Second, I wanted to test my own beliefs by pushing them to this extreme.  I’d just finished a book called BEAUTIFUL AMBIVALENCE that took the three elements I value (libertarianism, existentialism and time obsessions) and showed them in a positive light.  I guess you could say that, with DISPLACED HOURS, I wanted to write a counterpoint to that book by showing how those three things can lead to an ultimate evil as easily as they can lead to a positive spirituality (like they do in BEAUTIFUL AMBIVALENCE).  Finally, I wanted to write something allegorical for a writer’s life, which to me is a process of living alternate realities through other people (the characters in a book became the stolen consciousnesses of the people Lee Sinclair becomes).

The other part of the equation as to why I write involves a deeply felt psychological need to be known, respected, appreciated or, if you will, loved.  It’s hard to explain, but I’ve been trying to fill this hole in my life with books, poems, stories, songs.  Sometimes it works, but sometimes it makes me feel even more alone.  Que sera sera.

How do you write? 

Longhand in hardbound journals of 24 lines per page and, usually,160 pages.  Two of those equals 70000 to 90000 words for me, which is a novel.

Where do you write?

Anywhere.  I’ve written several books at my favourite bar, Calamity Cafe (http://www.calamitycafe.com), a couple more when I was in law school between classes.  I write in coffee shops, bars, restaurants, parks, museums, and just about anywhere else that I can lose myself in the white noise of a crowd (almost never at home except for songs).

What is your writing routine?

I tend to let ideas gel in my head a bit.  Then I often have to medicate myself to stay calm enough to sit still and write.  Usually I figure out where I’m going to write, set up shop there (including displaying all my books and CDs that are for sales) and order an endless cup of coffee or my favourite Starbucks vinte valencia cappuccino.  I try to read something (a few poems or a chapter from some new literary novel) before I pick up my pen.  Finally, I decide, "today I’ll write X number of pages," before sitting down to actually follow through.

How would you describe your writing style?

Literary, but focusing on psychological and philosophical takes on characters.  The books are extremely character driven.  The poems, by contrast, are very momentary and try to capture a real scene recently observed or experienced.

Which writers have inspired you?

William Burroughs was the first to influence me.  Reading Naked Lunch changed my life and taught me that a great writer holds nothing back.  In terms of my style, I’m more influenced by Hesse, Camus, Sartre and, to some extent, Wilde, Kawabata, Kundera, Graham Greene.  But lots of others.  I’m influenced by just about every good book I read.

What are your favourite books, and why?

Siddhartha because its approach to finding one’s own path to enlightenment mirrors my beliefs.  Also, Hesse’s The Glass Bead Game, Camus’ The Stranger, Umberto Eco’s Name of the Rose and Foucault’s Pendulum, Hugo’s Les Miserables for its deadly accurate psychological portrayals of all its characters, and of course Naked Lunch just because of its impact on my life (if I hadn’t read that, I’d still be writing lousy horror novels).  For poetry, everything from Neruda, David Rigsbee, my current favourite, David Lehman’s two books of daily poems, Adam Zagajewski, Jack Myers, Natasha Saje, and lots of others.  I read a lot.  Far too much, perhaps.

What are your writing ambitions?

I used to tell people with a perfectly straight face that I intend to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.  I still believe I write those kinds of books.  However, not having sold a novel to a major New York publisher, I now cling to the hope of just pure success, fame and validation.  As I said earlier, I want to be loved by many.

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

Write every day.  Read as much as you can get yours hands on.  Learn to take criticism without being defensive or offended and learn from that criticism.  Most  importantly, believe in your writing no matter how many people tell you you can’t do it or "Don’t quit your day job."  Caving in to the doubts of others (or worse, self-doubt) destroys the dreams of more artists than any critic, publisher or rejection letter ever will.

What are you working on currently?

Currently I’m trying to find New York publishers for my two most recent books, STATES OF MERCY (my favourite and most important book) and HAUNTING GRAY (my most audience-friendly book).  Also, I’m a third of the way through a new novel titled DAZZLING SHADOWS about a former folk singer whose life is disrupted after he somehow gets caught up in the US Patriot Act and is deemed a threat to national security even though he’s never done anything the least bit terroristic.  He sets out to find the cause of his troubles and to clear his name.

Finally, I’m trying to find publishers for two books of poetry and a collection of short stories. Busy, busy, busy. All the time.