When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?
As I said, I’ve written since childhood and have been a non-fiction writer my whole adult life. I discovered I wanted to be a novelist after I left a long-time job as promotion manager for a large chain of shopping guides. I had saved a little newspaper article about a dust devil (a miniature tornado) that destroyed an auto body shop and killed the owner. Since the incident happened in Maine, I was sure Stephen King would write a book about strange dust. But he didn’t. Suddenly, I had an idea, which became my novel, Dust.
How long does it take you to write a book?
It takes me about ten months to a year to complete a novel.
What is your work schedule like when you’re writing?
I try to write each morning, aiming to finish one scene of my book. That usually means I’m writing about 200–500 words. I know that doesn’t sound like much because most writers seem to aim for at least 1,000 words a day. But I like this slower pace, especially since I don’t have a deadline. Also, before I write a new scene, I review the previous day’s work—and I always find something that needs to be changed. Everything I write goes through numerous revisions.
What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
When I write a novel, I envision the action in terms of a play, positioning my characters on the stage (i.e. page), acting out their roles in the story. As a result, I mentally divide the action into scenes and acts (chapters). When all the characters have finished performing their parts, the curtain falls. The scenes, and then the chapter, ends.
Part 1│Part 2 │Part 3│ Part 4
