Author: TOM DAVID

Author’s website address: www.tomdavidbooks.com

Books in Print: Kory’s Lot: The Other Battle of Antietam

Books in Process: Zephyr: Journey to Antietam, Flight from Antietam

Welcome, Tom.

1. When and why did you begin writing?
I began writing my debut, Kory’s Lot, in the summer of 2005. The story had been in the back of my mind for several years, and the time had come to get it out.

2. What inspired you to write your first book?
Oddly enough, I seriously considered putting my story on paper when my friend, a general contractor, started to build my home. I was intrigued by the process of all the layers, all the pieces, coming together to result in a wonderful, finished product. That product was something very tangible and something that would be around for a very, very long time. As a Financial Advisor, there is not that single, tangible ‘thing’ that is created and left behind. I decided my story, in the form of a book, could be that something. My decision that others could benefit from a story of this nature was the clincher, and I began to write.

3. How did you approach writing your first book?
Aggressively. I sat down and started to hammer it out, and didn’t stop until it was done…many months later. Yes, there were some late evenings when my wife had to force me and my bloodshot eyes away from the computer.

4. Who or what influenced your writing?
The fantasy characters of Anne Rice stuck with me long after I read her books. She is able to breathe life into pages like no one else.

5. Why do you continue to write?
Creating life, characters, and falling in love with them or hating them is a process that overwhelmed me, and I can’t get enough of it. There’s also great satisfaction when a reader ‘feels’ what I have written, and takes something away with him or her.

6. What do you hope to accomplish through your writing?
My intent is to entertain with big, bold characters, and while doing so introduce elements of real life that often go unnoticed to many in the mainstream. The simple concept of a father/son relationship is one of those areas. Breast cancer is another such area. Zephyr: Journey to Antietam opens with Zephyr racing, horse top, against time to get to his wife’s side before she dies. So here we deal with a man losing his wife of 42 two years in the year 1874 when conceptually breast cancer is not what it is today. For me, doing this successfully will mean keeping these themes in the background while the characters move forward and touch the readers in different areas. Based on early reader feedback, I’ve done that successfully in Kory’s Lot.

7. What has been your experience as a published writer?
It’s been fun, and it’s been scary. Pouring yourself out on paper and then handing the result to someone to praise or damn can be pretty unnerving. It has definitely been worth it.

8. How do you promote your book(s)?
My wife is, uh, aggressive. She has been responsible for many more book sales than I. She has us in a handful of local businesses and bookstores. We have lots of posters up locally. Business cards, a website, signings and the other regular stuff are used.

9. What advice would you like to share with other writers?
Go for it. It’s worth it. Pick your project, stay focused, write often and finish it. Once finished, consider non-bookstore retailers. After the local Borders finishes inventory this week, we’ll be available there, but we have sold more books through non-traditional book retailers such as restaurants, delis, thrift/gift shops, and yes, even gas stations. Most small business owners tend to be supportive; especially when working a consignment deal where they’re getting inventory for free until something is sold and replaced with new product.

10. Any other comments you would like to add?
Good luck all….

Thanks Tom.

Interviewer: Kaye Trout - May 8, 2006 - Copyright