Young Lovers Tormented by Forbidden Passion in Voices of the Locusts
Ron
Hutchison began writing young adult novels after a long career in journalism
and public relations. He graduated from the University of Missouri in 1967 with
a degree in journalism. He has worked as a reporter, editor, and columnist for
newspapers in Texas, California, and Missouri. His work has appeared in many
national publications, including Time
Magazine. Employed by Sun Oil Company
as a Public Relations executive, and later operated his own PR agency.
Purchase
in kindle or book form at Amazon.
Christopher,
can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how
long you’ve been writing?
A: I was an Army brat growing up and attended high
school in Japan. I began my writing career as a 19-year-old sports writer for
the El Paso Times. I didn’t begin
writing fiction until I was in my 60s.
Can you please tell us about Voices of the Locusts?
Author Ron Hutchison |
A: Sixteen-year
old Jack O’Brien has never known the bittersweet stint of love, and romance is
the farthest thing from his mind as he and his family arrives at a remote U.S.
Air Force outpost in Japan where Jack’s father is base commander. The year is
1948. Jack’s life changes after a chance encounter with Fujiko Kobaysi, a
beautiful and enchanting 17-year-old Japanese girl. Jack is immediately
smitten.
Fujiko’s
traditional parents are overly protective and monitor her every move, and Jack
and Fujiko meet secretly at her garden, located some distance from her village.
There is a good reason why Fujiko’s parents are so protective and Jack is
devastated when Fujiko tells him that her parents have promised her in marriage
to an older man, a practice common throughout Asia at the time. The marriage is
only a months away. Jack devises a cunning plan, one that will overshadow her
arranged marriage and bring Fujiko and him together.
Playing
against a backdrop of swirling post-War social change, Voices of the Locusts
tells the story of three families – one black, one white, one Asian. Told in
Jack’s voice in vivid and sometimes haunting detail, Jack and Fujiko are
frustrated in their romantic quest by story characters coming to terms (often
violently) with the emotional scars of World War II.
Purchase
Your copy of Voices
of the Locusts
Will you share an excerpt from Voices
of the Locusts?
A
flutter of panic races through my body. It is instantly replaced by a sweep of
joy, and a strange, unnatural lucidity overcomes me.
Fujiko
and I hesitate for what seems a small eternity, our eyes locked in a moment of
mutual understanding. Finally, I lean in toward Fujiko and she leans in toward
me. Our eyes close and our mouths touch in a whisper-soft kiss, a brief, gentle
brush of lips.
I
pull back slowly, my heart racing, my head alive with all manner of strange,
warm images. This must all be a dream. A wonderful, glorious dream. I don’t
want to ever wake up.
Has it been a bumpy ride to becoming a published author or has it been
pretty well smooth sailing?
A: Like most creative endeavors, there have been
inspirational highs and mind-crushing lows. A
Kid Called Duct Tape began life as a screenplay—Andy Sweet and the
$20 Gold Piece—and in 2009
that screenplay was optioned by Antibody Films in L.A. My hopes of seeing the
story on the big screen were dashed, however, when the option ran out and Antibody
did not renew it. I then transitioned the story from screenplay to novel.
Do you have an agent and, if so, would you mind sharing who he/is
is? If not, have you ever had an agent or do you even feel it’s necessary
to have one?
A: I had an agent for three years. Her name is
Leticia Gomez. Her advice and guidance were invaluable. We parted ways in late
2011 when I made the decision to self-publish A Kid Called Duct Tape. I can’t say enough good things about
Leticia. She was a tireless champion of my work.
If money was no object, what would be the first thing you would invest
in to promote your book?
A: Hmmm…interesting question. A full-page ad in the
Sunday Book Review section of The New
York Times would be a good place to start.
How important do you think self-promotion is and in what ways have you
been promoting your book offline and online?
A: Honestly, marketing a novel is as important as
writing a novel. No promotion, no sales. I imagine that many literary
masterpieces have had a short shelf life because the author failed to recognize
the value of self-promotion. Shameless self-promotion is essential to the
success of a novel.
What’s the most common reason you believe new writers give up their
dream of becoming published and did you almost give up?
A: My message to unpublished writers is this: Take
as much solace in the telling of your story as you do in the selling your
story. I have never thought about giving up because I take great joy in
stringing words into sentences and sentences into paragraphs and paragraphs
into chapters. If writers take no satisfaction in the creative process,
then…well, they’re screwed.
Any final words of wisdom for those of us who would like to be
published?
A: Find a genre you are comfortable with, and have
a go at it. I honestly believe that a good story will always find a home.
Thank you for your interview, Ron.
I wish you much success!
Hi
ReplyDeleteTks very much for post:
I like it and hope that you continue posting.
Let me show other source that may be good for community.
Source: free interviews
Best rgs
David