Grayson Michaels
Fiction Author
For those ladies who love to read about first responders, whether they're policemen, firemen, or EMTs, I have a special treat for you. Grayson is a pen name for this author who just happens to be a firefighter on his day job! His first book will be out soon and will contain several short stories of rescue by his fellow first responders. His stories take place in 'Oceanview, CA' so he's invited us to the station house where the stories take place.
Gather 'round and get comfy because Grayson has a few more books he's working on but I'll let him tell you. He'll be around all week to chat and answer your questions so please leave your questions and comments at the end. Please help me welcome him to one of his first online interviews for his upcoming release of 'Oceanview'!
Deanna: Grayson, welcome and congratulations on your first book. I know you're excited for the release and that's getting closer. Tell us a bit about yourself.
Grayson: I am a
multi-genre writer that has grown up in the inland Northwest my entire life.
Much of my life has been through a pen, and ending on the paper. I absolutely
love the paranormal and the ‘Unknown’ parts of life. I often reflect of things
that can happen but haven’t quite yet. I’m often spontaneous, and can hope from
genre to genre with as quick as the muse lets me. I’m a very open person and
enjoy meeting new people and making new friends. I do have a background in
EMS/Firefighting, as well as some background in law enforcement.
Deanna: What made you want to become a writer?
Grayson: What sparked
my interest to become a writer was 6th grade. I was going through a very tough
time, dealing with a divorce that made no sense to me. I had turned to reading
as a way to escape everything. That’s when I found my love for Michael
Crichton, and his novels. It wasn’t too long after that, is when I started
writing. During the same time period as a class we were doing a unit on the
solar system. The teacher had asked all of us to do a story about the solar
system, and the fact we had to write a short story and visit all of the
planets. She said that there’d only been one other student that had
accomplished that. By time I’d finished mine, I had gotten to read it in front
of the class and got an A on the project. After that, my love for writing
bloomed and all through Junior High and High School I stayed pretty grounded by
either drawing comic strips with a few friends of mine, or I wrote short
stories in between by studies in class.
Deanna: Please share a bit about your new release, OceanView, without giving away any spoilers.
Having previous
experience in Fire/EMS I thought it would be neat to take on a project like
this. Little did I know that this little project would eventually become my
first book. The story of “OceanView” deals more with the the personal
relationships of the cop , firefighters, and EMT’s the city more-so than the
actual job. Now, that’s not to say that there isn’t action of the job involved
with the story of “OceanView” but I thought the more human side is always more
interesting to look at. How these different types of personalities react with
one another, because everyone in this line of work has a very defined
character. How the different kinds of stressors affect a person or what they
see on the job. To me, that’s where the real story lies.
Deanna: What types of hero or heroine do you like best?
Grayson: The kind of
hero or heroine I like is the one with scars. The kind of person that may have
had some kind of experience with whatever is going on in the story and it takes
a constant facing of fears to get where they are at the conclusion. I think
having a flawless hero at the beginning and ending with a flawless hero at the
end is very flat and cookie cutter. If you want to draw your audience in, and
you really want them to get involved with the book they are going to have to be
able to relate with the character. Really feel the emotion of this character to
keep them interested in the book. But you could also start off with a hero that
chooses to accept their own reality but could become different by the end. I
like something that shows a reflection of change for the character or the hero
by the end of the story.
Deanna: Tell us about a typical day in your life as a
writer.
Grayson: A typical
day for me involves a lot of brain storming. The Muse and I have conversations
through out the entire day, and sometimes the characters will talk plainer than
others. Usually, when I started getting an idea then I let it play out for a
little bit in my head. I am not real quick to jump and start writing
immediately, because if you write the scene as quick as it comes to you, then
sometimes you draw a blank after words. So the best advice I can give to anyone
is let the idea brew for a bit. That’s what I do and when I have an idea then I
write it down in the notebook that I typically carry on me. It would be similar
to pulling a cake out of the oven too early before it was actually ready. I
like to start the morning off with a warm cup of coffee or tea to get the ideas
going.
Deanna: Do your books have a common theme or are they all
different?
Grayson: As a writer,
I try to keep my ideas open to anything. I think as a writer, that if you try
to limit yourself to what you want to write instead of opening up to what you
CAN write you only set your own boundaries, and as a writer I don’t think that
it’s good for anyone. Usually, I try to write realistic/fiction. Again, going
back to the beginning when I mentioned that I try to write about possibilities
that could potentially happen but haven’t yet. Though, on the next book that
will be coming out I write about the paranormal. It’s a subject I’ve always
wanted to write about and didn’t want to sound cheesey at doing. After I
finished it and looked back, the entire story is very pleasant. I cannot wait
to get it off to my editor so we can start getting the process going on that
one.
Deanna: It's definitely an exciting process. How long does it take you to write and then
edit a story?
Grayson: With
OceanView, it has taken me almost six months to get it edited, the writing
itself took me about eight years length to complete it. The newest story, took
me about six months to write, and I haven’t started the edits on that one yet.
Deanna: Glad to hear you've got other books going on, too. Do you have to be alone to write?
Grayson: Yes, I have
to be alone to write or it seems I cannot get my thought process on track to
get the idea going. I used to be able to write to music, but even now with that
I find that I can’t write with music and that it has to be quiet in the room.
To help with the process, as my laptop is booting up and getting prepped I will
brew a warm cup of tea and settle in that way. Usually, with that cup of tea
the ideas begin to flow quite nice. Usually, I can get out five to six pages in
a night. Though, I don’t like to push the muse because she has a way of being
nasty, but typically on a good night I like to get at least three pages
written, more if the idea is flowing well. I don’t like to cut myself off in
the middle of a scene or idea.
Deanna: How do you go about naming characters?
Grayson: What’s
interesting about me, is that usually I get the concept of the character first,
and then I get the name later. I can always see them in my head before they let
me know there name. Some are more standoffish than others, but other times
characters are very open about who they are and what their names are. I wrote a
blog about character development and how I really look at my characters more as
people than just fantasy people. By the end of my books, I have grown quite
attached to all of them. The less desirables usually get their’s by the end.
But all of my characters mean something to me and it’s always disappointing to
say good bye at the end of the book.
Deanna: It is hard to say goodbye to some! Is it easier to write about the characters if you
find pictures of them before you write or do you write then find character
pictures?
Grayson: Sometimes I
have to research and find pictures for them. Other times, it’s simpler to just
go by off what they look like in your head.
Deanna: How do you pick locations for your stories?
Twitter: @GraysonMichaels
Deanna: Grayson, thank you for being with us this week! Readers, he'll be around for questions and he's also picking a winner on Saturday to receive an e-copy of OceanView when it's released. Get into the Rafflecopter below then leave a comment or question for Grayson.
Thanks for a very interesting interview. As an author I'm always fascinated at how other writers work. Your Ocean View is sure to be a winner, Grayson. The subject matter of EMT,firefighters and police is a powerful combination. My best to you and Deanna, once again, you bring a new author to your readership in the nicest way.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! Your book sounds like if has my kind of hero's in it. I would love to read it. I will be entering under the name of Virgina.
ReplyDeleteWonderful interview. Your book sounds very interesting. Really nice cover.
ReplyDeleteSue B