S. Evan Townsend
When you are getting ready to start a new book, what’s the
first thing you do?
Think. I do a lot of what I call "pre-writing" where I
think about plot, characters, setting, figure out where I want to start, where
I want to go, how I want to get there.
All of my novels have started out as an idea floating through my brain
with a thought of "What if . . .?" Driving, going for walks, or showering seem to be great times
to pre-write
How do you celebrate when you finish writing a book?
I take a deep breath, go
"whew" and start thinking about the next book. Sometimes there might be chocolate
involved, though.
If you could have dinner, coffee, or drinks with a fictional
character, who would you choose and where would you go?
Out of the pantheon of fiction
characters I have to choose one? I
guess in that case, I'd pick Gandalf the Grey and try to go to Bilbo Baggins
house for dinner. I think
Gandalf would have fascinating stories to tell and Bilbo, of course, would have
a very full larder.
Do you usually begin a book with a character or a plot?
My stories are plot driven, not
generally character driven. I'll develop
a plot (the "What if . . .?") and then decide on the type of
character I want to toss into this situation.
Do you have any hobbies or special interests you’d care to
share?
I used to participate in
"track days" and "high performance driving schools" both of
which involve driving a car on a race track as fast as you dare or the car is
capable of (which ever is slower).
I used to describe it as "the most fun I've had with my clothes
on" but really the concentration and discipline it required was amazing. It wasn't about speed (although the
speed was a blast) it was about control and skill. I've never given anything in my life so much
concentration. I called it
"Zen and the Art of Driving Fast" because it just clears the mind of
everything else and you reach speed nirvana.
After becoming a full-time writer
my finances became such that I decided I didn't need to put out the expenditure
necessary (buying a new set of expensive tires every year, for instance).
Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
Read good writers (writers you
aspire to be as good as) and write a lot.
Then write some more.
What jobs have you had on your way to becoming a writer?
I was in the U.S. Army, Military
Intelligence Branch, for four years (which may be why each of my Adept Series
novels involves U.S. intelligence agencies at some point). After that I went to college and then
joined the family business as a co-owner/manager. I worked there for 20 years feeling like a round peg in a
square hole being pounded on with a triangular hammer. I learned a lot about people, however,
but I just never felt comfortable.
I have decided the corporate world wants both conformity and creativity
(at the same time) and I was never very good at the former.
Currently in addition to fiction
writing I'm dong freelance writing for local publications (I write about farmers
a lot). It's interesting as it
covers two things I love: learning about things and writing.
Did you have any interesting experiences when you were
researching your book, or getting it published?
As I was writing Book of Death I realized I needed more
information about what it was like to live and be in communist Romania in the
1960s. The information on the
internet was very much lacking (and I found out, contradictory or just wrong). I started asking my network of friends
and writers if they knew anyone from Romania but had no luck. The book was on hold about one-third
done (up until my character gets to Romania) and I couldn't proceed.
Then my father was over at my house
for Easter dinner and he asked me if I attended a local political meeting. I said I hadn't that year and he
mentioned the speaker was very interesting, a woman who used to live in
Romania. Believe me, I pounced
especially when he said he had her business card. And the card had her email address. I emailed the woman and she was just
the right age, having grown up in the '60s in Romania. She recommended some sources (including
a book she'd written) and answered my many emailed questions about Romanian
culture and life under the communist regime. That helped me make Book
of Death as accurate as possible and capture the feeling of being in that
country at the height of communist power there.
Are you a pantser or a plotter?
Sort of both. I liken it to a road trip: I know where
I am, I know where I want to be and I sort of have a plan to get there. However if a side trip look interesting
or I decided on a detour and I don't end up at the same place I planned when I
started, that's okay. I once made
a typo, loved how it twisted the story, and kept it.
Where does the magic happen? Where do you write?
I have a converted bedroom in the
basement of my house I call my "office." Right now it's full of boxes of books and the desk is
(except where the computer sits) covered with notes from freelance stories I
need to file. I have a large
computer monitor hooked up to my laptop I spend the day typing. Shockingly surprised I don't have
carpel tunnel syndrome as much as I type.
However, I have had "mouse wrist."
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