Ask the Author: Don Winston
Answered Questions (6)
Don Winston
There are no shortcuts. Quite simply, you have to chain yourself to your keyboard or writing pad or whatever and put down words. If the story is important enough to you, you'll look forward to it.
Don Winston
Creating something out of thin air. Building a sandbox and inviting readers to come play in it. And kick up some sand.
Don Winston
A thriller set in the South, centered around the legend of the Bell Witch. The Bell Witch is known to go after people who write about her. Wish me luck!
Don Winston
A physical place usually inspires me first. Either the campus of Sewanee, or the real Pacific-Union Club atop Nob Hill in San Francisco. Or, for my new thriller, the charming town of New Hope, PA. I let it stew for a while, and eventually characters form, and then a conflict arises, and eventually a story starts to take shape.
Don Winston
My new thriller takes place in New Hope, PA. It's a wonderfully charming town we used to visit when I was at Princeton. It stuck with me, and I went back to visit to do research. I went around Halloween. Nothing quite like New Hope at Halloween when you're doing research for a thriller...
Don Winston
Make sure the story is important and urgent enough. Writer's block will, eventually, take care of itself.
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