Books In Sync Author Spotlight Interview With Thomas C. Almond
Q: Tell us what makes you proud to be a writer from Bend, Oregon?
A: There are actually quite a few authors from this area considering its relatively small population. So I am in good company. I love living here. It is a very beautiful area with many fine cultural opportunities.
Q: What or who inspired you to become a writer?
A: I am a person who always felt my emotions strongly. Many of my favorite books and movies are ones that evoke emotions or thoughts in me. I have for a long time wanted to do this kind of writing but until I retired from the fire service a few years ago never really had the time to write a novel. I wrote some poetry and short stories but writing Goodbye Kiev was the fulfillment of a long time dream for me.
Q: When did you begin writing with the intention of becoming published?
A: I started Goodbye Kiev when I retired. I was lucky that a personal experience at that same time gave me the final idea for my story, for which before I had only a rough idea of the story. It was always my idea that this would be the first project I would try to get published as a book. I previously had a short story published in a local newspaper.
Q: Did your environment or upbringing play a major role in your writing and why?
A
Q: Do you come up with your title (s) before or after you write the manuscript (s)?
A: Before, As a matter of fact the title of the book is the last line of the book. So I actually wrote the very end of the book first. Despite the name of Kiev in the title not much of the story takes place there. The significance of the title is apparent when you get to the end of the story. Sorry, you will have to read it to find out why.
Q: Tell us why you write the genre (s) that you write?
A: This story is what I would call an inspirational romance story. This category is not often found so it is generally listed as just Romance. However I do not consider myself just a Romance writer. I consider myself a good story teller that hopefully will lead my reader to evoke emotions or deeper thought. Some of my future ideas may or may not fall into the Romance category
: Environment did not really play a role until later into my writing Goodbye Kiev. As a matter of fact it changed the location where much of the book took place. I was about half way finished with my book when I met Olga, the lady who I am now married to. She lived in Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine and I lived there for almost a year. During this time I came to know this city very well. I saw the good and bad parts of town. I saw a side of Dnepropetrovsk that most tourists do not see. All of this gave me real idea of what life in this city is really like and out of this grew a strong fondness for the city and its people. This not only caused me to change the setting for much of much of the story to Dnepropetrovsk but had a profound affect on my writing itself. I think my love for this city and its people comes through in my writing, I certainly felt this anyway.
Q: Tell us your most rewarding experience while in the writing process?
A: After I finished Goodbye Kiev I left it alone for a few weeks. Then I went back and read it again from start to finish. It made me laugh like when I was writing it and it made me cry like when I was writing it. I knew then that I had written something very special. I knew then that I had succeeded in what I had set out to do.
If I had never gotten it published I would still feel very good about how this story turned out.
Q: Tell us your most negative experience while in the writing process?
A: I really did not have much negative about the writing process. There was a time when I stopped in the middle of it for awhile when I guess I had temporary writers block on where to take the story but after I met Olga and was living in Dnepropetrovsk the story just began to flow again.
Q: Tell us your most rewarding experience in your publishing journey?
A: Getting it published. I know this may sound hard for some of you to believe but my goal in getting it published was not to make tons of money or become famous. I had written a great story and getting it published was the only way to share this story with others. I’ll tell you another hard to believe fact. If I did not have a need for income, if I did not have personal dollar investment in this book, I would give it away to people for free because most important to me is that as many people as possible get to read this story.
Q: Tell us your most negative experience in your publishing journey?
A: Not very many people have read this story. It has been very difficult to get word out about my book. By far marketing this book has been the most difficult and frustrating part of the whole process. Local bookstores and media have been absolutely no assistance.
Q: What one positive piece of advice would you give to other authors?
A: Believe in your book. Through all of the trials and tribulations of trying to market this book one piece of knowledge has been key to keeping me going. I know I have written a great story.
Q: Who is your favorite author?
A: I have many. Mark Twain, C.S. Lewis, Ivan Doig, Cormac McCarthy and the approximately 40 different authors of the Bible to name a few.
Q: What Format (s) are your books in: Print Only.....E-Book Only....or Both?
A: Print only. I may sometime do an E-book because it is popular today but I am rather old fashioned. I think a book should be held in your hand.
Q: Please tell us the titles of your current book (s):
A: Goodbye Kiev
Q: What special projects are you working on now and what books do we have to look forward to in the future?
A: I am currently working on a sequel to Goodbye Kiev I hope to finish when my wife and I return to Ukraine this Spring, I need to get some more of that Dnepropetrovsk inspiration you know.
Q: Is there anything else that you would like to share with us?
A: I will share a story with you. I submitted my book to the Publisher before I left Ukraine in the Spring. I was going to wait until I got home but I decided why wait? I expected I would get an answer from them after I returned home. Well it was the day before I was to fly back home and of course I was feeling kind of blue because I was leaving Olga and would be gone a month or so until I returned to Ukraine for the summer. Olga had walked to the grocery store nearby and while she was out I decided to check my Email and there it was, My acceptance for publication. I looked out the window and saw Olga returning from the store. I was so excited to get to share the news with her that I ran outside to meet her. I believe skipping and jumping may be a more accurate description. Keep in mind that this is a large apartment complex with well more than a 100 apartments visible to my antics. This is not counting all of the people who were outside in the vicinity. I wonder how many of them saw me and wondered what in the world was wrong with me?
Q: Website (s):
A: http://thomascalmond.webs.com/
Q: Please share with us your E-mail Address:
A: forest55trees.yahoo.com
Q: Please share with us any blogs that you might have:
A: I have blogs on my website and Authors Den.
Interview done by Theodocia McLean
Owner of Books In Sync
