Ask the Author: Wesley D. Gray
Answered Questions (6)
Wesley D. Gray
It wasn't so much as an idea, but more like a process which emerged by accident. Come Fly with Death is a poetry chapbook inspired by the artwork of the late Polish painter, Zdzislaw Beksinski. One morning a few years ago, I was preparing to post some images of his paintings to my blog, and as I looked upon one of them, words formed in my head, so I wrote them down. What emerged was the rough draft to my poem, One in Hell. Over the course of the next several months I repeated this, viewing a different piece of Beksinski's work in each case and writing down my responses, to ultimately produce rough drafts of the twenty poems included in the book.
Wesley D. Gray
I am inspired by life. More to the specific, I find inspiration in those things that interest me, such as games, books, movies, science and nature, the people I meet and the stories they tell. I am hugely inspired by music, and it (along with massive quantities of coffee) is the fuel that propels my writing sessions. But perhaps my greatest inspiration comes from those I love, my family, my children, my wife.
Wesley D. Gray
Feeding Lazarus, a tale of dark fiction about an abused and bullied boy with a strong imagination who finds a dead body at an abandoned construction site, a dead body which may or may not be returning to life.
Wesley D. Gray
Just write. And read. And read more. And then read even more. Look for "insight" in everything you read, everything you do, and everything you observe in the world around you. I was given this advice when I was a teenager by my very wise uncle. I knew he was right, but I didn't follow through. I lost a decade of writing and honing my craft because of it, until I finally realized that what he said wasn't just right, it was essential.
Wesley D. Gray
Getting to make stuff up. Seeing your worlds, your characters, your stories come to life through the written word. I love being a writer because I get to build things with words. But overall, I'd say the best thing is connecting with other people through the power of imagination, and then hearing that those stories affected them in some positive way, entertained them, and brought them enjoyment.
Wesley D. Gray
Just write. Sometimes if I'm stuck in a particular scene or chapter, I'll skip it and write further ahead. If I'm just having trouble writing new words in general, I'll switch gears into editing mode and work on a project that's in revision, let things marinate with the other one for a while. For this reason, I like to have several projects going at once. Daydreaming also helps. If I think about my story outside of my writing time, it makes it easier to approach the next session. Daydreaming helps me get excited about the work and anxious to get back to it because I've got all these things planned that I need to get out on the page.
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