A Word Please

Welcome to another day of quirky questions! Joining me today are two writers of rock fiction, though each has a style uniquely his/her own. RJ McDonnell writes the Rock & Roll Mystery Series and Susan Helene Goffried takes us behind the scenes with Trevor and his band ShapeShifter.

You can read one person’s mind for an entire day. Who will you choose and why?

If I could read one person’s mind for one day it would belong to Apple CEO, Steve Jobs. No, I’m not one of those techies who want to know how everything works. I don’t own a Mac, iPhone, or iPad. I wouldn’t even be interested in the Being John Malcovich experience to get hot stock tips. When your stock is already #1, how much hotter can it get? I’d sign on for a Vulcan Mind Meld with Steve for one reason, and one reason only: to learn how he is able to focus so clearly on the wants and needs of so many, so far in advance.

As the author of a mystery series, I’m required to look down the road a ways myself. I’m currently finishing the third novel in my Rock & Roll Mystery Series. The original concept for this novel came to me while I was on a walk in 2004. At the time I had written the first draft of my first novel, Rock & Roll Homicide, and had an outline for #2. I had no idea if the first two would be completed, let alone published, and even less of a clue about the obstacles they lie ahead.

Imagine what it must have been like for Steve Jobs, the head of a computer company that held a microscopic portion of market share as little as ten years ago. Instead of just building a better mouse trap he asked, “What would happen if we could get the mice dancing?” and he came up with the iPod. Then he applied his technology to the telecommunications industry. But, instead of cordoning off his invention with Keep Out signs, he invited the inventors/developers of the world to offer applications that continually build on the technology.

One criticism that authors try to avoid like the stomach flu of 2011 is the label of formulaic writing. Readers and critics hate predictable plots and stereotypical characters. Yet, in this era of fewer bookstores and more competition, many authors feel the need to stick with what’s been successful in the past. The result is frequently a diluted gene pool of ideas. If only a bit of the Steve Jobs creativity and foresight could be infused into many of our favorite authors.

I’m not only a writer, but also an avid reader. An alternative that I’ve been turning to frequently involves sampling the writing of indie authors. I was recently asked to submit the first chapter of one of my books to an Anthology assembled by fellow author Joel Kirkpatrick. Over twenty authors made contributions. After reading the Anthology I added seven books to my reading list.

Would Steve Jobs read his 25th James Patterson novel, or would he search for original ideas and original voices? Although I believe I know the answer to that question, I’d still love to spend a day in his incredibly creative mind if only to experience how he can conceptualize such unique ways of blending his past with the wants and needs of the future.

RJ McDonnell is the author of the Premier Book Awards 2010 Mystery/Thriller of the Year, Rock & Roll Rip-Off. Sample chapters may be found at www.rjmcdonnell.com.

Next, I asked Susan Helene Gottfried:

If your life had a theme song, what would it be? Please share a bit of the lyrics and what they mean to you.

Well, there are the obvious two: Tesla’s Little Suzi and Van Morrison’s Brown-Eyed Girl. No lyrics needed there; the song titles tell you all you need to know.

When I’m being cynical, there’s Metallica’s Master of Puppets: Master/Master/Where’s the dreams that I’ve been after?/Master/Master/You promised only lies.

That one took on special significance once I earned my MASTER of Fine Arts degree in creative writing. That was just about the time when universities were starting to demand even their creative writing faculty have a PhD, rather than the terminal (meaning no PhD required) MFA.

But overall… I don’t know. As much as I love music and apply bits and pieces of it to my life on a moment-by-moment basis, there’s no one song that sums it all up. It’s been too big so far, my life. (And I hope it’s going to get even bigger yet.) Way too big for one song.

So there are three. But check with me in ten more minutes. I bet I’ll have five more…

Susan couldn’t stop writing long enough to follow the path to a career in the music business. Readers everywhere are glad. You can find Susan rocking out over at: www.WestofMars.com

Here’s a look at RJ and Susans books on Amazon, in both print and Kindle format:

Thanks for reading!

Tags: author interviews, indie authors, Indie Authors on Kindle, Quirky Questions, RJ McDonnell, Rock & Roll Fiction, rock fiction, Susan Helene Gottfried