Ask the Author: William Loving
Answered Questions (9)
William Loving
Read. Read. Read. And read some more. Read the best books by the best authors in whichever genre interests you. Let the rhythm and magic of prose seep into your subconscious until it emerges on its own, mixed with your experiences and worldview, uniquely yours. Don't read how-to books on craft, especially on plot, structure, etc. They only show you how to write formulaic books like everyone else is writing. If you read books on writing, stick to those about the writing life itself and the philosophy of creativity and discipline. Then write.
William Loving
The ice cube trays in the microwave were the first hint that something was amiss with his wife. (Okay, that's one sentence.)
William Loving
Several different ideas and inspirations converged over time and coalesced into a single idea. Among them: seeing the homeless population of Southern California swelling alarmingly after the crash of 2008; and admiring novels based on ancient classics, such as James Joyce's Ulysses (The Odyssey), Jane Smiley's A Thousand Acres (King Lear) and John Steinbeck's East of Eden (Book of Genesis).
William Loving
A book begins to take shape in my mind, seemingly of its own volition, and nags me until I can't not write it. Maybe it's not so much inspiration as self-therapy.
William Loving
Several novels and short stories all at once, each barely begun; waiting for one of them to grab hold of my imagination and run away with it. A comic novel set in a fictional professional baseball league; an urban dystopia short story or novella set in Los Angeles of the near future; a mystery/thriller set in a small town in Minnesota; and several others too unformed to mention.
William Loving
Not having to show up at someone else's office, attend meetings, take phone calls, but rather to commute to that place in one's own mind where exciting things happen.
William Loving
I go do something else until it passes, rather than trying to force things. The less I think about my story when blocked, the more likely ideas are to bubble up from my subconscious.
William Loving
Dublin of 1904 to visit the pubs.
William Loving
These Women by Ivy Pochoda, Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha, Deacon King Kong by James McBride, Heaven My Home by Attica Locke
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