Words matter. These are the best James Rollins Quotes, and they’re great for sharing with your friends.
Generally, if you preface an interview request with, ‘I’m an author writing a book,’ for some reason, that seems to open a lot of doors.
I do have an office where about 70 percent of my writing gets done, but sometimes it does get a bit stir-crazy to be cooped up in there, so I’ll grab my laptop and write somewhere else: another room in the house, out on the patio, or even Heaven-forbid, a trip to Starbucks. But I also write on the road.
I subscribe to ‘National Geographic,’ ‘Scientific American,’ ‘Discover,’ and a slew of other magazines. And it is while reading articles for pleasure and interest that an interesting ‘What if?’ will pop into my head.
I’m pretty disciplined to keep the momentum of a story going by writing everyday, even if it’s only a couple paragraphs or a page or two.
Fiction writing was in my blood from a very young age, but I never considered writing as a real career. I thought you had to have some literary pedigree to be a successful author, the son of Hemingway or Fitzgerald.
Whenever I start a novel, I’m always looking for two things: a bit of science that makes me go ‘what if?’ and a piece of history that ends in a question mark.
I don’t actually have a one wellspring of inspiration. Though I’m most often inspired while reading – both fiction and nonfiction.
The turning point was when I hit my 30th birthday. I thought, if really want to write, it’s time to start. I picked up the book How to Write a Novel in 90 Days. The author said to just write three pages a day, and I figured, I can do this. I never got past Page 3 of that book.
I started writing short stories. I tried writing horror, mystery, science fiction. I joined a little critique group here in town and ran my stories past them. After about three years, I tackled my first novel, Subterranean. It took me 11 months to write.
I think the worst and most insidious procrastination for me is research. I will be looking for some bit of fact or figure to include in the novel, and before I know, I’ve wasted an entire morning delving into that subject matter without a word written.
Growing up with three brothers and three sisters, I was the storyteller of the family… what my mother called ‘The Liar.’
I’ve mis-signed many a book Rollins or Clemens. My readers quickly become aware. Booksellers will often promote me under both names, and I do plug both at signings. Generally, the fantasy reader has no problem going into the suspense genre. It’s harder for the typical suspense reader to go the other direction.
With two books a year, I don’t have time for writer’s block.
