I wrote for Comparative Literature and Culture, “Poetry and the Aesthetic of Morality”.

The book is about a former CIA agent who must reconsider his one-time role as a counterintelligence agent, what constitutes terrorism, and the nature of power in the modern world. His journey takes him from the American rustbelt to Chiapas, Mexico, where he meets another former intelligence operative who doubles as a jaguar shaman for his Mayan tribe. The main character must also deal with other former CIA colleagues and has flashbacks to his bloody role in American history. A Mayan boy he meets has a cultural role and a future that are perhaps the most terrible revelations in the novel.

As I noted previously, a friend suggested that perhaps the topic and my handling of it might be more readily acceptable to publishers somewhere other than in the US. BeWrite was the first non-US publisher I sent the ms (and I must admit that I had not sent it to many in the US either, believing the exercise a waste of time on this side of the Atlantic), and the editor, Neil Marr, accepted it immediately and enthusiastically.

The book was published in December, and so I am too early into the process to know much about “advantages or disadvantages,” but the people at BeWrite are consummate pros and attentive to every last detail. I am also impressed by the fact they are actively exploring “what comes next” in publishing. For example, they offer an eBook version of The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time on their site (in PDF) as well as a traditional paperback, but my book was also the among the first BeWrite titles to be made available to all current eBook devices via Smash Words.

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

The book is an implicit indictment of the practices of modern nation states, specifically of counterintelligence and its methods, including murder and torture as tools of state. As noted in the essay I just mentioned, many of my acquaintances did not understand my desire to write such a book let alone to include these thematic elements. The book is about the practices of the CIA in Mesoamerica late in the last century, but as one reviewer has said, the topics covered are utterly timely. Some readers of early drafts thought them too timely, apparently.

The atmosphere of panic brought on by the attack on the World Trade Center has abated a bit with the revelation of just how cowardly and dishonest the previous US administration’s actions were in response, but the desire for vengeance still permeates the culture to an extraordinary degree and the entire population seems in a malaise that can only be deemed moral confusion. All that made finding my way with the book, if not harder, at least a more self-conscious act. Moreover, some elements in the book, extraordinary violence and the consequent suffering, let alone the larger thematic of culpability on the part of the US government in the destruction of tribal cultures, were really tough to write about. Some of the research was in fact harrowing.

What sets The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time apart from other things you've written?

My previous novel has an element of irony that — in spite of sometimes tough topics (like murder, the black market organ trade, and genocide) — makes the reader laugh along the way. It is something of a fairytale in this aspect. Pratfalls might be bloody but they can still be a hoot.

The present novel is not ironic, except in the darker definition of the word, and not funny in the least. But it probably shares this with my poetry, which tends to be serious and imagistic and to plumb the depths, both psychologically and on some level that might be called philosophical (though I hope always to avoid a kind of dryly didactic language that kills the art in any literary work). In this latter case, The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time includes Mayan mythology, which is quite violent, and those tales are brought forward into our age as historical fact — the characters in the novel are, symbolically, incarnations of the characters in the myths and carrying out bloody prophecy.

Related articles:

• The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time by Michael McIrvin [Book Review], by Dylan Neal, Gently Read Literature, October 1, 2010
• The Blue Man Dreams the End of Time by Michael McIrvin [Book Review], by Dan Larson, The Compulsive Reader
• Talking About Torture [Interview], by Richard Labonte, Publishers Weekly, November 10, 2008

You’ve Published Your First Book ... What Next?

By Carrie Oakley

You’ve published your first book ... what next? This is a question I’m sure many (if not all) writers have faced at some point or the other in their career.

The quest and drive to publish their first book consume most of their time and energy during the start of their career. They feel on top of the world when they know it is going to see the light of day and when it’s out and in stores, the exhilaration is like nothing else.

However, the rollercoaster does have to come down after touching the highs, so it’s back to earth with a bang once your first book is behind you. Now it’s time to take stock and plan what to do next.

If your book is doing well and selling like hotcakes, you’re definitely going to find the motivation to keep going ... maybe even write a sequel or a spin-off to ride on this one’s popularity. The adulation you gain is an addiction, and you cannot seem to get enough of it. So you settle down immediately to write the next book, and motivation is never an issue. However, you do need to exercise caution and not get carried away.

Many authors fall by the wayside because their subsequent books are almost carbon copies of their first bestseller – they try to follow the same formula and end up becoming a one-book wonder whose popularity tapered down subsequently. It’s ok to stick to what works best for you, but at the same time, pay attention to changing tastes and perceptions.

If your first book is doing well but not going great guns, you’re less inclined to start your next one. You want to write one that’s better, but there are just enough doubts to hold you back. Or, in the worst case scenario, if your book is doing abysmally, then you’ve probably just about lost the will to ever write again. You know you want to be a writer, but self doubts plague your mind and you wonder if any publisher will ever back you again.

In such situations, it’s best to step back from the situation and pretend you’ve never published your first book. Start on a fresh slate, and give room only for your creativity. Push out the doubts from your mind and focus on the task ahead. The only time you need to think of your prior venture is to examine the mistakes you’ve made and steer clear of them. Where did you go wrong? Was the book targeted at one audience yet marketed to another? Was the timing of the release wrong? Or was the subject of your book outdated and not in vogue with current tastes and trends?

There’s another pitfall you need to be aware of – when you’ve established yourself as a successful author with a few books under your belt, you may find it hard to sustain yourself as a writer. The longer you write and the more you publish, the harder sustainability becomes. How do you continue to find inspiration for new storylines that reflect your style, yet are not stale and repetitive?

The only way to ensure this is to take time off when you feel a lull in creativity and put your nose to the grindstone when your creative juices flow.

Writing is not a 9 to 5 job that is routine and repetitive; it is an art form that must be expressed when creativity strikes.

About the author

This guest post is contributed by Carrie Oakley, who writes on the topic of online colleges. Carrie welcomes your comments at her email id: carrie.oakley1983(AT)gmail(DOT)com.

Possibly related articles:

• In just 30 days, you too can write a masterpiece, by Andrew Johnson, The Independent, October 31, 2010
• 12 Ways to Overcome Writer’s Block, by Meghan Ward, Writerland, June 24, 2010
• Ten ways to get your writing rejected, by Helen Simonson, National Post, April 20,2010

[Interview] Tendai Huchu

Podiatrist and author, Tendai Huchu was born in 1982, in Bindura, Zimbabwe.

He attended Churchill High School in Harare and currently lives in Edinburgh, Scotland.

The Hairdresser of Harare (Weaver Press, 2010)  is his first published novel.

In this interview, Tendai Huchu talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

I have been writing since I was in school. I was sub-editor of The Churchill Times, my school newspaper. I even won a couple of national essay contests. But that was mainly articles. I started writing fiction when I was 23 because I felt I had a story to tell.

I wanted to express myself and share ideas with other people.

I knew I wanted to get published round about the time I started writing ... so ... I wrote and pitched to publishers ... four years later, here I am.

How would you describe your writing?

I hope it is literary fiction ... I come from an oral tradition ... so I am mainly a storyteller.

I enjoy a good plot with great characters and dynamic set pieces and I hope these things are reflected in my work.

Who is your target audience?

I don’t have a specific target demographic or anything like that.

I might write for my readers but, remember, the first reader of my stories is me. If I like a tale I've come up with then I think maybe, just maybe, others will too.

In the writing you are doing, which authors influenced you most?

Dostoevsky, Dostoevsky, Dostoevsky ... this man and his thinking dominated my early 20s. I still love the depth of his ideas. Reading his book Crime and Punishment for the first time was like being in the middle of an 18 megaton thermonuclear explosion.

I also like other authors like Amin Maalouf, John Grisham, Alexandre Dumas, Orwell and a whole raft of other great storytellers.

Each author I read helps me improve my craft and gives me incredible pleasure in the process.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

Perhaps at a subconscious level they have.

Different sub-personalities of me are probably floating about in the text but I have never actively sought to insert aspects of my personal experience directly into my work.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

Having a roof over my head and at least one square meal a day.

Do you write every day?

I don’t write every day. I wish I could but, between trying to earn a living and having an active social life, there are simply not enough hours in the day.

I write in fits and starts.

There are periods when I am extremely creative and focused. During these periods I close myself off from the world and do nothing but write, eat, sleep. I work very quickly with the door locked in case debt collectors or the landlord show up. These sessions sometimes end when I have a workable draft of a novel but quite often I come away with nothing but red eyes and sore wrists.

How long did it take you to write The Hairdresser of Harare?

The Hairdresser of Harare is about Vimbai, a young single mother who is trying to make a life for herself amidst Zimbabwe’s political and economic chaos. She falls in love with a dashing young man who turns out to be something we all didn’t quite expect.

I started writing the novel Christmas day 2009 and 14 days later I was finished with the first draft. I wrote quickly because the narrator had a distinct voice and I was afraid if I stopped I might lose it.

The novel was published this August 2010 by Weaver Press who I choose because they had formidable authors in their stable that I had read and enjoyed.

The main advantage of working with Weaver Press for this book is that my editor was based in Harare and had intimate knowledge of the locations and types of characters who were in the book. Because I live in Scotland, we couldn’t have face-to-face meetings but we still managed to build a good working relationship and I enjoyed the process immensely.

Which were the most difficult aspects of the work you put into the novel?

I struggled to let my characters roam free and live the story out according to their own personalities. Every writer enjoys playing God ... so when you see your characters living their lives outside of the rigid pre-planned plot priorities you had set for them ... it can be difficult to let go. What I usually do is to call the characters by a litany of obscene names and let them go off to do their own thing.

Which aspects of the work did you enjoy most?

I enjoy how everything in The Hairdresser of Harare comes together in the end ... how certain things that happen in the first chapters only make sense towards the end ... the subliminal links in the text that even I, as the author, only discover with each re-reading ...

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

Staying the course. Not giving up even when I thought no one would ever read my work.

Related articles:

• An Interview with Tendai Huchu, author of The Hairdresser of Harare, by Nana Fredua-Agyeman, ImageNation, August 18, 2010
• Life in Zimbabwe [Book Review], by Margaret von Klemperer, The Witness, October 6, 2010
• Latest Reviews, Weaver Press

[Interview] Alana Abbott

Freelance writer, an editor and a role-playing games developer, Alana Abbott is the author of two novels, Into the Reach (White Silver Publishing, 2006) and Departure (White Silver Publishing, 2007).

Her stories have been featured in online magazines that include Coyote Wild Magazine; The Edge of Propinquity and the collaborative writing project, Baeg Tobar.

She has also been published in a number of anthologies, among them, Ransom: The Anthology (Enchirdion Books, 2008); Crown Tales (Dark Quest Games, 2008) and Crown Tales 2, (Dark Quest Games, ___).

In this interview, Alana Abbott talks about her writing:

When did you start writing?

I started writing in grade school, making up stories in other people's worlds.

By middle school, I had started creating worlds of my own, and after finishing a 'novel', the summer before my freshman year of high school, I decided to make it my G&T (gifted and talented) project for the year to attempt getting it published. I learned so much about the publishing industry that year, just from the process of submission and rejection.

In college I interned at two publishing houses and I became an editor after my graduation.

I returned to fiction writing after getting married, making contacts in the game industry and doing shared world fiction projects.

My first two novels, Into the Reach and Departure, came out of work I'd done for a game sourcebook.

How would you describe your writing?

I vary between doing creative projects and work for reference and game publishers, which pay by the assignment. It's a way to make a living!

Currently, I am working on a fiction project for Baeg Tobar, a novel I'm co-writing with Max Gladstone, who is a phenomenal writer (and a member of my local crit group).

I also write reviews for School Library Journal, Publishers Weekly and the Flames Rising website.

There are a few other projects on the shelf that are just waiting for me to have time to devote to them.

Who is your target audience?

I've written for both adult and young adult audiences.

I think the people who follow Baeg Tobar have a nice potential mix -- the type of project that we are is likely to appeal to teens and adults, and so it's great to be able to hit both audiences.

Most of my adult work has some YA appeal, which I think is true for a lot of adult fantasy.

I think I always keep the YA audience in mind, even when they may not be the total market share, because so much of what I read as a teen has stuck with me over the years, and so much of what I learned as a writer developed between the ages of 14 and 20. (I hope I'm still growing and improving, of course!)

Which authors influenced you most?

I think Tamora Pierce was a huge influence on me in the way that I learned to craft a story -- and the way I learned about how stories can grow up with their characters. She was really one of the first writers to start creating strong women in fantasy geared particularly toward teens. So, not only was she ground breaking at the time, helping to shape what would become the YA market that's exploded these days, but she was helping to form the way that strong female characters appeared in YA and fantasy, right at a time when I was exactly the right audience for her books.

I'd also be remiss in not mentioning Joss Whedon, whose writing for television has impacted the way so many writers use language -- I see his influence everywhere, especially in urban fantasy, and I know he's affected the way I write as well.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

I actually thought I wanted to go into physics in college to pursue the development of teleportation, and somewhere along the line I realized I was far more interested in the way it worked in A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle than I was in how the math would work out.

From there, I pursued studying stories, both in literature and mythology, and I've had the wonderful opportunity to work as a teaching assistant for one of my college professors on several study tours to Greece and Turkey, Ireland, and England over the years.

Being able to study mythology in the settings where the stories take place has had a huge impact on me as a writer.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

It may sound mercenary, but sadly, one of the biggest concerns is being able to afford the time to write.

In order to write for a living, I have to balance the types of assignments I take to make sure I'm bringing in enough to help support my family.

I also work part time at my local public library, which helps me deal with the loneliness of the writing lifestyle. It's good to balance being on your own, in your own head, and being social! And it's great to be involved with the publishing industry on the user end as well as on the creative side.

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

The biggest challenge in my fiction is definitely finding the time to prioritize the projects I really want to do. I'm still searching for a good way to deal with this!

Do you write everyday?

I don't have the same writing process every day, in part because of my library work schedule and in part because life events have changed my availability recently: I'm currently pregnant and will be having a baby inside the month (if she comes on time!), so I've been balancing classes on pregnancy, paid writing assignments, and my day job in a much more chaotic schedule than usual!

But even when I had a very regular writing schedule, it was never that set in stone. I'm not nearly type-A enough to be that organized!

I also find that I like to be surprised by my writing process, and that I'm less enthusiastic about projects when I know exactly where they're going, so I try to leave room for flexibility.

How many books have you written so far?

• Into the Reach (White Silver Publishing, 2006): In the land of Eranon, the Reach is a desolate place where people journey to forget who they are. Now, a menace rises from this wasteland, and he is hunting for someone. To keep the madman and his chaos behind the Reach, four adventurers with haunted pasts must rise to the challenge. But how can failed heroes bring hope to others when they doubt themselves?
• Departure (White Silver Publishing, 2007): Called to face the pasts they hoped to leave behind, Lydia, Kennerly, Nara, and Taru leave the Reach for the homes they once knew. There, new enemies have been set against them, driven by the same dark force they hoped they had defeated. Now the people they once most trusted have become pieces in a game that may lead them down the road to their deaths.
• Cowboys and Aliens II Web comic (Platinum Studios, 2007-08): I served as the writer for the team working on the sequel to the original comic, Cowboys and Aliens, which is soon to be made into a movie. The story takes the original characters from their battle with aliens in the West to Washington, D.C., where they discover they'll have to take a little bit of Old West into outer space to meet the threat head on.
• Contributor to role-playing games, including Gallia (Dog Soul, 2006); Chronicles or Ramlar RPG (White Silver Publishing, 2006); Verto Syzol's Legendaria Geographica (2006); Balok's Book of Banter 2: Battle Cries (Dog Soul, 2007); Allies and Adversaries, (White Silver Publishing, 2007); Steampunk Musha RPG (2007), Politically Incorrect Games: Serenity Adventures (Margaret Weis Productions, 2008) (which won an Origins Award in 2009); The Living Kingdoms of Kalamar (Kenzer & Co.), Xen'drik Expeditions (Wizards of the Coast), and Living Forgotten Realms (Wizards of the Coast) campaigns through the RPGA (now the Wizards Play Network).
• Contributor of fiction to anthologies, including Ransom: The Anthology (Enchirdion Books, 2008); Crown Tales, (Dark Quest Games, 2008); and Crown Tales 2, (Dark Quest Games, ____).
• My short fiction has been featured online at The Edge of Propinquity, Coyote Wild Magazine, and Baeg Tobar.

How did you chose a publisher for your first two books? What advantages/disadvantages has this relationship presented?

My first two books (the only two I currently have available as the sole author) were written under a contract -- the publisher approached me about writing them.

Some disadvantages of publishing with a very small start up company is that the publisher is still learning the ropes and, sadly, may not survive the economic pressures (which is why only two of the three contracted books ever appeared).

The best thing I've found to do, however, is move on to other projects!

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

I struggle with making sure that the story fits within the boundaries it needs to fit into -- that the page and word count work for the size of book being expected, and that the flow of the story works with the size of the book.

As I mentioned before, I prefer not to outline, but in order to keep books fitting to about the right size, an outline is really helpful!

Authors talk a lot about people who are "pantsers" (write by the seat of their pants) and "plotters" (know what's going to happen in advance), and I think that mixing those two styles is a big challenge.

That said, I love the editorial process, when someone on the outside can give me commentary to bang a whole project into shape!

I love telling stories, no question about it. I think there's a magic in it, that we're following in a grand tradition that goes back to the beginning of language. Even if the story doesn't seem to have much to it, the act of telling, and of connecting, is -- I think -- part of what makes us human. And hopefully, if we can relate to each other's stories, we can relate to each other.

What will your next book be about?

The book Max Gladstone and I are working on is about the Parade of Champions, a ritual among the fae of Baeg Tobar to decide which court has political control, and the mortals who get tangled up in the process.

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

There's nothing quite like seeing that first novel in print, and knowing that you've done it once, so you can do it again.

But I have to say that it's a toss up for me between seeing that first novel come out and receiving an Origins Award last year -- knowing that people had recognized my work (along with the work of my co-writers and the editorial and art team!) as something that merited acknowledgement. That was incredibly exciting!

Possibly related articles:

• Editor Interview: Alana Joli Abbott on Something about the Author, By Cynthia Leitich Smith, CYNSATIONS, September 17, 2009
• Games As Interactive Storytelling, By Alana Joli Abbott, Journey to the Sea, December 1, 2008
• Maurice Suckling [Interview], Conversations with Writers, July 4, 2007

[Interview] Bosley Gravel

Bosley Gravel was born in the Midwest and grew up in Texas and southern New Mexico.

His work includes the novels, Servant of the Mud (Shadowfire Press, 2009) and The Movie (Bewrite Books, 2009).

In this interview, Bosley Gravel talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

I’ve been writing stories ever since I can remember.

I first sought publication in the mid-90s, but that didn't amount to much. In 2006 I took up writing again and have written close to half a million words since then. About 200,000 of those have seen publication in some form.

Between 1996 and 2006 the Internet became a critical tool for writers and I’ve leveraged that in a predictable way by targeting online journals, using it for research and making cheap, efficient submissions via email.

The number one thing I did to achieve the goal of publication was to write every day and study the craft of storytelling. As for the reasons for seeking publication, that is hidden in treasure chest and buried deeply somewhere between my ego and my id.

How would you describe your writing?

My novels typically involve plots centering around personal growth.

I tend to use simple structures and complex characters (all male so far) who, through extraordinary circumstances, must come to terms with a hidden aspect of themselves. These characters have built entire worlds of myth around themselves and subsequently struggle to align themselves with both the myth and the reality of their lives.

Essentially, these are coming-of-age stories built on top of the hero’s journey formula. If that sounds rigid, it’s not.

I pride myself on not being afraid to take a chance and follow some strange and unusual paths. For example, I’ve written about an independent filmmaker who struggles to get his absurd imagination on the big screen; a troubled polymath who must come to terms with not only the brutal world, but his own fears of loss and love; a handsome anthropophobic accountant who finds his true nature in a new found world of organized crime and sorcery; a gifted musician who is orphaned at an early age and soon learns that even fame and fortune can not fill an empty soul; a could-be messiah who must come to terms with both his human needs, and his divine responsibility.

With my short fiction pretty much anything goes though. Most of that is available online in some form or another. A lot of it is genre stuff with emphasis on plot and trope, some literary and some just a kind of unclassifiable other. In my short fiction I’ve written everything from splatter-punk horror to morality fables.

I read widely and I think my fiction reflects that.

Who is your target audience?

I’m sort of a selfish writer, I hate to say.

I don’t think much about audience and, since I don’t really stick closely to one genre, I pay for this by not having consistent readership. When I write, the only loyalty I feel is to the story and, ultimately, to the protagonist.

With that being said, I have a handful of faithful readers who read early drafts and I’ll often oblige their tastes or tailor content for them in some fashion. But it will always be on terms that are true to the character or story.

Which authors influenced you most?

Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn had a tremendous influence on me. I still go back and read that book occasionally. The depth and layering of both the Huck character and the story itself has had a big impact on me and introduced me to concepts of irony and metaphor in fiction -- although I didn’t know that the first time I read it of course.

Also, there is a book called Wyvern by A. A. Attanasio that is story about a Bornean native/Dutch half-breed who goes from the jungles to the shore of America in the 1500s. It’s really a story about destiny and human potential. A great book.

In terms of something I’ve read more recently, I think Rebecca Wells wrote some excellent short fiction in Little Altars Everywhere and Ya-Yas in Bloom.

Little Altars Everywhere, in particular, inspired me to start writing again after a 10-year hiatus. I was impressed with the depth of her characters and the simplicity of her prose.

Ray Bradbury, Clive Barker and William S. Burroughs, Kurt Vonnegut, Poppy Z. Brite, Louis L'Amour and Lawrence Block have also all made significant contributions to my writer’s toolbox.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

My writing is in stark contrast to my day job.

I deal primarily with computers and computer networks in the real world and, when I sit down to write, it’s the last thing I want to think about. So my stories almost never contain elements of technology. In fact a good deal of my longer works are set pre-1990 in order to avoid having to deal with the Internet, texting, cell phones, etc. I find all of that terribly boring.

Obviously though, as I writer, I’ve been gathering details on people, places and situations for years, and these come out in my writing. I think all the ups and downs of my life do come out in some way or another in my writing. I’m a bit reluctant to reveal any specific details though, so like the reasons for seeking publication, it will have to remain a mystery.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

I think writers have an obligation to tell the truth.

The truth isn’t always pretty and the truth is often subject to perspective. Worse yet, the truth is sometimes fluid and changing.

I get concerned that a reader will misinterpret something I’ve written and use it to justify a rigid view of the world.

In the same vein, it would bother me a bit if I thought people were associating me too closely with my characters.

I try to avoid the problem of having too loud a moral voice by writing about people and less about ideas.

Apart from being accused of evangelizing some half-baked belief, my only other real worry is being a bore -- the worst sin ever for a writer (makes me shiver just thinking about it).

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

The biggest challenge is finding the time to go back and edit what I’ve written.

By the time I’ve completed a chapter or a short story or even an novel, my imagination is already taking me to the next one, and the previous one becomes a lot less shiny and pretty.

The only cure for this is discipline, and the desire to be published. No editor wants a first draft on his desk; well, no editor in their right mind, anyway. The only real way to deal with the final polish is to just go ahead and do it.

By the same token, I try to avoid over-polishing a piece. I think too much commercial fiction is edited to mush and really has no remaining voice. I'd rather not do that.

Do you write everyday?

I write every morning. I go for about 500 to 750 words; on occasion more. I just grab a cup of coffee and write a page or so, get my kids out the door for school, then hack out another page or two.

I've written about five novel-length manuscripts. Two of those were released at the tail end of 2009, one as an ebook, and the other as a paperback. The others remain in various stages of drafting.

The two that have been released are:

• Servant of the Mud, Shadowfire Press, Dec 4th 2009. This is a mythic urban fantasy that follows Pauly, a reluctant Christ figure, who transitions from an irresponsible street kid into something far more, and
• The Movie, Bewrite Books, Dec 10th 2009. This is a story about a small town kid with big dreams, and a very weird imagination.

What would you say your latest book is about?

In The Movie, the unemployed young feller’s dream is to break into Hollywood with a DIY movie called Cannibal Lesbian Zombies from Outer Space -- versus -- Doctor Clockwork and his Furious Plastic Surgeons of Doom. This was the book’s original title and still stands (in small print, artfully hidden in the front cover image -- my publisher added The Movie as main title).

See what I mean about my characters taking myth and building reality?

How long did it take you to write the novel?

Twenty-four very, very busy days.

How did you choose a publisher for the book?

I’ve always been keen on small presses. I’m still cutting my teeth as an author and I like the idea of dealing with editors who are hand-choosing their projects and not having them assigned by acquisition folks.

I like the idea of a ‘mom and pop’ style press in this day and age.

BeWrite Books was one of the handful of small presses that turned up in my research as being flexible and open to literary-type fiction that is fun and unpretentious.

What advantages and/or disadvantages has your association with BeWrite Books presented?

BeWrite has been everything I’d expected it to be ... and more.

Craft is obviously very important to the staff, and it shows in their titles and the attention my manuscript received (the first draft took me twenty-four days ... it was almost a year in edit as revisions passed between me and BeWrite Books over and again).

The disadvantage, I suppose, is that small presses can’t afford the media-blitz marketing big publishing can do ... with an emphasis on can. It doesn’t look like big publishers do much advertising for their authors these days anyway, other than a select few.

I think in the day and age of virtual everything, handling distribution/production the way BeWrite does it is the future that big publishing will eventually yield to anyway. So that’s really less of a disadvantage and more of a ahead-of-their-time kind of thing with BB ... but it still limits sales.

Bewrite’s no-pulping methods are a lot better for the environment. And while I’m rarely seen hugging trees, I think being frugal with our limited global resources is important.

Which were the most difficult aspects of the work you put into The Movie?

This book wrote itself. I’m told every author gets one of those sooner or later.

I think the most difficult thing was to go clean up the prose and punctuation, etc.

I read once that Jack Kerouac wrote On the Road on a single sheet of paper that rolled continuously through his typewriter, he used no punctuation and no indents. My manuscript was not much different.

Which aspects of the work did you enjoy most?

This book was just fun to write. The characters all have an innocence about them, an innocence they’ve chosen to indulge. In direct opposition to this innocence is the lead character’s screenplay with these bizarre and decedent scenarios.

I enjoy deliberately blurring opposing concepts like that.

I’ve had beta readers from all over the world, from middle aged American housewives to Australian teenagers, even a moderately curmudgeonly (but brilliant) Scottish editor -- they've all loved it.

The idea that I could write something that would be enjoyable by such a vastly different group of people is immensely encouraging.

What sets The Movie apart from other things you’ve written?

This is the most light-hearted manuscript I’ve written. My other books tend to be dark and only cautiously optimistic about human nature.

In this case, caution is thrown to the wind and I’m thrilled that it came out this way.

It’s also written in first person which is a rarity for me.

In what way is it similar to the others?

It includes several hallmarks of a Bosley Gravel story: male protagonist with a somewhat flawed sense of reality and vivid imagination, a meta-story woven into the story proper, love, sex, death, the absurdly tragic ... and the tragically absurd.

What will your next book be about?

My current novel manuscript, American Woman, is about Hollywood Tommy.

Tommy is a self-absorbed womanizer, who as a way to deal with a mid-life crisis, rekindles a relationship with his ex-wife and his children in suburbia.

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

Writing one word after another. Finding a reason to do it each and every day.

Having the guts to get things in front of editors and readers.

Aspiring to write a book better than the last one I wrote.

Having the guts to get my work out there to editors and readers.

Related articles:

• Interview: Bosley Gravel, By gapyeargirl123, The Book Bundle, September 2009
• William Gibson On the Future of Publishing: Made to Order Books, By Steven Kurutz, Wall Street Journal, September 6, 2010
• The future of the book, By Chin Wong, Manila Standard Today, September 21, 2010

[Interview] Mary Fawcett

Mary Fawcett is an early years consultant and an evaluator for 5x5x5=creativity, an arts-based research organisation that supports the expression of children's feelings, thoughts and ideas.

She has worked as a Social Work lecturer and was Director of Early Childhood Studies at the University of Bristol.

Mary Fawcett edited Focus on Early Childhood: Principles and Realities (Working Together for Children, Young People, and Their Families) (Wiley-Blackwell, 2000) and Researching Children Researching the World: 5X5X5=creativity (Trentham Books Ltd, 2008).

She is also the author of Learning Through Child Observation (Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2009).

In this interview, Mary Fawcett talks about her work:

How did you become interested in Early Childhood Studies?

I decided to become a teacher of young children (as a school leaver) largely because I liked the idea of sharing my enthusiasms, such as music, gardening, literature, scientific ideas, painting, making and cooking. In fact, I was able to do all these things as a teacher in the 1950s and 60s.

While my children were young, I was deeply involved in the early days of the playgroup movement. Through this I learned about adult learning, community development and different forms of provision. With each new experience my fascination with children’s early development increased. Since then, the rapid growth in research in the area of Early Childhood Studies has continued to feed my curiosities.

How has the field of child observation has changed since 1996 when the first edition of Learning Through Child Observation was published?

At the time of the first edition I was lecturing on Social Work courses and was surprised at how little preparation there was for these students in terms of observation skills and knowledge of child development. There was a clear gap in the market for students’ books and especially a book for the variety of professional groups concerned with young children. Today there are many books on observation, but they still tend to concentrate on specific professional groups.

The government’s more joined-up approach to children’s services now means there is an ever greater need for a multi-professional approach. Though the rhetoric is all about ‘every child matters’, personalisation etc, I feel that prescriptive, goal-driven approaches may have diminished open-minded observation and led to less sensitive understanding.

Another factor, addressed in the second edition, is the changing view of children. Through my work with 5x5x5=creativity, as well as personal observations of three grandchildren, over the last few years, I have become much more alert to the dynamic capacities of all young children and conscious of how they are underestimated.

The second edition also demonstrates the importance of the many forms of communication children use to express their feelings and ideas.

The new edition of your book includes insights from your work with the arts based educational project, 5x5x5 = creativity. Can you tell us more about the organisation?

5x5x5=creativity is an arts-based educational research project that has been evolving over the last 9 years.

The name came from the first cohort of five early year’s settings working with five artists in collaboration with five cultural centres (galleries, theatre, music centre, etc).

The project is concerned with creativity in its broadest sense -- Anna Craft calls this ‘life-wide’ creativity -- where open-minded problem-solving can be used in all kinds of situations.

My observations of hundreds of children through this project has opened my eyes to their brilliant imaginations and their ability to share their fascinations with others through the ‘hundred languages of children’ i.e. through drawing, moving, music, and many other modes as well as talking. This is an important matter since talking, reading and writing tend to overshadow all these other forms.  

What do you think are the main challenges/attractions of working in Early Years settings?

I suspect that my personal enthusiasm for this stage comes through in the answers to the first three questions. Working in the early years can be a time when adults can share the excitement of discovery with these intrepid young explorers if the conditions are positive.

Children need an environment which supports their inbuilt drives -- especially their curiosity and intense desire to communicate with others. This playfulness, energy and sense of fun are nature’s ways of ensuring that each generation develops and grows to their best advantage. However, in the drive to regulate and ‘raise standards’, to achieve targets and to ensure safety (none of these are undesirable in themselves) -- those working with young children often seem very pressured and anxious.

Maintaining a sense of optimism and remaining open to children’s own energetic efforts towards membership of social groups as well as their individual striving for development is certainly a challenge in the current climate.

What was the last book you read and what are you reading at the moment?

The current book I'm reading (and its taking a long time!) is Charles Dickens’ Little Dorrit.

(c) Jessica Kingsley Publishers 2010

This article was first published in the Jessica Kingsley Publishers Social Work Newsletter in July 2009

Possibly related articles:

• What we owe our children [Analysis], By Dennis Cochrane, CBC News, August 30, 2010
• TV can improve literacy, By Keely Schellenberg, Winnipeg Free Press, September 8, 2010
• Should children be expected to work? By Fran Abrams, BBC Radio 4 Analysis, BBC News Magazine, September 20, 2010

[Interview] Nana Awere Damoah

Nana Awere Damoah is a Ghanaian Chevening alumnus who studied in Ghana and in the United Kingdom.

He keeps a blog of his articles at Excursions in my Mind.

So far, he has written and published two books, Through the Gates of Thought (Athena Press, 2010) and Excursions in my Mind (Athena Press, 2008).

His short stories have been featured in Ghanaian newspapers and magazines that include The Mirror and The Spectator as well as in the anthology, African Roar (Lion Press Ltd, 2010).

In this interview, Nana Awere Damoah talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

My very first article, published in Through the Gates of Thought, was written in 1993 -- so I trace my writing life to that year. I was 18 years old then. But my appreciation of the literary form and my involvement in things literary actually started much earlier, in preparatory school, in the early 1980s when each class had to perform a play a day before the vacation day ... Small beginnings, appreciation of the arts, learning the rudiments of prose and poetry.

I remember being taught, in preparation for the Common Entrance in preparatory school, to answer the question: "Write a story ending with ‘…  and the boy learnt a lesson for life, that obedience is better than sacrifice" ... Small beginnings of creative writing.

Then in Form One, in 1986, I wrote what I consider my first creative work, in (you won’t believe this) my history class: “A Day in Carthage”. It was purely fictional, and I loved it!

In the sixth form, we wanted to form a Literary Club and that was what led me to write that first article published in Through the Gates of Thought.

My first break as a writer came in 1995 when I submitted a short story, ‘The Showdown’, to the popular weekly newspaper, The Mirror -- and it was published! Seeing my name in print, knowing that this newspaper was the best selling paper in Ghana and circulated all over the country, gave me immense confidence and encouragement.

My skills were further honed when I joined the Literary Wing of the Christian fellowship during University.

In my early days, and this hasn’t changed much, I wrote a lot during the day, in my study notebooks, on sheets of paper, whenever and wherever inspiration hit. I continued to submit stories to The Mirror, The Spectator (which published one story), magazines on the University campus and shared my writings with the Literary club and also posted them on notice boards in the Department and my hall of residence, Katanga Hall. Some of them were published, some were rejected!

I also did a lot of reading in the secondary school and University, to learn about various writing styles.

I started my writing journey with essays, but moved swiftly into short stories. In 1997, I entered and won a national competition for true short stories. I got into poetry in the University, during my undergraduate years, and used to recite my poems in church. I started writing these essays which form the material for both books, in Oct 2004 and circulated to my friends via email. When I was in the UK for my masters, I started updating them on my first blog, Excursions in My Mind.

After a while, friends who received my Empower series started encouraging me to publish a compilation for a wider audience. That was around 2005 whilst I was studying for my Masters in the UK.

I did a compilation and seriously started looking for options, whilst still writing the articles and sharing them online. On my way to Ghana, after a business meeting in Israel, I saw an advert in the Economist by my publisher and I decided to submit my manuscript.

That was in November 2007.

My first book was published in October 2008.

How would you describe your writing?

I write fiction, non-fiction, and poems.

I like to refer to my non-fiction as reflective, rather than motivational. The analogy in the differentiation is this: a motivational book may provoke you, positively, to start running, in whatever direction -- that is speed. A reflective book, which is more than (yet inclusive of) motivational, will cause you to run, in a direction, knowing where and why you are running -- that is velocity. Because it matters not how hard you row the boat if you are headed in the wrong direction.

Who is your target audience?

I write with young adults in mind, mostly.

I have, however, had middle-aged readers react very well to the books, because I believe the lessons adduced in the writings are universal -- across ages, cultures and social classes.

We practise oral tradition in most African cultures, where the thoughts, ideals and knowledge of the family, tribe or clan are transmitted from one generation to the other without a writing system. However, this system is flawed in the sense that a lot of African innovation, experience and culture have been lost.

I think of my descendants ... two, three or four generations from now; I think of my children ... 40, 50 years from now; I try to remember the stories my dad shared with me about his life’s experiences. Will my descendants know what I am going through today, what my wishes were for my generation and for them? Can the lessons I have picked up from the varied peregrinations in my life be crystallised for eternity, for the benefit of those yet unborn?

My attempt to answer these questions gave birth to my Empower series of articles, which form the materials for both Excursions in my Mind and Through the Gates of Thought.

In the writing you are doing, which authors influenced you most?

In terms of how I write in my Empower series which form the material for my two books -- Through the Gates of Thought and Excursions in my Mind -- Dale Carnegie has been a great influence on my style and the simple approach in my writing.

In terms of my works of fiction and drawing on my culture, Chinua Achebe has had a strong impact on me, and his book Things Fall Apart is an all-time favorite.

I look to the Bible (David, Solomon) for inspiration for my poetry.

I am, however, a voracious and indiscriminate reader and have been influenced by numerous writers of varied styles and genres. For instance, in my teenage years, I read a lot of fairy tales translated from Russian!

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

As indicated above, I draw lessons from my personal experiences, and also from what I read and hear.

I see myself as a distillation plant, that takes issues around me -- mundane, routine everyday occurrences -- as my raw material; then reflects on and processes them, producing various fractions, fit for use by my readers.

What are your main concerns as a writer?

In sharing thoughts through my writings, my earnest hope is that I may be able to change even one mind. If I can change one such mind, I would have contributed to the agenda of building our nation, our continent, our world.

Thus, in my books, I ensure the reader is not left hanging without an action point; each article provokes the reader to take an action, upon reflecting on the main points.

In my works of fiction, the main aim is to project African culture and folklore, which is where I am researching more and more these days. I am in love with our traditional sayings and proverbs and seek to incorporate them more in my stories. This is evident in my story, "Truth Floats", which appears in African Roar.

What are the biggest challenges that you face?

Being able to juggle my full time job with Unilever in Ghana (I am presently the Research and Development Technical Manager), my family and social responsibilities, and my passion for writing!

Seeing my writing as an extension of my Christian ministry, as the main vehicle and medium for me to impact my generation and beyond, helps to keep me focused. Because I see it as such, I invest and make time for writing, knowing and believing that through this talent, I can be significant. My wife has been quite supportive in this endeavor, giving me room to indulge in my literary passion and ministry.

Do you write everyday?

My principle is to write, think about my ideas or read daily. At least two hours a day. When I write, it is usually at dawn: when the world is asleep, my thoughts are clearer.

Usually I would have the idea in my mind, and would ruminate on it for some time. It took me three years to write one particular article; some articles take me a week from inception to finish.

I sit behind the PC and just write, once I have the flow in my mind. Then I do my edits, and do further research for quotes etc to enrich the scripts.

I never send out the first draft -- one rule of mine is to let the sun go down on my writing.

I write in chunks -- a chapter at a time. For my books, I circulate the articles, chapter by chapter first and get more inputs/feedback from my online readers and friends, to help enhance the final product.

How many books have you written so far?

I have two non-fiction books:

Through the Gates of Thought (Athena Press, April 2010) and Excursions in My Mind (Athena Press, October 2008).

I have also contributed to one anthology, African Roar (StoryTime, June 2010).

How did you chose a publisher for your latest book?

My latest book, Through the Gates of Thought, took about two years to complete.

It is an eclectic collection of stories, articles, poems, which touch various aspects of everyday life. I write about everyday events, common thoughts, normal issues -- but in a style that distills the key essence of life's lessons.

The stories will cause you to pause and think, think and reflect, reflect and take action -- an action for a positive change. Through these, I seek to affect my society, community, continent, world -- one mind at a time.

Through the Gates of Thought was published in April 2010, in the UK and USA. Athena Press published my first book and I stuck with them. I am happy so far with their professionalism, the thoroughness of the publishing process and the quality of the finished product.

Which were the most difficult aspects of the work you put into Through the Gates of Thought?

None, really.

Perhaps making the time to complete within my targeted schedule.

I enjoyed the interaction with readers online as I blogged the various chapters. And to hear the impact it had had on people.

Finally, the opportunity to mentor young readers who write to me to advise on their own writing, and other aspects of life -- it makes writing worthwhile and is in line with my vision to affect lives.

What sets  Through the Gates of Thought apart from other things you've written?

The interesting bit about my books is that each chapter is a standalone, unique in the lessons and thrust. So Through the Gates of Thought is as unique as the number of chapters it contains!

Personally, I see maturity in this second book as well. I keep reading the chapters again and again, as I go through similar situations.

In what way is it similar to the others?

The similarity comes with the simplicity of the topics intertwined with the power of déjà vu: stories that remind you of your own experiences, lessons of everyday life served with a different perspective, making you look at your experiences again -- resulting in new learning, all your own.

What will your next book be about?

I am already in chapter four of the next book. I am yet to find a title for it!

Its focus is more inspirational and aims to provoke the new generation of Africans, especially, to be the game-changing generation for our continent.

A long-intended project is to write a novel about the legendary spider in Ghanaian folklore.

I am also doing a compilation of my poems for publication soon -- we live to see which of these three books will out first!

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

Can I give two?

First, winning the first prize in the Step Magazine National Story Writing Competition in 1997, which led to my story being published as part of an anthology.

Second, getting published, with my name on the cover of two books!

Related articles:

• An Interview with Author Nana Awere Damoah, By Nana Fredua-Agyeman, ImageNations, July 05, 2010
• Author Interviews -- Circles and Excursion in my Mind, By Boakyewaa Glover, Boakyewaaglover.com, November 16, 2009
• Nana Awere Damoah: Excursions In My Mind [Interview], By Awo Sarpong Ansu, Jamati Online, November 18, 2008

[Interview] Joshua Pringle

Joshua Pringle is a novelist, singer and journalist living in New York City.

He is also the web editor for the international political affairs magazine, Worldpress.org. His latest novel, Downward Facing God, is currently being reviewed by literary agents.

In this interview, Joshua Pringle talks about his writing:

When did you start writing?

I wrote a lot of poetry in high school, then went to college and studied magazine journalism. In college I also wrote a lot of songs.

It wasn't until the tail end of college that I started in on prose. I wrote a couple short stories, a screenplay, and then dove into my first novel. That was in 2002 that I started the novel.

Writing has never felt like a conscious decision to me. Instead, a story finds its inception in the back of my head and asks to be let out. With each book or screenplay I've begun, I sit down at a keyboard with an opening scene in my head, start typing, and then ask myself as I go who these characters are, where they're going, what they want. Then the story slowly unfolds in my head over an extended period of time.

So, part of the process is very intuitive for me. But the other half of it is simply hard work, forcing myself to sit down, write, and rewrite. A novel is almost like a marriage in the level of commitment it takes.

As far as wanting to be published, that just seemed like a natural next step after putting all the effort into writing a book. I didn't find an agent for my first novel, so I self-published it, printing enough copies for my inner circle.

With my second novel I'm putting more effort into selling it. I'm currently in the process of sending query letters to agents, which is a drag, especially for an unknown writer, but it has to be done.

How would you describe your writing?

In the literary world, my novels would be described as "accessible literary fiction," which basically means the writing is not the kind of jaw-dropping prose that you'd find in, say, The Great Gatsby or a Dostoevsky book -- it falls somewhere between there and mainstream fiction, which is usually just about plot and not the subtleties and nuances of the writing.

The book I've just finished, called Downward Facing God, is written in first person and is very conversational. It flows pretty smoothly, like you're just listening to someone tell his story. But the subject matter can be pretty loaded, ranging from the main character experiencing a loss of God to reacting to the 9/11 attacks. There are layered looks at the practice of yoga, philosophy, personal relationships.

I think the writing can be light and full of humor on one page and unabashedly vulnerable on the next.

As to whom I'd like to read it, I suppose anyone with a deep well of emotion in them and a taste for thinking outside the box. The yoga crowd will also like this latest one. But I don't think about my audience while I'm writing. I just try to write the best book I'm capable of writing.

Which authors influenced you most?

Ethan Hawke had a significant effect on me while I was writing my first one, because his writing is so fluid. It goes down like clear water. That was a refreshing contrast to some of the other stuff I'd been reading at the time, like Tom Wolfe.

Ethan's stuff made me want to write something that was deep and insightful while also being an "easy" read. Dave Eggers has a knack for this as well.

Other books that influenced me include The Unbearable Lightness of Being, Kite Runner, The Road. The list is a long one.

Then there is the occasional book like Gatsby that just makes you sick because it's so elegant.

Why did they have this influence? I don't know how you answer that. All I know is I was living in San Francisco when I read Kite Runner and there were times I missed my bus stop because I had my nose buried in that book.

Trying to explain why a book is beautiful -- to steal a phrase from a film -- is like dancing to architecture.

How have your personal experiences influenced your writing?

Every experience I have gets stored away subconsciously. When I go to create an imaginary world in a novel, these experiences are the clay I'm working with.

Sometimes I pull directly from things that have happened to me, but most of the time that mysterious artistic laboratory inside my brain concocts those experiences into something else. It's like when two people's DNA combine to create a child. It's clear enough where the child's personality comes from, but that personality is always something completely unique and different from the parents'.

My writing is autobiographical, but only in the loosest sense. The characters and the story develop their own agenda, and I sometimes feel like I'm letting them come through me, like it's not actually up to me how their story plays out.

What are your main concerns and challenges as a writer?

I hit rough parts where I really have to fight to get through a section because it's giving me trouble for whatever reason.

In the editing and rewriting there are always rough spots as well, especially when you know something's not working and you have to cut or re-do something that you really thought was going to be good the first time you approached it.

I sometimes deal with this by taking a step away and coming back to it. Or I re-read, rethink, re-approach.

Sometimes feedback from a friend can be really helpful.

Honestly it's different every time. Solutions to writing problems are often ad hoc.

Do you write every day?

I definitely don't write every day, even when I'm in the middle of writing a novel. This might be different if I were writing novels for a living, but I don't think writing every single day is good for my process.

A lot of my story development actually happens when I'm not at my desk -- on the subway, in the grocery store, in a yoga class. When I'm focused on a story, my characters follow me around. They're in my head. And so little things will trigger ideas about what should happen with those characters. By the time I get home I might have a full page of notes that I compiled in the course of my day.

I'm a very organized and scrupulous note taker, which helps me a lot. Because I figure out how I want a scene to go before I write it, the actual writing is often merely execution of something already figured out. And when I'm writing something that requires a lot of research, having organized notes is essential.

I did a ton of research for this last book on philosophy, politics, yoga, and a couple of other topics. I do the same thing when I'm writing a journalistic article, but the research for a novel is on a whole different level, simply because of the enormity of the task.

A writing session usually starts with me reviewing those notes. It usually ends when I run out of scotch.

How many books have you written so far?

Two.

The first one is called Don't Say the Word Love and is about a psychologist with an addictive personality. It's about sex, drugs, and psychology. It took me two years to write and edit.

The second one, as I mentioned, is called Downward Facing God and is a bit harder to sum up. I guess it's kind of like a male version of Eat Pray Love. There are several ways that that comparison doesn't work, but I make the comparison because both are about a person who's going through some pretty serious life changes. Mine isn't a memoir, but it kind of reads like one.

My protagonist gets hit with some heavy blows (which I won't give away) and is thrust into levels of adulthood he wasn't prepared for. Over a period of five years, spanning three different cities and a few different professions, he battles and stumbles and evolves.

One of the ideas behind the book is that he, like all of us, doesn't reach an ultimate destination. The journey winds, and the learning process goes on indefinitely.

The second one took longer. Just under three years, I think.

Which aspects of Downward Facing God did you find most difficult?

There is a section in the book where I had to work to not impose my own political views too much.

I also had to resist including too much factual context. It can be difficult when something requires a monumental amount of research and you know as a writer that you can use only a small portion of all that information you dug up.

I imagine there are actors who do extensive work to fill in a background for a character, knowing all along that none of it will explicitly show up on the screen. With that kind of thing I just have to grind away and be smart about it, find a way to make the book work as a whole.

On the other hand, there were sections of the book that were really fun to write. A couple scenes come to mind where I was probably smiling as I wrote them.

What will your next book be about?

I don't really know.

I think I have to live the next stage of my life first, so that the book is grounded in experience to some extent. I'm fairly certain, though, that it will have an international aspect to it.

I've become very interested in the disparities between privileged and desperate people. For instance, the amount of extreme poverty in the Global South is simply staggering to me. Living in the United States can bring with it a level of oblivion when it comes to this kind of thing. I'd like to find a way to shed light on another part of the world with my next book, in a way that's positive and bridges the gap between cultures while still telling a compelling story.

But first, I'll have to do more traveling.

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

Finishing a novel is always a huge achievement.

However, I think my crowning moment is still ahead of me. Perhaps it will be when I sell my latest book and see it on the shelf at Barnes & Noble. Or perhaps it will be when I get a call from Keira Knightley saying she read my book and wants to go out to dinner and talk about it.

Possibly related articles:

• A conversation with literary agent Nathan Bransford, SanLuisObispo.com, September 13, 2010
• A Lost Girl, a Fake Diary, and a Forgotten Author, By Thomas Gladysz, The Huffington Post, August 23, 2010
• Wylie's Amazon deal brings the end of the publishing world nigh, By Richard Lea, The Guardian, July 23, 2010

University Encourages Literature for Inmates

By Tim Handorf

Baylor University, located in Waco, Texas, is taking a new approach to classic literature and community service.

For the first time, the Baptist school is sponsoring a program that will attempt to lower inmate recidivism through classic literature reviews provided by the Baylor students.

This program, called an Engaged Learning Group (ELG), is one of several sponsored by the University that aims at providing a select group of students with an opportunity live and learn together, and to explore a challenging social issue in a new way.

The Unlock the Imprisoned Mind with a Digital Key ELG was designed to allow students to give back to their communities over a three or four semester length period by educating prisoners about "great books."

The program synopsis states that "studies show that recidivism among the incarcerated reduces dramatically if the prisoners become involved in literacy programs." And through essays and journal entries, Baylor students aim to accomplish just that.

The program admits around 12 students into this ELG.

Each student will be required to read at least two classic pieces of literature each semester and write a thoughtful journal entry, around 200 words, or an critical essay, roughly 500 words, over the text. Examples given include Homer's Odyssey, The Epic of Gilgamesh, and Euripides' Medea.

Each written piece will then be submitted for blind peer review, meaning students won't know who is reviewing their papers, or whose paper they themselves are editing.

After the best six papers are selected by the students, they will collectively create a newsletter containing the pieces to be distributed amongst the inmates listed on the Chiara's Community database. Chiara's Community is an educated-based prison program that also aims to educate inmates through literacy and learning.

In total, at the end of the program's three semesters, students will have written about and read at least six great classic pieces of literature, not to mention the numerous other peer papers they will review.

At the same time, the inmates that receive this newsletter will be able to learn about and analyze 18 great works.

"We want to provoke thinking serious thoughts about these works and thinking about how these works can still live, can still inform our lives," Dr. John Thorburn, co-director of this ELG said. "And so we want the students to think about this and we want the prison inmates to think about this as well."

Without a doubt, Baylor University has found a way to bridge the gap between classic literature and community service. With students' help, inmates will learn the lessons provided to all of us through these great works, while also hopefully turning their lives around.

About the author

This guest post is contributed by Tim Handorf, who writes on the topics of online colleges and universities. He welcomes your comments at his email Id: tim.handorf.20@googlemail.com.

Related articles:

• Classic literature to benefit inmates, By Carmen Galvan, The Baylor Lariat, September 3, 2010
• What keeps prisoners from learning?, By Louise Tickle, The Guardian, February 16, 2010
• Teaching behind bars, By Susan McDonald, TES Connect, January 27, 2006

[Interview: Part 2 of 2] Jay Mandal

Gay romance author, Jay Mandal's work includes the novels, All About Sex (BeWrite Books, 2006) and Precipice (Bewrite Books, 2005) as well as the short story collections, The Loss of Innocence (BeWrite Books, 2003); A Different Kind of Love (BeWrite Books, 2002); and Slubberdegullion (BeWrite Books, 2001).

His work has also been featured in anthologies that include Best Gay Romance 2009 (Cleis Press, 2009)and Best Gay Romance 2010 (Cleis Press, 2010).

In this interview, Jay Mandal talks about how his poems, short stories and novels have been received:

We had our first interview about three years ago. Have the challenges you face as a writer stayed the same or have they changed?

On a personal level, my depression seems to have worsened, which means I can’t write as much as I’d like.

Oddly enough, as my depression gains more of a hold, my writing seems to be becoming lighter in tone. I’m not sure whether that’s some form of escapism, if it’s normal change, if I’ve temporarily exhausted my supply of more sombre pieces (or if gay life is generally more accepted/acceptable/less angst-ridden) or if I’ve found ‘my voice’. And there have been legal changes recently, one being that gay couples can legally register their partnership in the UK.

As far as publishing goes, there are fewer bookshops around, both individual, independent stores and chains. We authors must wait to see if Print on Demand and ebooks take up the slack.

You've written poems, short stories and novels. Of the three, which do you think is easier or more difficult to write? And, why do you think this is so?

A novel is certainly hard to write. It’s far longer and has many more opening and closing scenes to create. With All About Sex, I wrote numerous short scenes out of order and then had to rearrange them.

I don’t feel I know much about poetry, although I’m pleased with some of the poems I’ve written.

Where do you get your ideas from?

Sometimes I really don’t know. But books, magazines, television, conversations -- even misheard ones -- are all sources of inspiration. Then there are news items, problem pages, holidays I’ve taken, pictures and photos, songs, a word taken at random from a dictionary.

I may start writing without any clear idea as to where the story is heading, and just hope for the best.

My target is 100 words per day -- in a year, that adds up to nearly 40,000. But I suffer from depression, so often don’t manage to write anything at all.

How have your novels been received?

Generally well -- I’ve sold over 2,500 copies of them (excluding the anthologies); and they were borrowed from UK libraries nearly 1,500 times for the years ended June 2008 and 2009.

Readers encourage me to look again at Dandelion Clock as a screenplay. I think All About Sex would also be interesting as a film or television drama as it’s got plenty of dialogue and action.

Opinion on The Dandelion Clock, which has sold 1,500 copies, is polarised.

The Dandelion Clock is a gentle book more concerned with thoughts and feelings. It’s not an action book. A reader did comment on the amount of tea-drinking which went on, so, much of that has gone when it came to the second edition.

So far, you've written over 300 short stories. Generally, how long does it take you to craft a story from start to finish?

It’s difficult to say.

Some may take years, but I’ll have been working on them only intermittently. A story may not be quickly finished if I’m not well or if I can’t think what happens next.

Flash fiction -- perhaps 200 words -- may be written basically in a day or two, and then it might undergo editing.

Have all the stories you've written been published?

My stories have been published by BeWrite Books in three collections (A Different Kind of Love; The Loss of Innocence; and Slubberdegullion; and there are nine together with the novel, Precipice.

One appears in Best Gay Romance 2009, while another is appearing in Best Gay Romance 2010.

Some others are in process of being placed.

I occasionally toy with the idea of self-publishing, but am put off by the amount of time and effort I would have to expend on this route (which doesn’t guarantee much in the way of reward -- better to find a decent publisher who will do the donkey work for you, even if it’s a small publisher and much of the promotion side is down to you).

I’d obviously like all my finished stories to find a home. This may involve self-publishing occasionally, but BeWrite Books is very much on my side and will at least consider my work for full editorial treatment and ‘proper’ publication. You can’t hit the mark every time, though.

How have your short stories been received?

BeWrite Books and Cleis Press have published my stories in paperback form (e-books are available, too, from BeWrite Books and, shortly, Kindle versions through Smashwords).

Judging from reviews the stories have received, they are popular in the UK and US.

For example, one reader posted a review of BGR2009 on Amazon UK, and said my story was ‘the jewel in the crown’ of the anthology.

Which of the short stories would you say have been most successful?

It was the story, "Chiaroscuro", which received the ‘jewel in the crown’ mention.

I have also won a short story competition which had over 1,000 entries. And, oddly enough, that wasn’t a gay tale.

Some short stories I’ve sent to several famous people who’ve been kind enough to reply, so to some extent I can claim that these have been successful. Others have been mentioned specifically in reviews. Some stories are more humorous or poignant than others, and appeal more to readers.

Related articles:

• Jay Mandal [Interview: Part 1 of 2], Conversations with Writers, May 2, 2007
• Novel steams up Olympics-era gay Atlanta, By Mike Fleming, Project Q Atlanta, August 30, 2010
• Interview with Jay Mandal [spotlight], the short review

[Interview_2] Lori Titus

In an earlier interview, Lori Titus talked, among other things, about her collection of short stories, Green Water Lullaby (Sonar4 Publications, 2010) and about the factors that drew her to paranormal/horror literature.

Her latest offering, Lazarus is a novella set in the Old West which combines steam punk, magic, zombies and ghosts.

She had this to say about the novella:

How would you describe the new book?

Lazarus is a story set in the Old West, in a town in California.

A young widow named Luella Pemby comes to town, armed with a device that can detect the presence of zombies. Lazarus is known as a site of “natural reanimation”, where infrequent Risings of the dead occur.

Luella seeks out the local sheriff, Benjamin Drake and the mayor of the town, Jasper Cole. She offers her help, and both men are wary of her at first.

Luella comes to find that not only are the Risings occurring more frequently, but that there is more going on in the town of Lazarus than she thought. There are ghosts, family rivalries between warlocks, and a mystery surrounding the death of a young woman.

How long did it take you to write the book?

This book is fairly short (it’s a novella, actually). The first draft took about six weeks.

I found myself writing every day, usually writing at night or early morning and then doing revisions in the afternoon.

Lazarus will be published on October 31, 2010, and will be available in both print and e-book through Amazon and Barnes and Noble.

How did you chose a publisher for the book?

I actually intended Lazarus to be a short story. I was planning to submit it to Sonar4 Publications as part of an upcoming steam punk anthology. Once I started getting into this story, it became clear that I was going to far exceed the word count.

A friend of mine recommended the Library of the Living Dead. I contacted the publisher, and sent him a synopsis of the plot. He expressed interest, and I sent him the manuscript.

Since this particular publisher specializes in zombie fiction, I felt that they were a good choice to start with. But because this story incorporates unusual elements, I wasn’t sure if it would be something that they would like .

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

The most difficult part of writing this book was the lack of sleep that came with it! I couldn’t seem to get the words down fast enough. I sat up writing, re-writing, and reading it for several entire nights in a row. When I did fall asleep I had dreams about the story, and soon found myself awake again and back in front of my monitor. I slipped into the odd habit of sleeping in the day and then writing at night.

I really loved this story. I loved the characters and breathing life into them.

Luella was the driving force, and her words flew across the page.

I enjoyed the male voices in the story, Jasper and Benjamin. The town came to life easily, including an engaging cast of supporting characters that popped up all by themselves.

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

Lazarus is a Western, and my stories are usually set in the present.

The combination of elements is very different. There is a hint of steam punk, magic, zombies, and even some ghosts.

This story is similar to my first book, Green Water Lullaby, in the way it combines the paranormal with an element of romance.

Related articles:

• Lori Titus [Interview_1], Conversations with Writers, December 13, 2009
• Can 'The Walking Dead' Revive the Zombie Genre?, By Jared Keller, The Atlantic, August 30, 2010
• Interview with Bob Fingerman, Reading with Tequila, September 9, 2010