Discovering what the “perfect” subject matter should be is one of the most difficult things about being an author. How do you know what topic others will want to read about? How can you be sure the concept will hold YOUR interest, as a writer? How will you know if the subject matter, once in book form, will sell? All good questions that, unfortunately, don’t have a definitive answer.

The best I can do is tell you how I came upon the idea for “One Last Lie”. The story (in summary form) goes something like this…

“Can I have your sperm, please?”

Three years ago this question came out of my best friend’s mouth – a woman I’d known for many years and had never asked for anything more than a sip of my Caramel Machiatto. She talked about her motherly instincts and the ticking of her “biological clock”. It seemed she had given it a lot of thought, talked with many people and was now ready to proceed. Apparently, I was the last to know.

I was stunned, speechless and quite flattered. I stuttered, grabbed her hand and asked for a few days to think about it.

Coincidentally, I was having lunch with my lawyer the next day and I brought up my friend’s question – which was now my current problem.

She dropped her fork. “Absolutely not!” she snapped.

“Why not?” I snapped back.

“The law is too unclear. Even if she says now that she doesn’t want money or support, she might change her mind. What if she’s really a nut and her pregnancy hormones put her over the edge? Seriously, what if she’s unstable?”

“She’s not,” I said adamantly.

“But what if she is?” she insisted.

“She’s not,” I insisted back.

“But what if…”

“She’s not.”

And that was the origin of my best book so far – “One Last Lie” – a novel that has made people mad, sad, happy and most importantly, it has made them think.

So, I guess this proves that one of the answers to finding a great idea for a book comes simply from living life – taking your every day experiences or casual conversations and adding a “twist”. The thing is this: if you’re going through an experience or talking with a friend about something, it’s likely that millions of others are going through the same thing or talking about the same topic. And honestly, who doesn’t like to read about themselves?

SO YOU THINK YOU CAN WRITE…

I’d like to stay on the author/talent show comparison for just a little while longer. I mean, the  name of the blog is, “So you think you can WRITE”, right? And for this blog segment in particular, the word “think” is the operative word.

Let’s talk “American Idol” for a moment – a very short moment, I promise. For the first eight years we watched every single episode. (Please don’t ask me why or how. Just know we’ve stopped watching and are now leading more productive and happy lives.) What was most surprising throughout the years were the contestants who auditioned and were completely incapable of holding a note or staying on key. Now I’m not talking about the people who wanted their fifteen minutes of fame or were obviously out of their minds. I’m talking about the contestants who really believed they could sing, yet were so off pitch and out of tune, we’d squirm in our chairs. You know who I’m talking about:  the competitors who would stare at the judges in disbelief when they were told the truth about their lack of talent – their eyes filled with incredulity, helplessness and tears. And why were they so incredulous? Because most of these naïve people, if not all, had been told by their friends and family that they were “wonderful”, an “amazing vocalist”, the next, “American Idol”.

Well guess what? They were getting advice from the wrong people.

My mother loves everything I’ve ever written. From the three-page “novels” I wrote in giant letters at the age of five to the book I just published in May, “One Last Lie”, she devours every word and has never had a negative comment regarding any of my work. Is she my biggest fan? Yes. Can I depend on her to find a spelling error or grammatical mistake? Absolutely. But can I trust her opinion when submitting a manuscript to an agent or publisher? Unfortunately, no. 

When I need honest judgment and unbiased reviews, I stay away from friends and family. I contact writers groups and do a little review-swapping; I enter contests (legitimate ones) and see how close to the Winner’s Circle I get; I pay editors to provide impartial comments and recommendations. I do whatever it takes not to fall into the trap of false adulation or unbiased opinions. Once I’ve gotten a sufficient amount of reviews and recommendations, I take those I think can elevate my work and revise the writing until the final critique is in – mine.

In the case of “One Last Lie”, it appears my mother was right. I’m getting amazing reviews (see for yourself: reviews) and heartfelt adulation from strangers… people I’ve never met and will probably never meet. And when it comes down to it, those are the individuals who will turn, “So You THINK You Can Write,” into, “So You KNOW You Can Write.”

If you’ve seen the television talent show “So You Think You Can Dance”, you have a pretty good idea of what being an author is like.

With writing (as with dancing), a very simplified version of the process usually works like this: you THINK you have talent and then you PRACTICE your craft until you ACHIEVE a level of security about your abilities. At that point you BROADCAST your body of work, ANTICIPATE the world’s reaction and CROSS YOUR FINGERS.

Of course, there’s a lot of “stuff” that occurs in between these stages, but in essence, these are the points in time that can make the difference between a successful attempt at writing and a “less than successful” attempt. BTW, when it comes to writing, there’s no such thing as a “failed” attempt

While promoting my most recent novel “One Last Lie”, many book review bloggers asked me to complete a “virtual” interview – questions and answers that they’d post on their blog while they reviewed, discussed, praised (or ripped apart) my book. Most of the interviews surprised me as I had no idea that an audience would be interested in my response to questions like: “Do you go through any rituals before sitting down to write?”, “Do you need a drink before or after writing a chapter?” or “Have you ever hit the computer screen due to writer’s block?”

When I queried the interviewees as to the reasoning behind these questions, the typical response was: although most of the people who read their blogs are avid readers, many of them would also like to be authors. Their need to know more about the secretive and habitual aspects of a writer’s life made it obvious that they hungered for personal information that they themselves could use in order to have their own successful writing careers.

And so this blog… my chance to share some of the secrets that have enabled me to complete two novels (by itself a big feat), make it to the quarter finals of the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Awards and get 4 and 5 star reviews on Goodreads, Amazon and other sites all across the Internet. And it’s your chance to share your own secrets – and frustrations – that have become a part of your writing process, or just a part of your desire to become a writer.

So you think you can WRITE? Stay tuned to my next posting for the first part of the answer to that question…

Thank you to all who entered and to all those who are reviewing it – positive OR negative.

Rob

This “Genre” thing is driving me crazy.

My novel “One Last Lie” is a work of fiction – driven by suspense, drama and an unbreakable connection between two people.

However, since the publishing industry requires pigeonholing, I must classify my novel. I’m told by some it should be categorized as “suspense”… others “thriller”… and by many, “gay/lesbian” – since the main characters of the book are a gay couple.

Now, although the main characters are gay, the main plot revolves around a very mainstream subject: artificial insemination and the relationship with the woman who is carrying their child. There is no gay sex in the book (sorry to those who wanted otherwise), no “coming out” story and no “Oh my God, my son is gay” scenarios. It is about a couple that longs to have a child, finds the “perfect” woman to carry it for them and then relates the pain and heartache that follows.

If “One Last Lie” was about a heterosexual couple going through the same thing, it would simply be categorized as a “suspense/thriller”. It wouldn’t be classified as a “heterosexual thriller”.

What do you think? What’s my genre? What should I tell the world?

Part of the Goodreads promotion is a Book Giveaway – between June 1 and June 15 you can enter to win a FREE paperback version of One Last Lie. If you win and want me to autograph it, just let me know and I’ll write something personal just to you. Of course my penmanship is chicken scratchy (see… I SHOULD have been a doctor!), but it’s the thought that counts. Keep an eye out to see if you’re a winner.

By the way, if you’re a reader and don’t know about Goodreads yet, you MUST go to www.goodreads.com. You’ll be glad you did!