Author Q&A
In case you missed it
My launch party was a huge success! Mostly due to my friends from Tucson Author Alliance , who showed up en masse. The rest were friends, neighbors, and people I know from book club and other bookish events. Thanks to everyone who made the time to celebrate with me.
We decided to live stream the author Q&A on Substack, which unbeknownst to me, was automatically delivered to your emails. Sorry! I don’t do Substack Live ever so please forgive me, for I know not what I do. The video was displayed sideways and the audio was abysmal. Please delete it and we can just pretend that never happened.
For those of you who weren’t there or who weren’t able to decipher the audio from the live stream, I’ve decided to transcribe a few of them here. Well, transcribe isn’t accurate. How about loosely paraphrase my poor recollection of those responses.
What do you enjoy most about a new project?
Between projects I’ve been collecting scraps of ideas in a shoebox in my brain. Story ideas, character traits, settings, plot devices, metaphors, turns of phrase, unexpressed emotions, jokes, etc. Starting a new project is like emptying that shoebox out onto a table and seeing which of those scraps fit together to form something new.
How did you come up with the premise of Sleepers?
When I was a kid I had this fantasy that like, what if in the future, they could figure out how to pipe school directly into your brain while you slept so you could spend your days playing with friends and having fun? This was before the Matrix. So this idea of utilizing your unconscious brain to maximize your productivity has been with me since forever. But of course, in this story it takes a dystopian turn, per usual. Because the corporation, Lunatech, is the one who benefits from the labor of its sleepers, not the sleepers themselves.
Which character do you relate to most?
Hugo. He’s not me, exactly, but we share similar motivations and interests. We both make bad choices.
Which character would you meet for coffee (besides Hugo)?
Any of the musicians in the story would be fun to talk to. Even Lenny, who isn’t a musician exactly, but works at the music shop with Hugo and they’re always quizzing each other with music trivia to pass the time.
If Sleepers were a movie, what song would play during the opening and closing credits?
The opening song would have to be “Where Is My Mind” by the Pixies. But it would have to come after the first scene where Hugo wakes up in Slumbervale, not knowing where he is or anything about himself. The closing credits would have to be, even though it’s been done before (The Matrix), “Wake Up” by Rage Against the Machine. That would be the perfect song to close out this story.
Would you prefer to live in Slumbervale or the Real world?
Thematically, the question of what is real is ever-present. Are we even in the real world right now? How can we tell? Given the chance though, I’d be curious about taking the blue pill—to exist in a perfectly curated utopia with no real struggles and all you have to do is pursue your main passion. Ignorance is bliss.
I thought Piper was the most complex character. Was she very difficult to write?
Piper is a bit tricky to talk about because—spoilers. But her character was fairly easy to write since I already had a good idea about her attitude, her skepticism. She’s prickly, sarcastic, dry. After the twist, I did have to go back and rework some dialogue to be consistent with how she ends up.
What’s your writing process like?
I’m a plotter so I always start with an outline. For me it starts with an idea and then I map out a loose plot around that. The characters start to develop as I go along and eventually they tend to have a mind of their own and end up taking over. The inmates taking over the asylum, so to speak.
What’s the next thing you’re working on?
That’s top secret (ha ha ha ha ha). Honestly, it’s not one thing. It’s just a bunch of disconnected pieces right now and when I have a chance to sit down and empty that box of scraps onto the table, I’ll see what matches up.
I think everyone had a really great time. I know I did. I felt lucky to be surrounded by so many supportive friends.
If you missed it, I’ll be at Button Brew House this Saturday, June 20th from 4-8 p.m. at the Books and Brews local author fair.
I only have a couple copies of Sleepers left over from the launch so come early if you want one. I’m keeping the e-book priced at 99¢ for the rest of this week so snag that before it goes up.
Now it’s your turn.
Put your burning questions in the comments!