EDWARD J. URBANOWSKI
- GUEST AUTHOR -
G'day folks,
Today, I interview a passionate man from the USA; a man with a great sense of humour.
Welcome, Edward ...
1.
TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT
YOURSELF AND YOUR WRITING JOURNEY.
My writing
journey really started in the 1990s. I
completed two screenplays but had no luck landing an agent. I worked on my screenplays while I worked
full time and wrote freelance articles for a local newspaper. Life side-tracked me for a few years, as it
does, I suppose, all of us. Through
these times I never lost sight of my work. Things eventually settled down, to the degree
any of us have lives we’d call settled.
I resumed my work. My first book,
“Man’s First Friend,” was inspired by my wife, Maureen. We have three dogs and I am a bit of freak
with them. Then again, doesn’t everyone
talk to their dogs and spoil them a bit?
One morning she said “You’re too much with those dogs.” I channelled
Ralph Kramden in my reply, “The Bible is wrong, God created the dog after Eve because she was mean to
Adam.” That was the, pardon the pun,
genesis for my first illustrated story.
2.
WHEN AND HOW DID YOU
BECOME A WRITER?
I think I really became
a writer in 2014 when I self-published “Man’s First Friend.” I did a considerable amount of writing as far
back as the 1990s but this was my first tangible work.
3.
WHAT TYPE OF PREPARATION DO YOU DO FOR A
MANUSCRIPT? DO YOU PLAN EVERYTHING FIRST OR JUST SHOOT FROM THE HIP?
When I get an idea I like to take pages
and pages of handwritten notes. I just
keep adding thoughts until the idea can be sustained. If it’s not ready I save the idea for the
future. If it’s substantial enough I
refer to Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey.”
I break the story down to see if it fits the formula, to the degree it
can. I don’t keep a checklist, I look
for an overall plot. If I feel
comfortable I do an outline. If I’m
confident in the outline I just write away.
I write whatever section inspires me until I fill in all the
blanks.
4.
WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST
ABOUT BEING A WRITER?
Besides the finished
product, I like when someone who’s read my work comes to me not only with
positive feedback, for my insecurity, but also with an observation. I love it when they catch a subtlety or a
message that wasn’t obvious.
5.
WHAT IS THE HARDEST THING
ABOUT BEING A WRITER?
Rejection is discouraging.
I’m up to the challenge of writing but marketing, or self-promotion, has
been a bugger for me. I’ve had many
agency rejections, the writer’s equivalent of battle scars. If I find a mass audience I know my work will
appeal to a wide range of people but it’s getting there that’s difficult.
6.
WHAT WERE YOU IN A
PAST LIFE, BEFORE YOU BECAME A WRITER?
Whenever I go on a masted ship, for example, at a seaport, or
restoration, I get an odd feeling, not only déjà vu but something more I can’t
explain. If I lived before I was on such
a ship.
7.
WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST
WRITING ACHIEVEMENT?
I think it was my first
novel, “Debating Christ.” I took a short
passage from the gospel of Luke and expanded it. I wanted to show a living, breathing,
laughing, exuberant Christ. I imagine if
you’d been to hell and back you’d be in a pretty good mood and would have a
newfound appreciation for the littlest things.
I wanted to ae the story accessible and by all accounts I succeeded.
8.
WHAT ARE YOU WORKING
ON AT THE MOMENT?
I’m doing a political fantasy
inspired by current events. It’s a
parable about hope and redemption that asks the question “What if?” Redemption is a theme in all of my works.
9.
WHAT INSPIRES YOU?
I love a wide range of
music but I have a special place in my heart for film music. Often I lean on this music to help me bring
emotional gravitas to my writing. I often
find inspiration comes when I lease expect it.
It may be a soft breeze, a summer sunrise or a couple walking down the
street holding hands. I think
inspiration is there, we just have to look for it.
10.
WHAT GENRE DO YOU
WRITE?
My works have been
faith oriented but my current project is a fantasy. I have three other ideas that are fantasy as
well. I love fantasy, the freedom it
brings and the endless possibilities.
11.
DO YOU HAVE ANY TIPS
FOR NEW WRITERS?
Keep writing, don’t be discouraged. When you think you’re finished, do another
draft. Believe in yourself, there may be
times you’re the only one who does.
12.
DO YOU SUFFER FROM
WRITER’S BLOCK?
On occasion I do.
When that happens I take a day off and then force myself back. If I’m stuck on a project I’ll go to another
one to clear my mind. That usually
works.
13.
DO YOU HAVE A
PREFERRED WRITING SCHEDULE?
Coffee first, squat on the couch with my dogs and have at
it. This is good for a few hours, if I
have the time. I go back after our daily
walk, late afternoon, for another hour or two.
Morning and early evening seem to be magic times for me. If I ever succeed and can write full time
that’s when I’ll do my thing.
14.
DO YOU HAVE A FAVOURITE
WRITING PLACE?
In the summer, the rocking chair on my front porch. The house faces a nice little park and my
dogs bark at everyone so I’ve gotten to meet a lot of people. The couch beckons in the cold weather.
15.
WHAT IS YOUR GREATEST
JOY IN WRITING?
When inspiration hits, you know, the “A-Ha!” moment. When you’re in the middle of a story and you
find some great little touch, or line, something you know the reader will
appreciate.
WHO
IS YOUR FAVOURITE AUTHOR AND WHY?
I love Mark
Twain and have read “Huckleberry Finn” a number of times. He was a simple genius who was able to shine
a bright light on our darkness. He
taught at the same time he entertained.
16.
WHAT’S THE GREATEST
COMPLIMENT YOU EVER RECEIVED FROM A READER?
I gave my niece and her children my second book,
“Sparks, The Firefly Who Saved Christmas,” in 2016. She said they read it that Christmas Eve and
liked it so much they made her read it again.
She said they’ve made it a tradition ever since. Young children are unfiltered, that can’t be
topped.
17.
WHAT WAS THE WORST
COMMENT FROM A READER?
During the campaign I posted two of my political cartoons
on Facebook. Someone said they were
offensive. Then again, they weren’t
complimentary.
18.
WRITERS ARE SOMETIMES
INFLUENCED BY THINGS THAT HAPPEN IN THEIR OWN LIVES. ARE YOU?
Absolutely, I’ve brought my joys, hurts and baggage to my
work. Writing can be therapeutic.
19.
OTHER THAN WRITING,
WHAT ELSE DO YOU LOVE?
I love movies, music, being outdoors, when it isn’t
freezing. I already mentioned my dogs.
20.
DID YOU HAVE YOUR BOOK
/ BOOKS PROFESSIONALLY EDITED BEFORE PUBLICATION?
I didn’t, I just wrote
the hell out of them until I felt they were as close to perfect as
possible.
21.
DESCRIBE YOUR PERFECT
DAY.
Other than coffee,
totally open.
22.
IF YOU WERE STUCK ON A
DESERT ISLAND WITH ONE PERSON, WHO WOULD IT BE? WHY?
My wife, God help
her. That’s the price she pays. I figure if you marry someone you should be
able to put up with one another under any circumstances.
23.
WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IF
YOU HAD THE CHANCE TO SPEAK TO WORLD LEADERS?
You’re in temp jobs, do your work, do it well.
24.
WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS
FOR THE FUTURE?
I’m going to launch a
blog with a cartoon strip that’s been rejected by the syndicates. A shameless plug is below:
If I’m not an overnight
success I have to find a job. I’ll keep
writing and tooning.
25.
WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS ON BOOK TRAILERS? DO THEY SELL
BOOKS?
I think they do, they
reflect the culture we live in.
26.
DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN
ANY OF YOUR CHARACTERS?
I do, I pity them. I give my characters my good and bad
qualities. A professor once told me
“Write what you know.” This is one interpretation.
27.
DOES THE PUBLISHING
INDUSTRY FRUSTRATE YOU?
Big time, but I realize
there are so many writers out there and so much product, there’s only so much publishers
can see.
28.
DID YOU EVER THINK OF
QUITTING?
On occasion, yes, it
can be frustrating but quitting feels like a cheap way out.
29.
WHAT WAS YOUR
FAVOURITE MANUSCRIPT TO WRITE? WHY?
“Debating Christ,”
because after the research and formatting the characters really came to
life.
30.
HOW WOULD YOU DEFINE
‘SUCCESS’ AS A WRITER?
Completion, the actual,
tangible existence of my work.
31.
WHAT SHOULD READERS WALK AWAY FROM YOUR BOOKS KNOWING? HOW SHOULD THEY
FEEL?
There’s always hope and we’re never alone in our struggles,
they should feel hopeful and optimistic.
32.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO HAVE YOUR BOOKS MADE INTO MOVIES? EVER WRITTEN A
SCREENPLAY?
All of my books would work well visually, with the right
director and producer they could be outstanding. I’ve written several screenplays including a
pilot that have potential.
33.
HOW MUCH THOUGHT GOES INTO DESIGNING A BOOK COVER?
A great deal, it has to capture the spirit and essence of
the story. I start thinking about a
cover design during the early stages of writing. I don’t work on the cover until the book is
ready and full blown. At that time I
know what look I’m after for the cover.
34.
WHAT’S YOUR ULTIMATE DREAM?
Selling enough copies
of my books to write full time. I have
quite a few ideas but I need the time to develop them. I’m open to selling my pilot as well.
35.
WRITING IS ONE THING. WHAT ABOUT
MARKETING YOU, YOUR BOOKS AND YOUR BRAND? ANY THOUGHTS?
I’m stuck on this.
I’ve gotten good feedback, even a rave review but the next steps elude
me.
36.
ARE YOUR BOOKS SELF-PUBLISHED?
They are.
37.
DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN FIVE WORDS.
Too stubborn to give
up.
38.
WHAT PISSES YOU OFF MOST?
Lousy writing. If
it’s published it should shine, that goes for television and movies, too.
39.
WHAT IS THE TITLE OF THE LAST BOOK YOU READ? GOOD ONE?
“Last Words,” by George Carlin. We could use him today.
40.
WHAT WOULD BE THE VERY LAST SENTENCE
YOU’D WRITE?
Aaahhhhhhh! Just kidding.
I think, ‘To be
continued elsewhere.’
41.
WHAT WOULD MAKE
YOU HAPPIER THAN YOU ARE NOW? CARE TO SHARE?
Financial success, of
course, and maybe a more stable world.
42.
ANYTHING YOU’D LIKE TO ADD?
I think I’ve gone on
long enough, might be time to poke the readers and let them know we’re
done. I’m on Facebook and Twitter if
anyone has questions or feedback and my blog is on the way, assuming they
didn’t hate the shameless promotion.
Thank you, Clancy, for
your time and for inviting me.
Thanks to your readers
for their time and best of luck!
Clancy's comment: You are welcome, Edward. I am always happy to promote other authors, and I like your style. Good luck with book sales. Keep smiling.
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