Writing

Question: JK Rowling said she could not have written the first Harry Potter book without the public benefits she received from the British government to support herself and her daughter.  She was a decade older than you when her first book was published. How do you manage to write while supporting yourself? 

Answer: I write every day, it’s my recharge time. I also work full time. It is a challenge to have such a demanding passion, while tackling the realities of life, but with the help of family and friends I make it work. I’m not a believer in inspiration. There’s no Michelangelo moment for me. I write because I need to write. I've been at it since my teens. It’s a meditation I couldn't live without.

Music

Question: Music shows up a lot in Geist. Is music a big part of your life?

Answer: Definitely. You can tell a lot about a person by the kind of music they listen to. I always write with music. I primarily listen to soundtracks from films and video games that inspire me. I design playlists for my different characters. The recurring motif in Geist Prelude is the music of the spheres and how it relates to the different characters. With Charles you have a 70’s ‘Green Tambourine’ vibe. Jefferson Airplane, Aerosmith, stuff like that. With Beatrice it’s 80’s and 90’s Goth Music, Rob Zombie, Sisters of Mercy. Victor, being very cerebral, likes classical music, Chopin, Litz. I don’t imagine Thaddeus listening to music much at all, outside of Gregorian Chants and maybe a bit of Rammstein. 

Reading

Question: When you do public readings, what part of your story do you most enjoy sharing with your audience?

Answer: The classroom sequence at the end of chapter one. People want something that gets to the point of the overall work, without being too long. It’s like flash fiction, or doing a stand-up routine. The audience is there to be entertained.