Author Bio:
I grew up in the Katahdin Region of Maine before excess television networks and the world wide web. I often entertained myself through reading, writing short stories, and watching continuing dramas on television. Each were my little escapes from my own boring world and allowed me to live a different life, even if only for an hour at a time. After years of working in retail, I have decided to refocus on what I’ve really always wanted to do. That’s to tell stories.
What inspires you to write?
I am not sure if it is so much inspiration as it is an inner drive. I have always wanted to write though I’ve not always worked on the craft. It is something that I continually go to. I think maybe that this is what I was meant to do/should do. I cannot imagine pushing it aside and not doing it.
Tell us about your writing process.
For my novel series, MILLIKEN MILLS, I plot out chapters ahead of time. I usually have an idea of the overall story that I want to do going in but then I will write out by hand three “scenes” per chapter. I tend to think of this series as a television series and each chapter being the set of scenes between commercial breaks. Each chapter will have three scenes and I plot out several chapters at a time. I will often then do a handwritten rough draft fleshing out each chapter before I then type them up. Sometimes “scenes” will get shifted around in the process but I try to stick to the three “scenes” per chapter rule (which is my own).
For my short novellas that I have done so far, I tend to just start writing and see where it goes. I’ll have a general idea when I start but often things will come to me as I’m writing and I’ll just go with it. Sometimes it works and sticks and other times I go back to a particular point and start over. It really depends on my gut instinct at the time on whether or not I feel that it is working.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
Sometimes when writing my novel series, MILLIKEN MILLS, characters will end up saying or doing something that I wasn’t expecting so I guess my characters will speak to me. Often I let them dictate what happens… to a point. It tends to work better for me that way.
Who are your favorite authors?
I enjoy Dean Koontz, John Saul, Harlan Coben, Gregg Hurwitz, and many others. It really depends on my mood at the time. Am a fan of Jack Kerouac and Augusten Burroughs as well but would not say that my work is anything like their works.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
When I was younger I tried for a few years to get an agent/publisher to no avail. With the advent of online self-publishing becoming so easy these days I decided a couple of years ago to give it a try. I chose to use CreateSpace, an arm of Amazon, and I have been nothing but pleased with it.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
I think that there will still be a couple of traditional, large publishing houses after mergers but that publishing as a whole will grow because of niche publishing. There seems to be more and more smaller publishing ventures out there that are specializing whether in a specific genre or location. I think there will always be plenty of opportunities for publishing out there. It will just be a matter of finding the right place for you and your work.
What genres do you write?
Family Saga Fiction, Horror, Suspense
What formats are your books in?
eBook, Print
Website(s)
Bruce A. Fleming Home Page Link
Link To Bruce A. Fleming Page On Amazon
