Welcome Richard! Richard is a very knowledgeable man who has helped me a lot with my next story which I truly grateful for. I want to pay him back by boosting his followers and sales. What better way to get to know an author that by asking probing questions? Let's get started...
1) What is your writing routine?
Well unfortunately, I don’t seem to have one right now. Everything I have published right now, I wrote when I was out of work or deployed overseas, in Afghanistan and I had a more free time on my hands. But back home in the states, with wife, children & grandchildren and a paying job. Routines are as elusive as the loch ness monster! It’s really tough just getting to the gym 3 or 4 times a week!
2) Which author/s inspire you to write?
Tom Clancy, in a very left handed sort of way: I liked a lot of his books, BUT! With that said, he gets way too far down into the weeds on the technical aspects of his plots. I don’t need to know how to build a nuclear bomb. I just need to know that somebody who does, is! And, will it work or not? So I try to write most of my Thriller & Suspense stories with more action, and highly descriptive, at that. Mostly because I believe that paints a more accurate and vivid picture for the reader.
3) Which is your favorite romance subgenre to read? To write?
I don’t think I’ve ever really considered it, until just now. I suppose that I like to push the envelop with common decency. No, I like to tear the envelop to shreds! I like to write about episodes of exhibitionism, so naturally public sex, really push those taboo subjects.
4) How do you deal with criticism/rejection?
BADLY! Even worse still: The waiting for approval on a story I’ve just submitted. As far as criticism goes, I really do try to take it to heart. But I frequently consider the source, because I know my wife doesn’t like to read the stories I write in the way that I write them. Because, like Clancy, in my loves scenes, I really get down into the weeds! I want my readers to feel like voyeurs! I want them to feel every ounce of anticipation, wanting and longing, every tiny sensation. I suppose the main difference between me & Clancy in that regard is the techno-jargon.
5) What do you expect from an editor?
I expect them to tell me where I’ve poorly worded a sentence, or I’ve given somebody too many hands for the scene, I’ve given D Cup breasts where earlier in the story I gave them C Cups. I want them to tell me where they found my story confusing, where I should clean up my messes. To be completely honest, I’ve never had trouble with an editor and typically, I have to deal with two; a Line Editor and a Content Editor. At the end of the day, they’re good people doing a job for a mere pittance. 1-3% of Royalties.
6) Tell me about your latest release
On March 1st, my Thriller Suspense novel, “Say Good Night,” launched and I’m very excited about this one. I’m a retired Special Forces (Green Beret) Master Sergeant from the US Army and this book is a very highly fictionalized account of my 2009 tour of duty in Afghanistan with the Combined Joint Special Operations Task Force. While it was based on actual events, and many of the characters will recognize themselves… No, never mind. Every single word of that book is FICTION. However, this book will be the pilot to a series. The next of which will involve several of my co-conspirators from over in the UK. The British will have a very strong presence in my next novel. You will be proud!
7) Tease us with a blurb or short excerpt: Sure, from “Sweet Chocolate’s First Taste,”…
Excerpt
Instantly, I was captivated, and a little intimidated by both her age, almost thirty, and her luscious beauty. The woman—and she was a real woman, not a kid—had a pleasant round face with high cheek bones that gave it depth. She was tall, but still several inches shorter than my six feet, but I was struck by her very dark, coffee brown complexion, which seemed at odds with her flowing, shiny curls of gorgeous shoulder-length hair. My palms were sweaty at the thought of getting them on her beautiful, perfectly proportioned breasts. Those breasts seemed to call to me, with each sway and bounce. Her soft white cotton dress fit her form sensationally, hugging her upper body alluringly, accentuating the breadth of her torso before tapering down to her narrow waist, then loosely flowing over the graceful, but sweeping curve of her hips. My arms wanted to encircle that narrow waist, to lay my hand atop that scrumptious, perfectly developed ass, and then just pull her body to mine. To press our chests and hips together, to meld into a single being; to feel her softness pressed against my hardness. To feel the slope and curve of her back as those glorious breasts pressed against my chest. She was perhaps the most beautiful black woman I had ever met. All of these thoughts vanished quickly with my growing anxiety at my impending moment.
Still frantically undressing, Juan said, “Hey guys, I need the room for a while.”
“Hey ya’ll,” she gave us a wave of her hand. ”He and I have an...arrangement. If you guys want to make a similar arrangement…we’re talking about forty dollars. Apiece.” Until that moment, I had no idea she was a hooker. This intimidated me also. After all, she was a professional, while I was the most rank of amateurs. I was seventeen, remember, and a virgin.
Ed and I both jumped to our feet. Ed was first out with his wallet. “Well, that sounds like a fair price to me.” He handed over the money. I was fast on his heels with two twenties.
…Look, this story isn’t what you are thinking! This is a much better story than you think it’s going to be! For just $1.99, you won’t find a better story out there!
8) Which is your favorite character in the book? Why?
Trisha! And it will become obvious why that is when the reader gets more than a few paragraphs into the story. Yes, it really did happen this way! And, Yes again! I am a very lucky man! You have no idea just how much!
9) What are you working on right now?
Actually, I’m doing my final editing on a Thriller/Suspense novel that is a fictionalized account of my 2009 tour of duty in Afghanistan. I retired from the U.S. Army after 30 years service. I served over 23 years in Special Forces (Green Berets). This is a relatively short novel since it was driven by events on the ground, but still heavily fictionalized, nonetheless. This book, due to Launch on March 1st, will also be the pilot for a new series, called: “Code Name: Boxer,” the first of which will be subtitled, “Arab Spring.”
10) Your biggest piece of advice to aspiring novelists?
Don’t get discouraged. Keep on building your vocabulary and refining your style and voice! It’s clear that YOU Have something to say… Hell, everybody does! But now that you’ve got our attention, say it well…
Oh, by the way, that story, “Sweet Chocolate’s First Taste”…? If there is another moral to that story, its’ got to be: There is no substitute for professionalism! Write, act and sound like a professional! Eventually, you will be!
11) Where can readers find you?
At my webpage:
http://www.RichardBurnsBooks.com
Once again, I want to thank you for your time & consideration! You have been a fantastic host, a stimulating inquisitor and I am so looking forward to reading your stuff!!! I can’t wait! What should I start with???
LOL! Start at the beginning, of course! My first story was Explicitly English available now - click on the cover on the right hand side and you're away...
Okay, Richard is waiting to chat and take your questions.... :)
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