Author in the Spotlight

Hello, today we have Matthew Drzymala with us for Author in the Spotlight.

About the Author
My name is Matthew Drzymala and I come from Manchester, UK but now reside in Liverpool with my fiancée, Elaine. I'm 33 years old and started to write seriously when I was 28. I love to travel and see new places in the hope of sparking new ideas for my stories.

My stories are mostly humours, silly tales but I also write dark, tense stories from time to time, when the mood takes.

I love to read, except when I'm writing as my brain seems to want to explode if I'm writing a story. It doesn't want to know about reading a book before bed time on those occasions. When I'm not writing I'm either watching football, watching some quality TV with my other half or out with friends. I love to write, but I also love TV shows and films, all of which vie for my attention as much as the writing does.

After talking with Matthew and asking him questions, here is what he had to say.

1.) How did the author start writing?

I wrote stories when I was young but nothing much. I must admit that although I have always read lots of books, I came to writing quite late. I took part in NaNoWriMo in 2011 and completed the 50,000 word challenge in 28 days. It was a crazy month and mentally tiring but the sense of achievement afterwards was a real, natural high.

I attempted to perfect the novel I wrote but couldn't get it right, so I looked into a creative writing course to help me. I found one near home and took two courses between 2012 and 2013. It was a real eye opener and a fantastic experience. I wrote a lot of dark, psychological stuff in those courses and the majority of those lie gathering dust, waiting for me to given them a full re-write.

After that I just started to write some of the stories I did on the course and the rest is history really.

2.) Who is your favorite author?

I think my favorite author at the moment is Jo Nesbo. I just love his Harry Hole detective stories. I can pick them up and read them even when I'm not in the mood to read or when I'm in a writing phase. I find them effortless to read.

However, I have a number of authors I enjoy and would single out in the humour stakes it has to be Terry Pratchett's Discworld series. The worlds he creates, the constant one liners and the word play in his works never fails to bring a smile.

3.) What was your life like before becoming an author?

I would say just normal. I still hold the job I did. My life hasn't changed massively, I do now have a writing schedule (when I can) but my life is busy and it's not always easy to find time to write. I would love to have more time to write but I have many hobbies that vie for my attention. Maybe down the line writing will really overtake the others but I'm enjoying it at the moment and the more I enjoy it the more dominant it will become.

4.) What is your writing routine?

I try to write most Saturdays and Sundays from the early morning until noon. I write during the week rarely, but if I'm on a bit of roll, inspiration-wise I'll write as soon as I get home from work. Mainly it's weekend mornings/afternoons.

5.) How long have you been writing?

I have been writing seriously for 2 years but 4 if you could NaNoWriMo and my writing courses.

6.) Do you ever experience writer's block?

On many occasions. I tend to find lots of ideas for my stories but never ideas that instantly connect to each other. The bits in between I can struggle on for some time. However, it's all about writing through it I would say. You'll never get through the block by leaving it alone for weeks or months.

I try other stories or jot down random things and then suddenly I get ideas coming that suddenly seem to connect the missing links.

7.) How do you market your work?

I try to promote myself on Facebook groups and on Twitter in the main. I also try to conduct and

take part in as many interviews I can with fellow authors at the time of my release. I don't know how much it helps, but it has broadened my contact with indie authors.

It's such a great little world where everyone helps to promote you and wish you well. There's no bad feeling in the indie world I find and that is a rare thing in today's world.

8.) What project are you working on now?

I'm currently writing the next story in my Bumpkinton Tales series. This is a set of stories set in a fictional village full of colourful and quirky characters. It is quintessentially British in its humour but I think they are accessible to readers from outside of the UK too.

I wanted to try and make the next story into a novel, but I will have to see how far I can get before I decide if I'm stretching it out far too much. This will also be the third main story in the series (I have two short stories set at Christmas and two meatier novellas, Bittersweet and The Bachelor).

I plan to put what I have written so far into a paperback collection once this story is released as well as adding in a bonus story or two. I can't give much more away, sadly, not even the title, but all I can say is that it is my favourite story title of the series so far.

9.) What is your latest book?

My latest book is a short story called Albert's Christmas. It is a festive bonus story from my Bumpkinton Tales and centres around the village tramp, Albert Scatterhorn and the local priests, Whitworth O'Grady and Harrison Stawker. There's a crisis in the village when the resident dressing up as Father Christmas pulls out sick and they must find his replacement.

However, they are met with protests, a flirty florist and a vindictive journalist and with time running out, all hope seems lost. That is until somebody steps forward who the priests didn't quite expect.

10.) Do you have any advice to give aspiring writers?

Write. Just that. Just write. Some days it will flow, some days it won't. It's fun and exciting, it's slow and dull but in the end you'll be happy with what you have done. Regardless of what other people think of it, that is something you have poured your time, effort and love into and nobody can ever take that away from you.

Write. You'll love it.

And there you have it from Matthew Drzymala.

Thank you for allowing me to do this interview. It was nice meeting you. And I would like to wish you the best in everything you do.

If anyone would like to contact Matthew or you have any questions, please feel free to. You can reach him at the contacts below.

Website- www.matthewdrzymala.com

Facebook- www.facebook.com/mattdrzymalaauthor

Twitter- www.twitter.com/mattdauthor

Amazon- http://amzn.to/1C4pTUe