Category: A Writer’s Take……

My Interview with best-selling author, Raymond Benson (part 3).  It’s always a thrill for me when busy, well-known authors are so generous with their answers that I must serialize the interview.  Don’t miss Part 1 or 2.

Q. and the all important: What does the process of going from “no book” to “finished book” look like? 

A. There is no set in stone process that writers should follow except the process they fashion themselves—the process that works for them. As I said (see Part 2), I happen to outline, it’s part of my process. I know writers who don’t outline, and that’s part of their processes. Everyone is different. That said, you do have to develop a process, and it must be a productive one, for the most important thing about writing a finished book is to indeed finish it.

Q. Where/when do you first discover your characters ?

A. My books tend to be plot-driven—I think of the storyline before I cast it with characters. They develop with the story, usually. This hasn’t always been the case. With The Black Stiletto, the character came first. My literary manager and I were having lunch one day, and he advised me to create something women would like, since the vast majority of book-buyers were women. I facetiously suggested creating a female superhero, and we laughed for a minute. And then he said, “You know, that’s not a bad idea.” At the same time, I already had a story brewing in my mind about a grown man who discovers some dark secret about his dying mother (who has Alzheimer’s). I didn’t know what that secret was yet. Continue reading “‘What does No Book to Finished book Look Like? Part 3 with Raymond Benson, Author”