Conversations with Writers

Leicester-based writer and former museum curator and university lecturer, Pam Inder is the co-author of seven books. The books, which she wrote with Marion Aldis, include:   The 1844 Diary of John William Sneyd: Muskets and Mining (Churnet Valley Books of Leek, 1996);   John Sneyd's Diary 1815-1871: Thirty Pieces of Silver (Churnet Valley Books of Leek, 1998);   Finding Susanna (Churnet Valley Books of Leek, 2002); Susanna's Cookery Book: A Culinary Adventure in Staffordshire (Churnet Valley Books of Leek, 2003);   Finding Ralphy (Churnet Valley Books of Leek, 2006), and   Staffordshire Women: Nine Forgotten Histories (History Press, 2010). In this interview, Pam Inder talks about her writing: How did you decide you wanted to be a writer? I didn’t really have much choice about writing – I worked as a museum curator and writing catalogues, articles in journals etc was very much part of the job! However, the sort of writing I now do came about r...

Max Gladstone lives, works, and writes in Cambridge, MA. He is the author of several novels which include Three Parts Dead , which is currently out on submission. His short stories have been featured in magazines that include Space Westerns and On The Premises as well as in the anthology, The Book of Exodi (Eposic, 2009). He also administers the blog Two Guys, Three Hundred Poems , where he publishes and comments on translations of the anthology of Tang poetry known as the 300 Tang Poems . In this interview, Max Gladstone talked about his writing: When did you start writing? I began writing before I actually knew how to put letters together -- just a bunch of scratches filling my parents' old notebooks, one line at a time -- but if you mean writing stories, it started with a very simple vampire story typed out on an old suitcase Remington in my closet at the age of five or six. From there, it was a short skip and a jump to wanting to be a published writer: I realize...

Dylan Birtolo is the author of two novels, The Shadow Chaser (Inkwater Press, 2004) and The Bringer of War (Lulu, 2008). He is also the co-author of Colonial Gothic , a role-playing game and has short stories that have been published in places that include the anthology of short stories, Ransom (Athor Productions, 2008)); the multi-media epic fantasy setting,   Baeg Tobar ; and the e-zine, The Edge of Propinquity . In this interview, Dylan Birtolo talks about his writing: When did you start writing? I started writing back when I was in third grade and we had to write out our stories in cursive writing on paper with the one inch margins drawn on them. I actually still have the very first story that I ever wrote. It was required to be one page long and tell a story, mine was 17 pages. At this point, I knew that I wanted to be a storyteller and share stories with people. Ever since then, I have always been telling stories in many formats - writing, orally making up stories o...

Daniel Tyler Gooden was born in Independence, Missouri and graduated from Baker University in 1998 with a degree in English. His short stories have been featured in magazine and anthologies that include  Crown Tales (Dark Quest Books, 2009), Nth Degree and Alien Skin Magazine . His second novel, The Unmade Man was published by Outland Entertainment in 2009. In this interview, Daniel Gooden talks about his writing: When did you start writing? My first story came after watching a horrible Leslie Nielsen Dracula spoof. I thought it was so corny that anyone could write something more entertaining. That evening I tried my own short horror piece, and while I can’t remember it being good either, I distinctly remember how spooked I was while writing it. The thrill definitely hooked me. I think that I got my first taste of the story being in control, the sense that it was a creature moving under its own power. I got my degree in English, and after college found myself writing ...

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 learn...

Baeg Tobar is an epic fantasy world that is brought to life through comics, short fiction, novels and other forms of illustrated media. Scott Colby is one of the project's editor-contributors. In this interview, Colby talks about his writing: When did you start writing? I started writing way back in elementary school. I was very good at finishing my work long before everybody else, which meant I needed something to keep myself entertained. I couldn't draw worth a lick, but luckily I was alright with the English. It wasn't long before I was cranking out ten page novellas and reading them in front of the entire class. Since then, I've just kept plugging along, trying to incorporate things I've liked to read into my work. When I saw an open call for writers at Baeg Tobar , I sent in a few samples. Luckily they liked me! How would you describe your writing? Fantasy with my own little twist. I've always felt like the genre can handle a lot more than just the typica...