For you that are new, please read our intro now printed in Blue - for our returning guest feel free to jump to the text in black:
This blog is a meeting place for authors and others in the arts .... each week as others are directed to our door or just stumble on by, they come and leave information about themselves - telling about their new books or drawings or photos or to tell us about their new blogs. ****PLEASE be sure your comments are appearing on the latest most timely blog insuring your inclusion in the sending off to Google plus land at the end of the week.*****
Here is the link to Gwen’s site: http://indieauthornetwork.weebly.com/ G.D. Steel's blog is free promoting of your arts. As I am wont to say {as does Facebook} our site is free to comment and share and always will be free. This is a great site to join and to become interactive with guest blogging. It gives you a chance to step out of your box and be whatever you wish.
Another blog that I have a close tie is CRYPTO and CO. Please pop over and check out all their pages.
I have been off doing business and my blogging, unfortunately, falls by the wayside. There is so much news to tell and swamping tends to cross eyes and brain fog off... so only a few links on today's news.
If we thought last month was busy, this month got off to a plunge into new adventures of editing, writing, publishing, promoting, and social interaction.
The Rain Cloud's Gift written for Children's Charities by our group The Peacock Writers' is on it's way to the NYC BOOK FAIR at the JACOB JAVIT'S CONVENTION CENTER. No mass books or signing, just books displayed for industry professionals, stars, editors, publicists, publishers, and acquisition teams for the movie industry. Gwenna D'Young has an Angel who was so impressed with the book, and has given us the money and backing to have the book appear in the line up. We are also in the process of releasing a full, pictures included, limited edition.
Our next book in this series will celebrate the fall season and we are recruiting writers {1 each} from India, Japan, and Philippines - America has Halloween and Thanksgiving, Great Britain has Guy Fawkes - we would like stories that reflect fall traditions or holidays for these other cultures as well. The stories would remain the sole property of the author and their use as a donation would only occur for the book collection for Children's Charities. The story is to be written on a level where a child could either read it or have it read to them - our age goal for readers is 0 through 12. Please contact me at https://www.facebook.com/paula.shene if interested in being considered.
Monday, May 28th Ed Drury
- What inspired you to write?
I was a precocious reader at an early age. I remember in the fifth grade giving book reports on Exodus, All is Quiet on the Western Front and Hiroshima. My teacher was skeptical and even quizzed me extensively on those books. Later I started reading Vonnegut and Twain. Those two writers, more than anyone, inspired me to write. Both because of their observational humor.
Do you have anyone you show manuscripts to and get advice from or are you a loner doing it all yourself?
While I'm mostly a loner, that situation is changing. Little by little I've picked up a following of beta readers who are helpful to me. My wife Lisa reads everything I write and picks up a lot of the early mistakes. From there the circle gets wider and wider, but I never stop listening to feedback from readers.
What genre do you normally write in? Also, is there a genre you've always wanted to write in, but don't feel you could pull it off?
I don't really consider myself a genre writer, though I hope to experiment with some of the genres like sci-fi, horror, mystery, etc. But I'm too quirky to want to lock myself in to one category. I've always admired historical fiction writers for their ability to bring historical eras to life. It's daunting, the amount of research that they put in though. The closest I can probably come to that is my current project which is a period piece. It happens to be a period I lived through, so that helps. Still, I have to research a lot of the events of that time. I find it exciting and somewhat frightening how unaware of some events that were going on during a time I should have been much more informed.
Do you ever base your characters on people you know?
Seriously, all the time. I worked in a mental hospital for five years and so there are a lot of characters based on people I met there. Both staff and residents. I have had a very diverse life filled with all kinds of characters. It would be totally dishonest to say that none of them influenced my characters. If nothing else, they influenced me a great deal.
What advice would you give to someone who was just starting off in writing?
Write everyday. It doesn't have to be a lot. Even thirty minutes every morning is helpful. In fact, I would set that as a minimum. Read, even more than you write. If you write daily, it will change the way you read as well. You will start to look at your reading differently. You'll read something and suddenly, you'll see how an author conveys a thought or idea. You'll question the way things are written and develop your own voice based on what you discover. Finally, do stuff. Everyday, do something. Even a walk through a different neighborhood, a visit to an art gallery, a trip to the store....once you start writing, you'll start to notice a lot more detail in your life. The thing is to get out there and experience something every day.
Do your stories tend to have morals, or special messages, included within them?
Interesting question. I think if my readers think there are messages about society, politics, or religion they are better readers that I am a writer. I'm sure my own biases and beliefs leak into my work. But it's not by design. If they are they, they just came from me being me and not any agenda.
This question was posed by a fellow author and I loved it so much I decided to throw it into the mix ~
Oh no! One of your characters has escaped. Luckily, I have caught them! I will interrogate them with the help of a lie detector. Welcome!Take a seat, make yourself comfortable. You will be returning to your book once this is over. What's your name, where are you from and what is your role in the book?
My name is Levi Deangelo. I'm from an island in the Northern Hemisphere of my planet which you may or may not share with me. I am a professor of neurobiology, toxicology and anthropology who has spent his life studying indigenous knowledge systems specially in the area of healing. In the book, Whale Whisperers of Ensorclea, my king has asked me to investigate the mysterious death of his wife. My investigations took me back to a region called the cove and the wonderful people who live there. I am happy to reconnect with an old friend and informant who I first met when doing field work for my doctorate nearly three decades ago. I'm a life long learner, and now shortly in to my sixth decade, I'm learning just how little I know about this world and even less about the other ones.
Tell us why we would enjoy reading your books?
My writing style is to keep things fairly light, especially when dealing with heavy subjects. Like my greatest influences, Twain and Vonnegut, I think the best way to reach people is appealing to their humor. I try to make them fun to read while at the same time present a different point of view. Reading enjoyment is what I strive for so I try to make the experience of reading my book entertaining.
Links for books and/or sites
Ed Drury's Didjeridu Page
No comments:
Post a Comment