Hi! I have a grand-father who is a writer. He has written 3 books, Smilidon,Before Ann After, and Into The Mist, and is working on another now. I decided to ask him a couple of questions about his job as a writer, I thought I would share them with you. If you have any questions you have to ask him, please let me know and I’ll ask him.

1. What usually inspires you to write a book?
Are you asking what inspires me to write, or what inspires me to write a particular book? I’ll go with the first. I write for the same reason a painter paints or a dancer dances . . . because I can and I feel good about myself when I do it well. I like the feeling of finishing a story and knowing that someone will get enjoyment out of reading it. I like the craft of putting words together that elicit an emotion for the reader, whether it be anger, laughter, sadness, reflection . . . whatever. What inspires me is the creativity of the art of writing. We, humans, need to be creative. Writing is my way of filling that need.

3. How long does it usually take you to write a book?
That is a hard one because every story is different. On average, if I stick to my schedule, about 9 months for a medium length novel. The one I’m working on now I’ve been into for well over a year, and I’m only halfway into it. I’ve had a lot of interruptions, and it is a complex plot requiring lots of research.

4. How many times did you have to scratch things out?
Scratching things out is called “editing”, and it is continuous. In the process of answering these questions to you I’ve already scratched (edited) a dozen or more times. If you don’t edit your work, you’re probably not writing well. When I finished Smilodon, my story about the sabertooth cat, I gave it to Nana(my grandmother) to read. She is my first reader and she has a crazy red pen to point out mistakes in grammar as well as her opinions on my plotting. I then start at the beginning and edit the entire story, continuously scratching things out and rewriting. When done I send it on to my second trusted reader (a friend) who does the same thing that Nana did. Then I edit again. I will go though three or four rounds of this before deciding it is ready for publishing. Scratching out is a very necessary part of the process.

5. Do you ever start a book, and then stop and start a new one with a totally different subject?
Yes. I was 50,000 words into Before Anne After when I stopped to work on Angels in the Mist. After I finished Angels in the Mist, I went back and continued on Before Anne After.
Have you ever asked other authors for suggestions?
When I lived in Helena, Montana I started a fiction writers’ critique group. This group was made up of aspiring novel writers who would read each other’s work and then get together twice a month to discuss. I’ve attended writers’ workshops and conferences to learn from successful writers about the craft of writing and publishing. Writers continuously learn from each other. Now I follow a dozen blogs on the art of writing and interact with those.

6. How do you develop a name for a book?
I think titling is different for every author. The novel I’m currently working on is called Annie. This is my working title. I don’t know yet what the final title will be, though if an idea pops up I will make a note. Before Anne After didn’t get its name until my first reader finished it. She gave me the title. In the publishing industry it isn’t unusual for the publisher to change the title to something they feel is more marketable, possibly to the displeasure of the author.

7. How many hours a day would you work on a book you were writing?
When I’m on schedule I’d be writing 1-2 hours a day, Monday through Friday, and 3-4 hours each Saturday and Sunday.

8. About how many copies of a certain book did/do you sell?
A few hundred is all, but the reasons are a subject all by itself.

9. Did you write your books on paper, or on the computer?
I used to write on blank, white copier paper in a three ring notebook. Every chapter or so I’d key it into my computer, print it out and then edit that (do my scratch outs). Then I got my first laptop and started doing it all on the computer. I can’t imagine writing an entire novel on paper now.

Thanks Papa!!!!

Posted by Kait in Family