Lily:
Thank you so much for agreeing to this
interview Scott. We’ve really enjoyed reading Revenants – The Odyssey Home.
First, we’d like to get to know you and your writing process before we dive
into the book and the story behind it. Do you have any strange writing habits
(like standing on your head or writing in the shower)?
Thank you so much. Music to this writer’s ear
to know I have touched another heart. My one strange writing habit is that I
spend the first five minutes of my writing day warming up by copying from
another writer I greatly admire. I start at the beginning of the book and write
out all the way to the end, which allows me to see how they work the magic they
do. Can easily take me two years to get through an entire book but by the end I
can see how they do what they do. Right now I am copying out Cormac McCarthy’s The
Road. What I admire about McCarthy is his ability to write with the
sparseness of Hemingway and at the same time the vividness of Faulkner.
Seventeen more pages to go.
My other strange writing habit is that when I write, I
listen to classical music, particularly sacred choral music from the
Renaissance and Baroque periods. [editor’s note: you can check out some of that music here]
listen to classical music, particularly sacred choral music from the
Renaissance and Baroque periods. [editor’s note: you can check out some of that music here]
Lily:
I’m
definitely going to have to check out that book! I actually love reading to
compare and contrast the different authors and their styles. I find it
fascinating how even in the same genre you can find such a wide range. I
absolutely love listening to classical and the old choral music, I think it’s
great that it helps you write. Tell us, do you like to plan things out or go by
the seat of your pants?
I’m
definitely going to have to check out that book! I actually love reading to
compare and contrast the different authors and their styles. I find it
fascinating how even in the same genre you can find such a wide range. I
absolutely love listening to classical and the old choral music, I think it’s
great that it helps you write. Tell us, do you like to plan things out or go by
the seat of your pants?
Scott:
Sometimes I just go for broke and write until
I dead end and then go back to plan but usually I plan from the start because I
only have the most basic idea of what my story is about in the beginning. I use
a number of plotting devices before I actually begin writing but my most
helpful is writing the Story Line in a problem/solution format. I start at the
beginning with a problem in need of a solution followed by an apparent
solution that leads to another problem that leads to another apparent solution
that leads to another problem and so on to the end. I find it a great tool for
writing a compelling drama and also to avoid writing myself into a corner that
took me six months to get into.
Sometimes I just go for broke and write until
I dead end and then go back to plan but usually I plan from the start because I
only have the most basic idea of what my story is about in the beginning. I use
a number of plotting devices before I actually begin writing but my most
helpful is writing the Story Line in a problem/solution format. I start at the
beginning with a problem in need of a solution followed by an apparent
solution that leads to another problem that leads to another apparent solution
that leads to another problem and so on to the end. I find it a great tool for
writing a compelling drama and also to avoid writing myself into a corner that
took me six months to get into.
Lily:
That’s a great idea. With anything you
definitely don’t want to work yourself into a corner after putting in so much
time! What’s your least favorite part of the publishing /writing process?
That’s a great idea. With anything you
definitely don’t want to work yourself into a corner after putting in so much
time! What’s your least favorite part of the publishing /writing process?
Scott:
Marketing. It is just plain tough to get the
word out with so many great writers out there with great books. Book bloggers
are a Godsend to me.
Marketing. It is just plain tough to get the
word out with so many great writers out there with great books. Book bloggers
are a Godsend to me.
Lily:
I understand that – I get overwhelmed just
trying to find new books, so getting referrals through my blog, friends,
family, and other sites is a big help. Since marketing isn’t your secret
talent, do you have any that you’d like to share?
I understand that – I get overwhelmed just
trying to find new books, so getting referrals through my blog, friends,
family, and other sites is a big help. Since marketing isn’t your secret
talent, do you have any that you’d like to share?
Scott:
I am really good at annoying blog writers but
that aside I’m really a pretty boring guy. I work, I write, I read (not as much
as I would like), I still run some, and that’s pretty much my life. Oh yeah,
and I annoy blog writers.
I am really good at annoying blog writers but
that aside I’m really a pretty boring guy. I work, I write, I read (not as much
as I would like), I still run some, and that’s pretty much my life. Oh yeah,
and I annoy blog writers.
Lily:
Hehe I haven’t found you annoying at all so it
must be all the other blog writers you’re out there annoying. Let’s turn back
the clock. When and why did you begin writing?
Hehe I haven’t found you annoying at all so it
must be all the other blog writers you’re out there annoying. Let’s turn back
the clock. When and why did you begin writing?
Scott:
I knew I wanted to be a writer when I read
Scott Fitzgerald’s Winter Dreams in my first fiction class in college.
Fitzgerald’s prose is so seductive to young men in their early twenties.
Trouble is I was one of those banal twenty-year olds who really didn’t have all
that much to write about. It wasn’t until I defended my first murder case that
I felt I had something worth saying, and I wrote my first novel, In Deepest
Consequences, which I think remains available as an e-book. Still it took me fifteen years to figure out
how to tell the story. I’m not the
fastest plotter either.
I knew I wanted to be a writer when I read
Scott Fitzgerald’s Winter Dreams in my first fiction class in college.
Fitzgerald’s prose is so seductive to young men in their early twenties.
Trouble is I was one of those banal twenty-year olds who really didn’t have all
that much to write about. It wasn’t until I defended my first murder case that
I felt I had something worth saying, and I wrote my first novel, In Deepest
Consequences, which I think remains available as an e-book. Still it took me fifteen years to figure out
how to tell the story. I’m not the
fastest plotter either.
Lily:
Sometimes
the best things in life take time. Like scotch. Are you working on anything
new?
Sometimes
the best things in life take time. Like scotch. Are you working on anything
new?
Scott: The Song of Deborah: Before a grief-stricken bounty hunter
risks the wrath of the syndicate hiring him to track down their fifteen-year
old runaway, he must come to grips with his culpability in the suicide of his
teenage daughter. Will finish up revisions this weekend and send out for
editing.
risks the wrath of the syndicate hiring him to track down their fifteen-year
old runaway, he must come to grips with his culpability in the suicide of his
teenage daughter. Will finish up revisions this weekend and send out for
editing.
Lily:
Sounds
like it’s going to be a page turner. I hope you’ll let us know when it’s
available! If you could send a letter back in time to when you first started
writing ever, what advice would you give yourself?
Sounds
like it’s going to be a page turner. I hope you’ll let us know when it’s
available! If you could send a letter back in time to when you first started
writing ever, what advice would you give yourself?
Scott:
You have probably heard of the ten-thousand-hour
rule. To be proficient at anything – be it writing, the piano, or golf – you
have to work at it for 10,000 hours. I would have told myself to start earlier
and stop waiting for inspiration to slap me on the side of my thick skull.
You have probably heard of the ten-thousand-hour
rule. To be proficient at anything – be it writing, the piano, or golf – you
have to work at it for 10,000 hours. I would have told myself to start earlier
and stop waiting for inspiration to slap me on the side of my thick skull.
Lily:
I
have heard that. What’s the saying…jack of all trades, master of none? Although
if the 10,000 hour rule is true I must be a master at reading! Sitting down to
write, do you prefer to use a typewriter, computer, pen and paper, or dictate into
a tape recorder?
I
have heard that. What’s the saying…jack of all trades, master of none? Although
if the 10,000 hour rule is true I must be a master at reading! Sitting down to
write, do you prefer to use a typewriter, computer, pen and paper, or dictate into
a tape recorder?
Scott:
I find I am more creative if I write the first
draft longhand with a Waterman fountain pen. Then I revise with a fine-point
pen until the draft is barely legible and then I type it into the computer,
which for some reason will give me new insights into my story that I did not
see when it was it has still handwritten.
I find I am more creative if I write the first
draft longhand with a Waterman fountain pen. Then I revise with a fine-point
pen until the draft is barely legible and then I type it into the computer,
which for some reason will give me new insights into my story that I did not
see when it was it has still handwritten.
Lily:
I love that you have a favorite pen and start
off writing everything out on paper. Everything I’ve ever written always
started the same way. It’s funny how when you transcribe from paper to computer
you find things you missed before. Ok, lets switch gears and learn more about
the man behind the story. If you could only eat three foods and drink three
things for the next month, what would they be?
I love that you have a favorite pen and start
off writing everything out on paper. Everything I’ve ever written always
started the same way. It’s funny how when you transcribe from paper to computer
you find things you missed before. Ok, lets switch gears and learn more about
the man behind the story. If you could only eat three foods and drink three
things for the next month, what would they be?
Scott:
I am not much of a foodie. So long as it’s
nutritious and easy, I’m a happy guy. So my three foods would be broccoli,
oatmeal, and Greek yogurt (I told you I was boring). My three beverages would
be coffee, V-8, and (to be a little adventuresome) Irish whiskey.
I am not much of a foodie. So long as it’s
nutritious and easy, I’m a happy guy. So my three foods would be broccoli,
oatmeal, and Greek yogurt (I told you I was boring). My three beverages would
be coffee, V-8, and (to be a little adventuresome) Irish whiskey.
Lily:
You’d definitely come out healthier at the end
of the month than I would! (I may or may not have a sugar addiction and if I
thought I could survive I would try to on strawberries alone). What’s your idea
of a perfect day?
You’d definitely come out healthier at the end
of the month than I would! (I may or may not have a sugar addiction and if I
thought I could survive I would try to on strawberries alone). What’s your idea
of a perfect day?
Scott:
I became a lawyer not to earn a ton of money
but because my heart has always gone out to lost dogs and stray cats. Any day I
can give someone a second chance (which is also the title of an unpublished
short story of mine) is a perfect day.
I became a lawyer not to earn a ton of money
but because my heart has always gone out to lost dogs and stray cats. Any day I
can give someone a second chance (which is also the title of an unpublished
short story of mine) is a perfect day.
Lily:
That’s awesome! Ok, let’s get into the nitty
gritty. What inspired you to write Revenants – The Odyssey Home?
That’s awesome! Ok, let’s get into the nitty
gritty. What inspired you to write Revenants – The Odyssey Home?
Scott:
Like most adolescent boys, I daydreamed about
running away from my mundane life and finding adventure. A story as old as Tom
Sawyer and Homer’s Odyssey. Most of us re-channel our dreams but some do not
and thereby become cannon fodder for unethical politicians and their generals.
Like most adolescent boys, I daydreamed about
running away from my mundane life and finding adventure. A story as old as Tom
Sawyer and Homer’s Odyssey. Most of us re-channel our dreams but some do not
and thereby become cannon fodder for unethical politicians and their generals.
I was also inspired by my late
wife’s stories of her and her Uncle Bunkle who she saw as an older brother and
may have been the last combat death in Viet Nam. Think of the tragedy. Not only
being the last to die in a war but being the last to die in a war lost. While
he may have been the last combat death, he was not the last to die. I read
somewhere that as many Viet Nam veterans have died from suicide as died in
combat. I expect we will be seeing similar numbers from the veterans of
Afghanistan and Iraq.
wife’s stories of her and her Uncle Bunkle who she saw as an older brother and
may have been the last combat death in Viet Nam. Think of the tragedy. Not only
being the last to die in a war but being the last to die in a war lost. While
he may have been the last combat death, he was not the last to die. I read
somewhere that as many Viet Nam veterans have died from suicide as died in
combat. I expect we will be seeing similar numbers from the veterans of
Afghanistan and Iraq.
Lily:
War
always seems to have many casualties, long after it’s ‘over’. Even if the
physical war is done, many people seem to forget that veterans still have
mental wars of their own to fight. Out of all the characters, who is your
favorite?
War
always seems to have many casualties, long after it’s ‘over’. Even if the
physical war is done, many people seem to forget that veterans still have
mental wars of their own to fight. Out of all the characters, who is your
favorite?
My protagonist, Betsy. Sixteen-year old girls
crack me up. They want so much to be sophisticated but don’t quite have the
panache yet to pull it off. Then before Betsy can pull it off, she not only loses
her brother in a senseless war but sees the lies in the world around her that
she had no idea existed and somehow has to make her place in that world while
being true to herself.
Lily:
I
try to forget that awkward time at sixteen versus what I was
aspiring to! I loved the cover, did you design it?
I
try to forget that awkward time at sixteen versus what I was
aspiring to! I loved the cover, did you design it?
Scott:
I’m not that talented but Tom Bentley of
Bentley Printing very much is. I found on Google and forwarded to him a dozen
World War I images that Tom used as inspiration.
I’m not that talented but Tom Bentley of
Bentley Printing very much is. I found on Google and forwarded to him a dozen
World War I images that Tom used as inspiration.
Lily:
That’s great! Are any of the characters based
on you or people you know?
That’s great! Are any of the characters based
on you or people you know?
Scott:
No. I am not an outside-in but more of an
inside-out character writer. My characters are really just different parts of
me, even, or perhaps especially, the nasty characters. I begin my characters by
sketching them out followed by their back story followed by writing a dream for
each of my major characters because dreams are a great tool for understanding
my character’s personality. Finally, I will write a dressing scene for each of
my major characters because how we dress is how we reveal our personalities to
the world.
No. I am not an outside-in but more of an
inside-out character writer. My characters are really just different parts of
me, even, or perhaps especially, the nasty characters. I begin my characters by
sketching them out followed by their back story followed by writing a dream for
each of my major characters because dreams are a great tool for understanding
my character’s personality. Finally, I will write a dressing scene for each of
my major characters because how we dress is how we reveal our personalities to
the world.
Lily:
Very true. I know what I wear day to day
varies on my mood that day. How long did it take you to write Revenants – The Odyssey Home?
Very true. I know what I wear day to day
varies on my mood that day. How long did it take you to write Revenants – The Odyssey Home?
Scott:
Embarrassingly, nine years, fourteen major
rewrites and lots of minor one. The first two-thirds of the books has not
changed that much, it was the landing I couldn’t stick. I finally got it when I
wrote a short-short story that I saw as a possible new chapter one (that it
became) that the ending of Revenants finally gelled.
Embarrassingly, nine years, fourteen major
rewrites and lots of minor one. The first two-thirds of the books has not
changed that much, it was the landing I couldn’t stick. I finally got it when I
wrote a short-short story that I saw as a possible new chapter one (that it
became) that the ending of Revenants finally gelled.
Lily:
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with
taking your time. Better to get the story where you want it to be than to
release it too soon and regret it! If you could bring one character to life
from this book, who would it be?
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with
taking your time. Better to get the story where you want it to be than to
release it too soon and regret it! If you could bring one character to life
from this book, who would it be?
Scott:
Jamie Hamilton, pre-war injury. What an
adventure.
Jamie Hamilton, pre-war injury. What an
adventure.
Lily:
I’d love to meet him! Is there anything else
you would like to add that I haven’t included?
I’d love to meet him! Is there anything else
you would like to add that I haven’t included?
Scott:
I think we’re good. Very thoughtful, thorough
questions. Thank you for the opportunity to reach out to your readers, but if
any readers have additional questions or thoughts, please contact me through my website.
I think we’re good. Very thoughtful, thorough
questions. Thank you for the opportunity to reach out to your readers, but if
any readers have additional questions or thoughts, please contact me through my website.
Lily:
Thank
you so much! Glad you didn’t find the interview boring, I try to keep
things interesting. How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Thank
you so much! Glad you didn’t find the interview boring, I try to keep
things interesting. How can readers discover more about you and you work?
Scott:
I can be found on my website, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. Revenants – The Odyssey Home can be purchased here.
I can be found on my website, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. Revenants – The Odyssey Home can be purchased here.