Russel Barrie interview

AUTHOR INTERVIEW

A little introduction:

Hello dear reader. If you’re looking at these lines, you’re a lover of the written word. Or maybe, you’re still scrolling through twitter looking for images of influencers in lingerie doing ducky face. Either way, I’m hoping I catch your eye. My name is Russel Barrie. I am an author of fiction, knower of obscure facts and passionate human being looking for the title of ‘author’.

When did your love of books begin?

I want to say it was when I was very little, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. I did not like to read when I was a child. It was dull, required concentration and I would rather have been doodling or playing with transformers (child of the 80s). When I got just a little older though, I realized just what I had been missing. Books can enlighten, books can be escapism, books are empowering. The ability of just a few printed words on a cream page to take you somewhere else is amazing. I threw the transformers away and have read ever since.

When did you start to have the wish to become an author?

I think, like anyone who writes, the wish has always been there in the background. But the first real time I felt it was in Australia in 2018. My wife had been posted there and her company gave me a job driving tractors to help fill my time. I had LOTS of time. Bouncing on that squeaky seat mulching fields, I had time to think about plot, characters, visuals, just how I would tell a story. Everyone has a story inside them. I’ll fight anyone who says different. After a long day of that, in the evenings, I would sit my bruised ass down at the kitchen table and try to put my thoughts to words. Writing into the late hours, I swore it was not just a fad or a phase. I wanted to finish my book and I did. The Wickedest of Things, my first novel, goes to print next month. It’s the most amazing feeling.

What would you say to those wanting to become an author?

I want to say ‘DON’T GIVE UP!’. That may be a cliché, but it is absolutely true. Instead though, let me say this: You will be discouraged, you will face rejection, and you will wonder if the time, effort and late nights are worth it. But never doubt that you have something to give to the world. Keep bleeding at your laptop.

Tell us about your book/books:

I try to give my writing a little humor and a little heart. The first goal of any project should be to entertain, and most good writing stems from taking an idea and spinning it out in a fun way. The Wickedest of Things will be out next month but I have two short stories on Amazon right now: Sex, Revenge and Chocolate Cake, and A Fish Story. These are the first of my ‘Light Reads’, little entertaining stories you should finish in about an hour. One is the revenge of a scorned lover on a douche, the other is the heartwarming story of a man trying to convince a shark not to eat him.

What do you love about the writing/reading community?

Again, it sounds Cliché but the supportiveness. In joining the writing community, and the reading community for that matter, everyone wants you to succeed. To get your story told. It’s that encouragement that keeps so many of us going. Thank you.

If you could say anything to your readers what would it be?

Thank you! For everyone who has ever read my work, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Every turn of the page, every good review, every download makes my writing possible. I can’t express how grateful I am to you for doing that. Keep it up!

Where can people connect with you?

You can reach me, and find links to my work, through my website. www.russelbarrie.com

Twitter: @barrie_of_loops