Ask the Author: Phillip Margolin
Answered Questions (7)
Phillip Margolin
Fran: Sorry it took time to answer your questions but I was on tour and away from a computer. I was amazed when I saw the photo and wondered if the woman was supposed to have killed her husband on their wedding night or was going to commit suicide or was waiting for someone to come in from the ocean who she was going to shoot. It was that fact that so many questions flooded my mind when I looked at the picture that compelled me to buy it. When I bought the photo I had my cover and title, "Woman with a Gun," but no plot so I decided to let art imitate life and I created a writer with writer's block who sees a photo of a woman who was involved in an unsolved murder and is inspired to write a fictional account of the case. Thanks for asking me to interview for your radio show. My email is phil@pdxlaw.com. Send me an email with your phone number and let's talk. Phil
Phillip Margolin
I don't get writer's block because I don't start writing until I've developed characters and plot and have an idea for the ending. Then I outline by talking my way through the book from start to finish. My novel is always different from my out line but the problems I have are "What should I put in chapter B to get from A to C and not how can I continue my plot. Phil
Phillip Margolin
I love creating a three dimensional world where everything works out just the way I want it to. I also love the puzzle aspects of writing. I have a plot, I have characters and an idea. Can I make them fit to be a book readers will enjoy? Phil
Phillip Margolin
Don't write, think. When I get an idea for a book I spend a lot of time thinking about the plot and characters before I write a word. And I won't write anything until I have an idea for the ending. Then I outline, which means I'm thinking about the plot some more but not writing. Once the outline is done, writing is easy because the book is written in short hand. Then comes the most important part, rewriting for quality. Phil
Phillip Margolin
I'm about 200 pages into the fifth Amanda Jaffe novel. It will come out next year but I don't know when yet. Phil
Phillip Margolin
I don't need inspiration. I love to write and I can't wait to get to my office each day to work on the book I'm writing. Phil
Phillip Margolin
I was keynoting a writer's conference on St. Simon Island in Georgia and I ate breakfast at Palmer's Village Café, which was owned by someone who also owned an art gallery. The walls were decorated with oil paintings, photos, etc. that were for sale. After breakfast I went to the Men's Room to wash up and the photo of the woman with a gun on the cover of my latest book, "Woman with a Gun," was hanging over the toilet. I thought it was amazing and thought provoking so I bought it. At that point I had the title of a book and the cover. It took me a little longer to work out the plot. Phil
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