Ask the Author: Peter Idone
Answered Questions (5)
Peter Idone
I usually go the library and discover something; so far I've read Paul Auster's Invisible and now I'm reading Gun Machine by Warren Ellis. I don't really make lists before hand, I simply read what strikes me as interesting at the moment. There are a couple of non-fiction works I'd like to read soon mainly America's War by Andrew Bacevich and Jeremy Scahill's Dirty Wars: The World Is a Battlefield. Not light entertainment by any stretch but important as to regards to the sort of world we're living in.
Peter Idone
As I have been working on a novel for the past couple of years I have to include this as my most recent book although as yet unpublished. I wanted to bring in elements of past decades, the seventies, eighties, etc. and how it relates to the main character by the year Two Thousand. Some of it is biographical, at least where several characters and locals that are drawn upon.
Now to consider this question as regards to my most recent book, "Red Vengeance" quite sometime ago, maybe it was as far back as 1990 I was recovering from dental surgery and had some time on my hands. I was reading two books at the time, Melville's "Moby Dick" and the German war correspondent Paul Carell's "Hitler Moves East". Ideas germinated over the years until I started to write a novel in earnest in 1996. Actually, it was a form of practice since I had not been writing for a number of years. I didn't even intend to publish the work. I would have to say the research drew me in and I was committed to writing the best novel as I possibly could. It was a very enjoyable experience.
Now to consider this question as regards to my most recent book, "Red Vengeance" quite sometime ago, maybe it was as far back as 1990 I was recovering from dental surgery and had some time on my hands. I was reading two books at the time, Melville's "Moby Dick" and the German war correspondent Paul Carell's "Hitler Moves East". Ideas germinated over the years until I started to write a novel in earnest in 1996. Actually, it was a form of practice since I had not been writing for a number of years. I didn't even intend to publish the work. I would have to say the research drew me in and I was committed to writing the best novel as I possibly could. It was a very enjoyable experience.
Peter Idone
The book I'm writing at present could best be summed up as noir detective fiction although the protagonist is not a detective but finds himself in a situation in which there is a mystery he needs to uncover. I've always been interested in your average, everyday kind of individual who is thrust into a situation that is greater than him and he may or may not possess the tools to cope or even be successful at the outcome.
Peter Idone
The only advice I can give is to keep reading, usually the authors you like the most. They are the beacon to aspire towards. Also, keep writing, no matter what, even if it's crap. I've got notebooks filled with some terrible stuff I've written over the years but as time passes some kernel will exist within those sentences that can be expanded on. Most importantly, travel as far and as long as you can. Live among cultures different from your own. I found this to be the most valuable.
Peter Idone
Long walks, push ups, read a really lousy book which I know I can write better; also I try not to beat myself up too much when writers block occurs. I think it's part of the creative process. I mull over in my head how I want the story to go. This can take days, even weeks and then all the words start to cascade out of me. But really sometimes it can really suck.
About Goodreads Q&A
Ask and answer questions about books!
You can pose questions to the Goodreads community with Reader Q&A, or ask your favorite author a question with Ask the Author.
See Featured Authors Answering Questions
Learn more