Author Bio:
Dan Lawton is an award-winning literary suspense, mystery, and thriller author from New Hampshire. He is an active member of the International Thriller Writers (ITW) Organization and the New Hampshire Writers’ Project.
His fifth novel, The Green House—a Bronze Medalist in the Adult Fiction E-Book category for the 2020 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY Awards), a finalist in the Fiction category for the 2020 Next Generation Indie Book Awards, and a finalist in the Mystery category for the 2020 Book Excellence Awards—will be released on 7/30/20.
Dan’s fourth novel, Plum Springs, won the 2019 New Hampshire Writers’ Project Readers’ Choice Award for Fiction. His first novel, Deception, was named one of the best thriller novels of 2017 by the Novel Writing Festival.
What inspires you to write?
Simply, I just love it. Reading other books, watching movies, and everyday events can be sources of inspiration for me. Whether there's any commercial success or not doesn't impact my inspiration—you never know if/when something will pop.
Tell us about your writing process.
Generally, I am a seat of the pants writer. The most recent book I wrote did have a top-level outline of where the story was going, but it changes so much as I write so it would truly be a waste of time to outline everything out ahead of time. When I do outline, I keep it simple: I make a chart in Word, along with my notes. Nothing fancy.
For Fiction Writers: Do you listen (or talk to) to your characters?
I've never talked to them, per say. My interaction is watching them evolve as the words are typed, really. How they react in certain circumstances is entirely organic and can alter the scene or future scenes or any plans I had for the book—hence why I don't spend too much time outlining.
Who are your favorite authors?
My favorite authors are John Hart and Harlan Coben. There are countless books that have kept me up at night, though, and not necessarily by John or Harlan. Some recent examples: Mystic River by Dennis Lehane; The Night Before by Wendy Walker; The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides; A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler; No One Knows by J.T. Ellison; Starting out in the Evening by Brian Morton; and The Editor by Steven Rowley.
How did you decide how to publish your books?
I tried to get a literary agent for my first book but failed, so I self-published. For my second, I did the same and also indie publishers, and while I had an offer to publish, I chose to self-publish again. For my third, I almost got an agent but wasn't quite there, so I published with an indie press. I had an agent for my fourth, and though I didn't get a "big deal," I published with another indie press. For my fifth, I signed with another indie press—and I intend to have them publish my next three books as well, if they'll have me! Self-publishing for me was a good way to get introduced to the industry and learn about all aspects of it. It was a good transition to an indie press, then an agent, then bigger and better presses.
What do you think about the future of book publishing?
While the industry is competitive and becoming a digital world, I don't think print books are going anywhere. Personally, I prefer reading print books still, and I sell more print than digital—which surprises me, frankly. I do see advances from publishers going down and more independent presses and self-published authors making a serious run at relevancy. I feel like it takes too long to market for the big publishers, especially for those writers who have other books an an audience; the readers want more content, not to wait two years for the next book.
What genres do you write?
Thriller, Mystery/Suspense, Literary Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Psychological Fiction
What formats are your books in?
eBook, Print, Audiobook
Website(s)
Dan Lawton Home Page Link
Follow Dan Lawton On Amazon
Link to Author Page on Instagram
Author’s Social Media Links
Goodreads
Facebook
Twitter
All information is provided by the author and is presented as it was submitted so you the reader get to hear the author’s own “voice” in their interview.
