What is your name, where were you born and
where do you live now?
“Gerald
Simpkins. I was born in the Midwestern
USA and now I live in the Southeastern USA.”
Did you always want to
be a writer? If not what did you want to be?
“No. I wanted to be an architect but a cranky
mechanical drawing teacher in the 8th grade influenced me negatively
so that I eventually ended up pursuing a career in telecommunications.”
When did you first
consider yourself as a "writer"?
“I am
not certain that I have yet earned that distinction, but I am hopeful based on
reviews so far. I am a work in
progress. I did start my first novel in
Feb. 2012, but I had previously written a book about the Bible Codes in 1998,
also self-published. (‘Secrets of the Bible’)
Did it take a long time
to get your first book published?
“No. I self-published and it took maybe 2 months
to do it because I knew absolutely nothing about it or even how to use
Microsoft Word. I was helped along by a
good friend, author Joe Perrone Jr.”
Do you work another job as well as your
writing work?
“No. If I was still working however, I would not
quit to pursue writing novels.”
What is the name of your
latest book, and if you had to summarise it in less than 20 words what would
you say?
“’Forever Young Irina’. A 17- year old girl who is mercilessly bullied
overcomes the greatest odds even as her world is turned upside down.’
Who is your publisher? or do
you self publish?
“I am
self-published.”
How long does it usually
take you to write a book, from the original idea to finishing writing it?
“I
wrote all three of my novels in under 3 months each. The most current one, ‘Forever Young Irina’
took maybe 4 weeks, however when I write, I do so full time, sometimes for
10-12 hours at a time.”
Which of your books were
easier/harder to write than the others?
“My 2nd
one, ‘Forever Young Birth Of A Nation’ required the most research being as it
was set in the time of the American war for independence. I worked diligently to weave the story into
the events of that period and I strove for accuracy regarding dates and most
events. I enjoyed the experience being
as that is a favorite topic and I do wish that more fine quality movies would
be made about that period. By contrast,
my most current one ‘Forever Young Irina’ only required me to research the
Seattle, Washington area, geography, and demographics, so it was easiest and it
was under half the length of my first two novels.”
What can we expect from
you in the future? i.e. More books of
the same genre? Books of a different genre?
“I am
at a place now where I am considering a genre switch. I have not decided on one yet though. I planned to wait until this Autumn to resume
writing simply because I have allowed some things to go undone at our home
while writing my first three novels.”
Do you have plans for a
new book? Is this book part of a series?
“If I
continue in the vampire genre, I would like to write a sequel to ‘Forever Young
Irina’ and pick up where that one ended.
And if I stay in that genre, I would also like to write the sequel to
‘Forever Young Birth of a Nation’. It
would take place in France during the French revolution and the rise of the
dictator Napoleon Bonaparte.”
What genre would you place your books into?
“Vampire
action-adventure paranormal romance.”
What made you decide to
write that genre of book?
“Believe
it or not, I had seen a disappointing vampire movie on TV about two years ago, and
I had been mulling over two genres and had two stories bouncing around in my
thoughts at times. I don’t know why. I surely had no notion of writing a book. I visualized both characters and parts of
their stories as if they were screenplays, and not works of literature. When I saw that bad vampire movie, it pushed
me to dwell on my vampire character more than my adventurer in the old American
West. I thought that the genre could be
better expressed than what I was seeing in movies and better than the one book
in that genre that I had read. At that
point it occurred to me to write my version of a compelling vampire novel since
it was a sure thing that I was not going to produce a movie.”
Do you have a favourite
out of the books you have written? If so why is it your favourite?
“No. If I have a favorite, it is always the current
book that I am writing.”
Do you have a favourite
character from your books? and why are they your favourite?
“Yes. His life is one of such great contrasts and
such high adventure.”
If you had to choose to
be one of your characters in your book/books which would you be? and why?
“I
suppose I would be the vampire Ian McCloud simply because of the rich texture
of his life and the absolutely incredible adventure his life is.”
How long have you been
writing? And who or what inspired you to
write?
“I
have been writing novels for one year and one month and it was a poorly done
movie, as well as a depressing book of that genre that motivated me.”
Where do you get your
book plot ideas from? What/Who is your
inspiration?
“I truly
have no idea where the ideas come from.
But I will say that if I get a case of writers’ block, it will not last
longer than a day or so. I do strive to
include surprises, humor, laughter, romance, rage, sorrow, and interconnected
but seemingly insignificant events in my stories.
Do you have a certain
routine you have for writing? ie You listen to music, sit in a certain chair?
“No
real routine. I may work in a silent
room or I may play classical piano music, and all work is done at my keyboard
except when I do a rewrite. At those
times I will take a paperback version of my book and sit in my recliner with
pencil and pad and make notes of needed modifications as I read my book
through.”
Do you have anybody read
your books and give you reviews before you officially release them? i.e. Your partner, children, friends,
reviewers you know?
“No. But I would take advantage of that if it was
possible to do so. However with
electronic publishing, it is easy to do rewrites as needed, so it is not nearly
as important to get reviewed as it was in the days when books were only in
paper form and the big publishers were the gatekeepers to the literary world.”
Do you gift books to
readers to do reviews?
“Yes.”
Do you read all the reviews of your
book/books?
“Yes. I am very approachable and I earnestly strive
to make my work better at all times.”
What was the
toughest/best review you have ever had?
“I
have not yet had but a dozen reviews on all three of my novels. All were excellent 5-star reviews so I am not
qualified to answer this very well. None
of these were professional reviews either, but were reader’s reviews. I value both types, but I value the reader’s
reviews most. I am certain that I will
get bad ones at some time and I will try to understand how I failed that
reviewer when that happens. It is not if
that happens, but when it happens, because I believe that if you
stay at this long enough, you will get a bad review now and then no matter how
well you write or who you are.”
Would you ever ask a
reviewer to change their review if it was not all positive about your
book/books?
“No. I believe that in the literary world you have
to take the bad with the good. But I
would ask any reviewer to be honest and not biased against me or the genre
itself.”
How do you come up with
the Title and Cover Designs for your book/books? Who designed the Cover of your books?
“I
chose the series title ‘Forever Young’ because in my novels, vampires never
physically age but are frozen in time so to speak regarding their appearance.”
“I
designed my first cover and believe it or not, the original model was done
using a pair of scissors, paste, construction paper, and fingernail polish for
the blood pool! After getting that first
one scanned into my flash drive at a copy shop, I took that e-file home and
reworked it in Windows Paint to get my cover.
Being a novice, I didn’t want to buy Adobe Photoshop due to the cost and
also due to the learning curve associated with it. At that time, I was learning how to use
Microsoft Word and then I knew that I was going to have to learn how to
self-publish. So I elected for a simple
but striking cover to keep my projects simpler.’
Do you choose a title
first, or write the book then choose the title?
“I
have always had the title before I ever started writing the story, and even
before doing an outline.”
How do you come up with
characters names and place names in your books?
“I
pay attention to nationality because my first book was set in France in the
latter part of the 1700’s. So I used
links to sites which featured German, French, Swiss, Spanish, Dutch, and
English names. I had to bone up on the
various rulers at these times and the types of government in these various
countries so that I did not make an embarrassing narrative mistake.”
“Regarding
names of places If they are real places I strive to get that as accurate as
possible and if not I just make it up as I go, such as institutions, etc. In my current book, I looked up universities,
neighborhoods, and other places in the greater Seattle area to remain accurate
about that aspect of my novel. But at the same time names of actual
businesses were all fictitious for not wanting to harm a business in some
unforeseen way. I paid attention to
local geography and the names of various bodies of water, etc. as well as where
airports and highways are and their names as well.”
Are character names and
place names decided after their creation? or do you pick a character/place name
and then invent them?
I
pick the character first and all of their characteristics and then I assign a
name.”
Do you decide on
character traits (i.e. shy, quiet, tomboy girl) before writing the whole book
or as you go along?
Except
for the main characters, I assign characteristics as I go along.”
Do you basic plot/plan
for your book, before you actually begin writing it out? Or do you let the writing flow and see where
it takes the story?
“I
only have the barest outline/idea before starting. If I do an outline it is less than a page
long. It seems to come to me easily as I
write.”
How do you market/promote
your books?
I
know nothing about that other than to appear on blog sites and to use tools
such as Google ad-words. However, being
an unknown I have elected to make my first novel, ‘Forever Young The Beginning’
a free book in the hope that it will help me to reach readers who might like my
work.”
What do you think makes a book
a really good/bestseller?
“Universal
appeal to a large block of readers>”
Have you ever suffered
from a "writer's block"? What
did you do to get past the "block"?
“I
have experienced that once in each of my three novels. Each time it lasted only a day or so. I literally will walk away from the keyboard
and I will keep a pencil and pad nearby at all times and will begin by writing
down where I am. Then I will pick
several different directions to go and I literally make a stick diagram and
pencil in ideas along each ‘branch’ as they occurs to me. No idea no matter how unlikely fails to be
written down. Even if it is totally
unfitting for the story, it might lead me to a thought that could be a real gem.
What do you do to unwind
and relax? Do you have a hobby?
“I
write to unwind and relax because I love it.
However I do raise chickens for our eggs, and I have a sizable vegetable
garden. I do weld and I also take care
of all of our automobile maintenance in my shop.”
Have you ever based
characters on people you know or based events on things that have happened to
you?
“No. Sometimes my personal feelings may dictate
what a character feels.”
Are there any hidden
messages or morals contained in your books? (Morals as in like Aesops Fables
type of "The moral of this story is..")
“Yes. It is that good things can come from horrible
beginnings.”
Is there a certain
Author that influenced you in writing?
“Not
that I am aware of.”
Which format of book do
you prefer, ebook, hardback, or paperback?
“I
would rather read a hardback book any day.”
What is your favourite
book and Why? Have you read it more than
once?
“The
Godfather because it is so compelling. I
could see myself being drawn to that life if I was a poor immigrant youth at
the turn of the century in New York City.
I never read books more than once, excepting my own to improve them.
Do you think books
transfer to movies well? Which is you favourite/worst book to movie transfer?
My
favorite is ‘The Godfather’ and next to that is ‘Last of the Mohicans’.
What are you currently
reading? Are you enjoying it? What format is it?(ebook, hardback or
paperback)
“I am
not currently reading anything, and truth be told, I have little time for that
if I am writing, publishing, and promoting along with my daily chores at home. I still love to curl up with a good book
though, especially during a rainy spell when I won’t feel guilty about the
chores I am neglecting.”
Do you think ebooks will
ever totally replace printed books?
“No.”
Do you think children at
schools these days are encouraged enough to read? and/or do Imaginative
writing?
“In
America they are not taught to read well at all today. Our literacy rate/capita has plummeted
non-stop during my lifetime. No nation
on earth spends more on education per capita and gets less than America. I don’t know if they are taught or encouraged
to do creative writing in schools here.”
Did you read a lot at
school and write lots of stories or is being a writer something newer in your
life?
“I
read a lot as a kid but I never once tried to write a story.”
Did you have a favourite
author as a child?
“Oh
my, yes! James Fenimore Cooper, Mark
Twain, Daniel Defoe, Herman Melville, and Jack London just to name a few.”
Do you have a treasured
book from your childhood? If yes, what is it?
“Regrettably,
no.”
Do you have a favourite genre of book?
“My
favorite book is the Bible, but my favorite genre would be
action-adventure-thriller and paranormal can be in that mix as well.”
Is there a book you know
you will never read? Or one you tried to
read but just couldn't finish?
“No.”
Are there any New
Authors you are interested in for us to watch out for? and Why should we watch
out for them?
“Joe
Perrone Jr. and J. Helen Elza come to mind.
Both have a fresh approach to their work.”
Is there anything in
your book/books you would change now if you could and what would it be?
“No. I wanted to introduce a vampire clan to my
readers in my first book. In this one,
Forever Young Irina, I wanted to introduce the clan to YA readers and show what
a few of this clan are doing in the 21st century as well as how a
young girl’s life was dramatically affected by them.”
What do you think about
book trailers?
“A
great tool and I wish I knew how to put one together and upload it.”
What
piece of advice would you give to a new writer?
“Be persistent and read as much as possible. Be flexible and willing to adapt to the
changing landscape of publishing as well as to constructive criticism. Do be diligent regarding research of your
chosen genre. Go to blog sites and
determine the target readership for your work.
Do not allow yourself to become discouraged.”
Do
you or would you ever use a pen name?
“No.”
If you could invite
three favourite writers to dinner, who would you invite and enjoy chatting
with?
“Mark
Twain, Jack London, and Tom Clancy.”
Where can readers follow
you?
Your Facebook Page?
Your Goodreads Author Page?
Your Twitter Details?
Authors Den?
Smashwords?
Amazon?
And any other
information you wish to supply?
“Thank
you for the opportunity to appear on your blog site. I am very approachable and I consider myself
to be a work in progress. To any reader
I would say thank you for spending your time and money to read my work. Do not hesitate to tell me ways that I can
make your reading pleasure better. I
welcome any constructive criticism.”
Thank you for the care and attention you have given whilst doing my Author Interview. I wish you well for this book and those in the future too. I look forward to reading Forever Young.
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