Q & A with Phil
Okay Phil, let’s just dig right in, shall we?
Q: Who/what inspires you?
A: Other inspired works inspires me. Whether it’s a heartfelt song, an act of courage, or a wholehearted painting, every inspired work inspires me.
Q: When do you have time to write?
A: Often, I feel as though I don’t have enough time. Perhaps few writers do have enough. This is why we must be proactive and creative when making time. Given that I’m both an early bird and a night owl however, I suppose I have two fewer excuses than most.
Q: Who’s your favorite author?
A: My favorite author is Oscar Wilde. Despite the fact The Picture of Dorian Gray is the only novel he wrote throughout his Victorian era life, he also penned several plays including Lady Windermere’s Fan, Salome’, and my favorite, The Importance of Being Earnest.
Q: Who else do you like to read?
A: Ted Dekker, Jane Austen, J.K. Rowling, and Kent Haruf also have written works I enjoy.
Q: What do you do to create realism?
A: Realism in storytelling is as significant as the story itself. Hence besides exerting considerable effort in fleshing-out my stories’ characters, settings, etc…, I also engage in activities and behaviors which get my imaginative gears turning. For example, if I’m writing a story about a character that lives alone in a wooded area, I may drive to a forested park after dark, leave my car parked behind, and walk through the shadowy, quietness alone. [Please note: I do this at my own risk and do not recommend this to anyone.]
Q: What does fiction mean to you?
A: For me, fiction means escapism. Throughout my life, I’ve often longed to escape from my everyday routine and visit people and places I’d otherwise never meet and see. Sometimes, I desire to study heroes whose values are similar to mine and observe how they triumph over their challenges. Other times, I yearn to visit kingdoms where the rules and laws I’ve come to know don’t exist.
On the whole nonetheless, through fiction, I aspire to transport several removes from my known world which, for me, is enjoyable, healing, and helpful when treading through everyday life.
Q: What do you value most in life?
A: I value my relationship with God, family and friends, helping the poor, my readers, continuous education, sense of community, literature, tremendous character, independence, honesty, and trial and tribulation (…well, sprinkled here and there) only to name a few things…
Q: Why will female protagonists dominate Project Hollow’s books?
A: Great question! I’ve found it challenging to pinpoint a front-running reason why. Sure, with willfulness, I’d centered its stories upon a common locale, but only after I’d listed each story alongside another did I realize the featured protagonist for each was female (…which was through the first couple of stories I’d planned as I’ve since added stories that build upon the series’ direction).
Perhaps this is because of the character driven, patient, and emotional nature of this series. Perhaps this is because my subconscious designated the series to be some type of literary tribute to women (…something I’ve come to embrace because of the countless instances when I’d fallen but was picked-up and brushed- off by a woman). But then, perhaps this is because I’d always wanted daughters of my own.
In hindsight, nonetheless, I’d rule the reason to be some combination of the above and coupled with my belief that females would flesh-out the series’ themes of escapism, loneliness, and love in a more natural fashion.
Q: If you could own anything, what would it be?
A: If could own anything, it would be a time machine so I could travel back to 1988 and attend Michael Jackson’s Bad World Tour! Since I was only seven years old back then (…and didn’t have a ticket!), I missed the tour when it stopped in Richfield, OH (…about twenty miles south of Cleveland).
Q: What is it like to live in Cleveland, OH?
A: Well, in the winter, it’s a bit frigid and in the summer, it’s a bit less frigid… only kidding!
Cleveland is more than the perceived home of cold weather reports, it’s the actual home of Playhouse Square (…the largest U.S. theater district outside New York!), world renown Cleveland Orchestra and Cleveland Museum of Art, Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame, world class medical centers The Cleveland Clinic and University Hospital of Cleveland, Cleveland Metropolitan Park System, various cultural gardens and neighborhoods, and is only about sixty miles east of Sandusky, OH, home of Cedar Point, the world’s greatest amusement park!
Hence indeed, for those who stop and take peek, there are many things to see and do!
Q: What is your favorite movie?
A: Ah, more fun questions! My favorite movie is Enter the Dragon… I’m a huge Bruce Lee fan!
Q: What is your favorite food?
A: My favorite food is a well-done bacon cheese burger with American cheese and honey barbeque sauce (…I may or may not have given this question some thought!)…
Q: Can you sing?
A: Can I sing?? Ha!! I suppose I can sing about as well as I can rap… and let’s just say I won’t be forming any hip hop groups in the near future!
Q: What’s your favorite ice cream flavor?
A: Ha! Well, it’s a tie between cake batter and cookie dough… and as a matter of fact, I think I may run out and grab a scoop of both after this Q & A!
Q: Which of your characters are you most like?
A: Whether in a conscious or subconscious fashion, I believe I’m a combination of each character I’ve created. Furthermore, I believe my readers also have elements of some of my characters within them also. Similar to Nathan Stillborn, for instance, I’m a giving individual whose leading aim isn’t to receive something material in return (…and, I’d imagine, some of my readers are, too.) But like his brother Ethan however, I can also become, at times, defensive and hostile (…and, at fewer times than most ;-), so can some of my readers!).