NeW Author – ADELAIDE BOOKS NY

Tell us a bit about yourself – something that we will not find in the official author’s bio?

I make a pretty good omelet. I planted tulips for the first time this past fall and they bloomed magnificently. I have a bit of a sweet tooth. Chocolate chip cookies come from heaven. Coffee is the nectar of the gods, and I’m admittedly a snob about my brew choices. It’s also kind of a hobby. I think I have three French presses and two moka pots. I’m a fan of Americana music. Love a good road trip. And there is nothing as sweet as the sound of baseball on the radio. There is something about the voice of a baseball announcer coming out of a tiny speaker on a spring day that tells you everything is right with the world.

Do you remember what was your first story (article, essay, or poem) about and when did you write it?

An elementary school teacher had our class work on a project; the students got to construct a book from scratch. We wrote the story, then created the cover out of paper mache and watercolors. We even did the illustrations. It was absolutely thrilling. My title was The Cyclops. It was a under the sea adventure that I am certain was born out of my early fascination with the Jacque Cousteau TV documentaries about the ocean and the all that incredible life far below the surface. I always considered this my very first story. It was such a fun and creative thing to do. I still have the book. It sits on my bookshelf.

What is the title of your latest book and what inspired it?

The title for Things Behind the Sun: A Novel comes from a song by Nick Drake, a rather obscure British singer-songwriter who died too young. The lyrics have been interpreted many ways, but to me, the song is about staying true to who you are despite what others tell you to be; it’s about following your heart and the urges in your brain no matter how others perceive this. In the book, each one of the characters, even minor ones, are trying to stay true to who they are and where they see themselves in the world. That process creates conflict and struggle and they all have to find the balance that gives them peace. That ultimately is the theme of the book. Find Drake’s song and listen to it. He was a wonderful lyricist, a real poet.

Things Behind the Sun is also a follow-up novel to an earlier book, A Well-Respected Man, which was honored by The Society of Midland Authors for fiction in 2019. The new book continues the story, but it remains a standalone book at the same time. I wanted to write more about the protagonist, Martin Gregory, the reclusive writer who takes on the challenge of his life—raising his adopted son.

How long did it take you to write your latest work and how fast do you write (how many words daily)?

I’m a relatively fast writer. It’s the drafting and editing that is the slower process. My first career is that of a broadcast journalist where speed in writing is important. The slow plod is not for me and would never do in that profession. That said, when I’m working on a manuscript, I can only write for about an hour or two at one sitting. After that, my motivation wobbles, my ideas sputter. I can come back to the writing, but will always need a break. I take a walk, read, do home chores, work on my teaching duties. I am not a planner or outliner. I write and hope to find the story as I go. This process works for me. So, to answer your question, considering all of these factors: I am a rather fast writer. In one sitting, I might write somewhere between 700-1200 words. Things Behind the Sun took about a year to get it where I wanted it.

Do you have any unusual writing habits?

Unusual? Maybe not that, but I have a unique place where I write. It is an outbuilding on my property. We call it The Shed. And that’s just what it is. It is 8x10 feet. I have enough power for a laptop and a lamp, books are all around me, one of my guitars is in there. I was inspired by Dylan Thomas’ boathouse and the “sheds” of writers like George Bernard Shaw, spaces all their own, spaces just for writing and creating. I built some of my shed on my own—placing barn wood on the walls, tiling the floor, painting—and that was a labor of love, creating my own space. It’s a sanctuary for me. I’m inside it almost every day.

Is writing the only form of artistic expression that you utilize, or is there more to your creativity than just writing?

I play guitar and write music. It’s mostly for fun now, although I was in a band many years ago. Nothing serious. But we had our good times. I’m hoping soon to professionally record some of my compositions just to see how they might sound with the right touch. A friend has a recording studio in his home and he’s produced some of his own work there. It will be a kick to give it a go.

Authors and books that have influenced your writings?

Unusual? Maybe not that, but I have a unique place where I write. It is an outbuilding on my property. We call it The Shed. And that’s just what it is. It is 8x10 feet. I have enough power for a laptop and a lamp, books are all around me, one of my guitars is in there. I was inspired by Dylan Thomas’ boathouse and the “sheds” of writers like George Bernard Shaw, spaces all their own, spaces just for writing and creating. I built some of my shed on my own—placing barn wood on the walls, tiling the floor, painting—and that was a labor of love, creating my own space. It’s a sanctuary for me. I’m inside it almost every day.

What are you working on right now? Anything new cooking in the wordsmith’s kitchen?

I have two projects. One is a manuscript on the process of growing older framed around the annual changing of the clocks from Standard to Daylight Saving. It’s a reflective, personal work that I hope will resonate with others. We all grow older. We’ve been doing it since the day we were born.

I’ve also started a new novel about a lonely widower who sets out on a long-awaited European trip and finds himself entangled in an unexpected relationship, in spiritual wonderment, and becomes an unforeseen accomplice to a fugitive from the law. It is early in the process. We’ll see where it goes.

DAVID W. BERNER