Writer Wednesday – Daniel Quinn

Author and cultural critic Daniel Quinn is best known for his international bestseller Ishmael. Most people don’t know that Ishmael took Quinn twelve years to write. During the ninth year of that struggle, in an effort to prove himself as a writer, Quinn wrote Dreamer, his first novel. Originally published in 1988 by TOR, Dreamer has been described as an “offbeat first novel of psychological horror,” a satisfyingly eerie thriller that offers humor, mystery, romance, and “more than a pinch of the bizarre.”

Out of print, Dreamer retained an underground notoriety. In 1995, the New York Review of Science Fiction included the book in its “Horror at the End of the Century” reading list. Recently, fans persuaded Quinn to bring his first novel back into print. This is his interview…

Let’s start with the basics. Who are you?
Tell us (briefly) about you…
Let’s see . . . . Daniel Quinn, born 1935 in Omaha, studied at St. Louis U, the U of Vienna, Loyola of Chicago. Had a successful 20-year career in publishing, which prepared me well for what I’d always wanted to do (which was to be a novelist, of course).

If you want more: Among other things, I founded the Stateville Penitentiary Writers’ Workshop in 1969, and served on the Board of Listeners of the World Uranium Hearing, Salzburg, Austria, convened in 1992 to hear testimony of victims of uranium mining, nuclear waste disposal, and nuclear power disasters around the world. I’ve addressed students and faculty at dozens of high schools, colleges, and universities all over the U.S.

…and a bit about what you’ve written…
I’m best known for the novel Ishmael, sales ranked #84 in Psychological Thrillers, right up there with Lord of the Flies and The Story of O. It won the largest prize ever awarded a single book (the Turner Tomorrow Award, $500,000, 1991) and is a million-copy seller in some 25 languages, used in classrooms from midschool to graduate school all over the world in courses as varied as philosophy, geography, history, religion, biology, anthropology, political science, economics, and sociology. I’ve published seven other novels, three works of nonfiction, and a short story collection.

…and what you’re working on right now.
I’m putting together a collection of essays based on speeches delivered for the U of Georgia Distinguished Lecturer Series, the Carnegie Mellon University1997 Technologies of Peace Conference, The Southwestern U 2000 Fleming Lecture in Religion, and others like that. And stirring in the back of my mind . . . a new novel, the first in a decade.

What are your earliest book-related memories?
I remember my father reading to me Howard Pyle’s The Adventures of Robin Hood.

What are your three favorite books?
Ghost Story, Peter Straub
Journey to the East, Herman Hesse
Forty Stories, Donald Barthelme

How many books to do you read at any given time?
One.

What are you reading now?
The Murder Stone, Charles Todd

Finish this sentence; when I curl up with a book, I ___
When I curl up with a book, it’s usually 12:30 AM, after I’ve finished work, and I read until I start dreaming what comes next in the book instead of reading it. Then I go to bed.

To re-read or not to re-read that is the question.
I learned to write by reading the Nero Wolfe novels of Rex Stout. I read them so many times I had them memorized. I’m hoping that someday I’ll forget them enough to be able to go back read them all over again.

How likely are you to read a book that’s been recommended to you?
Not very likely if it’s recommended as a duty-read, something I really really should read. Likely if it’s from someone who actually knows what I enjoy reading.

How likely are you to recommend a book (that isn’t yours)?
Very likely. Want to read a terrific (under-appreciated) novel? Suspects, by David Thomson.

What do you look for in a good book?
Sorry, that one’s too tough.

Why do you write?
It’s the only thing that makes me eager to get out of bed in the morning.

If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you be?
Second choice is so far down that I can’t even see it.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?
I try to imagine a book I’d love to read.

What has writing taught you about yourself?
That I’d better come up with something to write pretty damn soon or I’ll start feeling suicidal.

How do the people in your life seem to view your writing career?
I’m afraid it’s different for each person.

Are there any stereotypes about writers that you don’t think are true?
Not so much about writers as about writing. When I was running the Stateville Penitentiary Writers’ Workshop, I heard a few. Chief among them that writing’s a scam that can be worked while behind bars, and writers are careful not to let anyone know how it works. When this collection of murderers, thieves, and arsonists finally accepted the idea that writing is just WORK, a lot of them lost interest. The most common I hear (not from convicts) is that writers need plenty of discipline–writers need to be real tough on themselves to keep at it. I doubt if that’s true of many writers. Personally, I need discipline to know when it’s time to quit for the day.

What do you see as the biggest challenge today for writers starting out?
I’ve made a small career out of working with aspiring writers. Most of them fall into one of two categories. They either think getting published is a snap (and so do shoddy work that no one will publish) or they think it’s impossible (and so give up when they receive their first rejection slip).

Have you made any writing mistakes that seem obvious in retrospect but weren’t at the time?
Sorry, I can’t think of any writing mistakes I’ve made. Not sure what you’re thinking of.

Is there a particular project you would love to be involved with?
I wouldn’t mind being invited to be Writer-in-Residence someplace.

How do you deal with your fan base?
I’ve had literally thousands of letters from fans. To guard against being overwhelmed, I make it very difficult (but not impossible) for people to reach me. They have to be really dedicated and persistent, so that when they get through to me, I can be reasonably sure that they got something of value to say.

Finish this sentence; my fans would be surprised to know ___ about me.
My fans would be surprised to know that I don’t spend hours a day thinking great thoughts.

Anything else we should know?
I originally wrote something humorous, but Rennie (my wife and chief advisor) talked me out of it.

Writer Wednesday – Jean Stringam

Let’s start with the basics. Who are you?
Tell us (briefly) about you…
Jean Stringam counts her characters among her list of friends and solves plots during breakfast, lunch, and dinner; however, recently she has been impressed with how numbers describe life – and we’re not talking just the bank balance.

The number five currently figures strongly in her life since she has recently published five books, has earned her living in five different careers, has lived in five countries, and has five sisters, five children, and five university degrees.

Perhaps a few lists would be helpful:

Five novels published – for titles and descriptions, please go to her Home page at http://jeanstringam.com

Five different careers – Professor of literature, piano teacher, actor (member of SAG), secretary, choir conductor/opera chorus pianist/church organist

Five countries – Canada, France, China, England, United States (but she’s only been a citizen of two)

Five sisters – learned more than she thought possible

Five children – learned more than she ever wanted to know (about love)

Five degrees – Ph.D. University of Alberta, B.Ed. University of Calgary, M.A. & B.A. Brigham Young University, ARCT Royal Conservatory of Music of Toronto.

…and a bit about what you’ve written…
Now that I’m retired, I no longer write academic essays and articles. My fiction for young adult and middle grade readers include the following:
Solstice Magic (A Calgary Stampede Adventure, #1)
The Hoarders (paperback & Nook e-Book)
Balance (paperback & Kindle e-Book)
How Not to Cry in Public: A Novel (paperback & Kindle e-Book)
The Wise Men: A Christmas Adventure (Kindle e-Book only)
Regrets Tree on Fire (for release in summer 2013; projected as paperback & Kindle e-Book)

…and what you’re working on right now.
I’m looking for a good illustrator for a Early Reader series, for grades 3 and 4. Have five of the stories written and another ten sketched.

What are your earliest book-related memories?
I have written about this on my website under “About Jean Stringam.” It’s called “The Chicken Story”

What are your three favorite books?
It changes very rapidly depending on what I’m reading. Over time, however, I’ve tended to enjoy O.S. Card.

How many books to do you read at any given time? What are you reading now?
I’m reading Wool. I like to immerse myself in an author’s world, so I rarely read more than one at a time. I write several of my own books at the same time, though.

Finish this sentence; when I curl up with a book, I ___
Defy the world to continue turning.

To re-read or not to re-read that is the question.
Always re-read what catches my interest

How likely are you to read a book that’s been recommended to you?
Certain friends have impeccable taste and I take their suggestions. I listen carefully when anybody gives an opinion about a book because their reasoning patterns, or lack of them, interest me. Doesn’t mean I rush right out and buy the book they’ve told me about.

How likely are you to recommend a book (that isn’t yours)?
Very. That’s what I’ve spent my professional life doing.

What do you look for in a good book?
An author who is wise, has poetry in his/her heart, and knows that a story has to have a resolution. If the author can’t figure out what the characters learned or how they changed, I wish them well, but please stop writing and find another profession.

Why do you write?
I want my life to have made a difference.

If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you be?
I’ve worn a lot of hats thus far in my life. None of them appeal to me long-term. I will write until I’m dead.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?
I read copiously, watch people intently, and love unreservedly.

What has writing taught you about yourself?
That an individual only sees a small slice of the truth.

How do the people in your life seem to view your writing career?
They’re just about over trying to decide who’s who in the characters, which is a relief. They’re beginning to accept that my characters are not stolen from real life (except for the ones that actually are)!

Are there any stereotypes about writers that you don’t think are true?
Tons of stereotypes. The biggest lie is that alcohol and drugs enhance creativity. They don’t. It’s a miracle that any talent leaks out of those people at all.

What do you see as the biggest challenge today for writers starting out?
The money. Always the money. Whether trad published or Indie, it’s the money.

Have you made any writing mistakes that seem obvious in retrospect but weren’t at the time?
Wrote a whole novel without knowing how to resolve the conflict. Wrote it a second time and still couldn’t figure out the ending. That’s 900 pages of wasted effort! Grr!! Hisss!

Is there a particular project you would love to be involved with?
Yes, but until things happen, I’m not sure it’s a good idea to advertise hopes and maybes.

How do you deal with your fan base?
Sometimes I do author visits in schools. Sometimes fans write to me on my website, FaceBook, or GoodReads.

Finish this sentence; my fans would be surprised to know ___ about me.
That there really is a learnable technique for not crying in public, that I can do it (usually), and that I am still in the habit of carrying sunglasses with me everywhere just in case I can’t.

Anything else we should know?
I write songs for my books, and for a lot of other occasions, too.

Book Review – Southern Haunts

Title: Southern Haunts
Editors: Alexander S. Brown & J. L. Mulvihill
Published: 2013
Format: Trade Paperback (& eBook… but just until I got the print copy)

Y’all, this is one of those reviews that you need to stick with through the end, but I promise it’s worth it…

Okay, I’m going to be honest here.  I’m one of those people who only sometimes likes anthologies.  Yeah, I’ve reviewed other ones that I’ve really liked, but there are also quite a few that I’ve picked up, couldn’t get through two stories, and sent it back.  And when you review them, it’s a whole new kettle of fish.  Because, really, how do you review such a thing?  Do a writeup about each short story?  Overall opinions?  A little of both?  Gah!

And so, this one… This one I was really looking forward to.  For starters, I know the editors.  I’m jealous that I didn’t get to submit something to it.  And, you know, I was just excited about this one.

I have to admit, as I worked my way around the book, I found issues.  (As I told the editor, I’m probably the toughest reader/reviewer he’ll ever get…)  There are a couple editing problems that seriously need fixed.  This book also has the absolute worst story I have ever read in print.  Seriously.  I reject betters submissions for my own publishing company.

But for the problems it has, there are also some real gems in here.  H David Blalock’s An Eclipse Over Elmwood was awesome, for instance, and my favorite story in the book.  [Note: Check our archives and you'll find a feature interview with him.]  There are a couple other stories where I saw the ending coming, such as Roland Mann’s Haints, another favorite in this antho, but I still really liked the characters and how the stories were written.  And you have stories like Diane Ward’s The Shack which was good, but totally too short – I was sad that it ended so quickly and think another bit of story would have totally added greatly to what she already had going.

So my bottom line is this.  The book is decent.  If you manage to get your hands on a copy, it’s great for those times between novels or when you don’t want to dedicate that much time to one piece of writing.  My best advice is to pick and choose, to read a little at a time here and there, and to not be afraid to skip a couple stories that you might not like or fall a little short.  It’s worth being able to read the few gems that really shine.

Book Review–Anna And The Dragon By Jill Domschot

Title: Anna And The Dragon
Author: Jill Domschot
Format: Kindle
Published: 2013

Stay tuned after the review for an exciting contest!  Free books, my friends! Free books! 

If you’re like me, you’re fascinated by anything to do with dragons.   For years I collected antique maps just for all the fanciful dragon illustrations in the unexplored edges of the world.    Anything with a dragon draws me, so it’s no wonder I read a lot of epic fantasy–that genre is replete with the fire-breathing critters.

So when my friend Jill (see how I’m just sticking this “full disclosure” in here like this?  But yes, full disclosure: I’m friends with this author) asked me to beta read her book about dragons and time travel and romance I was in, despite the fact that “time travel romance” is something I’m normally allergic to nearly as much as I’m compelled by the dragons.

This is not your ordinary fantasy, and I’m pretty much going to say that if you’re looking for another juvenile Eragon or a repeat of the sexually abusive Outlander, you can just keep looking.

This is an Urban Fantasy for the person who loves dragons and enjoys hanging out with smart people.

Anna is a shy, diligent woman who keeps to herself and lives a rigid life ruled by routine and filled with a comfortable blandness.    When an eccentric free spirited world traveler called Franklin hires Anna as his research assistant the safe places begin to melt like sugar in the Portland rain.     He disappears frequently.  Is he insane or is he truly menaced by a dragon who has cursed his family with a spell designed to last fourteen generations?   And if that curse is real, what does that mean for Anna?  Will she lose her heart to a man whose love will cost her life?

I absolutely loved this book the first time I read it.   I loved it even more the second time I read it.   When it was finally released for Kindle I actually PAID for my copy–a book I’d already read twice.

That should tell you just how wonderful a story this truly is.

Grab your copy, settle back and spend your Memorial Day Weekend with Anna and Franklin in the rainswept land of Portland….with occasional side trips to lands of mystery and enchantment.    I give this one 5 bookworms.

BIRTHDAY WEEK SWEEPSTAKES!!!!

Yes, that’s right!  This week is my birthday.  (Thursday, 23 May,  in case you were wondering….)   In honour of my birthday and this book I love so much I will be giving one lucky reader a present.

1. Add a comment below with your Facebook or Twitter address.   Tell me what your favourite Dragon story is and why.

2.  Post a link to this review on your Facebook or Twitter.

 

I will draw one of the entries at random and the winner will receive their very own e-book copy of Anna And The Dragon along with a special top secret bonus ebook!

Tell your friends!!!!

Book Review – Skippyjon Jones Cirque de Ole by Judy Schachner

Title: Skippyjon Jones Cirque de Ole

Author/Illustrator: Judy Schachner

Format: Hardback

Written/Published: 2012

 

Despite being disappointed my third Skippyjon Jones book I still had a fourth one from the library and I’m glad I didn’t decide to just return it without reading it because it was adorable.  This book held the same charm and fun of the first book.  I was actually caught reading it aloud to myself it was so much fun!  The pictures were still a bit different from the first book and much like what I found in Skippyjon Jones and the Big Bones but it didn’t matter as much considering the story was much better and had a lot of what makes the books such a wonderful experience.  This is another book that I would absolutely love to read, but not until I had a practice run or two with it considering there are several words I am not used to speaking often.

 

One of the things I also loved about this book is not only did it capture the fun and vivid imagination of the kitty boy Skippyjon Jones who thinks himself a Chihuahua but it is chock full of Spanish words that are great for teaching young children as they are explained in the next sentence or the pictures in the book are used to help a reader figure out what words like leons (lions), tigres (tigers) and osos (bears) are. Oh my! In addition to the classic formula of the book and the great adventure at the circus that Skippyjon has, his sisters were hilarious with some of the conversations they had with their mother and at times you even felt bad for Mama Junebug Jones as she was trying to wrangle a rambunctious boy and three kitty girls. 

 

Overall, I would say that this book was another rare treat and a fun one to share with others if you can!  I would recommend this book as a supplement to the first Skippyjon Jones books over the others I have read thus far and will give a 4 page rating over all.

Writer Wednesday – Jason S. Walters

Let’s start with the basics. Who are you?
I’m Jason S. Walters.

Tell us (briefly) about you…
I’m an author, essayist, and publisher best known for running Indie Press Revolution (IPR), a distributor of micro-published roleplaying games. I live way out in the Nevada outback with a daughter with Down syndrome and animals too numerous to mention.

…and a bit about what you’ve written…
I’m an author of numerous roleplaying game books including Lucha Libre Hero, Scourges of the Galaxy, and You Gotta Have Character. I’ve also written a couple of novels, a short story collection, and a smattering of published essays, short stories, magazine articles, and the like.

…and what you’re working on right now.
I’m going through and editing the second edition of my short story collection An Unforgiving Land, Reloaded line-by-line. This will also be the final edition and version of what has proven to be my most popular book. I’m no Walt Whitman, and have no desire to spend the rest of my life doing new versions of the same book. So I’m trying to get it *just so* this time.

What are your earliest book-related memories?
Due to my parents diligent efforts I learned to read at an extremely early age. By the age of six I was able to read Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind in the Willows on my own, and at the tender age of seven I had become seriously hooked on science fiction – and, in short order, this grew to include its sister genres of fantasy and horror. My parents started me out with Tom Swift books, and I moved rather rapidly on my own to authors like Issac Asimov, Heinlein, HP Lovecraft, CS Lewis, and Jack Vance. At the age of twelve I was particularly enamored by Vance’s Demon Prince books. They were dated even when I was reading them in the 1980′s and Vance knew it, but the whole “manly revenge on galactic supervillains” thing was about as much awesome as a preteen boy can handle without actually hurting himself.

What are your three favorite books?
China Mieville’s The City & the City is a particularly fine book and a great example of fantasy realism – possibly the genre’s best example, actually. I’m also quite partial to Heinlein’s classic libertarian science fiction novel The Moon is a Harsh Mistress. Both are books with a lot to say about society and human nature. But when it comes to a novel that is positively exploding with ideas (and not all of them good ones), I have to admit a great and somewhat embarrassing fondness for Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. It’s stylistically weak, dreadfully long, and incredibly pedantic – but you have to give the strange old gal credit. She managed to pack and entire philosophy, worldview, and way of life into what amounts to a post-apocalyptic science fiction novel complete with death rays, invisibility fields, and submarine pirates – and do it in such a way that nobody really thinks of the novel as being science fiction at all.

Plus, say what you will, the cult created by her book doesn’t involve Body Thetans, Xenu, or endless lawsuits.

How many books to do you read at any given time? What are you reading now?
I generally read two or three books at once. Right now I’m reading Hunter S. Thompson’s The Rum Diary (it’s much better than the movie), Albert Jay Knock’s autobiographical Memoirs of a Superfluous Man (one of the snarkiest books ever written before the word snarky was invented), and Thor Heyerdahl’s Fatu-Hiva – Back to Nature. Party because I love crazy old Thor and enjoy reading anything by him, but also because I found a free copy at the Gerlach post office.

Finish this sentence; when I curl up with a book, I ___
…want it to not make my fall asleep right away. It doesn’t sound like much, but often it seems that it’s too much to ask. And I have a three-year-old with Down syndrome, a 40-hour-a-week job, a hobby business, and various construction projects. So I fall asleep *really* easily!

To re-read or not to re-read that is the question.
I like to crawl back to my favorite dozen or so books once every few years – if for no other reason than to remind myself of why they are my favorites.

How likely are you to read a book that’s been recommended to you?
It depends very much on the person recommending it. There are people whose taste I trust and admire… and people whose taste I trust and admire far less.

How likely are you to recommend a book (that isn’t yours)?
Very. I recommend them all the time. Hopefully I’m one of the former types of people, rather than the later. (See above.)

What do you look for in a good book?
I look for it to be clever, interesting, and informative. It’s fun to learn, and there’s really no reason that practically any book can teach, regardless of its subject matter.

Why do you write?
Because I don’t seem to have any choice. For me writing is more like an obsessive-compulsive disorder than anything else. It’s just something I have to do sometimes

If you couldn’t be a writer, what would you be?
A bookseller; which, in fact, I am.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?
Any number of sources. And, of course, they’ve changed over time. I find the Black Rock Desert where I live to be a powerful muse. I also find my own daughter’s struggles to express herself despite her handicap to be very inspiring and thought provoking.

What has writing taught you about yourself?
That craft is very important to me, and worth being patient to achieve. Anybody can crap out a few thousand words onto a piece of paper. The hard part is going back over those same thousand words in an attempt to “de-crap” them.

How do the people in your life seem to view your writing career?
I’m not sure I have a writing career at this point. I came pretty close to having one three or so years ago, but now I’m just a guy who tries to fit writing the odd story, game, or novella into his busy schedule – and then attempts to get them published somehow. And many of the people in my day-to-day life are only vaguely aware that I’m a writer; which is fine. Life is short, and most of my friends have their own interests and problems in any case.

Are there any stereotypes about writers that you don’t think are true?
I would say that for most of us flashes of great inspiration are few and far between. Unlike the portrayal of writers you see in film and television, there are only occasional eureka moments. The rest of the time you just hack it out as best as you are able, and hope that by doing so you eventually get better at it.

What do you see as the biggest challenge today for writers starting out?
Getting anyone to notice them. There’s just so much stuff out there now – much of it very bad, some of it quite good, and a lot of it free electronically – that it’s hard to get anyone to read you at all.

Have you made any writing mistakes that seem obvious in retrospect but weren’t at the time?
Yes. When I sold the business I spent 15 years building up I should have dedicated myself *exclusively* to writing, rather than setting out to create another business while also trying to write. If I’d done that I might actually have a career as a writer today, rather than being a guy who constantly tries to find time to write.

Is there a particular project you would love to be involved with?
It would be great to do a roleplaying game adaptation of China Mieville’s novel Railsea. Right now as a publisher I’m wrapping up development of a book based on Larry Correia’s Monster Hunter International universe – and I’ve got a few other projects cooking for after that – but it would be nice to do at some point. It’s a great setting; like Moby Dick, but with trains instead of ships and giant moles instead of whales.

How do you deal with your fan base?
Politely: after all, there are more California condors than Jason Walters’ fans!

Finish this sentence; my fans would be surprised to know ___ about me.
That I was once a member of the Ecclesia Gnostica Mysteriorum: an alternative Christian religious movement based on the ancient heretical teachings of the Gnostics. So I was once all New Age and stuff!

Book Review – Urgent 2nd Class by Nick Bantock

Title: Urgent 2nd Class:  Creating Curious Collage, Dubious Documents, and Other Art from Ephemera
Author/Illustrator: Nick Bantock
Format: Paperback
Published: 2004

First of all, Nick Bantock is a canvas, done up as collage, and painted over with awesome sauce.  I mean it.  I’ve never seen anything he’s ever done that’s made me unhappy, and he’s one of the few authors that I’ve sought out so I could own all his stuff (I don’t yet, but I’m working on it).  (If you’ve never read Gryphon & Sabine, go now.)

This book is part biography, part how to, and part coffee table art book.  It’s arranged in chapters, each one about a different project.  In it, he tells a little about himself and a little about how he did the art work.  But the best part is the word to picture ratio.  For every paragraph, there’s an image.  Or more.  It’s awesome.

It starts with the book covers that he did at the beginning of his career.  I hadn’t known about those before, but now I’d like to go hunt a few of them down.  Then it covers Gryphon & Sabine, The Museum at Purgatory, etc.  No, it doesn’t touch everything (his fake Parisian guide book, for instance, isn’t in there), but the insights that it does give are awesome.

Now that I’ve read this, I want to go back and re-read everything else to see if I can gather some new insight to his work.  My advice?  Go through and read everything – every footnote, every paragraph, every caption for every piece of art.  Then go through again, and enjoy every image.  A couple times.  Because it’s that awesome.  And once you’re done with that, create a bit of something of your own.

Five out of five paint-slathered pages for sure.