Two Questions with . . . author Ken Schrader

Thank you, Pat, for hosting me on your blog today as part of our “Two questions with...” series.

For those of you that don’t know, my name is Ken Schrader. I write Science Fiction, Fantasy, Weird Westerns (though, not necessarily in that order). 

And here are my Two Questions...

Question 1. What is the hardest part about writing?

Beginning. Hands down. I have the most trouble with beginning. Now, when I say “Beginning,” I don’t mean beginnings, as in the start of the story. I mean Beginning. Sitting down to write, making that commitment, shutting yourself away from family, friends, the dogs, TV, games, the internet, dishes, that bit of laundry you’ve got to—

Stop it.

Go write.

That’s the hardest part for me. I won’t say that the rest is easy. Writing is hard work, no matter how you go about it. But it’s also fun work. Once I get started, I can fall so deeply into it that I’ll lose time. And it doesn’t matter what part of the process I’m in. Drafting, editing, revising (yes, there’s a difference), or any other part of it.

Beginning, though, is a hurdle that I’ve got to jump every time. 

Question 2. What is your "Go-to" thing that you treat yourself to when you finish a first draft?

The thing I go for when I finish a draft is a grilled steak. Where I go depends on the time of year it is. If it’s not near freezing (or raining), I’ll happily bundle up and get the charcoal grill going. In the event that’s not a viable thing, then there are a couple of places around that I could go to.

Pizza from one of the local places is a good “Plan B”  

BIO: 

I am a science fiction and fantasy writer, a shameless Geek, a fan of the Oxford comma, and I make housing decisions based on the space available for bookshelves. I collect books, movies, and music.

I sing out loud when I think there's no one around, and try to get a blog post up once a week--One of which I have done consistently for the last few years.

I love music of all kinds, books, the big sky off my front porch, Star Wars, Firefly, Blind Guardian (to which, I write almost exclusively), Rugby, star gazing, jasmine tea, and the smell of rain on the air.

My favorite flavor of ice cream is chocolate. My favorite food is grilled steak, and I can suspend disbelief embarrassingly quickly.

I live in Michigan, am co-owned by several dogs (especially the Border Collie), and I ma one of the rare breed of folk that enjoys mowing the lawn. 

I am represented by Dorian Maffei of Kimberley Cameron & Associates. (Dorian@kimberleycameron.com). 

WEBSITE     FACEBOOK   TWITTER

ually only on the weekends, and not for very long at that.