Can you share a little about your recent book – The Drift, Following the death of his wife and son, Hans Larsson buys a yacht named Future, intending to sail across the Atlantic with his young daughter Jessica. En route they meet Penny, a seasoned English skipper, who joins them as crew, and the larger-than-life Marcel, a Dutch art dealer hiding a secret, along with a stash of drugs on his vintage boat. Battling storms, sharks and pirates, Hans and Jessica experience the adventure of a lifetime, until fate intervenes to leave them fighting for survival on an ocean less perilous than the mind .
Why do you write? Do you have a theme, message, or goal for your books? I enjoy it. I write from a feminist perspective so that everyone can enjoy my work.
How long have you been writing? And how long did it take you to get your first major book contract? 7 years. 5 months – a publisher heard about my crystal meth memoir ‘Eating Smoke’ and approached me.
How long does it take you to write a book? Approx. 1 year
What’s your writing work schedule like? All day every day of the year including Christmas from 4am until 2030hrs when I stop to eat and watch TV
Do you have an interesting writing quirk? If so, what is it? I love chapter icons.
What has been your greatest joy(s) in your writing career? Getting my fiction published
What has been your darkest moment(s)? Too many to name and too many to shame
Which of your books is your favorite? I haven’t written it yet.
Who is your favorite author to read? I don’t really read genre or author – Willard Price has been my lifetime and childhood favorite though.
What advice can you give aspiring writers that you wished you had gotten, or that you wished you would have listened too? Just write, write, write – get it edited, get it on Kindle, then write another – don’t waste too much time on social media. Keep the price cheap until you’re famous.
How many times in your career have you experienced rejection? How did they shape you? Once a bookshop wouldn’t stock my fiction – only my memoir. I don’t care – bookshops are not the way to make money any more.
Do you have a favorite character or scene in one of your books? Nicole, who saved my life in Hong Kong
Where do you get your ideas? A combination of imagination and life experience – oh, and a lifetime of reading.
What are common mistakes you see aspiring writer’s make? Not writing enough. Not getting proofread and putting an awful book out there on Amazon. Too high a priced books. Too much time on social media – like Tweeting to 300 people!
Where/How do you recommend writers try to break into the market Write what makes you happy. Approach lots of other (traditionally published) authors as they know the score and can critique your work. Do anything and speak to anybody to get a publishing deal. If all else fails, buy a block of ISBN numbers and make up a company name and publish yourself.
Chris Thrall is a former Royal Marines Commando and author of the bestselling memoir Eating Smoke, his experience of crystal meth addiction while working for the Hong Kong triads. A qualified pilot and skydiver, Chris has backpacked throughout all seven continents, worked with street children in Mozambique, driven aid workers from Norway to India and back by coach, and scuba dived with leopard seals in Antarctica. He lives in Plymouth, England, and plans to continue adventuring, charity work and writing.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Chris-Thrall/e/B004HC7TOW
www.christhrall.com
www.linkedin.com/in/christhrall
www.twitter.com/chris_thrall
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1 Comment
Chris, Thank you for your interview. I love that your favorite book is the one you haven’t written yet.