Interview with Bill Mueller - Part II

Here's part II of my interview with W. E. "Bill" Mueller, author of Peaches and Cream:

DV: You are a versatile writer of essays as well as short stories. Your short stories have won several awards, and your essay in "The Liguorian" magazine is poignant and uplifting. Please tell us about your awards and some of your publishing credits.

WEM: Probably 2008 was as exciting as it gets. Toward the end of the year, Sept.-Oct. I received phone calls telling me I was Winner, First-Place, Numero Uno of the St. Louis Writers Guild short story contest, and also First-Place winner of "The Writer" magazine's short story contest. Both of those are open, nation-wide, indeed, world-wide contests. To this day, I'm still astounded. Also, in 2009 I won two Honorable Mentions in "Writer's Digest" genre short story contest. This contest attracts thousands of entries, and the publication can award as many as 100 Honorable Mentions. To win two of them is an accomplishment, I believe. I've had essays in Commonweal, a handful of book reviews in the Post-Dispatch (in '07-'08). My stories have appeared in 'Echoes of the Ozarks', the OWL anthology, in Lindenwood University's "Untamed Ink" quarterly, and a few other spots.

DV: Wow! You have had some wonderful accomplishments lately. Congratulations on your success and here's wishing you even more. Now, can you tell us a bit about your reading experiences. Growing up, who was your favorite author? Who are some of your favorites now?

WEM: Can't say I had a favorite childhood author. Favorite (fiction) authors are, first, James Lee Burke. He's a must read. Then there's a long list: Richard Russo, Elmore Leonard, E.L. Doctrow, Louise Erdrich. For short stories, I think you have to read Annie Proulx.

DV: That's an impressive list. James Lee Burke and Elmore Leonard are a couple of my favorites, too. Since this blog is about books, here's another question about them: Not counting your own book, what one book has made a difference in your life?

WEM: Dostoevsky's "Crime and Punishment." Be sure you get the translation by Constance Garnett. It is a beautiful story of love and redemption. I read the book in my sophomore year of college, finishing it in the reading room of the dorm, shamefully crying my eyes out. I've read it at least three times.

DV: Hmmm. "Crime and Punishment by Dostovesky." Lots of folks love those dead Russian writers, and maybe with "Crime and Punishment" having such an impact, that's why you write crime novels. Now, another question about writers: If you could meet one writer living or dead, who would it be and why?

WEM: That would be a toss-up between Dostoevsky and John Updike. I think I'll go with the Russian. Just on the basis of Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamozov, The Idiot, Notes from The Underground, The Possessed, and the story of Dostoevsky's life are enough to intrigue any serious writer (and reader).

DV: Back to your own book. How can readers purchase copies of Peaches and Cream?

WEM: Peaches and Cream can be ordered on Amazon, or at a Barnes & Noble, or Borders. A few St. Louis area book stores have it on the shelves, but it can be ordered at any legit bookstore. (Note: It also is available at Bill's publisher, High Hill Press.) E-mail highhillpress@aol.com

NOTE: If you want a signed copy of Bill's book, I also happen to know he will be at the St. Charles City-County Library District’s annual Local Author Open House on Thursday, November 18, from 4:30 to 8 p.m. at the Middendorf-Kredell Branch Library in O’Fallon, MO.

DV: What are you working on now?

WEM: I have completed at least another half-dozen short stories since Peaches and Cream came out. Currently, I am trying to expand a Zach Bannister story (Working the Crossword--which is in Peaches and Cream, and won 'The Writer' magazine first place award) into a novella. Got about 20,000 words done.

DV: Zach Bannister is a wonderful character and I remember "Working the Crossword" when you read it at critique group. It is a great story. Any final words of wisdom or advice about writing or life in general?

WEM: Revise and revise. Read at least 60 books a year, not all of them fiction. Revise and revise. Write what you don't know, but like. Revise and revise. Remember, it's all about story. Think of a good story. Fill it with characters. Make the reader ask, What happens next? revise and revise. I saw someone recently handing out a book with the title "Write a Book in a Month." That, my friends, is pure bull-hockey. Just remember the three R's: read, rite and revise.

DV: I agree about reading, riting, and revising. All three are critical. Wrapping things up, readers might want to know how to contact you with questions or comments.

WEM: I'm digitally-poor. E-mail me at wemstories@att.net. Put 'Peaches and Cream' in the subject line or my computer might 'spam' your message.

Thanks, Bill, for taking time from your busy "reading, riting, and revising" schedule to visit with us.

Note: If you live in the local St. Charles metro area, Bill and I and several other writers belong to a Tuesday critique group which meets at the Rendezvous Cafe on Main Street in O'Fallon. Occasionally Bill will bring in one of his stories, which are always enjoyable. And don't forget he will be at the Middendorf-Kredell Library on November 18th.

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

Yesterday was a busy, but very fun day.

In spite of the rain and traffic I arrived on time at the library in Harris Elementary School in St. Charles to talk to more than 400 students in KG-4th grade about "The Life of a Writer." The visit was set up by Ruth Guffey from the Saint Charles City School District Partners in Education Program. The school's Literacy Leader Melissa Armbruster oversaw the program. (Thanks, Becky, for sending my name to Ruth.)

For the event I joined Sarah Weaver and Stephanie Bearce. Sarah is a young, an enthusiastic and an intelligent reporter who talked about some of her reporting assignments, including President Obama's visit to St. Charles in March. Stephanie is a vivbrant and knowledgeable retired teacher who has written several non-fiction books and is working on a fiction book.

The real stars of the program, however, were the students. What a joy it was to be in their presence! They asked great questions and had some charming answers when they were asked questions. I was amazed that the kindergartners knew the difference between fiction and non-fiction. All the children were attentative and appreciative and just so sweet.

After leaving Harris School, I met up with my sister Kathleen and friends Gerri and Patty to go to the Missouri History Museum in St. Louis. The four of us are volunteer gallery attendants for the Splendors of the Vatican exhibition which runs through September. The crowd wasn't as large as last Sunday so I had some time to examine some items in the collection more closely.

Last night I typed up several current event papers for Cari (that are due today) and didn't get to bed until early this morning--around 2 a.m.

Today is catch-up day. I'll be signing the kiddos up for two short summer day camps and Ill be updating the Saturday Writers website, which is long overdue. And housework is calling my name.

Tomorrow (and for the next 10 days) I'm hoping to receive more entries in my no-fee, easy-to-enter short story contest in honor of National Short Story month.

You can find complete guidelines on my May 3 post. In a nutshell, stories should be unpublished, in English, no more than 2010 words, and e-mailed to me (copy and paste in the body of an e-mail) dvolkenannt (at) charter (dot) net by May 31. Open to writers in the USA and Canada. First place winner receives a copy of the out-of-print Cuivre River Anthology (Vol I). Top three winners receive certificates.

Hope you all have a great weekend. I'll be back on Monday!

My Talk on "Prose Writing" to MFA Students at Lindenwood

Last night was an eye-opening experience. Dianna Gravemann, a writing friend and university-level teacher, invited me to talk to her MFA students in a class on "Prose Writing" at Lindenwood University in St. Charles. The focus of my talk was on short stories, specifically what I look for when judging a short story contest or deciding which short stories to accept when I'm editing Cuivre River Anthology.

The class was a mix of published and yet-to-be-published students. During my presentation I talked about what makes a good story, including the importance of story titles and gave them an exercise on "guess the original title of the book." For example, "Pansy" was the original title of what best-selling book that was made into a famous movie? Answer: "Gone with the Wind."

Last night we also discussed characters, conflict, word choices, voice, and most of the basics of short stories. But a few students had specific questions about the business of publishing, and I'm not certain I adequately covered those questions in the time I had to speak. Even if I had more time, I'm not sure I could've covered them because frankly those questions were geared for someone in publishing rather than a garden-variety writer like me.

Before leaving I handed out bookmarks with my blog address and invited the students to visit here. So, I hope some of them will visit today because I've found links to sites with insight from professionals in the publishing industry on some of the questions asked last night.

* One question had to do with the future of self-publishing. I don't have a crystal ball and wouldn't want to specualte, and self-publishing individual decision. While self-publishing isn't right for me, I mentioned a few self-publishing success stories, and Dianna chimed in with some others. Here's a link to Alan Rinzler's post on How Self Publishing Can Lead to a Real Book Deal. In his post he lists the top four reasons self-published books get signed up. Another excellent post about self-publishing comes from literary agent Nathan Bransford, "Should You Self-Publish? The Questions to Ask Yourself."

* Two related questions asked last night were: "When do you know you're ready to send off your manuscript?" and "When do you stop sending off to lit mags or publications that only give contributor copies or pay $100, and start writing to make money?" Those are very personal decisions, and I didn't have a one-size-fits-all answer, but I found something that might shed some light on the subject. Here's a link to another post from Alan Rinzler. This one is on "How Writers Build Courage."

* Related to the questions above, which touched on finding an agent, here's a post from literary agent Nathan Bransford on "How to Find a Literary Agent," along with over 100 comments about his post. You can also learn a lot about agenting from Kristen Nelson in her Agenting 101 blog posts. I frequently visit these two blogs because of the excellent information they provide for writers.

* Another question touched on the content of a manuscript. "If 90 percent of what I've written is true and 10 percent is made up, is it fiction or non-fiction?" Great question. I've heard several opinions on the matter and had lengthy discussions with writing friends. Last night I mentioned James Frey, and one student brought up "Angela's Ashes." I found an article from the Christian Science Monitor that addresses the question of "Memoirs Whose Truth and Does it Matter?" that might help. Here's another link on a related question that was asked: "What is Creative Nonfiction?"

Those are all the questions I can recall that needed to be addressed more, but if there are others, let me know.

Thanks again Dianna for inviting me to talk to your class, and thanks to everyone there for being so polite and for having so many wonderful questions!