Hi! I am
Carolyn Howard Johnson, your trusty New Book Review blogger and author of the
multi award-winning HowTo Do It
Frugally Series of books for writers. This blog has heretofore been
exclusive for reviews but I thought I’d do a special series of interviews after
I chatted with Jeanie Loiacono, President of Loiacono Literary
Agency – Where ‘can’t’ is not in our vocabulary! I
thought sharing the interviews would help the many subscribers and visitors to
this New Book Review blog, including authors, reviewers, and, of course, readers
who just might find a new favorite author among the featured books and
authors. I hope you'll submit your favorite review or interview. Guidlines are in the left column of this blog.
So, today
welcome Richard
Paolinelli.
Paolinelli is the author of the sci-fi novel Maelstrom (Smashwords) and two short
stories: sci-fi short The Invited (Smashwords) and the
mystery/thriller short Legacy of Death (Smashwords). He
served as the story writer for the first two issues of the Elite Comics series,
Seadragon: Seadragon #1 (Elite Comics, 1986) Seadragon #2 (Elite Comics, 1986).
He is also an award-winning writer for newspapers in California and New Mexico
and has written for many magazines and websites across the country. He is now
working on the outlined sequels: Betrayals, Shades, and Endgames.
- What
is your genre? Is it fiction or nonfiction? I write mystery-thrillers as
well as science fiction and sports non-fiction.
- What
made you want to be a writer? When I was in grade school I
was always coming up with “stories” that I would write down and I haven’t ever
stopped.
- Of all
the authors out there, who inspired you most? At first it was Edgar Allan
Poe and H.G. Wells. But more recently, I would have to say Jack McDevitt.
- What
is your writing style? Do you outline? Linearly? By scene? Why?
I like
to create three dimensional characters that the readers can fully connect with,
put them into a situation that really puts them to the test and hopefully take
the reader on a great ride from the first page until the last. I outline because
I like have each step of the story fully laid out before I begin. The one quirk
I have is that I write the opening chapter first and then I write the last
chapter before going back to end of the first chapter and finishing the story
from there.
- Do you
write every day? How much? How long? I try to write every day
(when life manages to stay out of the way long enough of course) and for as long
as I can. (Anywhere from an hour up to a 14-hour marathon I put in during
From The Fields).
- Do you
think reading is as important to writing for an author? Why?
I do.
You can learn a lot about crafting a story by reading other stories, especially
those in the genre you are writing in.
- What
are some of the things you would like to share with budding authors?
Keep
writing, no matter what. It took me 15 years from the time I sat down and
decided to write my first sci-fi novel until the time I had finished it and it
was published. My mystery-thriller, Reservations, which was just released is the
prequel to a movie script I wrote in 1998. The lesson is: Never give up on your
writing, no matter how gloomy things may appear to you at the
present.
- Do you
have any marketing and promotional advice, referrals, tips you would like to
share? Be relentless and shameless.
Never pass up an opportunity to post a link to your book on social media no
matter how much of a stretch it may seem to be. I once posted a flyer about one
of my books in a sandwich shop.
- Do you
think conferences are beneficial? If so, what have you learned? Which ones do
you frequent? I do. You get a chance to
meet potential readers face to face. Sometimes you will sell a few books.
Sometimes you won’t sell a thing, but someone you met at the event will buy a
copy online and hopefully tell their friends how good your book was and how cool
it was that they met you.
- Where
can we find you, your books and when is your next event? My
website is: www.richardpaolinelli.com and all of
my books are on the main page. Click on the covers and the link will take you to
each book’s page on Amazon.com. I have a radio appearance on Dec.
13th but my next in-person event is the Tucson Festival of Books at
the University of Arizona on March 12th & 13th. www.richardpaolinelli.com Paolinelli
Events www.facebook.com/RichardPaolinelli1964
Represented by Loiacono Literary Agency, Jeanie Loiacono http://www.loiaconoliteraryagency.com/authors/richard-paolinelli/
MORE
ABOUT THE SPONSORING AGENT
Jeanie Loiacono, President, Loiacono Literary
Agency
A facilitator of dreams, Jeanie Loiacono represents over eighty authors. Her
forte is mystery, romance, thrillers, historical/military/southern fiction, and
all quality fiction/nonfiction. Her passion is to see her authors
succeed.
IF YOU WOULD
LIKE TO SEE MORE INTERVIEWS--TO FIND GREAT READING OR TO NETWORK WITH
AUTHORS--PLEASE SUBSCRIBE TO THIS BLOG. YOU ARE A WELCOME ADDITION TO THIS
FAMILY WHO LOVES BOOKS! YOU'LL FIND A WINDOW TO DO THIS AT THE TOP OF THIS BLOG
PAGE.
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. It is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
