Frequently Asked Questions

Where did the idea for The Death Collectors come from?
As a teenager in the late 60’s I was fascinated by the Manson Family murders. I’m also a devotee of art and art history. Somehow the two concepts mingled in my head and began creating a novel. I didn’t copy Manson Family events, but took generously from the idea of a sad and self-absorbed band of misfits under the influence of an egomaniacal madman.

How about The Hundredth Man?
There’s a classic joke about a person searching for a lost item. Like all great jokes, it’s a reflection on human nature. Naturally, the joke has a dark side. While mulling over the joke a few years back, I thought it might make a fine underpinning for a novel. The joke opens Chapter One and, in its own way, continues.

And in A Garden of Vipers?
The idea for a Garden of Vipers/The Broken Souls (in the United Kingdom) came in part from a famous American political family who basically hid away a family member who was perceived as “imperfect,” and thus an embarrassment. The other part came from having seen some folks who used money like a broadsword.

Why the name Carson Ryder for the protagonist?
Carson from Kit Carson, the renowned frontiersman. Ryder from Albert Pinkham Ryder, the 19th and early 20th-Century American artist.

How often do you write? What’s your working structure?
I get up before dawn (a die-hard angler, I’m acquainted with early hours) and pound the keys until it’s light enough to walk. I trot to the Ohio River and wander around, making notes into a pocket recorder. Then I return home and work until mid-afternoon. At night I’ll give the day’s work a read and make a few notes on what needs to be accomplished the next day.

Do you plot out your novels before you begin writing?
About as much as I can plot out a dream. I create the characters and a situation, then let them run (nudging every so often). About a third of the way through, structure seems to emerge from the chaos, and I have a loose sense of where I’m headed.

What drives your work?
Curiosity. I want to take a situation or event, drop characters into it, and see how they respond.

What would you recommend for an aspiring writer?
Write as often as possible; nothing replaces dedication and practice. I’ve read several books on writing and recommend the two Sol Stein works, Stein on Writing and How to Grow a Novel (St. Martin’s Press), as well as Self-editing for Fiction Writers by Browne and King. There are no doubt other good works on the subject (and many mediocre ones) ; the aforementioned books were helpful to me when I was making the jump from advertising to fiction and wanted to get a sense of the craft.

When you feel ready to jump up a notch, find or form a critique group. If you don’t have a clue on this, I suggest The Writing Group Book, ed. Lisa Rosenthal, Chicago Review Press, 2003.