IN 2002 I listened to Peter Jackson talk about how he made movies. I find it difficult to put into words how that impacted me. It certainly changed my life. I have always been creative and a forever daydreamer. I think if I'm honest I wanted to write something he might make into a film. This hope evolved in time to creating a book that would read like watching a movie. It hasn't been easy.IN 2007 I had been writing for five years. I'd written quite a few short stories and blogged for all of that time. I was ready to write a book. But what about?
I think the concept for the first book is hardest to come by because you have no comprehension for what will make a book. In October of 2007 I saw a young girl who seemed to literally vanish from the high street. I was immediately conflicted by a compulsion to assume she would be fine and a moral need to do the right thing. I walked across the street and eventually found her stood outside a chemist. In that moment the idea for my first book was suddenly there. What if a young girl had been kidnapped and a woman witnessed the kidnapping. What if that woman had been a victim as a child?
I learned a LOT writing the first book. A LOT, because I made every mistake imaginable. After finishing the third draft I decided the biggest barrier to anyone reading my book was lobbying literary agents, so I decided to set-up my own publishing company. The goal was to provide high quality entertainment that equalled anything produced by a commercial publisher. I worked with a model, photographer, graphic artist, copy and proof editor to make that happen. I invested a lot of myself bringing it all together. I am very proud to say Chasing Innocence was published in both paperback and Kindle editions in the US and UK on January 17 2012.
One of the worst things about writing is wondering if the result of all the hard work and sweat isn't actually just a bit rubbish. It's very difficult to get honest reaction. One of the greatest moments was the first independent review by Sarah Burns of The Kindle Book Review (KBR). Sarah raved about Chasing Innocence and pointed me in the direction of KBR's Best Indie Book of 2012 competition. I entered thinking the worst would be it never got mentioned. On 1st July I got an email from KBR telling me I'd made their Semi-Finalist long-list. On September 1st the KBR founder Jeff Bennington emailed me to say I'd made the final five.
What does it mean? It's not about accolade or personal achievement, it's about feeling I must be doing something right. It gives me the self belief to continue pushing the boundaries of what I'm capable of doing and the boundaries of how a book can entertain human minds. The fact the KBR is primarily fan driven is key to this. It is VERY important to me.
There are of course four other KBR finalists who each have their own journeys to tell. I thought it would be fun to find out a little of their backgrounds and to ask them a few questions. They kindly agreed. Over the next week I'll be posting the interviews, here's the schedule. I hope you revisit and check them out.
Robert B. Lowe - Project Moses
US UK
Stephen Woodfin - Last One Chosen
US UK
Craig O. Thompson - OMAR
US UK
Kirkus MacGowan - The Fall of Billy Hitchings
US UK
1 comment:
Really enjoyed reading your interview, John. I can relate to many of your deliberations during the process of writing -- and your ultimate visualization of the end-game, as a movie. Just keep thinking Peter Jackson. We know thoughts travel. Just aim them in the right direction :)
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