Interview with Dean Davies – Author of the Anvil

Delish Fiction Creative Writing magazine was lucky enough to land an interview with Dean Davies, author of action adventure novels. the anvil. Dean has been hard at work on a sequel to his debut novel, but he was kind enough to take a few minutes off the keyboard to sit down and have a colorful and insightful chat with us.

delicious fiction: What led you to write?

dean davies: Sincerely I dont know. I have always wanted to tell stories. I wrote my first short story when I was in second grade. I wrote it on my mother’s linen-lined writing tablet. Later, I graduated to the Big Chief red tablets. The first story was about a princess who needed to be saved from a snake. Freudians would go crazy over that, especially from a second grader.

When I got good and tired of academia and teaching the great histories of the world, I stopped writing one. Those who can, do; those who teach can do it too. Writing is the hardest job you’ll ever do without lifting anything heavy.

delicious fiction: Tell us about your novel, the anvil and the main character Jake Two Feathers. Where did you come up with the ideas for them?

dean davies: My novel, The Anvil, and its main character, Jake Two Feathers, were gifts from the Muse. She was looking for real, workable concepts for novels. Once I had the concept, the appropriate character for the concept came along. I suppose it could also work the other way. The point is this: once I committed to writing, no matter how vague I was about doing it, ideas came. I believe that commitment is one of the necessary requirements for creation. Once you honestly and truly commit, the universe, the Muse, responds.

I was once asked if I use life experience in my writing. Duh. Jake is a Lakota Indian and a retired Special Forces officer. He wants to settle somewhere after years of war, sculpt and drive the stench of war out of his soul. I have Indian blood and military experience, and in my old age I have rediscovered or rediscovered an exquisite Native American spirituality that is a constant source of strength and inspiration. These elements appear in the novel and make it unique in suspense fiction.

How many novels do you read in which the hero enters a sweat lodge, not only for guidance with difficult problems, but also for strength and inspiration? I hasten to add that everything that happens in the novel is believable and based on phenomena I have personally experienced. It’s not magic. Happens. Most non-Indians never get a chance to experience it, and most Indians won’t talk openly about their spiritual experiences.

I have friends who read the novel chapter by chapter just as it was written. I have often been asked, “Where did you get that?” The answer is, “It occurred to me while I was writing.” This revelation is important; ideas do not come through the pure stream of thought. They seem to happen when the pencil is on the blank page or in the middle of a paragraph.

delicious fiction: Did your novel end up being something different from what you imagined?

dean davies: No not really. Once I had the concept, I wrote the beginning and then I wrote the ending. I always knew where I was going. However, what happened, while filling in the middle, was either a pretty complicated plot, or complicated subplots that sprung from various characters around Jake. Once I planted Jake in the garden, along with various other characters, they took root and sprouted their own stories, peripheral and somehow involved with Jake or his world.

delicious fiction: What has it been like working with your publisher, Eloquent Books?

dean davies: I only have good things to say about Eloquent Books. They sell “publishing” and books. So if you want to publish a book, try their joint venture program. Once I finished the manuscript, I quickly tired of the smug agents (it took exactly fifteen seconds for one agent to reply to an email saying “I’m not interested”), and the glacially slow response from larger publishers saying “We think you should take writing as a vocation, but… blah, blah, blah.”

Eloquent Books is not self-published. They don’t post junk that won’t sell. But for a small fee (and it is small, considering what you get), they’ll quickly and expertly produce a beautifully finished book, list it on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bowkers and others, sell it wholesale through Ingram, provide you with with a publisher’s website and help you market the book, which is the hard part. They will help you organize the book signing, give you ideas for internet marketing. My average royalty on what I trade and sell is around a dollar and a half.

So am I glad I have the editorial that I have? your bet If I had waited and not invested in myself, the manuscript would still be on the coffee table gathering dust.

delicious fiction: What things have you done to promote the anvil?

dean davies: The only question I get asked the most, about the anvilor my book of poetry, also published by Eloquent, We had our best arguments in the bathtub., is “Where can I get it?” So the fact that my publisher has already arranged for the book to be listed on Borders, Barnes & Noble, Amazon, etc., is a tremendously valuable marketing asset.

While the books may not be on store shelves, they are readily available on the Internet. In addition, the publisher sets up a “publisher website” where the books are available. In my case, it’s Eloquent Books-The Anvil and Eloquent Books-We had our best argument in the bathtub. Mine are pretty simple, but for a small fee the publisher will not only improve them, but also provide a blog.

Also, I have two other websites: The Anvil Site and DeanDavies site. I am in the process of removing one of these. Both sites link to my blog, which I consider an important element in marketing. You can keep in touch with your readers, let them get to know you a bit, and update them on what’s developing.

I also use social networking sites to “expose myself” and what I’m doing to others. It’s a great way to meet people and market your work, if appropriate. Eons.com, for example, is a boomer site that is literally swarming with writers. There is a reading group and some very ambitious people organize weekend talks. greeting

Also, I use Google Alerts to receive notifications about helpful sites where I could promote my book. (This is how I found Delish Fiction) Just google “Google Alerts” and type in the keywords. In my case, it was “action/adventure novels”, “action novels”, you understand. Google alerts you every day about the sites where the words are mentioned. Then you do the legwork, or finger work, if you will, and go for it. Market aggressively. You won’t sell fifty books at once this way, but you will sell books. I didn’t write a novel or a book of poetry to impress the girls or to give it to my mother. I want to sell a million copies. I have a long way to go, but I AM working on it. Key word: “work”.

Book Signings: I have hosted book signings all over my state. You have to be careful here. Marketing and selling your book is a business. You have to watch your expenses. The big chains are the hardest to work with due to corporate politics. Smaller bookstores are easier to work with and may allow you to bring your own books into the store, but many want a discount. You have to work with each situation differently. Don’t forget to factor in the cost of the shoddy motel room, McMystery burgers, and medicine for despair and disappointment (alcoholic beverage). No one said being Hemingway was easy.

delicious fiction: What is, or has become, your most useful writing habit?

dean davies: Sit down and write every day. It doesn’t matter if you don’t feel like it. Get up, sit in the chair and write. There’s no vacations. I’m always writing in my head. Each person, each emotion, each situation is food to satisfy the hunger to write. Pay attention. Live. Write every day.

delicious fiction: Any advice for fellow writers?

dean davies: Commit to writing. Don’t ask how you are going to earn a living, organize your schedule around the children, whether you should write in the morning or in the afternoon. Commit, the rest will come. Have some faith in yourself and your work. Has to. Write. Now.

delicious fiction: What better way to end the interview than with some good advice. Thank you, Dean, for stopping by and talking with us today. For more information on Dean Davies, visit his blog located on the Anvil Site blog. You can buy your own copy of Anvil on Amazon or directly from the publisher.