Beyond the Books: Interview with Author DCS

DCS is the author of Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening and Synarchy Book 2: The Ascension.  When not writing you can listen to her radio show, In The Mind of DCS every Saturday evening at 7pm CST on the Paranormal Soup Network.  Currently sucking up the creative energy of New Orleans, she hard at work at the next book in the Synarchy Series, and an upcoming webisode series called The Fallen.  Visit her website at www.themindofdcs.com to learn more.

Q: Welcome to Beyond the Books, DCS.  Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?

A: I am multi-published. That’s fun to say.

Q: What was the name of your very first book regardless of whether it was published or not and, if not published, why?

A: The very first full length novel that I wrote was called Charcot. It was about an ex FBI profiler that made a serial killer to see what could be learned from it. I never published it because I thought I could do better. I may come back to it one day.

Q: For your first published book, how many rejections did you go through before you either found a mainstream publisher, self-published it, or paid a vanity press to publish it?

A: I self-published it, so no rejection pile for me!

Q: When your first book was published, who published it and why did you choose them?

A: I started my own publishing company, SVT Publishing.

Q: How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?

A:  It was very surreal to hold my first published novel in my hands. There wasn’t a big celebration though, just a big smile on my face and then my brain started exploding with everything I needed to do next to tell the world about it.

Q: What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?

A: I’m pretty sure the first thing I did was put together a website for the book, and then wrote a few press releases.

Q: If you had to do it over again, would you have chosen another route to be published?

A: No. But I would have slowed down and learned more.

Q: Have you been published since then and how have you grown as an author?

A: I have, I’m on my second novel now, Synarchy Book 2: The Ascension. And I think I’ve grown by leaps and bounds. Not just with my writing, but also with learning about the business/marketing side of things.

Q: Looking back since the early days when you were trying to get published, what do you think you could have done differently to speed things up?  What kind of mistakes could you have avoided?

A: I don’t think I could have sped things up, more like slowed down a little. As authors we can be really, really excited to thrust our masterpieces out there, but especially if you’re self-published you really have to take the time to make sure your work is in the best condition it can possibly be.

Q: What has been the biggest accomplishment you have achieved since becoming published?

A: Just being published I think is an accomplishment. But I do have huge news on the horizon but I can’t share it with anyone just yet. Hopefully I’ll be able to let the cat out of the bag soon.

Q: If you could have chosen another profession, what would that profession be?

A: Something in relation to the business world. I like business.

Q: Would you give up being an author for that profession or have you combined the best of both worlds?

A: I’ve combined the best of both worlds. Writing is very creative, but it still is a business.

Q: How do you see yourself in ten years?

A: Busy! Writing more books, running an entertainment company, all kinds of things. I’m pretty ambitious.

Q: Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?

A: Learn everything, and then do it your way.

Insomnia and The Fine Art of Writing Murder Mysteries by James Hayman

Insomnia and The Fine Art of Writing Murder Mysteries

by James Hayman, author of THE CUTTING

Did you ever wonder what it takes to write a successful murder mystery? Or a series of murder mysteries or suspense thrillers featuring the likes of  Michael Connelly’s Harry Bosch, Tess Gerritsen’s Jane Rizzoli or Sara Paretsky’s V.I. Warshawski?  One answer is not sleeping. Ms. Paretsky once noted the secret to her success as a writer (or at least one secret) was the inability to sleep.  And the longer I ply this particular trade the more I think she’s right.

Every time I come to a point in one of my books where I can’t figure out what’s going to happen next, I find the best way to come up with an answer is by lying awake in the dark when I “should” be sleeping and obsessing about it.  I do this a lot. And it always seems to lead to something that works better than anything I thought of during my normal waking or working hours. When this happens, I know full well that if I just lie there and eventually fall sleep, I’ll have forgotten the idea by morning.

The secret to a writer’s success is the inability to sleep.

I know some writers keep a notebook and pencil by their beds for just such occasions. However, I happen to share a bed with a woman who gets grumpy when she’s woken by me turning on a light to write something at three in the morning. So I get out of bed, be it two or three AM or four AM, and trundle into my writing room where I wake up my sleeping laptop and write out the idea in some detail. I hate it but it works. It helped in the writing of The Cutting and it helped in the  writing of the second McCabe thriller, The Chill of Night, which St. Martin’s/Minotaur will be bringing out later this year.

Right now, I’m trying to work out the basics of the plot for my third McCabe thriller (as yet untitled).  In this book, McCabe’s daughter Casey has grown into a drop-dead gorgeous sixteen-year-old who boasts her mother’s good looks, her father’s stubborness and a brand new driver’s license.

In the new book, Casey falls for a really hot nineteen-year-old who’s definitely the wrong kind of guy.  And it gets her into trouble (No, not that kind of trouble) and, for the past week or so, I’ve been unable to figure out how to get her out of it.

A few nights ago at three-eighteen in the morning the answer came to me.  Thankful for this gift from the gods or the muses or whoever they are, I got up and went to work, beating most of the local farmers, fishermen and lobstermen to the grindstone by a good forty minutes.

James Hayman is the author of the thriller, The Cutting.  You can visit his website at www.jameshaymanthrillers.com.

Interview with Moonlight Falls’ Author Vincent Zandri

Moonlight Falls’ author, Vincent Zandri, is an award-winning novelist, essayist and freelance photojournalist. His novel As Catch Can (Delacorte) was touted in two pre-publication articles by Publishers Weekly and was called “Brilliant” upon its publication by The New York Post. The Boston Herald attributed it as “The most arresting first crime novel to break into print this season.” Other novels include Godchild (Bantam/Dell) and Permanence (NPI). Translated into several languages including Japanese and the Dutch, Zandri’s novels have also been sought out by numerous major movie producers, including Heyday Productions and DreamWorks. Presently he is the author of the blogs, Dangerous Dispatches and Embedded in Africa for Russia Today TV (RT). He also writes for other global publications, including Culture 11, Globalia and Globalspec. Zandri’s nonfiction has appeared in New York Newsday, Hudson Valley Magazine, Game and Fish Magazine and others, while his essays and short fiction have been featured in many journals including Fugue, Maryland Review and Orange Coast Magazine. He holds an M.F.A. in Writing from Vermont College and is a 2010 International Thriller Writer’s Awards panel judge. Zandri currently divides his time between New York and Europe. He is the drummer for the Albany-based punk band to Blisterz. You can visit his website at www.vincentzandri.com or his blog at http://vincentzandri.blogspot.com/.

Q: Welcome to Beyond the Books, Vincent.  Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?

Moonlight Falls is my 4^th published novel. I’ve written about twice that many. I’m also a fulltime photojournalist.

Q: What was the name of your very first book regardless of whether it was published or not and, if not published, why?

I actually forget most of the circumstances, because this is going back some 20 years. The novel bore the curious title of “The Life and Death of Mike Sullivan” or something horrific like that. It didn’t get published because it was really bad.

Q: For your first published book, how many rejections did you go through before you either found a mainstream publisher, self-published it, or paid a vanity press to publish it?

Not many rejections. My agent at the time, Jimmy Vines, sold it in two weeks. Several publishers tried to buy it and it went up for auction.

Q: How did the rejections make you feel and what did you do to overcome the blows?

No one likes rejection. I worked harder. And drank a lot of beer.

Q: When your first book was published, who published it and why did you choose them?

Delacorte. They chose me.

Q: How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?

I felt vindicated and of course, high as a kite. How did I celebrate? By engaging in a year long party! I don’t recall a whole lot from that period.

Q: What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?

Interviews for the local print and TV media. The general rule of thumb is, start in your hometown and branch out from there.

Q: If you had to do it over again, would you have chosen another route to be published?

No, traditional publishing is the only way I will go, be it small, indy, and/or commercial press. That’s why it’s been eight years between books. For now anyway, I believe that publishers and writers should be separate entities. There’s a reason why the system works like that. I’m not knocking self-published authors. I’ve actually blurbed quite a few of them, deservedly. But for me, the only way I would self-publish is if I’ve already achieved a major bestseller that’s been reviewed well, sold the movie right, etc.

Moonlight Falls by Vincent Zandri (click on cover to purchase at Amazon)

Q: Have you been published since then and how have you grown as an author?

I’ve grown up, I guess. I was terribly immature when As Catch Can was published. I didn’t quite know how to deal with the success and I went through a bit of a crack-up period. I partied too much, got divorced, got married again, got divorced again, made a whole bunch of bad decisions that need not be repeated here. In any case, being published taught me that I should never have given up being a journalist since there is never any guarantee that your next book is going to generate any real cash. So I’ve returned to serious journalism while writing fiction. Plus I’m not nearly the party animal I once was. ‘d be dead now if that was the case! What’s replaced all that is traveling, travel writing, exploration.

Q: Looking back since the early days when you were trying to get published, what do you think you could have done differently to speed things up?  What kind of mistakes could you have avoided?

Well, strange question…But if I had to answer truthfully and I will, I’d say, Don’t get married, don’t have kids, don’t buy a house, don’t buy a brand new car, don’t get into debt, don’t do anything that keeps you from having the freedom to write and travel. Full-time jobs get in the way! LOL! However, life gets in the way also, so who knows what the true answer to your question is.

Q: What has been the biggest accomplishment you have achieved since becoming published?

It isn’t PC, and sometimes it isn’t pretty, but I realize now that before all else, I’m a writer. I love my family and I provide for them, but they can’t compete with what lies beneath-the undying insatiable need to quiet my mind and get it out….I’ve moved through a drought period that would break most people…I had the rock star life…I had the locked in a room with nothing but blank paper and silent keys…I’ve had heartbreak, divorces, lost friendships, and more. But I’ve moved on through it all to where I am now…published with perspective…

Q: If you could have chosen another profession, what would that profession be?

Archeologist or Punk Rock Drummer!

Q: Would you give up being an author for that profession or have you combined the best of both worlds?

Yah, I have. You can check out my other word at http://www.myspace.com/theblisterz

However, no I would not give up being an author for being a Blister!

Q: How do you see yourself in ten years?

Rolling out of bed while it’s still dark, cool and quiet, making the coffee, and heading into my writing studio…In the South of France.

Q: Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?

Write and don’t let anyone or anything discourage you from succeeding.

Interview with thriller author James Hayman

Like the hero of The Cutting, James Hayman is a transplanted New Yorker. Born in Brooklyn and raised in Manhattan, he spent more than twenty years writing TV advertising for clients like The U.S. Army, Lincoln-Mercury and Procter & Gamble. He moved to Portland, Maine in 2001. Four years later he decided to scratch a lifelong itch to write fiction and began work on his first suspense thriller featuring homicide detective Mike McCabe. St. Martin’s/Minotaur bought rights to The Cutting and published it in July 2009. Hayman is currently at work on the second McCabe novel, due for release in July 2010 and tentatively titled The Chill of Night.

His website is www.jameshaymanthrillers.com

Blog is http://www.jameshaymanthrillers.com/blog/

Twitter:  http://twitter.com/jhhayman

Welcome to Beyond the Books, James.  Can we start out by telling us whether you are published for the first time or are you multi-published?

The Cutting is my first fiction and my commercially published book. I’ve written several non-fiction books under contract to clients that they published.

What was the name of your very first book regardless of whether it was published or not and, if not published, why?

The Cutting is my first book.

For your first published book, how many rejections did you go through before you either found a mainstream publisher, self-published it, or paid a vanity press to publish it?

I almost feel guilty answering this question knowing what a lot of writers go through. But I was incredibly lucky.

When I finished the first draft or The Cutting I sent a cover letter and my first eighty pages to exactly one agent, Meg Ruley, of the Jane Rotrosen Agency, who is  one of the top mystery/thriller agents in New York. Well, Meg must have had a light weekend because she read the eighty pages, loved them and emailed me Monday morning to ask if she could see the rest of the manuscript. I said she could.

After we came to an agreement, Meg showed it to, I think, seven publishers in New York. Five said no. Two made offers. We accepted the offer from St. Martin’s Press for a two-book deal for The Cutting and a second Michael McCabe thriller.

How did the rejections make you feel and what did you do to overcome the blows?

Three of the rejections came in first. That made me a little apprehensive but it wasn’t too bad because I knew The Cutting was going out to a lot more editors. The first offer (the one we didn’t take) came in about a week or so later and was pretty quickly followed by the one from St. Martin’s.

When your first book was published, who published it and why did you choose them?

See above.

How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?

Jumped up and down, yelled “Whoopie,” called or emailed just about everyone I know and then took my wife out to an expensive dinner.

What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?

I sent press releases to every newspaper in Maine. I threw a launch party for nearly two hundred guests.  The publicity guy at St. martin’s set up readings at six or seven bookstores around Maine. I was interviewed by a couple of bloggers who heard about the book and I got a five minute interview on a TV show called 207 on the NBC affiliate here in Portland.

If you had to do it over again, would you have chosen another route to be published?

No.

Have you been published since then and how have you grown as an author?

I’m almost finished writing McCabe #2 which we’re calling The Chill of Night. Everyone who’s read the manuscript so far ( that includes several readers I trust plus Meg and my editor at St. Martin’s, Charlie Spicer) thinks it’s a stronger book than the first.  That’s high praise because they all loved The Cutting. The phrase they most use is “The writing’s more assured.”

Looking back since the early days when you were trying to get published, what do you think you could have done differently to speed things up?  What kind of mistakes could you have avoided?

As I said earlier. I was incredibly lucky. The stars fell into perfect alignment. The angels smiled down from heaven. It all happened fast. So, I guess, the short answer is nothing.

What has been the biggest accomplishment you have achieved since becoming published?

Writing and nearly finishing a second novel in about a year while trying to promote the first.  I don’t think I’ve ever worked so har or so intensively in my life.

If you could have chosen another profession, what would that profession be?

Advertising was a lot of fun for me. I got to race around the world writing and producing big budget TV commercials for major clients. It was also great training for writing thrillers. It taught me to write “tight” (A thirty second TV commercial has to tell a whole story in a max of 65 words). It taught me how to write dialogue and to think cinematically.

However, if I had it to do over, I would have started writing fiction much sooner than I did. Decades sooner. I think I have a lot of books in me and because I’m not a kid I probably won’t get to write them all. But maybe I will. Elmore Leonard’s well into his eighties and he’s still turning them out.

Would you give up being an author for that profession or have you combined the best of both worlds?

I’ve combined the best of both worlds, sequentially if not simultaneously.

How do you see yourself in ten years?

Grayer. Maybe balder. Hopefully not fatter. Hopefully still writing fiction.  At some point in the near future I’d like to try a non-genre book. Literary fiction as they say, although I happen to think that’s a false distinction…a lot of the best genre writing is every bit as good as a lot of the best general fiction being published today.

Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?

Keep writing. Keep reading. Keep going to workshops and meeting as many agents and writers as you can. Networking helps. And keep dreaming.

I had a lot of luck early on, but if your books are any good, one of these days the luck will fall your way too.

Interview with Marvin L. Zimmerman, Author of THE OVUM FACTOR

Marvin L. Zimmerman is 58, father of one son, Eric, who is 7 and married for 20 years to Maisie.

For nearly 15 years now, Marvin has been Publisher & Editor of INMR Quarterly Review – a publication in the field of transmission and distribution of electrical energy, with 20,000 readers worldwide. He is also Chairman and organizer of the WORLD CONGRESS OF INSULATORS, ARRESTERS & BUSHINGS – a bi-annual technical conference and exhibition which takes place in selected cities throughout the world.

Marvin received his Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry and went on to complete his M.B.A in international business (1972). Before starting INMR, he owned a small consulting firm specializing in international marketing. During this time, he travelled extensively throughout the world, visiting over 50 countries on all continents. He was also for many years a teacher of International Business at two of Canada’s largest universities – McGill and Concordia.

Marvin’s parents are both Holocaust survivors who managed to flee Poland just before the arrival of the Nazis. He was born in Salzburg, Austria shortly after the war finished and emigrated to Montreal, Canada while still a child.

The Ovum Factor was written in Rio de Janeiro as well as the Amazon during the three-month period between October to December 2006. The images and experiences written into the plot of his novel are based on firsthand exposure to the jungles and rivers as well as visits to the Indians living there.

All his life, Marvin has been an ardent environmentalist and lover of the natural world. The plot of this novel is in many ways his reaction to the desperate situation faced by the planet as a result of humanity’s unrelenting focus on growth without constraint. He wrote The Ovum Factor to help remind readers that our future ultimately depends on protecting the natural world as its survival depends on us.

Welcome to Beyond the Books, Marvin. Can you tell us whether you are published for the first time or multi-published? Can you give us the title(s) of your book(s)?

The Ovum Factor (www.TheOvumFactor)  is my first published work but I am now finishing my second novel titled: The Last Noble Truth.

What was the name of your very first book regardless of whether it was published or not and, if not published, why?

The Ovum Factor has now been published by Synergy Books in Austin Texas.

For your first published book, how many rejections did you go through before you either found a mainstream publisher, self-published it, or paid a vanity press to publish it?

I sent off query letters to every single literary agent listed in US and Canada. A few actually were kind enough to write a personalized letter stating how fiction business has been on a downward trend and how they were not accepting any new client. The rest, were generic rejection notes.

I did not count the actual number of rejection, but there were quite a lot.

Small independent publishers are good alternatives. They still deal with first time authors, unlike the major players. It is truly unfortunate that the traditional publishing industry which is inundated with countless new works every year has reacted to the onslaught by confining almost all new authors and their works to the dustbin.

How did the rejections make you feel and what did you do to overcome the blows?

Rejection based on a careful review of the work is easier to take than rejection based on simply being perceived from the start as an untalented want-to-be who deserves no time. But, I was undaunted because I believe in my writing. Some who were rejected by this industry over the years went on to achieve great fame because their work was demanded by those who really count – the readers.

I have no time to waste feeling bitter or resentful. I’m focused only on my future success.

When your first book was published, who published it and why did you choose them?

As stated, my publisher is Synergy Books in Austin, Texas. I selected them because they have a top-flight reputation and worked with me from day one.

How did it make you feel to become published for the first time and how did you celebrate?

Being published is in itself no reason to celebrate. The celebration really begins when my books find their market – and I truly believe they will.

What was the first thing you did as for as promotion when you were published for the first time?

I’ve invested my time and resources in the internet for the time being. It’s far less judgmental than the traditional publishing industry and brings my message and ideas to a huge potential audience.

I’ve also invested in producing a trailer which has been posted on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/theovumfactor
as well as on The Ovum factor website, http://www.theovumfactor.com

If you had to do it over again, would you have chosen another route to be published?

Of course, I would vastly prefer to work with a traditional publisher, one of the big players, which has the marketing and distribution clout. I do the writing and leave the rest mostly to them.

Have you been published since then and how have you grown as an author?

My second novel, The Last Nobel Truth, is not yet finished. But I can say that, yes, I have grown a lot through the editing of my first novel. Like many new authors, I committed serious blunders in my original manuscript for The Ovum Factor. But, now, with the benefit of an experienced editor’s critique of that first book (which was then vastly improved in its final published revision) I know what makes for compelling reading in a work of fiction. These lessons have been applied to my second novel and for the others to come.

Looking back since the early days when you were trying to get published, what do you think you could have done differently to speed things up? What kind of mistakes could you have avoided?

I was in too great a rush to publish my original manuscript because the storyline seemed so unique and timely. But in doing so, I missed out on the opportunity to take a good book and make it far better. I should have been more patient and taken the time for proper outside editing.

What has been the biggest accomplishment you have achieved since becoming published?

Writing my second novel so quickly and seeing it as already on a par with my first published book, even before editing and final improvements.

If you could have chosen another profession, what would that profession be?

For me, there is only one profession which best suits my life experience and skills – being a writer.

Would you give up being an author for that profession or have you combined the best of both worlds?

This question does not really apply to me. My best world is my currently chosen world.

How do you see yourself in ten years?

I’m optimistic that in ten years, I will be a known author, not only here in North America but internationally. As John Lennon once wrote in his lyrics: “you may say I’m a dreamer – but I’m not the only one.”

Any final words for writers who dream of being published one day?

If you really have talent and people enjoy reading your work, never give up on yourself.

Marvin L. Zimmerman’s virtual book tour is brought to you by Pump Up Your Book Promotion.  If you would like to learn more about Marvin and his fantastic eco-thriller, The Ovum Factor, visit his official virtual book tour page here!

Leave a comment and one lucky reader will receive a FREE copy of his book!  The winner will be announced at www.virtualbooktoursforauthors.blogspot.com on Feb. 29!

Tags: Pump Up Your Book Promotion, virtual book tour, virtual blog tour, book tour, online book promotion, Marvin L. Zimmerman, The Ovum Factor