Monday, March 22, 2010

Guest Visit: Marvin Wilson of The Old Silly

Today's guest is Marvin D. Wilson, aka The Old Silly, who joins us to chat about his latest novel Owen Fiddler. Marvin is also the author of I Romanced the Stone (Memoirs of a Recovering Hippie), and Between the Storm and the Rainbow. Marvin describes Owen Fiddler as: "no role model for you or your kids, but reading his story will learn ya a thing or two, and that's a fact. This is an entertaining, thought-provoking, humorous and spiritually insightful book which will surely have you thinking about your own life.Owen talks to me about his work:

Tell me how you came to write Owen Fiddler.


Owen Fiddler is a modern day parable, a sort of fairy tale, set in a world of reality like yours and mine, with a moral to it. It started out as a Christmas short story that I posted on my blog and emailed to some family and friends. The feedback was so positive, and so many people encouraged me to expand on it, that I decided to write it out into a full length novel.

What is the key theme of the book?

Karma, the Law of Attraction, and the Golden Rule play heavily in it. I am a spiritualist, a follower of the Way of Christ, so there are Christian themes in the book, but religious sticklers for rigid interpretations of Biblical theology would have some issues with it as I take quite a few liberties in that regard. In one scene, for instance, I have Kris (short for Krishna), the savoir character in the book, French kissing Frenda Fiddler (Owen Fiddler’s daughter and the secondary main character) in the never-world. Some Christians who read that scene were offended. But that’s me—I like to stir up controversy and healthy dialog and debate.

What was the hardest aspect of writing Owen Fiddler?

The first draft was unbelievably easy. I was in a “writer’s zone” where for several weeks a rarely slept or ate or did anything but write. The ideas were flowing out faster than I could key them in. Characters would wake me from my sleep and demand I get up and write something they needed to say and/or do. Incredible—I’d never experienced anything like that before. The rewrites and revisions took like, gosh, three months at least, because I have a real taskmaster editor who demanded the very best from me. She would not let one scene go until she felt it was crafted to perfection.

Tell me what's on the cards for you - what are you working on now, and what kinds of projects are you hoping to work on in the future.

I have three WIP’s in the works. One is a sequel to Owen Fiddler, it’s a comedic cop story, a whodunit with some spiritual themes underlying the plot, titled, “Detective Snoop”. The second one is a romance, with a female main character who is a best selling author who loves to climb mountains and is married to an unfaithful rock star—that one is titled, “Heaven’s Slope Ascended”. And the last one, the least developed so far, but my favorite and one I simply must get finished or I won’t be able to rest, is titled “Beware the Devil’s Hug”. The best way to describe it is to give you the adblurb I wrote for it for querying:
What if a homeless, smelly, ugly unkempt old man had a hug so powerful it could cure cancer? Cause a prostitute to stop hooking and seek true love? Shake the demons of addiction free from a junkie? Make a Christian want to hug and love a Muslim and visa versa? But rare is the beneficiary of his divine hug—nobody wants to come near him out of fear.

Owen Fiddler Book Trailer



Tour with VBT-Writers on the Move through March. New and famous authors, plus useful information.

10 comments:

  1. I'm not commenting on "old" or "silly" but this Old Silly is one of the best, most giving marketers around. Lovely post, Maggie!
    Best,
    Carolyn Howard-Johnson
    Author of the new booklet ($6.95!) on tricky edits for writers
    www.budurl.com/WordTrippersPB

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  2. Gosh, Marvin, I wish I could be in the zone like that for several days of profitable writing. Unfortunately, for the most part, my stories are sometimes like pulling teeth, and I spend a lot of time brainstorming about the twists and turns in my plot. Good luck with your projects!

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  3. Wow, Marvin,

    Boy, what if! Beware the Devil's Hug sounds intriguing. I love the concept and it's something I would read.

    Wonderful post, Maggie.

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  4. Since I write non -fiction, I don't have characters waking me up thank goodnesss. LOL But I must tell my 15 year-old, who's interested in writing fiction, that this happens. She read an interview with another author who said the same thing and she thought the woman was crazy!

    Each of your three WIPs sound quite fascinating. Best of luck with them all.

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  5. Marv, its great to be in that writer's zone. The creative juices are flowing and you sacrifice sleep, food, and what not and just type away. And I agree with Carolyn. Marv is one of the better ones in the business. I'll attest to that.

    Stephen Tremp

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  6. What an interesting interview! Thank you Marv and Maggie.

    Marvin, it's great to learn more about how you wrote Owen Fiddler and the books you're working on at the moment. They all sound good, but the 3rd one in particular sounds really, really intriguing. I love the title and like Karen, I would want to read it! When do you think any or all of your WIPs might be finished?

    Helena
    http://www.helenaharper.com

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  7. First of all, thanks Maggie, for having me on and doing such a fine job of formatting this feature!

    HoJo - receiving compliments about my marketing savvy from the MASTER like you is making my head swell. You're the best@!

    Katie - I don't always have those zones - I too sometimes have to "pull teeth" to get a scene or chapter to come out. But when the zone does happen, yes, it is a blessed thing indeed.

    Karen - I get that feedback a lot. So much so that I may have to put Hug on top of the list of priority - even though it's the farthest from completion, sigh ...

    Mari - You're daughter is right - we novelists ARE nuts! (wink)

    Stephen - I appreciate the kind words, and from reading and working on your new novel, I can see the "zone" at work a lot!

    Helena - thanks, and as I replied earlier, I'm going to put Hugs on top of my WIP list, so - dunno exactly when, but for sure by year's end - and of course I'll keep VBT posted. :)

    Marvin D Wilson

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  8. Interesting interview! I so wish I could get into the 'zone' more than I do know. Once in it, I can be so productive. Love that book trailer :)

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  9. Marvin, your trailer is amazing! The energy and wit you bring to your writing is evident just in this brief interview. Keep up the great work!

    :) Dallas

    http://dallaswoodburn.blogspot.com/

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  10. Accountant - Thanks, and yes, they call it the "blessed" zone for a reason, hmm?

    Dallas - Appreciate your kind words, I do try and put energy and wit in whatever I do. Feels good to get positive feedback like this. :)

    Marvin D Wilson

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