This is the time we could get to know the author of The question, R. Breuer Stearns. Since I interviewed him before I completed the book, there is no specific analysis. Hope to catch up with him in detail during the release of the next book.
I welcome R.Breuer Stearns to my virtual tete a tete

Hi Breuer,


Welcome to my blog

When did you decide to become a writer?

I started writing stories as a teen-ager.  I really never decided to become a writer.  I just enjoy (most of the time) the process of writing.  Writing is a bit of a compulsion.  I write when I feel or think that I have something worth sharing.  I type on my computer . . . or write on scraps of paper, occasionally napkins. Sometimes a concept or snippet bubbles up so quickly that I hurry to write it down before I forget it.  Other times, I will think and think about an idea or concept and fail to find the right words or the right flow.  Writing is sometimes very easy and sometimes excruciatingly difficult.

So, what have you written?

THE QUESTION is my first novel.  I tried to create a thought-provoking thriller, inviting readers’ emotional and cerebral participation.

Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

THE QUESTION contains several “main” characters.  Nate and Charlotte are important because they are surrogates for my readers.  They “live” the story on behalf of the readers . . . share readers’ emotions and ask readers’ questions.  Jake is also important for reasons that become apparent as the book’s plot proceeds.  I like all of my characters . . . but for very different reasons.  I try to make my characters believable and textured, yet unformed and imperfect enough so that readers can impute traits and motives.  When I finished THE QUESTION, I actually missed my characters and the universe that I have created for them.  I suppose that many authors use the same characters in additional books because the authors and their readers have developed familiarity and emotional bonds with the characters.  Part of me wants to continue the lives of my characters in a subsequent story . . . and part of me believes that the characters in THE QUESTION have served their singular purpose.  Perhaps I will allow my readers to help me decide.

What part of your writing time do you devote to marketing your book?

I spend much more time writing than marketing.  Marketing is very important, of course, to generate sales.  I have delegated the marketing of THE QUESTION to a professional firm with demonstrated experience and expertise.  I am hopeful that my writing earns the critical approval of readers . . . and, if so, my marketing firm should be able to stimulate additional sales.  

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write.  And, recognize that writing and being a commercially successful author are two different things.  Writing is a creative process, time consuming, a low-odds business with no guarantee of applause from anyone other than yourself.  So, if you aspiration is to become rich and famous, writing is probably not your easiest or fastest route.  Authors . . . similar to painters, composers, and actors . . . create because they genuinely enjoy the process of creating.  “Enjoy the process” is key concept.

Where do you see publishing going in the future?

Publishing, similar to all media, will continue to become an increasingly fractioned industry.  Digital distribution makes it relatively easy and relatively cheap for a writer (and videographer and blogger . . . ) to create, market, and disseminate works.  Publishing is already quite “democratic” . . . available to practically everyone.  Writers, today, face almost no barriers to “printing” and distributing their work.  The real problem is differentiating their work and reaching a large enough audience to make writing economically worthwhile.  Some authors write entirely for their own satisfaction.  To me, audience approval is important . . . the ultimate proof of my talent as an author is whether or not readers “get” what I am trying to convey.

How can readers discover more about you and your books?

My website address

www.rbreuerstearns.com

Thank you for sparing your time for the interview