Interview with Devon Ellington *Contest*

*Contest* To win a copy of Hex Breaker on CD please leave a comment with your email addy and Devon will choose a winner Sunday night!! Have fun!

Author Pen Name: Devon Ellington

CA: How did you choose your pen name?

DE: Each one of the pseudonyms came about differently. For the “Devon Ellington” name, I wanted to have a first name that was a bit androgynous, and “Devon” was a good choice. “Ellington” came about because Duke Ellington’s music was playing over the sound system at the restaurant. “Ava Dunne” is a play on another name, that people who know me well get as an inside joke. “Cerridwen Iris Shea” comes from two of my favorite goddesses, Cerridwen and Iris, and “Shea” went along well with the name. “Christiane Van De Velde” comes from names along my female ancestral line. There are other names, some that are retired, some about to be launched, that just seem to fit the genre they represent. The choice of pseudonym always has a meaning.

CA: What genre(s) do you write? Why do you write the stories that you write?

DE: I write in various genres in both fiction and non-fiction. I write in genres such as paranormal, action/adventure, fantasy, mystery, western, dark comedy, literary fiction, sports writing, travel writing. I love westerns. My dad and I used to sit up and watch all those westerns in the 1960’s: HIGH CHAPPARAL, LAREDO, BONANZA, ALIAS SMITH AND JONES. Love ‘em, even the bad ones. I also have a freelance business writing arm, Fearless Ink, where I do everything from writing brochure copy to raunchy speeches for bachelor parties to restaurant menus to direct mail campaigns and press releases. I write plays and screenplays. I write whatever interests me, and the characters and situation decide on the genre or format. Sometimes stories will come to me first in dialogue and/or image, so the first draft is a script, and I realize it’s too unwieldy to be a stage play or a film script, so I then adapt it back into prose.

CA: When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

DE: I started writing when I was about six. I was published for the first time when I was eight. But in college, I moved away from writing into production work. I only got seriously back into writing, playwriting specifically, in the 1990’s, and then prose a few years after that.

CA: Who or what was your inspiration for writing?

DE: Well, Harriet Beecher Stowe and Louisa May Alcott were strong influences on me. Remember that series, CHILDLHOOD OF FAMOUS AMERICANS? I was looking for female role models from the time I was little, so I got out all the ones about the childhoods of famous girls from the library. I kept going back to the stories of Harriet and Louisa, and finally received my own copies for Christmas one year. And then my family took field trips to see their homes in Hartford and in Concord. One of the things I always loved about both those women writers is that they not only told excellent stories, they tried to write their way to a better world.

As far as inspiration, I think the world is a fascinating place, the bad as much as the good. Almost anything and everything is an inspiration. I can’t really peg what was my FIRST inspiration – telling stories has always been my way of understanding the world.

CA: What is your work schedule like when you're writing?

DE: I’m a morning writer. I like to do my first 1000 words of the day before I’m “tainted” by it, so to speak. I get up, feed the cats, put on the coffee, do yoga, and then write my first 1K. If I’m not working shows, I’ll hop on and off the computer all day and work on whatever’s on deadline. I prefer to read or edit in the afternoons – I’m not very creative in the afternoon. I perk up again in the evening, thanks to spending most of my adult life working in the theatre – at half hour, I get all perky again. Sometimes, if I’m on deadline, I’ll do another writing session at night. If I’m working shows, it’s a truncated writing day, and then I have to adjust and make up for it the next morning, by being even more focused. A typical, non-show writing day is a good 6-8 hours, and I’m usually juggling several projects.

CA: Your book is about to be sent into the reader world, what is one word that describes how you feel?

DE: Nauseous. In a good way. Seriously, that mix of excitement and terror goes right into a knot in my stomach.

CA: What was your biggest challenge in writing your book(s)?

DE: There are good days and tough days in the writing, but I don’t find the writing the challenge. I find the actual writing process a joy. The challenge is in the editing – a process I enjoy – where you focus and hone the book and make it the best it can be. And the biggest challenge, of course, is finding the right publisher and then getting the work out to the audience.

CA: What do you like to do when you're not writing?

DE: Well, I’m interested in almost everything except math and anchovies, so I’m constantly trying new things. I love reading. Museums fascinate me. The best way to refill the creative well, in my opinion, is to go and look at paintings. Traveling thrills me, although airline travel has become so vile lately – it’s insulting. The major carriers deserve to tank. They’re so disrespectful towards the customers, and without us, they have no reason to exist. I cover sports for FEMMEFAN, especially thoroughbred racing and ice hockey, but I also enjoy sailing, archery, fencing . . .a wide variety of sports. I’m not necessarily good at any of them, but I like to cover them! I’m interested in many things, so whenever I get a chance to try something, I grab it. And then, of course, to make sense of it, I write about it.

CA: How many books have you written? Which is your favorite?

DE: I don’t really know. Isn’t that weird? I have several manuscripts out making the rounds and/or under consideration. I have several in the final stages of prep before making their way into the world. I’ve lost count of all the articles and short stories that have been written and published. I’m in a bunch of anthologies, and my plays have been produced in New York, London, Edinburgh, and Australia.

As far as favorites, each piece holds a special place in my heart. The Jain Lazarus Adventures, which launched with the release of HEX BREAKER on August 1, are a lot of fun, and I’m having a great time with these characters. My novel TRACKING MEDUSA, part of a trilogy of archaeological action/adventure stories currently on submission, is very close to my heart. And, short story-wise, NEW MYTHS will publish my pirate fantasy “The Merry’s Dalliance” in their fall issue. There will be more adventures with the Merry crew – I’m very fond of the characters and the world I’ve built for them.

CA: Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?

DE: Both. Very often a character will suddenly appear and start telling me his or her story, and it’s not someone based on anyone I’ve encountered. The first draft is like taking dictation, or conducting an interview. Sometimes, an individual will serve as an inspiration for a character, but, when I do my job properly as a writer, the character evolves away from the inspiration and becomes a unique individual.

CA: Do you have any advice for the aspiring writers out there?

DE: How badly do you want this? If this is going to be your career and vocation as well as your passion, you have to be ruthless. There are no excuses for not writing, except that you don’t want it enough. There will never be enough time – you have to MAKE the time, and that means not letting anyone or anything keep you from the page – not your family, not your lover, not yourself. Writers write. So get that butt in the chair, stop making excuses, and put words on the page.

CA: How can a reader contact you or purchase your books?

DE: HEX BREAKER is available from Firedrakes Weyr Publishing (www.firedrakesweyr.com). If you want to read an excerpt, I have a site dedicated to the Jain Lazarus adventures, http://hexbreaker.devonellingtonwork.com. In a few days, there will also be a free short story to download featuring another adventure with these characters. The best way to keep up with my various work is through my blog on the writing life, INK IN MY COFFEE, http://devonellington.wordpress.com.

CA: Is there anything you would like to add?

DE: I’m offering a signed copy of HEX BREAKER on CD. Leave a comment on the interview, and, on August 10th, I’ll pick a name and that person will win the CD! Crystal, thanks so much for the interview. It was fun!

CA: Thank you Devon for doing the interview and the giveaway! Sorry it was so late that I posted it, I’m having technical issues.

To win a copy of Hex Breaker on CD please leave a comment with your email addy and Devon will choose a winner Sunday night!! Have fun!