1. What inspired your latest book or book series?
Well, the short answer is that I was first motivated to write my own fantasy novel because I found myself running out of books that I wanted to read. This was before the explosion of self-published books and ereaders. Back then, I would spend hours browsing the bookstores (alas, one of my favorite things to do before they started to disappear), waiting impatiently for the next sequel to any one of the 6-7 series I was following at the time. I was further inspired by another fantasy author, who introduced her first book by saying that she was a constant reader who had grown weary of haunting the bookstores, and finally decided to write her own book—the kind of story that she would most like to read. Like her, I decided that, if I was going to put fingers to keyboard, it would be to create the kind of book I most enjoy reading: a classic epic fantasy, with all of the time-honored characters, mythical races, heroes and villains, and magical elements that I love. So, I took some time off from reading and started to write. It wasn’t easy, particularly because I can’t type worth a damn (I use what I like to call my “poke and hope” method). But I found it to be great fun and very rewarding to see my story and characters come to life before my eyes. And, by the time I was finished, there was a whole new generation of books waiting to be read.
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2. Who is your favorite book character of all time? Why?
Ok, well, I’m afraid I’m much too OCD to decide between the two that immediately come to mind, so I’ll give you both. One is Drizzt Do’Urden, the drow elf from R.A. Salvatore’s The Icewind Dale Trilogy and The Dark Elf Trilogy. Drizzt is an unlikely hero, a complex character who was raised to be ruthless and cruel as one of the evil Underdark elves, but who rejects that malevolent society and leaves his subterranean home for the overworld. I love his amazing fighting skills, his loyalty and courage, his struggles to overcome his dark heritage, and his determination to find his place in the sun (literally) as a force for good.
The other is Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle’s consulting detective, a flawed, moody, arrogant (and often obnoxious) genius who battles a mood disorder and cocaine addiction while solving crimes with brilliant deductive reasoning. Like millions of other fans, I’ve been fascinated by the way he could read the history of a person’s life or a crime scene just by attending to small details; and by his early use of forensic scientific methods long before CSI showed up. I think Doyle was prescient in that regard.
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3. What lessons has writing taught you about life in general?
Writing an epic fantasy story about a lot of characters, each with his or her own individual motivations and point of view, required me to think about things from many different perspectives, to understand more about how people might see their world and the events going on around them through the prism of their own needs and feelings. I had to consider why even “good” people can do “bad” things, and how prejudice and bitterness can perpetuate anger and the thirst for revenge in people, even when the consequences of holding on to pain and hatred are so clearly self-destructive. I had to think about what it would take to overcome these very human tendencies and learn how to rise above our baser instincts. It also taught me something about me, my views about right and wrong, the importance of relationships in my life, and how I would like to see myself—as something of a romantic, and a regular guy with the potential for courage and heroism when needed.
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4. What’s your favorite quote?
Here are two of my favorites:
“Love as thou wilt.” (Elua’s motto that embraces all forms of consensual love, in Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel’s Legacy saga); and
“You fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders! The most famous is never to get involved in a land war in Asia. And only slightly less well known is this: never go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line!” (Vizzini in The Princess Bride)
By the way, I recently attended a “quote-along” screening of The Princess Bride. It was a real hoot, and the story has maybe 20 great quotes, not the least of which is the classic “Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die!”
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5. Who would you most like to have a cup of coffee with? (Dead or alive) Explain…
On a personal note, my father. I never knew him well because my parents had divorced when I was young; and by the time I realized it was important for me to get to know him better, he had died. There are a lot of things I’d like to ask him about who he was and what he would say to me now.
In terms of world figures, probably Jesus Christ, for historical reasons if nothing else. Here is a man whose followers comprise the biggest religious population in the world, currently over 2 billion people. So much has been done in his name, both good and bad. I’d like to know what he really thought and felt during his short life, who he was as a real person, did he ever “know” a woman in the Biblical sense, and what he would think of Christianity today.
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6. What is your biggest pet peeve?
When my cat fixes me with his soulful eyes and shamelessly whines for food again 30 minutes after being fed. Oh, you didn’t mean that kind of “pet peeve?” Ok, then I’d probably have to say haters who blast FB and twitter with their vitriol and intolerance for others. I know we are all prone to some intolerance. But I get really disgusted thinking about all the needless pain people can cause, and all the time people waste putting others down to make themselves feel better.
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7. Tell us something quirky about you.
Well, I’ll have to think about that one for a while, because everything I do seems pretty normal to me (lol)—unless my preference for writing in the dead of night when not a creature is stirring qualifies as quirky. Oddly enough, other people I know don’t seem to have as much trouble coming up with “weird” stuff about me, so I’ll get back to you with their litany of quirks. And hey, lots of people like to eat a whole lemon with salt, don’t they? (My daughter’s contribution to the list).
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8. Favorite comfort food?
Soups and stews, particularly beef stew, hot and thick with crusty French bread, slathered with real butter and ready for sopping up the gravy. I like to cook, and I’m always looking for a good beef stew recipe, so if anyone knows one…
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9. Star Wars or Star Trek? 
Hmmm. Both are great, but probably Star Trek, mainly because I watched the TV reruns over and over while growing up until the series invaded my DNA. You gotta love hammy Capt. Kirk, stoic Mr. Spock, shapely Lt. Uhura, and “I canna do it, Captain!” Scotty. It was a small budget show, and kind of corny, but the special effects were pretty cool for that time. Besides, it took me a while to get the Vulcan “Live long and prosper” hand sign down right, so I’m sticking with it! On the other hand, Darth Vader is far and away my favorite bad guy of all time, and I almost added “Use the force, Luke!” to my list of favorite quotes.
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10. Sunrises or Sunsets?
Sunsets, I guess. Mainly because I’m a nocturnal creature, and I can go for long periods without being awake early enough to see the sun rise. Sunrises are magnificent, to be sure, but if I’m watching one, chances are there’s something wrong or I pulled an all-nighter. I think dusk/twilight is actually my favorite time of day. Seeing the colors of the sky change, as the sun slips below the horizon and the shadows move across the land, evokes a special feeling for me—a time of beauty and transition, sometimes a bit of melancholy for things ending, but a time to let go of the day and be at peace.
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