Authors Interviews
When did you start writing?
I've been writing most of my life but only decided to publish a memoir until 2015, when I was 72.
John Fahey
When did you start writing?
When I was in what people in England call Year 6, which is fifth grade to Americans. There was a creative writing subject and I found it very enjoyable. I started writing with a view to publication in Year 9, after a visit to my school by a YA author.
Adam Carpenter
When did you start writing?
I started writing a long time ago as a child and loved it. But after a while I had stopped. I began again in my early thirties and found it to be quite cathartic.
Lizy J. Campbell
When did you start writing?
When I was in 2nd grade we would write little stories every few weeks. We could pick pretty much any topic we wanted. Sometimes they were fiction, sometimes about things we did over the weekend or a trip we went on during a summer vacation or school break. Once they were done, our teacher would have them typed up and placed in colorful folders with the little prongs inside to make them look "official." Then we were allowed to illustrate them ourselves. To this day it's still one of my favorite childhood memories!
Megan Weiss
When did you start writing?
I have been writing all my life. English was my best subject growing up and I enjoyed the creative writing classes I took in high school.
Terry Tucker
When did you start writing?
I've always been a writer since I was a kid. I never became serious about it until 2007 when I joined a writing group. Then I won a writing contest and had a publisher print my first novella in 2012.
Diane Bator
When did you start writing?
Professionally? Well, insofar as I'd call myself a professional, I started work on The Awakening last year. I've been dabbling with fan fiction and some other bits and pieces for nearly two decades.
Ben Berwick
When did you start writing?
I've written since I was a kid: short stories, poems, unfinished "novels." I guess all authors start with an early love of stories.
What makes writing your passion?
It utilizes the left and the right brain, and so is very satisfying. (Also very frustrating when it isn't going well!) I love the idea of giving flesh to characters from ancient history whom we know only by name. Even when I taught history, I figured I had succeeded if I could bring the students to understand that these people were humans, and that they made their decisions out of the same motives as we do.
N.L.Holmes
When did you start writing?
It started in October 2018. I’ve always loved reading, but never thought about writing before. It was triggered by a dream I couldn’t get out of my head. A switch was flipped inside my head. Suddenly all those words were there, inside me, pressing their way out. That's the reason I started writing Fallen Angels.
What makes writing your passion?
I don't do it for the money, or the fame. I write because I want to make people happy. Fallen Angels was originally written just for myself. Writing it made me happy. When it was finished, I longed to share that joy with others, so I published it, hoping that readers might have a few hours o joy reading it.
J.C. Seal
When did you start writing?
I actually started writing when I was only eight-years-old, and I haven't been able to put a pen down since. Needless to say, I have improved since then. It took many years to get published because life got in the way - earning a Ph.D. and college teaching. Still, I always kept perfecting my craft and when the market opened up for 1940s-style mysteries, I was ready.
What makes writing your passion?
I love writing because I love to create. I've always been an old movie buff, and writing my noir-style mysteries has enabled me to bring to life stories that add to that canon. It's so exciting to give life to characters, then challenge myself to craft the twisting plots that take them, myself, and my readers on unexpected adventures
Sharon Healy-Yang
When did you start writing?
I started four years ago, when I retired from teaching.
What makes writing your passion?
I love words, and I love books and
I love to do research. One is always learning one's craft and growing.
N.L.Holmes
When did you start writing?
My 2011 Camino de Santiago experience so profoundly moved me that I wanted to tell everyone about the pilgrimage and the stories of the wonderful women I met along "the Way."
What makes writing your passion?
I was intrinsically changed by the Camino and I wanted to share this experience with others especially those who will never be able to walk the 500 miles across northern Spain.
Jane V. Blanchard
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
I couldn't believe it. I had not written before. I was shocked when the first publisher I contacted gave me a publishing contract. I mistakenly assumed that I could do it again. My first book was called Patient Power How to Have a Say in Your Hospital Stay and I was thrilled to help people advocate for themselves and their loved ones.
Iris Waichler
When did you start writing?
I started writing in early 2016, I'm an avid reader and at the time wondered why not try it myself and have the endings and story the way I wanted it. Now four years later I have two series that are on Amazon.
What makes writing your passion?
The feedback I get from my readers inspires me to write more. Knowing that for a short moment in time I am taking them away from reality into a world of my making drives my passion to write.
Alexi Ferreira
When did you start writing?
I wrote my first novel (in French) at age 17. My first book was published (in France) when I was 24.
What makes writing your passion?
I had it in me since I was a kid. At age 14, I had an accident before the summer holidays and I had to spend two months without being able to swim, run or do any fun things of kids my age. My father gave me "East of Eden" (John Steinbeck) to read, and I fell in love with American literature (even though I am French). Since then, I tried and wrote (in French) with what I believe to be an "American style".
Pierre Rehov
When did you start writing?
I started writing back in 3rd grade. Though it wasn’t until middle school that I actually shared my stories with others, and it wasn’t until recently that I actually had the courage to publish them in paperback and kindle.
What makes writing your passion?
Not sure. I just really enjoy creating unique fun stories that can be enjoyed by teens and adults. I always hated picking up a book to read only to have to toss it out because it had inappropriate references, and went into way to much detail about things. So I decided if I couldn’t find many fun appropriate books. I would create them.
Veronica Sierra Lawson
When did you start writing?
I’ve always dabbled in writing short stories and poetry, taking a variety of adult ed classes and junior college course, but not seriously committing to the process until I joined a writing club and critique group.
What makes writing your passion?
I’ve always struggled to speak what was on my mind, but found writing much easier and more successful. It’s my release, my way of being heard without shouting.
Diane M. How
When did you start writing?
I started in my late teens, and wrote a lot of bad poetry. I got a little better at writing as time went on and got some of my poetry published in local anthologies. I even won an award for one of my poems titled “Refrigerator Opera”, so my writing, like most people’s writing, improved in time.
What makes writing your passion?
The written word is just a great way to express yourself to others. From when you have an idea for a concept or story, and finishing that while world building is a very satisfying achievement.
Andy Kumpon
When did you start writing?
In 1990, I began writing marketing and sales materials for the computer industry. I started college at age 40 which required a lot of writing. I found interest in writing short stories and this progressed to longer novellas. In 2014, my first book, non-fiction, was published (Carving Hope Out of Depression). In 2018, my second book (fiction) was released, with a third book being released in June of this year (Persuaded: The Story of Nicodemus). I’m currently writing in four different manuscripts.
What makes writing your passion?
A late-in-life discovery is that I love to write. Creative art is a characteristic trait that runs deep in my family. When comparing the oil and watercolor images my family produces, my stick figure drawings are sad comparisons. Proclaiming to be an author seems almost disingenuous, especially when I look back at the dismal grades achieved in English classes of high school. I'm certain my teachers would find this news rather earth shattering. However, writing opens channels of creativity, one never thought imaginable.
David Harder
When did you start writing?
I started writing when I was in elementary school. I used to love writing stories and wanted to write I book when I grew up. I didn't write much when I entered my teen years and eventually stopped writing once I reached adulthood. However, that changed in late 2013 when I was inspired to write a reincarnation romance.
Laura Simmons
When did you start writing?
I started writing at a fairly young age. I have several memories that give a timeline of my early writing efforts. One is when I was in the fourth grade. The teacher had us write a short story. I recall she was impressed with mine and had me go to the front of the class and read it aloud.
The second memory is a story I wrote around the age of ten or maybe eleven. I don’t recall this story as well as the other, but my mother says she still has it and tells me from time to time how good it is. I suspect much of that is just a mother talking. But those are two instances that give an indication of my age and first attempts at writing something of substance.
Oliver Phipps
When did you start writing?
I have been writing in some form or fashion since I was about ten years old. I have always written poetry and short stories just for my own creativity. However, I started writing professionally as an author back in 2017.
Sean Michael Paquet
When did you start writing?
I have always enjoyed writing but I never saw myself as an author. Several people asked me if I planned on writing a book so eventually, I decided to. So, I officially became an author in May of 2019.
Tori Shaw
What makes writing your passion?
Once I started writing, ideas kept popping into my head. So many became unfinished stories sitting on the computer or in a notebook because I would get another idea. My passion is to tell all of my unfinished stories.
Michael Kelso
When did you start writing?
Early in high school, I discovered my ability to write well. I wasn’t the best student, but boy, when there was an essay question on a test, I aced it every time whether I knew the correct answer or not. So, I began writing stories, then novels...
Gail Meath
When did you start writing?
I started writing stories when I was a child. In elementary school, I liked to write books about traveling kitties who were always getting into mischief. My principal at the time loved them and encouraged me to keep writing.
What makes writing your passion?
Even when I get down about my writing, I can't bring myself to quit. There are stories inside of me that need to get out.
Kayla Krantz
When did you start writing?
I started writing as a teenager. I wrote short stories about my friends and our celebrity crush.
What makes writing your passion?
I have so many ideas constantly running through my mind, I have to get them on paper. I have notebooks full of ideas and more come to me every day. If I don’t write I feel like I’m wasting time. I write even while watching TV. Writing is second nature to me.
Shannon Simpson
When did you start writing?
At the age of ten I wrote my first love story.
What makes writing your passion?
Bringing the characters to life and sharing their stories.
Sherri Lupton Hollister
Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?
Yes. Several years after a personal disaster. I initially wanted to write about it as a way of finding peace, but eventually, I rather let my story unfold as one of the characters.
David Harvey
When did you start writing?
I guess I started in second grade. My teacher, Mrs. Norslein, had stacks and stacks of brown newsprint with light blue letter guides available for us to practice our cursive letters. After I mastered cursive writing, I started using that newsprint to tell stories, and I guess I never stopped.
I started getting serious about writing while I was in college, and my first book came out in 2007.
Sean Patrick Little
When did you start writing?
Unofficially when I was 11. I thought my Dungeons and Dragons character needed an epic story of his own. Never got through that one.
Later, about 3-4 years ago, I was going through some personal crises and needed to write to give myself a distraction and purpose. Haven't stopped since.
Jeff Schanz
When did you start writing?
I never even thought about writing until I was in my early 20's. It was not something I enjoyed in school, preferring to be outside playing sports.
That all changed when I started reading romance novels. I was hooked for life. I started envisioning stories in my head, characters I would love to read about. The sexy Alpha male. The kickass females, until one day I sat down and put it all on paper. (no computers back then LOL) I wrote a full-length romantic suspense and it completely sucked. The premise of the story was solid, but my writing skill wasn't.
I shoved it in a closet with disgust and walked away for years. It was only five years ago I had the time to sit down once more and type out the story clamoring in my brain, and the Storm Series was created!
What advice would you give to new authors?
I absolutely love creating my characters. To me, they are living, breathing beings in my head with solid, detailed lives. Their wants, desires, and needs speak to me and I have no choice but to help them come alive on paper so they will shut the hell up. LOL
A.R. Vagnetti
When did you start writing?
October 31st, 2018, sometime in the afternoon, at the ripe old age of 53.
How do you get over the “writer’s block”?
I try to write 1000 words per day.
If I can't manage 1000, I'll write 100.
If I can't manage 100, I'll write a sentence.
Sam Anthony
When did you start writing?
I was part of a metaphysical group that was ending and a friend, James Johnson, said he wanted to write. With no thought I answered, “If you write, I’ll write.” Within days we started a joint cookbook. It is based on women from history and myth (Dangerous Dishes and the Food they Inspire). It was such a wonderful experience that we both have continued writing and have several books each.
What makes writing your passion?
I have no idea. It isn’t anything I thought about doing, but now I’m hooked. Since I’ve retired, I work on it daily and have no plans of ever stopping.
Toni Kief
When did you start writing?
In High School … a few years back.
What makes writing your passion?
I love movies and think of my stories like movies playing in my mind.
Christopher Hudson
When did you start writing?
I have always written since I was in the third grade. I loved writing scary stories and my third-grade teacher, Mr. Alogna, joked I was the next Stephen King. I had no idea who King was until later in high school when I watched the movie, Carrie and was freaked out by it. Decades past and my life was consumed with traditional happenings (college, study abroad, working multiple jobs to pay bills, dating, engagement, marriage, children) before I had some time to myself to write––creating my first completed novel by 2015 and getting it published that same year! And it’s not a scary story . . . but there is a scene that has readers on the edge of their seat according to a few Amazon reviews. ;)
What makes writing your passion?
I love reading and writing and it’s literally my full-time job (school teacher) as well as my hobby.
Sarah Patt
When did you start writing?
I started writing song lyrics when I was around fifteen, while learning to play the guitar. I wanted to write songs and lyrics like my idols, the Seattle-based band Alice In Chains, which, to this day, are still my favorite band.
What makes writing your passion?
The infinite possibilities of language and the ability to imagine different scenarios in order to convey ideas and perspectives.
António Bizarro
What makes writing your passion?
The urge to write comes spontaneously. Did not bother to question it further.
V.S.Sury
When did you start writing?
When I was very young, around 11 or 12 years old. I started by writing in notebooks, using them first as diaries, and then later creating fictional characters.
Anna D. Jenkins
When did you start writing?
I started writing poetry back in my teenage years, but began writing serious prose 3 years ago. I wrote a short story based on an idea I had about time, and went from there.
Gareth Howells
When did you start writing?
I've been a scribbler all my life, but only began creating novels when I retired in 2014. My first attempts were rather mediocre: six novels that I self-published quickly taken up by friends and family then petered out. Since completing a creative writing module with the Open University in 2019 I've re-invented myself as an author. Hence, I consider 'To Run Before the Sea' my first quality work.
Michael Rothery
When did you start writing?
I published my first (of 13 books), while I finished my doctorate as I was writing my dissertation and leading a school as an assistant principal. I then went on to write academic books while I had my decade of being a tenured professor. I met a woman who transformed my life when I did my first inspirational book and the rest is history! Now, Ball Gowns to Yoga Pants is my fur book geared for inspiring entrepreneurs!
Dr. Shellie Hipsky
When did you start writing?
I've always received good grades in literature class in school but I never thought I'd become an author until 2014 :) For 7 years, I've worked hard on my book series that came to me in a dream. I know that sounds like an author's cliche answer, but it's true!
YzaDora
When did you start writing?
My fiction writing career began in 2017
What makes writing your passion?
The unbridled creativity
Neil Perry Gordon
When did you start writing?
Eric Howlett - I began writing quite some time ago. I love movies and books of all genres, and that fueled my interest to come up with my own stories.
Nikki Dixon - I began writing when I was around 10yrs old. I loved writing short stories, and I...attempted to write poems. They weren't very well written, but I tried!
What makes writing your passion?
Writing has always been a passion for both Eric and Nikki. Their passion to share stories and use their imaginations has really grown since they started working together.
Howlett and Dixon
When did you start writing?
I started by imagining. I was an avid child reader and movie-watcher, particularly of historical fiction. In my head I would write elaborate parts into each story for a little girl, my age. I called it daydreaming. I think I finally put pen to paper in high school.
What makes writing your passion?
We choose how we best relate to and make sense of the world (or it chooses us). Mine has always been the written word.
Rita Dragonette
When did you start writing?
I've been writing on and off since I was a teenager to cope with my mental illness struggles. I began writing this novel in 2016.
What makes writing your passion?
Writing is the way I express myself and my ideals to others best. It's also how I implement my activism and show my support for things like LGBTQ issues and gender equality.
R.A. Schwartz
When did you start writing?
I've been writing since I was 8 or 9. Most of that was just silliness. Serious writing didn't begin until I was around 19 years old. I've been writing almost daily since then.
What makes writing your passion?
It is cathartic. I write to escape the world, to do the things that I cannot actually do, to explore places I can't get to. I live through my work and pour pieces of myself into it.
Michelle Schad
When did you start writing?
I've been writing my whole life, historically professionally in business, non-fiction, training manuals and advertising. I've written novels for the last ten years and published sixteen so far. Gold Lust Conspiracy is an award-winning historical romance. I've co-published two middle-grade children's mysteries with Harley Nelson. They are Freckle Face & Blondie and The Thinking Tree. The remainder are contemporary romantic mysteries set in Kentucky. God Father's Day, Madam Mom, 2nd Chance Ranch and Hart's Girls are stand alone mysteries and The Bloodline Series consists of ten small-town mysteries so far, from Parsley, Sage, Rose Mary & Wine to The Bourbon Trail.
What makes writing your passion?
It's in my blood. I've enjoyed books since I was four and learned to read at my grandfather's side. I consume them like air and dream of characters and scenes as I drift off to sleep nights. A day isn't complete without hours spent at my computer putting them on pages.
Lynda Rees
When did you start writing?
I started writing after I graduated from college. I was working part time while I waited to go out of duty, so I had some time on my hands. I read like crazy but I couldn't seem to find the book that I needed. So I wrote it!
What makes writing your passion?
I love the process of creation. I love creating something completely new and uniquely my own. When I start a story, I'm always writing for myself. .....
Hayley Reese Chow
When did you start writing?
As a twelve-year-old, I would write these awful Dean Koontz ripoff stories that went nowhere. When I got to high school I got semi-serious and had my first short story published in a zine (Google it, young people) but wasted many years until my forties, when I got serious again and decided to do this for a living.
What advice would you give to new authors?
I tell people the honest truth: I hated retail management, which I did for many years. Absolutely hated every second of it. I write out of fear I'll have to go back to that... I tell new authors to remember the things you don't want to do, like a dead-end job, and get as far away from it due to your writing skills. Oh, and read a lot.
Armand Rosamilia
When did you start writing?
I have been writing for most of my life, but never published. So now I have a collection of unused stories and notes that I still use in my work.
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
Bit of excitement combined with a bit of relief. And throw in a bit of fear with that wondering how it was going to be received.
Mark Castleberry
When did you start writing?
I started writing back in 2017 when I came home from a night shift and realized there was nothing for children educating upon the ambulance service.
What makes writing your passion?
I am very passionate to share my many frontline ambulance experiences as chaplain to children so that they can be educated upon the works of the ambulance service, such as the fireman Sam series. I am driven to succeed after being told as a teenager that I would never be a success. I have also just written episode three which is due out in January 2020 based upon bullying and my passion behind this next episode is in loving memory of my Dad who passed away in August 2019.
Tim Parsons
When did you start writing?
I wrote and published my first novel, McKenzie Files back in 2009.
What makes writing your passion?
It’s something that I’ve always been good at. Plus, I have a very wild imagination for a lot of ideas.
Barry K. Nelson
When did you start writing?
I started writing in school at the age of 12. By the time I was 18, I had written my first complete manuscript.
What makes writing your passion?
I have a vivid imagination and love to express my thoughts in writing. The thing I like about writing the most is creating worlds that don’t exist and worlds that do but not the way we know it.
Tanishq Sheikh