Author: Ronald Talney
Title: Nockers Up
Publisher: Inkwater Press
ISBN: 13 978-1-59299-652-0
Pages: 222, Paperback/Kindle
Genre: Thriller/Humor
Author Interview with Ronald Talney
Author Interview with Ronald Talney
Title: Nockers Up
Interviewed by: Lisa Brown-Gilbert, Pacific Book Review
1. PBR: What made you choose to write a novel like Nockers Up!
I wanted to write a book that I would enjoy reading. Not a heavy “tome” but just an amusing read with a few laughs in it. While I enjoy a wide range of fiction and creative non-fiction, every now and then I like to settle into a book like Nockers Up! just for the sheer fun of it.
2. PBR: Where did you get the inspiration for your diverse assortment of characters for the book?
As a former criminal defense attorney and a writer I have encountered in one way or another, and at one time or another, each and every one of my characters, or folks very much like them. Practicing criminal law is an excellent way to meet the real world of zany folk, some dangerous and some just bizarre.
3. PBR: Have you thought about writing a continuation of the adventures of Cal and Candi?
I fleetingly gave thought to a sequel of Candi and Big Cal but decided I had run the course with them and exhausted what they had to offer. I’ll leave them in peace.
4. PBR: You have a great knack for writing satire will you be writing more books of this nature?
I am working on a couple of other books that are also character-driven, which is my preferred avenue into fiction, particularly with satire and humor. I’m not sure where those projects are going to go at this point. The characters haven’t told me yet.
5. PBR: As a person of great creativity, do you have a muse? Who or what is it?
I don’t know if I have a “muse” or not. I just write and let the computer do the talking. In the world of poetry, I suppose I have a muse although I have never thought of it in that sense. I do find bits of language floating around in my head, demanding that something be done about it. It has been with me for many years now, so we seem to get along well together.
6. PBR: Who is your personal – favorite as an author? What makes them your favorite?
Picking a favorite author would be like choosing my favorite child. Not possible. I read widely, as I’ve indicated, fiction, memoir, non-fiction, etc. In the area of satirical thrillers, such as Nockers Up!, I love the books of Carl Hiaasen, and also Tom Robbins. They are both a great inspiration to me. I’m sure I’ve read everything either of them has published. There are many others as well.
7. PBR: Do you have a preference as to what genre you write?
I have written in a number of genres and it is just a matter of mood for me. I have been a poet most of my adult life and first began publishing poems over fifty years ago. I published a juvenile mystery novel in the nineties and a memoir last year, as well as Nockers Up!. In recent years I have published a number of personal essays too and have put together a collection of them. It might have been helpful to my career as a writer if I had stayed in one genre or another, but I love the diversity and have always followed my instincts. I write what I like, whatever that may be at the time and wherever it takes me.
8. PBR: What guidance can give to other authors looking to publish?
I can only suggest that one persevere and keep writing. Write what you like and eventually you will find an audience.
9. PBR: What new writing projects do you have in the works, if any?
I have just finished another memoir. I published a memoir last year as a stand-alone issue of the law review from West Virginia University. I am considering expanding it and seeing if there is an audience for it in the world of trade books. And I am working on the two books I mentioned previously as well as a straight novel loosely based on my experiences as a trial lawyer handling political asylum cases out of Haiti and Central America in the Rio Grande Valley. So, I have lots to do. At my age, there may not be time to get it all done.
