Best of Family & Relationships
Best of Family & Relationships
"So Many Books, So Little Time!"
Open for Submissions
Exclusive Interview with
David R Leng
When did you start writing?
I wrote my first short story when in elementary school, and have never stopped. I have dones short stories since then, but I do have to split my writing between fiction and my career. Being able to write has also led me to write several best-selling business books based what i do, which has also led me to speak all over the USA and Canada for employer groups and associations.
What makes writing your passion?
I enjoy it and find it rather relaxing. I also tend to think of ideas when away from the computer, be it hiking, biking, or boating that makes its way into my books and stories.
How long have you been writing?
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
Pretty gratifying. I did not tackle a book until fall of 2013 when I attended a conference and the speaker was there because he wrote a book. He was entertaining and educational, but that is when I realize I could pass on what I know through a book.
What’s the story behind your choice of characters?
After coming up with the basic idea for the story, I sort of fleshed out who I might need involved in the story. The characters were then based on several close friends.
What annoys you the most in pursuing a writing career?
Marketing my books. You can control what you put in your book, and what it looks like. To some extent, marketing a book is something that is not something you can fully control, and it takes as much time as writing it does.
Second is Editing. Trying to take a much larger draft and refining it so that you remove what is not absolutely not needed, things that do not add to the story or add to the reader's enjoyment took me longer that writing the draft. I cannot remember where and when I heard this comment, but it stuck with me: "An author does not get paid by the word on the page but by what they remove from the page."
How do you get over the “writer’s block”?
Getting away from the computer, and taking a hike or a bicycle ride.
We all know the writer’s path is never easy, what makes you keep going? What advice would you give to new authors?
It needs to be a habit. I cannot stop till I complete something, so that helps, but setting aside an hour or two every morning before my busy day takes me away is best.
If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?
Start writing books earlier. I learn something each time a write one, so I add things to my proverbial checklist that needs to be done to either make the process simpler, or to market my books.
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with the bad ones?
I do. You can learn from any review, but the ones that give a criticism can help you in the future. However, I also know I cannot make everyone happy.
What is the feeling when you get a good review?
It is pretty satisfying. When you put something out there, you know you like it, but you may always wonder how will others react to it. So a good review is sort of the final confirmation that your efforts were worth it.
Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?
Yes, my first novel is based on something that happened during the French & Indian War/Seven Years War.
Which of your characters you can compare yourself with? Did you base that character on you?
I have not based any of my fiction writing upon myself.
What do you think, the book cover is as important as the story?
It certainly needs to grab the prospective reader's attention in a split second. I do not think that they will read the description of it otherwise.
Do you connect with your readers? Do you mind having a chat with them or you prefer to express yourself through your writing?
How do you feel when people appreciate your work or recognize you in public?
Who is your favorite author? Why?
Tolkien. It is the vast details of his stories that he created and the feelings you experience as you read them that I love. But from a thriller or mystery standpoint, I like Clive Cussler, Dan Brown, Agatha Christie, and James Patterson.
What’s the dream? Whom would you like to be as big as?
Would you rewrite any of your books? Why?
If you could switch places with any author – who would that be?
What would you say to the “trolls” on the internet? We all know them – people who like to write awful reviews to books they’ve never read or didn’t like that much, just to annoy the author.
What would you say to your readers?
Share a bit about yourself – where do you live, are you married, do you have kids?
I split my time between Southwestern Pennsylvania and the mountains of Western Maryland with my wife and children.
What is your day job if you have one?
I am the Chief Risk Officer for Duncan Financial Group. I not only oversee our growing operations, but also our Insurance and Risk Management division that helps clients to address the issues and challenges they face, design their insurance programs, and buy their insurance for them.
What are your hobbies? What do you do in your free time?
Woodworking, hiking, biking, boating, and skiing. I also help out the local high school by helping them to design and build sets for their spring musicals.
Did you have a happy childhood?
Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?
Do you have unpublished books? What are they about?
Yes/No. I have several rough outlines for books, both fiction and non-fiction. I usually continue to build those until such time as I feel like there is enough that someone would want to read about the story or subject.
What do you think should be improved in the education of our children? What do we lack?
If you were allowed 3 wishes – what would they be?
What is your favorite music?
Classic Rock: The Who, Rolling Stones, Queen, The Doors, Led Zeppelin
Share a secret with us 🙂
I am terrible at typing, so I use Dragon for voice-to-text. "I've been doing the voice-to-text for so long comma that I am able to speak with punctuation comma like it is a second language period. New paragraph…"