Interview with R. B. Wood

I had the good fortune of being invited by fellow writer and now publushed author R. B. Wood to participate in his Magical Mystery Blog tour promoting his new book, The Prodigal's Foole. It's a fantastic read, and is being released on October 31st! Below is my interview with him, followed by the book trailer and some links for you to pick up the book. And do so, because it's worth it.






I see that the Prodigal’s Foole is written in 1^st person. What made you decide to write in that perspective? 

When I developed the Character of Symon Bryson, I realized pretty quickly that TPF and the entire series needed to be seen from his perspective. 

I’m always curious what other author’s writing process looks like. Care to share yours with my readers and I?

Oh dear.  There is a phrase in US politics I like to use…”You never want to see the sausage being made.” J I build a large arc, the top of which is the ‘climax scene’ and fill in scenes leading to it that tell the story I want.  There is research and a lot of thinking and throwing away of ideas.  I have a general map of where I want to go, but a full outline I find too restricting as sometimes the stories take my in interesting directions and I like to explore those paths.

What was it like working on Prodigal’s Foole with a professional editor, as opposed to working with friends and relatives?

Well, I’m a little lucky in this, as my brother is a phenomenal editor.  He has a wicked red pen, and I’m sure was even more facetious and vicious because it was ‘his little brother.’  That being said, we had GREAT discussions, and collaborations.  A good editor who will work with an author is critical, in my opinion.

Were any suggestions made to you by either your editor or publisher that you were reluctant to incorporate?

 Yep.  Some battles I lost, others I won. 

What criteria did you look for when deciding which agents or publishers to query? 

I looked at agents and publishers (big and small) who represent and publish works similar to mine.  Research is key—and social media helped me to find my way as well.

What made you decide to go with a small publisher like PfoxChase? 

I adore Diane nelson.  She’s funny, harsh, supportive and walks with a big stick if she needs to.  I went indie, specifically because the industry is changing SO quickly, I firmly believe that a cadre of good authors with a small press can really take advantage of the uncertainty in the marketplace.

Are you working on something new now?

Yes…a few things.  Book Two of the Arcana Chronicles.  A SciFi Trillogy and a Comic book series in collaboration with a dear friend and auther from Australia.

Have you ever done NaNoWriMo? How many times? What was it like for you?

Once.  Insane.  I wrote a humongous piece of garbage that had one, maybe two good scenes.  I’ll use them elsewhere in some form.

In addition to writing novels and stories, you also run a fantastic podcast that features other artists, called the Word Count. How do you balance time between writing and the podcast? (The Word Count Podcast can be found here: http://itunes.apple.com/podcast/the-word-count/id392550989 )

Ask my partner..I really don’t do it well.  She keeps me on track.

Do you have stories stuffed in the back of the virtual drawer that will never see the light of day?

Oh GOD yes.  That reminds me…I need to burn those.

Like myself, you’re a regular in #5MinuteFiction. What do you like about it that keeps you coming back? 

Well, I haven’t done it in a while….life has been getting in the way.  BUT I’ll be a judge in an upcoming #5MF, so looking forward to that.  Leah is a dear friend, my crit partner and my sounding board on stories, so not only is it a GREAT way to play with short fiction, but it’s run by someone who is extraordinarily talented herself.  Total win in my book.

Have you always considered yourself to be a writer, or was there a time in your life when you decided that is what you were? 

I’ve always loved stories.  I don’t consider myself a writer…more of a storyteller with a word processor.

Do you have a blog? How do you use it?

www.rbwood.com  I use it it to promote other writers, the podcast, for random musings I want to jot down and eventually to hawk my swag! ;-)

What social media do you use? Do you combine your personal and professional or keep them separate? 

I’m a technology consultant by day, so I  keep that very separate from my writer life…or as separate as possible.  I do have a fan page on Facebook and will eventually transfer all the ‘writer folk’ over to that page and leave my personal page for family and close friends.

Eventually.

What is your favorite electronic or digital writing tool?

My Macbook Pro.  I use Word, Write Skrivner and other tools on the system to help me write.

What is your favorite non-electronic writing tool?

Honestly?  My brain.  There is nothing like taking time away from the keyboard to think. 

What is the most persistent distraction from writing?

My day job.  There is nothing like a ‘9 to 5’ gig in the IT world.

What is your ideal writing environment? Have you ever been able to create it?

GREAT question…I write when and where I can.  I never thought about an ideal environment before.  I’ll get back to you on that one.

Do you think that having a book published now will make you more confident in sending out queries in the future?

I don’t think it will have much of an impact.  If you don’t grow a thick skin quickly, this industry will eat you up.  After the 12^th rejection, you really just move on to the next query.

What advice would you offer to new writers out there? 

Read as much as you can.  LISTEN as much as you can.  Get involved with social media because there are millions of authors out there willing and able to give you advice.

Here's the book trailer.

The book can be purchased on October 31st at the following locations:

Smashwords		http://bit.ly/pN6RbN
Amazon Kindle US		http://amzn.to/n1GyEN
Amazon Kindle UK		http://amzn.to/rayVih
OmniLit		http://bit.ly/p5sxyH
ManicReader		http://bit.ly/ndyToU
Amazon PAPERBACK		http://amzn.to/pSFhpW