The 2018 Author Interview Series Featuring Billy Ray Chitwood

It’s time for the next subject for my 2018 author interview series. Author interviews are posted every Friday throughout the year.

I am honored to continue this series with author Billy Ray Chitwood.

You can catch up with all of my past author interviews (nearly 200) on my Author Directory page.

If you’re an author interested in being interviewed in this series, I still have limited spots available for 2018. You can email me at don@donmassenzio.com

Now, please enjoy this interview with Billy Ray Chitwood:

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Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

I would like to think I’m trying for both when I write. I write mystery, suspense, thrillers, romance, and other genres. I could do a better job of marketing, in pre-launching my books, getting beta-readers, reviews, and I’m working on those aspects of the writing world.

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Start NOW honing your writing skills – If writing is something for which you have an affinity and love doing it, work it into your schedule.

What’s your favorite under-appreciated novel?

If you’re referring to my novels, it would be MAMA’S MADNESS.

If you mean another author’s novel, I would go with EVERYONE BURNS by John David Dolan – @JohnDolanAuthor.

Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good one?

Yes, I do read them. Obviously, I’m delighted with 5-Stars and 4-Stars! The bad review ‘stings’, but I don’t let it bother me too long. Usually, I immediately sit and write a blog post.

Do you hide any secrets in your books that only a few people will find?

Unless I’m misinterpreting your question, I’m sure a few people who know me well would find parts of my narratives pointing to experiences in my life – however, I would hasten to say there is no attempt to hide secrets. Much of my life is inescapably part of my writing. To a fault, my sharing at times, particularly in the two memoirs I’ve written, can contain self-flagellation and shameful sections.

Do you Google yourself?

Sure, as a way to remind me an important date – birthday, anniversary, something on a ‘to do’ list.

What is your favorite childhood book?

TOM SAWYER.

If you had to do something differently as a child or teenager to become a better writer as an adult, what would you do?

Almost an impossible question to answer, as I would need an environmental change. Had I been in a stable non-mobile environment, I would have taken my childhood dabbling in poetry, songs, writing on a different course. Unfortunately, my early years were not conducive to a lot of nurturing.

How long on average does it take you to write a book?

Without Social Media, with steady daily writing, about six to nine months. Most of my fictional writing is inspired by newspaper stories about actual crimes and events. I’ve long had this fascination with the evil that occupies our world. What takes so much time are the re-writes, editing, proofing, et al. I don’t write complicated novels dealing with historical people and/or monumental happenings that need a lot of research.

About Billy Ray:

I’m a young man in an old man’s body, trying to catch up to myself, trying to find pieces of me I left back in a disconnected youth and the early years of manhood. I’m a stereotype of many in my generation who can play the ‘blame game’, yell ‘foul’, and ‘let’s start over’. But, we are what we are, the sum of all the scary kid-emotions we experienced, the gin mills and piano bars that became our sandboxes of pleasure – lotus eaters of the best (or, worst) kind, the love affairs that did not quite settle us down, the sad poetry and songs written in bars and motels along the way… A Dreamer! A Wanderlust! The world needs such fools as we to write our books, our poetry, our songs, to offset the madness that plagues the soul.
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Most important among the searching, I found Julie Anne – she’s there in the picture with me.​

I’ve written fourteen books, over three hundred blog posts, in search of those pieces left somewhere in many parts of the globe. You can preview my books on the next page. There’s even a Blog page…all my posts are not showing on this recently created blog page, but, if you want to read more, go to my official blog site and check out the archives:

Connect with Billy Ray:

https://www.billyraychitwood.com (Website)

https://www.brchitwood.com (My blogs are also on Goodreads.)

https://www.about.me/brchitwood

https://facebook.com/billyray.chitwood

https://brchitwood.com

​https://www.thefinalcurtain1.wordpress.com

Billy Ray’s Books:

BOOKS OF MYSTERY – SUSPENSE – ACTION ​- CRIME – THRILLER – ROMANCE – MEMOIRS

FICTION (SOME INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS! – NON-FICTION – QUALITY READING