Welcome to DivineCaroline, Mr. DeBrie. Would you mind telling us a bit about yourself?
Thanks for the invite ... I’ll call it on myself by describing the last twenty-four hours. I worked overnight on a project, from around ten last night to seven a.m. I played Call of Duty on XBox Live for an hour, which usually brings out the worst in me, then had pasta for breakfast/dinner. Slept until three in the afternoon, with the cat under my ribs. Maintained the online side of things while watching the NFL until sunset. I studied Italian over Memphis-style barbecue, chicken, collards, cornbread. A workout, another meal, another nap ... here we are. It is almost midnight.
You have written the novel Shakespeare Ashes. Would you tell us about the book?
The story is about some of the children that followed Generation X. I follow four of them as they leave college behind. New challenges come at them, as they tend to in fiction and in life. I got into their thoughts, and recorded what they said and felt. So writing it in first person seemed natural, though I’d never tried it before.
What inspired the title for your book?
It’s homage to Shakespeare and his work. Between him and the Bible, you pretty much have every conceivable story, every imaginable relationship. Everything writers do is a twist on what’s already written ... At the same time, I wanted to tweak that legacy a little. Shakespeare is on the top shelf, but people forget that as beautiful as his language is, he liked to dash his stories with the profane and the filthy. He acknowledged what some would call our forgettable traits.
Relationships center heavily in your book. Did you originally intend to write your book like that?
I only write the story I see. Whatever it becomes, is what it is. Relationships of some kind figure in anything I write. Mostly because I’m writing about people, and people tend to need other people. Even some of the unsociable people I’ve met still want to be near other humans.
What would you like people to take away from reading your book?
Judy Blume and Bukowski are two of my favorite writers, and I still laugh out loud at their stuff. Other writers have made me pause in my reading, because something they wrote was so powerful and honest. It might be a single line in an entire book, but it gets to you. I want to affect people that way.
What are you working on now?
Three books are on the front burner: A mystery, a modern fantasy, and something I can’t quite describe yet.
Where can people find you on the internet?
Find me on Facebook. I friend just about everyone. Or visit www.washyourhandsproductions.com.
Is there anything you would like to add?
No, thanks. I try not to overstay my welcome.
Thank you so much for your time. I wish you the best of success.
Stay well.
