Interview with Matthew B. Thompson

Published 2015-01-22.
What do your fans mean to you?
It's a really big deal. Having fans means that people like what I'm doing.
Who are your favorite authors?
Frank Herbert
Michael Crichton
J.R.R. Tolkein
What inspires you to get out of bed each day?
I don't think of sleep as luxury. It's almost a necessary evil for me. I usually think, "Damn! I'd better go to sleep."
When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
LOTS of different things. I'm a stay-at-home father, so I have to take care of our child's needs. In THAT spare time I make sure clothes are clean, the house is mostly clean, any repairs are done, and oh yes ... write.
How do you discover the ebooks you read?
I browse e-books at my distributor's site, browse them online, and get some elsewhere on the Internet.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
First story ... no. First bound story ... yes.
What is your writing process?
1) I start with one idea. It might be a couple of lines or a paragraph long.
2-5) I'll research it, map it into an outline, research a bit more, and then outline it a bit more.
6 & 7) I'll follow the outline and write the basic story. There's usually SOMETHING wrong, so I'll fix it, which re-writes part of the story.
8) Edit it, paragraph by paragraph.
9) Wait 3-4 days. (It takes 3 days to get "fresh eyes.)
10) Edit again.
11) Have someone else proofread it.
12) Fix any problems (I might add tiny bits of info, too.)
13) Format (which can be a process in itself.)
14) Publish.
Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
I doubt The Itsy Bitsy Spider or Dick & Jane count, so I'll say "Treasure Island." That didn't, but "Danny Dunn: Invisible Boy" did. It shows that invisibility is nearly the same thing as a clever camouflage. I started thinking more 'out of the box.'
How do you approach cover design?
I do it myself. I have graphic design experience. I'm not an artist, though, so I'll probably let other people it.
What do you read for pleasure?
Honestly ... technical stuff: machines, the human body, deep space, or quantum mechanics. I enjoy 'understanding.'
What is your e-reading device of choice?
My computer screen, running Kindle or iBooks. I'm in my office most of the time. If I'm in the Living Room ... it's time to watch TV, not to read my iPad.
What book marketing techniques have been most effective for you?
Interviews.
Describe your desk
Papers cover most of my desk, but a large computer screen lays neatly in the center.
Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
Corpus Christi, Texas. The city didn't affect me very much, but I had several very good English teachers that encouraged me quite a bit.
When did you first start writing?
Junior high school, when there was such a thing. A couple of very good English teachers saw more in me than I saw in myself.
What's the story behind your latest book?
Which one? I'm writing three right now! The last book I published was about bigfoot hoaxes. I see a lot of things that the TV bigfooters do that don't work (or intended not to work), and the people copy them. The people probably think that it'll work for them. I tell people why it's wrong and some tips on doing it right.
How has Smashwords contributed to your success?
Smashwords has gotten my books to LOTS of markets. I'm still working on the 'success' part.
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
Explaining. All my books are plausible. There isn't just a nugget of truth in them, there's a couple of shovelfuls of truth in them.
What are you working on next?
Three right now: a sequel to my first novel, a prequel to a short story, and one segment of politics.
Smashwords Interviews are created by the profiled author or publisher.

Books by This Author

The Republic of Mars: Stage 4 (Book 2)
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 58,830. Language: English. Published: February 21, 2016 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » General, Nonfiction » Politics & Current Affairs » Activism
(5.00 from 1 review)
Book 2 - It’s 2026. The human dream of turning Mars into another Earth has gone sour. Mars becomes an overcrowded prison, and friction turns into rebellion, which turns into murder. Earth has it even worse. An alien invasion fleet massacres our people and levels our cities.
The Republic of Mars: Fifth Era (Book 1)
Price: $2.99 USD. Words: 51,790. Language: English. Published: February 17, 2016 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » General, Nonfiction » Politics & Current Affairs » Activism
1942. {From the UFO's point of view in the historical Battle of Los Angeles.) They aren't worried about the anti-aircraft fire below. They're worried about the plutonium America is making. They wanted to make contact, but they decide to wait. 2026. The UFO comes back. It parades over the entire country, evading our attacks. A computer genius that works for the White House sees something else.
Die Auster Küste von Texas
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 4,010. Language: German. Published: October 30, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » General
Innovative Denker in Texas hat dazu beigetragen, in dieser ära des Wohlstands und des Fortschritts einläuten. Je näher Menschen bekommen ein Ziel, jedes Ziel, desto mehr Mängel scheinen sie zu finden. Die Fehler kann real oder nur eingebildet sein. Das ist die dunkle Seite der Perfektion.
How To Spot A Bigfoot Hoax
Price: Free! Words: 4,760. Language: English. Published: October 29, 2014 . Categories: Nonfiction » Science & Nature » Amateur naturalist » Animals / primates
Bigfoot TV programs often show Bigfooters LOOKING for a bigfoot, but never FINDING a bigfoot. There are lots of reasons why this happens: ignorance, continuing to get paid to look for one, protecting the bigfoots, etc. Those TV programs have created a tenuous vacuum in human knowledge, and this book tries to fill that vacuum.
Wie nicht zu Big Foot finden
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 3,420. Language: German. Published: September 11, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Mystery & detective » General
Manche Leute gehen in den Wald, um Big Foot zu finden, und denken, sie WISSEN, was zu tun, aber sie tun es nicht. Es gibt nur wenige Möglichkeiten, um Big Foot finden, aber eine Menge Möglichkeiten, NICHT um ihn zu finden!.
The Oyster Coast
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 4,080. Language: American English. Published: September 10, 2014 . Categories: Fiction » Science fiction » General
The high technology of the late 21st Century has given us 300-story hyper-buildings for working, sentient robots for laboring and immaculate white sand beaches for relaxing. The closer people get a goal, any goal, the more flaws they seem to find. The flaws may be real or only imagined. That's the dark side of perfection.
How NOT To Find Bigfoot
Price: $0.99 USD. Words: 3,310. Language: American English. Published: April 26, 2013 . Categories: Fiction » Historical
Some people go out in the forest to find Bigfoot, and THINK they know what to do, but they don't. There are only a few ways to find Bigfoot, but a lot of ways NOT to find him!