About Gary Walters:
Gary Walters works full time in the hospitality industry and he is a business school graduate from an accredited university. An avid reader, The Thorns Beneath the Rose is his first novel and the first in a planned trilogy.
What inspires you to write?
I have always loved “Big Picture” historical fiction, be it straight forward, think “War and Peace” or “All Quiet on the Western Front” or more oblique and satirical, think “Catch 22” or “Slaughterhouse-Five”. But having been a fan of such work, the idea of writing a “Big Work” myself was intimidating to the point of catatonia. A few years ago, however, after having read several books on creative writing, I decided to give it a go. Like anyone with an interest in current issues and events, I could not escape the current debate on climate change with all its intendant perils. Furthermore, the emerging debate on technological change further complicates our future, with fears for our material future as many dread a massive dislocation of the middle and working-class due to the possible loss of many jobs to automation. Even before the rise of reactionary political forces that have capitalized on such economic worries, to the point of reversing gains made on the environmental front, I began to read books and watch documentaries discussing the possible direction of society given these pressures.
My novel follows the lives of five young people who, having just completed their formal education, have chosen paths that may benefit them personally, but may or may not make a positive contribution to the world that they live in.
My primary goals with this work of Urban Fantasy fiction are, of course, to entertain my readers, and to pad my bank account, let’s be honest. However, if I can, in some small way, remind readers of “The Thorns Beneath the Rose”, of our collective challenges that are threatening our very existence and the individual contributions we can each make to insure our survival, then I think the whole exercise will have been worth it.
Reading the novel, I hope my readers will additionally become aware of the fact that the five main characters, though they may have different perspectives and life-goals, are all quite accepting of one other as worthwhile human beings deserving respect and affection. This group, comprised of two straight white men, one straight white woman, one gay white woman and one gay black woman accept each other for who they are. My point is that at a time when we are facing massive environmental and technological challenges, we should eliminate the pernicious noise and distraction of hatred of “the other”.
My almost-all-knowing, almost-all-seeing gods are a metaphor for the eyes and ears of various intelligence monitoring/gathering agencies around the world who see all, or rather, presume they see all, given the mistaken assumptions often made based on the viewing of massive amount of raw data.
Though the action of my first novel takes place in the United States, I can assure my fellow Canadian readers that some of the action in the second novel and perhaps in third, will take place in The Great White North.
Tell us about your writing process.
I would say that a lifetime of reading books (both fiction and non-fiction), magazines, watching or listening to documentaries and current event programs has helped to form the basis of my story.
What advice would you give other writers?
I would heartily recommend goods books on creative writing such as Sol Stein’s “Stein on Writing” as well as his “How to Grow a Novel”, especially if good creative writing classes are not available in your locale. Additionally, Keidi Keating has a wonderful and free E-Book “7 Steps to Writing Your Book & Getting It Published” available for download at her www.yourbookangel.com website which combine principles of meditation with practical steps for writing an publication for emerging authors. Of course, one should read a wide variety of fiction, but I personally find that reading as much non-fiction, on a broad variety of subjects is also quite useful and can provide you with a creative “spark”.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
Amazon in both paperback and e-book format for Kindle and any electronic device that can download the free Kindle reading app available on Amazon.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
It is often said, “write what you know”. I would say, “write what interests you and if you are unsure of your ideas or subject, research, research, research!
What do you use?: Professional Editor, Professional Cover Designer
What genres do you write?: romance, literary fiction, memoirs, biographies
What formats are your books in?: Print
Website(s)
Gary Walters Home Page Link
Link To Gary Walters Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
Facebook
Twitter
All information in this post is presented “as is” supplied by the author. We don’t edit to allow you the reader to hear the author in their own voice.
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