In this pithy and candid interview, the author of The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers talks about the pressures that go along with a dramatically successful debut, the gestation time involved in writing literary fiction, the despair within the publishing industry, her main character, Captain Frederick Benteen, about using real history as the subject of fiction, her writing style, the way in which The Lost Thoughts of Soldiers is also an Australian story, the importance of being ribald, and lots more.
Tag: Interview
Interview with Andrea Mayes
The author of The Rose Notestalks about the genesis of her first novel, the character she struggled most with, her unusual narrative voice, on being labelled “rural gothic,” the “luck factor” in fiction publishing, the future of fiction, the way in which a published novel has changed her, her key themes, and lots more.
Interview with Kirby Gann
The author of Our Napoleon in Rags talks about Montreux, his imaginary city, his well adjusted past, his own publishing company Sarabande Books, the reason why he didn’t publish his own book, the positives and negatives of teaching, his influences and favorites, why he complains a lot, and lots more.
Interview with Dylan Schaffer
Dylan Schaffer has written three books: Dog Stories (with photographs by Jon Weber), Misdemeanor Man and I Right the Wrongs. The first is a book for dog lovers, a work of great charm, wit and insight but the other two are mystery novels that belong in the very top rank of this kind of writing and as such have universal appeal. This funny and in-depth interview looks at his influences, his dogs, the relationship between law and writing, Barry Manilow, boiled eggs, and lots more.
Interview with Morris Gleitzman
The author of Worm Story talks about his anti-hero, his workshops, the way children have and haven’t changed over the years, why being called a parasite should be a compliment, why “slime” makes such an appealing character to children, his next book, an exclusive recipe/warning for Mars bars and baked apple, and lots more.
Interview with Mridu Khullar
The author of “Knock Their Socks Off! A Freelance Writer’s Guide to Query Letters That Sell” talks about her book, why the query is so critical, why she owns up to her imperfections, her web site, Writer’s Crossing, on the pitfalls of being a professional writer in India, on cultural differences when querying across countries, on the biggest mistake writers make when querying, her tattoo, and lots more.
Interview with Dee Rimbaud
The author of Dropping Ecstasy with the Angels talks about the origins of the chapbook, spiritual healing, the drug ecstasy, how he chose which poems to include, the changes in his work over the years, the value of poetry, his blog, his many other projects, multimedia, and much more.
Interview with Peter Bowerman
In this effervescent interview, the author of The Well Fed Writer: Back for Seconds talks about his new book (and how it relates to his old one), the huge demand for commercial writers, perceptions and misconceptions about commercial writing, how he found his many experts, how he juggles short and long term goals, how to leverage a creative writing background, on mentoring, his next book, and lots more.
Interview with Chad Hautmann
When Billie’s Ghost first came out in October 2002, we interviewed the author, Chad Hautmann. Following its very successful debut, the book has been taken up by Penguin, and has just been re-released. The Compulsive Reader decided that it was time to interview Chad Hautmann again and find out more about the soft spoken author, the extraordinary story of how he was found by Penguin, his new book, the difficulties (and joys) of working on a second novel, his feelings towards government funding of the arts, and lots more.
Interview with John Blumenthal
The author of Millard Fillmore, Mon Amour and What’s Wrong with Dorfman talks about his adventures in self-publishing and how he attracted St Martin’s Press, his out of print titles, the relationship between his life and his art, his next novel, his influences, on living by the pen, his moving Blue Streak, and lots more.