Author Interview - William Michael Ried

What is your writing process like?

Coming up with a hook, imagining a story, researching, outlining and creating characters, writing from the outline, editing myself--over and over, seeking help from early readers, editing myself--over and over again, sending the manuscript to my editor and going back and forth with her, editing myself--again, sending the finished draft to a proofreader, and finally working with my editor/publisher to put out the book.

How do you process and deal with negative book reviews?

Look for something to learn from the review, then try to forget it and focus on the good reviews.

How long have you been writing, or when did you start?

I started a fictionalized memoir called Five Ferries in 1978 and finally published it n 2018. After that I got much quicker, publishing Backstory in 2021 and Pandion in 2022, and hopefully I will publish Two Degrees in 2023.

How do you develop your plot and characters?

The initial story revolves around some characters, others fill in where they are needed, and sometimes supporting characters end up writing themselves in as stars. Once I've written a draft of the novel I assemble a detailed outline of every scene, along with location, date, POV and beats, which makes it easy to revise. I have at times written plot points on index cards and reordered them to uncover gaps and make the story flow.

How many books have you written, and which is your favorite?

Counting the manuscript now in editing I have written four novels. Asking which is my favorite is like asking a parent which kid he likes most. I like them all for different reasons and will recommend one to a reader based upon which I think will be most meaningful to that reader.

What inspired the idea for your book?

I am writing Two Degrees (publication scheduled for the summer of 2023) in order to be able to answer the question: Why did you write this book? The answer is to make a point, but in the form of an engaging story. It is a "Cli-lit Thriller" that places the protagonist at the intersection of power politics and climate change.

William Michael Ried

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