Shelly Frome is a Professor Emeritus of dramatic arts at the University of Connecticut. A former professional actor and theater director, his writing credits include a number of national and international articles on acting and theater, profiles of artists and notable figures in the arts, books on theater and film and mystery novels.
His books include The Art and Craft of Screenwriting, Tinseltown Riff, Lilac Moon, The Actors Studio, Sun Dance for Andy Horn, Playwriting: A Complete Guide to Creating Theater and his most recent, The Twinning Murders.
Q: Welcome to Beyond the Books, Shelly. Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?
I am multi-published.
Q: When you were published for the first time, which route did you go – mainstream, small press, vanity published or self-published and why or how did you choose this route?
Mainstream because I was a university professor and my expertise was in theater.
Q: How long did it take you to get published once you signed the contract?
One year.
Q: How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?
I felt validated and don’t recall exactly how I celebrated aside from the joy my wife and I felt.
Q: What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?
Make certain my book was covered in the local papers and on radio.
Q: Since you’ve been published, how have you grown as a writer and now a published author?
I make certain my work gets deeper and more rewarding as I go along and my craft keeps improving.
Q: What has surprised or amazed you about the publishing industry as a whole?
How loopy the whole industry is in terms of fiction and how many scams are lying in wait.
Q: What is the most rewarding thing about being a published author?
The fact that what you have to express is meaningful to publishers and readers alike.
Q: Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?
You have to take into account the whole world of publishing, what’s being published, the changing market and the relationship between what you think you’re doing and how actually viable it is commercially or within a niche that exists even if its print on demand online.
Beyond the Books 