This week, we're talking with Jameson Tucker about his new book, Last-Call Limbo: A Cosmical Pub Tale.
Tell us something unexpected about yourself!
Well, I did see a UFO some years back, if that counts for anything, plus there was that little near-death thing some years later, that was memorable.
Why do you write?
I've been down a few interesting paths over the years, known a lot of crazily interesting people along the way, and some of the resultant experiences have (in my humble opinion, anyway) given me a rather unique perspective regarding some of the really big questions of the day; you know, why are we here, what's really going on out there with that crazy world we all live in now, like that. The whole writing thing is really more an exploration of it all more than anything else really, a search for answers if you will, which is where the whole Cosmical Pub series very much comes into play. Hopefully that's a journey we can all take together, and maybe have a little serious fun along the way a little, too.
What book do you wish you had written?
There are a lot of really good genre works out there, but I've never looked at one and thought, “Gee, I wish I'd written that!” Rather, I've just always felt grateful that I'd stumbled across it for whatever reason and got to read it, because all of them have very much influenced what I write now, which is precisely what I've always wanted to write.
Where did you get the inspiration for your current book?
Well, some of those aforementioned experiences can give you some rather interesting perspective on things, as I said, and I believe you need to know the questions a little better before you can best define any prospective answers to them. Mix that a little with all the pop-culture influence and the like that we're regularly exposed to now, and you'd be surprised at what the end result might be.
What do you enjoy the most about your genre?
I like to blur genres more than a little, but with genre fiction overall I believe you have a little more flexibility, sometimes a lot, to say the things you want to say, and in the way you best want to say them. Like exploring the whole UFO phenomenon, or the seemingly paranormal aspects of it all, for example; genre fiction is a great way to do that. That said, though, I do try to keep it all as grounded in real-world reality as I can, with the Cosmical Pub series, I mean. I'm talking about my own unique take on “reality,” mind you.
How would you describe your writing process?
I have a tendency to work on multiple projects at a time more often than not, especially in terms of notes or outlines and the like, but when fully immersed in putting a particular book together, I’ve pretty much settled into something of a three-step routine: The handwritten version, for starters, which I generally work on in the mornings and early afternoon when I can; then, doing whatever edits or corrections or whatever during the typing process, which I usually do later in the day at the computer; then, once I’ve at last completed and printed-out the finished typed-version, I do a final read-through/edit on that and make any last changes or revisions that might be necessary at that time. By doing everything this way, I've found that (for me, anyway) it helps the book to hopefully come out the best that it can possibly be.
What do you think authors have to gain from participating in social media?
Lots, actually. The actual writing process itself can be a bit of a solitary one, actually, and having the opportunity to see just what's maybe going on with your work once you've released it into the wild, and getting to interact a little in the process, too, is really great for the most part, to say the very least. Plus, it helps to get the word (or words in this case) out a little more, which is always good.
How do you react to seeing a new review for your book?
I love seeing reviews, hopefully nice ones, mind you. Seriously, I think any review should be taken with a slight grain of salt, art being subjective and all that, but it's always nice to get some feedback regarding what somebody might have thought or not thought about your finished end result. Plus it's nice, too, to see that people are reading it and becoming engaged with it or whatever, hopefully in a good way!
What advice would you have for other writers?
My simple answer to that one would be write a lot, read a lot, and live a lot; maybe, but not necessarily, in that particular order. One way or another, it's all going to (hopefully) come together in one form or another, but only if you let it, of course.
How do you select your books’ titles and covers?
That usually all comes to me in one way or another during the writing process overall; sometimes in the early stages if not before, but almost always long before I've reached the final pages.
What’s your next step?
Well, I can honestly say that Zack and the rest of the Cosmical Pub gang have a lot of craziness ahead of them as yet, there are a lot of unanswered questions yet to deal with after all, and to that end we will most definitely be seeing them again very soon now. What more can I add to that, really, except to say: Stay tuned!
