Ask the Author: James E. Mack
Answered Questions (10)
James E. Mack
Hi John. HKS is actually my memoirs and as such, required clearance from the UK Ministry of Defence. There has been a recent, drastic change in what the MoD are allowing to be published and now looking unlikely it will ever see the light of day as the current guidelines stand.
James E. Mack
Heart pounding, I could feel the sweat beading on my forehead as I ransacked the cupboard in the forlorn hope that I was wrong, had merely missed it on my last rummage. But with the shelves stripped bare before me, it was abundantly clear that I had run out of coffee...
James E. Mack
I enjoy post-apocalyptic landscapes for sheer escapism and have often thought about being the 'last man on earth' character seeking out any surviving people. Ideally with an irascible dog as my companion!
James E. Mack
Pine by Francine Toon, Beyond Recall by Gerald Seymour and The Survivors by Jane Harper.
James E. Mack
I don't get it. Never. The closest I come is when I'm chewing over a plot link or how to portray a particular scene. Usually, if the answer isn't coming fast enough I'll write what is in my head and then take a look back over it. At this point something always presents itself and I alter the narrative accordingly. In my case at least, the action of writing something down seems to engage whatever elements of the old grey matter that I need to fire up to deal with the issue.
James E. Mack
Doing what you love. My love of reading came from a very young age and stayed with me all my life. I love books and the natural extension of that was to one day write books. So I did. And I love it. I take great satisfaction from the creative process, seeing my months of work come together in a manuscript. Of course, the greatest enjoyment comes from the readers who get in touch and tell you how much THEY enjoyed the book. That's the best bit, imagining someone in another country sat in a comfy chair engrossed in my book, just as I am with one of my favourite authors' works.
James E. Mack
Write! This might sound a little trite but the amount of aspiring writers I meet who are still 'aspiring' is incredible. A lot of people go for years thinking about writing, planning the next great novel in their heads, imagining their launch party in Barnes & Noble or Waterstones. But without ever committing a word to paper. You don't look at a book on a shelf and call yourself a reader; you pick it up, open it up and, yep, read it. Same with writing. It only happens when you open up your computer, call up that terrifying blank screen of your new document, and cover it with words. Words. Good, bad or indifferent. Then go back and have a look over your creation. Might not be pretty at first but you are writing. And KEEP writing. It's the only way you get better.
James E. Mack
My third novel, with a working title of Sparta. It is another thriller with a military background however it centres more on a small team of rural police officers and a situation they find themselves dealing with. I'm very pleased with the concept of this novel and also (I hope!), the twist in the plot.
James E. Mack
Very easily! I have written in some form or another since I was a child. In fact, one of my friends in Australia informed me that he had found a hand-written story of mine from when I must have only been 13 or 14 year's old. It seemed to involve lots of ninjas, gratuitous violence and heaving bosoms! Clearly a young mind influenced by Eric Van Lustbader!
James E. Mack
The original premise for the book, that of a soldier being forced to commit a terrible act in order to save the lives of his men, was inspired by an incident some colleagues of mine once faced. It was an awful situation that, unfortunately had tragic consequences and the whole scenario has always stuck in my mind. The protagonist's flight to the wild is a little bit of my own self-indulgence, being a lover of nature and the wilderness.
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