Interview with Ronald Vincent
Published 2019-06-26.
What inspires you to get out of bed each day?
I cannot wait to discover what the story will reveal. Every book, every story is a sculpture fleshed out on paper. Writing is chipping away at the layers to find the truth in the character's words, their actions, and their depths.
When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
Reading. And then reading more. Among my favorite poets are Auden, Yeats, Keats, Shakespeare, Ignatow, Lorde, Ortiz, and Donne. Among my favorite writers are Stephen King, J.R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Will Cuppy, Lawrence Gonzales, Mark Lewis, Walter Isaacson, James Santiago Baca, and Arthur C. Clarke.
How do you discover the ebooks you read?
Suggestions from friends and constantly skimming reviews.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
Won a writing contest in high school when the world was young. The school published it in the school anthology. I still have it and read it every few years to remember those evergreen days.
What is your writing process?
I begin with an outline of twenty handwritten pages with notes scribbled in the margins. I set that aside then review it a week later and rework it again. I must have the beginning and the middle and the end before I start the novel. While writing another character will intrude, knock on a door, interrupt a murder, fall on the floor, and add a richness and depth to the story that I did not foresee. When I type the last word into the last paragraph on the last page, I set the story aside for a week, perhaps two before reading it aloud in several sittings. I always find things to fix, ideas to refine, sentences to rephrase, and often pages to delete.
Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?
The Bremen Town Musicians by the Brothers Grimm. The story where neglected animals outsmarted crooks glowed like a diamond.
How do you approach cover design?
I am blessed to know talented writers who introduced me to gifted cover artists. I treasure simplicity in a cover and visual impact. An image will pop into my consciousness and the artist will perfect it.
What are your five favorite books, and why?
The Tolkien Trilogy, The Complete Poems of W.B. Yeats, The Decline and Fall of Practically Everybody by Will Cuppy, The Stand by Stephen King, Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales.
What do you read for pleasure?
I believe a writer can never read too much or in too many genres. I am an omnivore. I read histories of every era from ancient civilizations to the twentieth century, books on cosmology and astronomy, epidemiology, military campaigns, spy novels. murder mysteries, biographies, and poetry.
What is your e-reading device of choice?
Kindle
What book marketing techniques have been most effective for you?
Facebook ads
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