Exclusive Interview with
Rush Leaming
When did you start writing?
At age 5! As soon as I could put sentences together. I wrote two stories: one about a boy exploring planets; another about a cat that orders a robot version of himself to do all his chores. Great stuff!
What makes writing your passion?
It's always been there. Can't really explain it. I have to do it or go even crazier than I already am.
How long have you been writing?
What was the feeling when you published your first book?
Excitement and fear. It's like dropping your pants in public.
What’s the story behind your choice of characters?
What annoys you the most in pursuing a writing career?
Getting noticed and the snobbery against self-published writers. We have festivals celebrating do-it-yourself musicians and filmmakers, but god forbid the publishing establishment comes across a self-pub writer. It's like we are lepers.
How do you get over the “writer’s block”?
I only write when I have something to say. I'm a binge writer. I often go years in between projects.
We all know the writer’s path is never easy, what makes you keep going? What advice would you give to new authors?
If you could go back in time and talk to your younger self, what would you say?
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with the bad ones?
I read the first wave, and once I find one person that truly "gets it", that's all I need. Don't read the rest. I'm very thin-skinned and should probably not be involved in the creative arts!
What is the feeling when you get a good review?
Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?
All of them are 93% true.
Which of your characters you can compare yourself with? Did you base that character on you?
What do you think, the book cover is as important as the story?
No.
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?
What’s the dream? Whom would you like to be as big as?
I always wanted to be the love child of Charles Bukowski, George Orwell, and Ernest Hemingway, if that was scientifically possible.
Would you rewrite any of your books? Why?
Once I set my stories free into the world, I never reread them, because you always find 1000 things you don't like. It has to end at some point and you just have to say: "here it is, warts and all."
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.
Done with social media.
What would you say to your readers?
Share a bit about yourself – where do you live, are you married, do you have kids?
What is your day job if you have one?
What are your hobbies? What do you do in your free time?
Did you have a happy childhood?
No. Did any writer, ever?
Is there a particular experience that made you start writing?
Do you have unpublished books? What are they about?
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?
1. Time travel.
2. Regain my 25-year-old body.
3. World peace
What is your favorite music?
My deserted island albums:
Heyday - The Church
Kind of Blue - Miles Davis
Automatic for the People - REM
The Miseducation of... - Lauryn Hill
Henry V- movie soundtrack
Share a secret with us 🙂
I was the star of a number-one country music video in the 1990's!