I enjoy book signings because I love meeting and talking with readers. Between the book signings and a lot of e-mails, I get asked many of the same questions. So for those curious, here are the most asked questions and the answers.
Where do you come up with your idea?
That’s always a great question. I just wish that I had a great answer. The truth is I have no idea where I come up with stories. Like mushrooms, they seem to grow in the dark and root in some organic soil. Often my themes, or backdrops, come from issues we, as a society, face every day.
Do you use an outline to write?
No. Before I write a novel I think a lot about the subject, the characters, and where the story could go. I make brief sketches of the characters. No more than a paragraph of each one. Then I’ll write a dozen or so bullet points—places I think the story will journey. The bullet points are always on the next page as I write the story. When I come to specific places in the story, I’ll delete the bullet point references. Usually the last one is very near the last chapter.
Do you prefer to write a book in first-person or third-person?
That depends on the story. If much of it is experienced through the eyes of one main character, often his or her point-of-view will the best and most intimate way to tell the story. However, many times I need a full range of characters and multiple points-of-view to best engage the reader. Only once have I shifted perspectives through most of the novel from first to third-person. And that was in THE BUTTERFLY FOREST.
How did you get your agent?
I met my current agent, Philip Spitzer, at the Bouchercon writer’s conference. Philip, along with his colleagues, Lukas Ortiz and Lucas Hunt, are the best in the business
When do you write?
It’s usually late in the evenings after I come home from work. All of my books have been written after I finish my day job. It’s been my goal to one day put on a pot of coffee and start work on a novel in the mornings. When that happens, writing will be my day job.