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1. How did you get started writing?
I was always interested in writing as an outlet and avocation. Creativity ran in the family. My mother was a painter who did not confine her creativity to paintings. My father was an engineer who held patents on numerous inventions. Halloween costumes in our family extravaganzas.
Art was one of my strengths, but to me, a piece of art just couldn't send complex messages to a wide audience.
While I was training in Coronado, California I signed up for the Famous Writers Correspondence course. I took several assignments with me to Vietnam. Those assignments inspired me to write and sell magazine short stories.
My best story, a mystery, brought me a book offer from a magazine's publisher that also published a line of books. Sadly, I'd just finished my four years in the active duty Navy, and I was about to enter law school, an all-consuming undertaking. I had to decline. Long before I'd been warned, "write books, but never quit your day job."
Later, I published my first novel. My first agents were Julie Fallowfield, and then Julian Bach, both made good but unsuccessful tries. The publishing industry's fiction division had not heard of SEALs, or in all probability, Solzhenitsyn. I finally sold it over the transom. At that point, I had the confidence to continue writing in fits and starts.
2. Who or what has been the biggest influence on your writing career?
Authors: Kenneth Roberts, C. S. Forester, James Clavell, Eric Ambler, James Michener.
3. Let's discuss your book The Abalone Ukulele. How long did it take you to write?
The brunt of it — the skeletal plot and climactic scenes (20%) — about two years; the optimum sequencing, dialogue, characterizations, cover, maps, and polish (80%) about another twelve years.
What was the research like for this historical fiction?
Historical non-fiction writer, Joseph A. Williams, whose work I admire, has described The Abalone Ukulele, as "immersive."
Looking back at my novels, I fully read about three books for every ten pages of text in each of my three books. Only a small part of that reading was for particular detail, I wanted to live in the period, feel the locale, and understand the people. Whether or not I published the book, I would "live" the adventure. I would have immersed myself in the adventure.
4. The book takes place in 1913. Why did you decide on this time period?
The year 1913 was one of the best of times and one of the worst of times. It was the end of the Gilded Age, the Belle Epoque, the Roaring 1890s, and the US Naval Rennaissance. It was the last year of a period of great advances in science, manufacturing, literacy, and upward mobility. It seemed the world was one great World's Fair and getting better and better in a way that would never end. The year 1914 marked the beginning of the Great War and that left a dark legacy that would not end until 1945.
One reason I like the early 20th Century was that by then regular sailors, not just officers, kept journals. I could write comfortably from still another point of view.
5. The reviewer praises the descriptions of locations. How did you make the multiple places come to life?
One other reason I picked the early 20th Century, was I could find photos of scenes I could use, and mentally colorize.
6. There are several important characters in the book. Which one is your favorite? Which one do you most relate to?
I can't play favorites with my ensemble; they each supply a viewpoint. Ultimately, this is a series about war/naval/intelligence and foreign cultures. I cannot write these mysteries/histories from a single viewpoint. My story must be woven like braided rope.
7. Is there a main point in the book — something you want readers to learn or remember?
My undergraduate degree was in history/sociology. "Sociology" has nothing to do with socialism. It is the study of diverse cultures. Pick out what social institutions they cobble together to preserve their values and keep themselves fed, sheltered, and safe.
All people are interesting.
8. What's next for you? Are you currently working on any books?
Yes, one that takes place in 1914. The Great War has just begun. The US will not participate for another three years.
Or will it?
Hobson and Draper will stay active. They will be spending more time at sea.
Did Clementine survive, and if so, what is in store for her?
If enough readers buy The Abalone Ukulele and give it a favorable review, I will make sure she lives to capture readers' affection at least one more book, maybe more. Extra points for paperback sales and book club discussions.
Enough enthusiastic sales and she'll be the next Skookum Yi.
I like to end with fun questions.
9. What is your favorite book?
Depends on the day and my mood. Same for favorite piece of music. Probably Northwest Passage by Kenneth Roberts had the greatest influence on my life.
10. Would you rather read only one book over again forever or never be able to reread another book?
Too depressing an eventuality to consider.
11. Which holiday is your favorite and why?
The Fourth of July. I'm a Yankee Doodle Dandy, born in the Connecticut hometown of the pre-Revolutionary soldier who inspired the Connecticut State Anthem.
I'm sort of a George M. Cohan Yankee Doodle, figuratively born on the Fourth of July. My father was an Army Air Force captain, and my mother was a nurse with the La Croix Rouge Française. They met in Casablanca during WWII though not at Rick's Cafe. One of my mother's family often refers to the Greatest Party in the History of the World. It was when the Americans marched through Casablanca, and bonbons and champagne were everywhere.
12, What animal do you most want to be and why?
Homo Sapiens. We have opposing thumbs so we can climb rope and swing below monkey bars, and index fingers so we can write and turn pages. We can express complicated thoughts verbally and in print. We can travel and see more different things in different environments than any other animal.
