Author Bio:
My name is Heath Buckley and I have written for as long as I can remember. I was born in 1968 and creative writing started in childhood with a love for words and literature and grew into a profession – I was a journalist for many years winning several awards for my work on various UK magazines.
As I grew and my interests expanded into politics and current affairs, both in the United Kingdom and abroad, then so did the subject of my writing. I write the kind of books that I like to read – fast paced thrillers that have both a familiar British and personal characteristic and an international perspective. I write books with strong characters immersed in bold storylines and they are, as far as it is possible to do so when writing fiction, based in reality.
It is said that everybody has at least one book in them, one conscious string of imagination and creativity that can be translated into words and sentences and paragraphs with characters and a story – I have a lot more than one and I look forward to readers finding them on this platform.
I live in London, one of the most dynamic cities in the world and a location famous across the world. I use it all the time in my books and I love it.
What inspires you to write?
What inspires anyone to write? It is an idea, something read in a newspaper or magazine or something seen on TV or on the street that triggers an emotion that leads to a character that then leads to a story. I love writing, it brings me a lot of personal satisfaction. I have so many ideas bouncing about all the time that sometimes I have to make a conscious decision about which one to pursue – you can’t write half a dozen books at the same time.
Tell us about your writing process.
I am not the fastest writer in the world. The Love Spell probably took almost a year to write and Virus was a stop-start project over a very long period of time. When I am writing a book, however, then I can pretty much do it anywhere. Sky Drive allows you to upload text and add/alter it from any computer which is great but most of the time I use my laptop. I always have the story line written from beginning to end so that I can keep a hold on where the story is going. I find otherwise that it is easy to write yourself into a creative corner that could take a lot of rewriting to back out of. As I am writing the story I also put in chunks of dialogue that come to me on the way. When I have finished the storyline then I print it out and have it with me for reference. Of course it might change, but not fundamentally. It is the foundation for the novel. Oh, and one last thing, always have your book proof read by somebody else. The worst proof reader is you. Let someone that you trust cast a detached and critical eye over the manuscript. It will pay dividends when you publish.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I have so many books in me that if I were to interact with all those characters then I would probably go insane! I do hear my characters voices but I don’t talk to them. I always have one or two bouncing around in my head at one time. At the moment, though, I am writing the second part of The Love Spell. I really love the characters so much that about three quarters of the way through the first book I decided that they had to have another outing so I purposefully wrote an ending that invited a revisit. At the same time I am writing the story line to a science thriller that will be set on the South Pole. There is also a time travel story that keeps coming back to me and which I did actually start to write before it all became too complicated and I had to take a step back from it. And also there is a sequel to Virus that I am currently plotting. Did I write ‘one or two ideas?’ I meant two or three and they keep coming, triggered by something that I have seen or read. It only takes two words to get an idea going – “what if.” I hope that is something that I never get bored of saying!
What advice would you give other writers?
Be original, be brave and write with passion. Remember that everyone has at least one story in them. Also, the old adage that you should write what you know about is a misnomer in my opinion. I have never written what I know about; the research is one of the best bits about writing. Be aware also that writing a novel takes time, so be sure that you can set aside the solitude that you will need – to many interruptions are not conducive to productive prose. As I have written above, plan your story properly before beginning, make sure that you have your conflict element in place and that the story flows from beginning to end. This probably sounds like common sense but it will all help your book to be more readable. Also, don’t forget to get it proof read.
The best advice really is to just get on and do it. When I published my first book – Virus – I had an article written about me in the company magazine. It was surprising how many colleagues came to me and told me that they were aspiring writers. Would I read their work? They asked. Of course I would when it was finished. I have not read a word of any of their manuscripts because they have never finished them. I guess what I am saying is that it takes focus and dedication to produce 70,000 words or more. So be ready for the journey.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I went down the road of traditional publishing for several of my books and was not successful. That is not to say that I would not try it again. I guess that platforms such as Kindle make it easy for anyone to publish irrespective of their talent. In the world of Amazon it is the market that decides and I have had great success with my novel Virus. I am hoping that The Love Spell does as well.
If you are a new author then the internet allows you to try out your book and your writing style and real people will review it and tell you what they think. If you then decide to go down the traditional publishing route then at least you will have had feedback from the public that matter the most to you – the readers.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
The future is just great for writers. There are now so many avenues for writers to pursue their ambition of having their work published and read. The eBook and the paperback are both alive and well and long let them both survive.
What genres do you write?
Adventure, Drama, and humor.
What formats are your books in?
eBook
Website(s)
Link To Author Page On Amazon
Your Social Media Links
http://www.facebook.com/heath.buckley.98
http://twitter.com/HeathBuckley
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