Categories

All Works

Fiction

Nonfiction

Essay

Plays

Screenplays

Poetry

Discover More

Publisher Type

Interviews

Publish and Distribute with Smashwords

Community

Smashwords Interviews

Most Recent Most Popular Avg. Book Reviews Favorite Authors

Allan R. Wallace

What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
Everyone likes using an appropriate phrase to delineate a thought, occasionally I have a good one. I love it when exactly the right word appears or a perfect phrase comes together. It is like art found in an unlikely place. Sometimes others appreciate that joy of a well framed thought and quote what I've said. Heck, sometimes they even give me credit. That is also a pleasure.

"Our massively interconnected yet fiercely independent future will favor prepared (your responsibility) and adaptive (your opportunity) minds." - Allan R. Wallace

That one makes me think first of this emerging indie book marketplace, whence unto the freedoms to be acquired through robust, proof-of-work, decentralisation technologies like Bitcoin and litecoin -- and then cautiously have inexpensive or free apps like the Lightning Network layered up upon them.

There is so much more developing. Prepare for the shocks of constant iteration. Keep moving. From this point on you may want to emphasise growing your know-how over studying the contents of hesitantly evolving. special interest driven, proclaimed-what. Prepare yourself for futures where self realised wisdom and demonstrated action are more greatly rewarded than mere credentials.

"We are surrounded by easily perceived barriers that limit our achievement. Most such walls were erected using substantial appearing mists of ignorance. We need to discover and acknowledge these boundaries, and then run through them." - Allan Wallace

Have you at a distance seen a friend but as the person gets closer you realize there is small resemblance?
True deep knowedge in almost all fields contradicts the simplistic lies fed to the easily led
Try to discover where reality hides and move towards its enlivening challenges. Why not be your best?

"Public education is designed to breed layers, fryers, and broilers. You and yours are song birds capable of flight, while a deranged curriculum traps like a small cage. No singing is allowed except when required."
Allan Wallace

'Citizen' has become the punchline of officialdom’s inside jokes. Behind closed doors they are laughing at you, then they come out and pretend to care. A country's malevolent control of it's citizen-slaves reveals a core insecurity of authority losing power, individuals awakening. Unless the bureaucrat servicing industries of maths and science are your calling, you're screwed.
Therefore: Vote with your wings.
Ascend and flee to where your humanity is more respected. Do not let what you were taught or what you worry others may think determine your altitude. Celebrate your heart's desires with spontaneous song.
fly too high
for too long
gambol
Cavort!

"Did Adam have a belly button?"
Allan R. Wallace in Freedom And Responsibility

As a creative what happens before you craft your awakening book, script that emotion rousing movie, or code an immersive simulation?
Could the crafting of universes and dimensions have been like preparing to write? A back story is both the history and the mind of a story to be told. It can be discovered in what will be written. Did an author ("Mathematics is the language with which God has written the universe." Galileo Galilei) have implicit as well as explicit back-story woven into our layered worlds prior to creation's first chapter? Show don't tell motivations.

"First: free your own self."
me to me

Live ahead not behind,
crafting not replicating,
choose adventure rather than to be sure,
for much of life's joy is found in surprises
that
overtake us as we dare.
What motivated you to become an indie author?
I sought longevity and reach for written words.

Our renewing world has already changed us. It is not different this time, it is merely another painful, monumental climb up improvements. Once again governance will be reworked. More so than spouses, governments can be abusive: It's not your fault. You are valuable. Don't stay.

We live in a world with almost seven billion disregarded cultures, each unique and important. You are important.

History is relevant. Our world is changing; combining the power, sweep, destruction, and renewal from discoveries of the metal age, through the invention of the printing press, and within the still spreading industrial revolution. We have a messy history. We are stumbling along in a criminally darkened present.

Centralized too-big institutions are melting ice creams
their rate of decay is relative
all dripping slowly at first
then finally dispersing into a fine mess

Bitcoiners are this emerging era's base layer.
Bitcoin properly protected is the apex tool for family financial protection.

We are the individualist renaissance
Together you, I, and God can influence everything
We create beauty
We thrive within personal choices
Find your best and live/share it
Faith is an act.
Stay brave
Keep hope

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Hebrews 11.1

Decades ago I was asked by a publisher to write a non-fiction book on subjects I covered in my public speaking. Once the outline and some content was done I began the process for submission, then immediately stopped. The contracts and loss of expressive freedom were too oppressive.

Years later I volunteered as a beta tester for a new web-based writing platform. I found people enjoyed what I had written, and many asked for more. A few of the over one hundred entries I wrote did very well. They reached hundreds of thousands of readers, and received thousands of comments and likes. Out of millions of such pages on that site, mine about coercion-based education being inappropriate for our futures was a top ten lens for years. Many of my views have since become conventional.

I slowed crafting new articles there when interruptive advertising became pervasive and stopped when they removed some of my best work without telling me why. That site sold to another where I am allowing my few, remaining, modified pages to languish then disappear. In contrast, thanks to Smashwords and other international publishers, my books listed below will remain available unless I modify or remove them. How long will the Internet last? (read Hacker School Trilogy for a chilling prospect) Expect my short stories, novels, and non-fiction to be available even longer.

Before I stopped writing articles I began writing fiction to salve an itching desire to entertain and satisfy story lovers. I created an online book proposal for a novel about pursued hacker warriors. That book is called Complicit Simplicity based on the following observation, "Human Rights bless all through their complicit simplicity, by placing people above unjust law." - Allan R. Wallace

Complicit Simplicity = Humans > unjust rule of law

First came an exploratory chapter. Then I wanted to write another chapter, and another. We (those creative characters and myself) knew a surprise awaited us at novel's end. Those hackster heroes needed to tell their full story.

When that draft was finished I wrote a prequel (Hacktivist) and then a sequel (Abacus Brief). These stories are not a direct sequence but like Isaac Asimov's Robot stories drifted into the spread of his Foundation novels they are speculative points of one possible future. Those online manuscripts morphed into the trilogy < cyberhug.me > once rewritten and formatted for distribution. That adventurous cyberhug.me trilogy is a progression from the attacks on single hackers and whistle-blowers we have witnessed; to protean, proactive teams like Anonymous could become; to leaderless movements that will sustain gains while facing violent opposition.

Cyberhug.me readers did raise questions. Some answers can be found in three soft-apocalypse short stories, The Hacker School Trilogy, which can be downloaded here on Smashwords at no charge.

Other works followed, but like most of my life I started climbing a ladder before I knew against which wall it leaned. On Smashwords' ladder I discovered the wall was around previously hidden gardens just blossoming into independent writing. Exploring, I found open portals beckoning. Life, she is good!
Published: August 29, 2013. Read Full Interview

Sherrie Lynn

What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
Filling in my time with something productive and informative. Which could account for my writing both fiction and non-fiction. Short Stories are now popular again thanks to eBooks. It will be interesting to see the changes in the book industry unfold as a result of AI arriving on the scene. As welcome as the telephone and automobile were. As tired as I am, I'm now excited to see what it can do. Write a book with heart? Maybe, eventually. I would put my own flavor in it for sure.
When did you first start writing?
I seriously started writing for publication around 1987, after leaving my hospital job, but I wrote my first short story when I was seven years old.
Published: April 7, 2016. Read Full Interview

Mark Coker

What motivated you to become an indie author?
I never set out to become an "indie" author. I simply wanted to become a published author. Back in 2005, my wife and I co-wrote Boob Tube, a novel that explores the wild and wacky world of daytime television soap operas. My wife is a former reporter for Soap Opera Weekly magazine. Our dream was to see our novel on the shelf at Barnes & Noble. Even though we were repped by an excellent agent at one of New York's most respected literary agencies, publishers refused to acquire the book because previous soap opera-themed novels had sold poorly.
Is this what led you to create Smashwords?
Yes. It was our agent who suggested we self-publish back in 2007 (he was ahead of his time!). I liked the idea, and had read Dan Poynter's excellent reference, Dan Poynter's Self Publishing Manual, but I realized without the benefit of print distribution - something only a traditional publisher could offer - our self-published print book would go undiscovered and unread. I began to imagine the hundreds of thousands of other writers facing the same dilemma, where traditional publishers had all the power to crush their dreams of publication simply because they didn't see the commercial potential. I began to realize that publishers in the business of selling books, not publishing books. I don't hold this against them. Of course they need to make money to keep the lights on. Yet the value of books to humanity, in my opinion, cannot be measured by dollars alone. If you want to publish a cookbook of your family recipes for the benefit of your children and grand childen, that book in my mind is every bit as valuable as anything put out by New York. I decided that this focus on perceived commercial merit, and the inherent economic inefficiencies of producing, publishing and distributing print books, was threatening the future of books. I felt there needed to be a better way. I decided ebooks might provide the path toward democratized publishing. I thought it would be really cool if there was an ebook self-publishing platform that would make it fast, free and easy to publish an ebook. This was the genesis behind Smashwords. I wanted to create a global publishing platform that would allow *me* to take a chance on every author, at no cost or risk to the author. I wanted to give every writer in the world the freedom and opportunity to publish, and I wanted to give readers the freedom to decide what was worth reading. I believed that if writers were simply given a chance, that the entire world would be surprised by the amazing talent and knowledge locked between the minds and fingertips of ordinary writers around the globe. We launched Smashwords in 2008, and today we help authors publish and distribute over 200,000 titles.
Published: August 16, 2013. Read Full Interview

Russell Blake

What was your environment like growing up, and how did this influence your writing?
I was reading when I was two years old, and both my parents were readers who placed tremendous importance on literacy and use of language. Intellectual capital was always more prized than financial capital, so while we weren't wealthy, we were rich in the classics and in intellectual curiosity. That framed my perception of life, where to this day I'm more interested in the philosophical and the literary than in pop culture or money. I don't watch TV (ok, that's a lie, I have a DVD player and was addicted to 24, which was about the last thing I watched), so whenever I have downtime, I automatically go to a good book. I believe that to be a decent writer, you have to read. A lot. You are what you eat, so to speak, so if you don't feed your brain a healthy diet of good prose, you're starving your intellect.
When did you first start writing?
A decade ago, but it was crap. Actually, I had been writing non-fiction (brochures, ad copy, manuals) decades before, but that didn't really prepare me for creative writing. I wrote my first fiction 10 years ago, and after four drafts, realized it was awful and should never see the light of day. So I wrote another, and it wasn't as bad, but it still sucked. I thought I might have nailed it about 5 years ago, and shopped that effort, to be told when it got shopped that it was wonderful, but didn't fit with what the market was looking for at that time. Which pretty much confirmed what I suspected - that if you weren't writing about glittery vampires back then, you weren't on the radar. I decided to continue writing to improve, as opposed to trying to get a deal. Took me until about 3 years ago before I really thought I had a handle on it and had developed an interesting and distinctive voice - but then, what to do with it? I understood from my earlier foray into querying that I didn't have the temperament to spend years soliciting agents, and years more waiting for a deal, so when the self-pubbing revolution hit, a friend of mine suggested around January of 2011 that I consider jumping into the water. Took me until June of that year to work up the nerve, get a decent cover, get my first offering edited, set up a website and get familiar with social media. I've never looked back since, and consider it the first step in a new life. So far so good.
Published: August 22, 2013. Read Full Interview

Gussie Mae Parker

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in the State of Louisiana. I was born poor and shy to second and third grade parents. Racism was so thick it seemed you could cut it with a knife. Thanks to God I had christian parents who guided me to always "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

My upbringing had a big part to play in my writings. I was tormented and injured from my childhood years by so much bad treatment. I just put it all in the back of my mind. Through the years this upbringing played over and over in my mind. Finally the Holy Spirit appeared to me over and over again that I needed to tell. I was slow to act on his leading.
What's the story behind your latest book?
I am challenging people to join me in helping to stomp out hatred, bigotry and injustice against all people. Together we can make a difference from where we are: Right here, Right now.
Published: March 1, 2018. Read Full Interview

Thomas Corfield

When you're not writing, how do you spend your time?
I breathe quite a lot. Mind you, I do that when I'm writing as well. I've tried not to, but find it impacts significantly on getting proper words out. Once I forced myself not to breathe for three minutes. It was a silly thing to do because I was sick all over my desk.

Sometimes I walk. I've tried doing this while writing also, especially since my arms were busy and my legs were getting indignant. But it didn't work out because every time I did so I left my desk.
Do you remember the first story you ever wrote?
Yes I do. As a child, my sister and brother and myself left an exercise book in the bathroom, and whenever we visited the toilet we would contribute to an ongoing story about our pets. Considering the locale, and the fact two boys were involved, it tended toward a distinct lavatorial theme, which we considered hilarious. My sister's contributions would vainly attempt to return the tale to something more respectable, allowing my brother and myself opportunity to swing it dramatically back towards the puerile with ever increasing vigor.

I still have the book, actually, and the first Dooven book 'The Purging Of Ruen' clearly draws upon it. I think all children should be encouraged to read and write while on the toilet, as it's surprising how much imagination arises in a situation offering limited opportunity for anything other than the obvious.
Published: September 14, 2013. Read Full Interview

T C Southwell

How has Smashwords contributed to your success?
Smashwords is entirely responsible for my success. When I gave up on the traditional publisher route in 2010, after numerous rejections, I was convinced my dream of publishing my books was doomed. Then I read a blog interview with a successful Smashwords author and decided that the indie route might be worth a try. My books had been gathering dust on my hard drive for about 20 years at that stage. I felt I had nothing to lose. It was the indie route or nothing. The success of my books via Smashwords stunned me. I was over the moon and pinching myself daily. It seemed too good to be true. The fabulous reviews the books got blew me away. It totally changed my life. After a few months, I was able to give up my day job and dedicate myself to writing full time, which is what I'd always wanted to do. Thank you Mark and Smashwords, you made all my dreams come true!
What is the greatest joy of writing for you?
Exploring fantastic worlds and meeting the amazing characters who populate them. I love all my heroes and heroines, so following their stories and sharing in their trials and tribulations is a wonderful adventure. As a 'channeller', writing is as effortless for me as reading. The stories just appear in my mind as I write, fully formed, and all I have to do is chronicle them for the future. I started writing stories in school, just for fun, and so that I could read them again. That continued until I wrote my first series - Slave Empire - when I was in my mid-twenties. When I'm writing, I'm transported into the other world, and this world becomes inconsequential, so it's the greatest form of escapism for me.
Published: October 7, 2013. Read Full Interview

Typhoid Marty

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I grew up in a little town on the south coast of England - no movie theater little. It being England though, there were at least 8 pubs just in the town center which created an interesting town mix of old people (think Florida but with shitty weather - sorry my mistake, different shitty weather) and angry pissants.

This mix probably influenced my writing a lot - I love getting characters from disparate lifestyles and throwing them into an extreme situation together, probably as a throwback to those times.
When did you first start writing?
I was 11 - I didn't have a computer so I got an old typewriter from a garage sale that had a beautiful clack clack noise as the keys were pressed. The troubles with this mechanism were twofold:

1) Whiteout and retyping.
2) The noise from my typing would keep my gran (who lived with us) up at night. Invariably there would become a point in the night when she would yell down to "Shut that noise up". When I go back over the old pages it is easy to see before and after this event based solely on how heavily the keys were pressed (as afterwards I would be carefully pressing the keys with minimum force to ink the page).
Published: October 3, 2013. Read Full Interview

Jeremy Reimer

Where did you grow up, and how did this influence your writing?
I spent my childhood years in the small town of Gibsons, British Columbia, home of "The Beachcombers". Our family also had a small cottage on the nearby Keats Island. I grew up loving boats and being on the water, something that has stayed with me to this day. Because of this, and also because my father was a pilot in the Navy, I had a strong preference for science fiction stories set on futuristic aircraft carriers. To me, stars in the Milky Way Galaxy are kind of like islands in the Pacific Ocean.
When did you first start writing?
I remember two short stories that I wrote in school that were significant to me. The first was a one-page story I wrote in elementary school about astronauts on the Moon witnessing a nuclear war back on Earth. The second, which I wrote in Grade 11, was titled "The Egg" and was about a vigilante trying to hack into a worldwide computer network in order to bring all of humanity together into one global consciousness. The latter story impressed my classmates enough to make me think that I had some ability to write fiction.

In my early 20s I took a course at Simon Fraser University called "Writing and Marketing Speculative Fiction" taught by Eileen Kernaghan in which I wrote several short stories. At the time I didn't feel ready to start on a full novel.

Finally, in 2003, I started writing what would become Edge of Infinity, the first book in my Masters trilogy.
Published: September 3, 2013. Read Full Interview

Sarit Hashkes

How do you deal with having to write narcissistic boring bullshit in order to promote your book?
Not very well. But here I am doing my best, naked, in bed, trying to amuse myself...
Why should anyone spend their time reading your book?
Time is meant to be wasted! Besides if you're interested in quantum physics, religion, open relationships, martial arts, sociology or the human brain you will probably learn something new. There is a whole lot of research that went into this book and there are interactive links inside the book for anyone who wants to learn more.
Plus it’s FREE :)
Published: September 3, 2013. Read Full Interview