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Name: Morris E. Graham
Where were you born/where did you grow up, did you have an easy childhood? Born Coldwater, MI., raised in central Louisiana. Growing up was not particularly easy, but I made it.
Give some background information about yourself, are you generally an optimistic person or pessimistic? I live in Arkansas, married, father of four, 60 years old. Work in telecommunications and write and edit books whenever I have time. I am generally optimistic.
Francis: Tell us your latest news, what are your current projects?
I am taking on editing projects for other authors, and working on my Free Ebook Project, restoring classic works and offering them for free on my website.
Francis: When and why did you begin writing? How does your present day work compare to what you wrote then? My first short story was a paranormal story I wrote when I was 19. I no longer write anything in that genre.
Francis : What genre do you consider books to be? Have you ever thought of writing in another genre, for example if you wrote a Children’s book, how would it turn out? I write in science fiction, but would like to try my hand in a detective novel. I hope that I would hit my stride and produce a very good read.
Francis: Have you ever been flattered by a comparison to a well-known author or by a review? Yes. Harry Turtledove.
Francis: What inspired you to write your first book? I was the webmaster and president of a gaming clan. I was archiving some old short stories written by some of the players, and I decided that I could do at least as well. I set out to write an eight-paged short story and never found and exit strategy.
Francis : Do you have a trademark writing style, what makes your work recognizable? Mine is a narrative style, which tends to tell a story, aided with descriptions to draw the reader in.
Francis : Do you write short stories? If so how do they differ to your novels? No, at this time I do not write short stories.
Francis: How did you come up with the titles of your books? My original title of my debut novel was “Battlezone: Operation Wolfhunt.” It was based on the storyline of an Activision video game called “Battlezone.” Atari owns the rights to it now, and they wanted control over my book to use the name “Battlezone.” So, to maintain my independence, I changed it to “Warzone: Operation Wolfhunt.” Atari conceded that we had nothing else to talk about. The original project was to be a two-volume series, but the first one grew so large, that I had to split it. Now the first volume was called “Warzone: Nemesis,” while the second volume will be “Warzone: Operation Wolfhunt, and the third will be “Warzone: Unlikely Alliance.”
Francis: Are there any messages in your novels, if so what? My basic themes are honor, duty, courage and faith—and that the good guy always wins in the end.
Francis: How much of your books are based on reality, how much are based on someone you know, or events in your own life? This is entirely a work of fiction, however, events of my life and people I have known all find their way into the story, in part or in some subtle way.
Francis : What books have most influenced your life the most? Are some of these books, different to your own genre of writing? The Bible influenced me most as a person. As a writer, I think James Clavell’s “Shogun,” Tony Hillerman’s Chee/Leaphorn detective series have definitely made an impression, as well as the “Star Trek Captain’s Table” series.
Francis: Are you sometimes shocked by some of your own writing/ideas? If they turn out better than I expected.
Francis: Do you see writing as a career? Yes. When I retire from my day job, I will write and edit books full-time.
Francis : Is there a character in one of your books that really stands out for you? Could he or she be compared to any well-known literature character? My character Major Norsemun reminds me of Dr. Reed from the series “Criminal Minds,” though not an exact attempt at replication.
Francis: Were your parents avid readers, have your family played a part in your writing career? How do they feel about your work? My dad liked to read detective stories, murder mysteries. My mom has read my book and likes it. My father is deceased, my mom is proud of my accomplishment.
Francis: What makes you proud of your books/life as a writer? When someone tells me they read the book and they enjoyed it.
Francis: How do you come up with the initial concept of a book? See the previous question about how I chose the title.
Francis: Who is your favorite author and what is it about them that you admire? I do not have a singular favorite author, but I can whittle it down. Tony Hillerman, for his amazing powers of describing scenes, James Lee Burke for his amazing ability to describe people, and Clive Cussler for his ability to get his MC into one jam right after another, barely leaving you space to catch your breath.
Francis: Who designed the covers for your books, were you happy with result? I am presently having graphic artist Akau Anyieth do a new cover for me.
Francis: What was the hardest part of being a writer? Marketing
Francis: Do you have any advice for other writers? First off, you are not as good as you think you are. Never fall in love with your own words: edit and cut ruthlessly. Never stop learning and always learn from your mistakes. Start with a dream, write it down, and then get beta readers and editors to help you. Then edit, edit, edit, and edit some more until you think your eyes might bleed from looking at it. The biggest criticism of indie author’s works is poor editing.
Francis: Other than writing do you have any other interests, do they connect up with your writing? I love fishing, gardening, reading books and watching movies.
Francis: Are there any films that have influenced your writing? What kind of films do you like? My editor once described my debut novel as “Star Trek meets John Wayne.” “Star Trek,” and “Shogun” by James Clavell strongly influenced my debut novel.
Francis: If your books were adapted into being films, which director dead or alive would you want to direct them? Which actors would you like in the films? What would be the overriding mood of the film? I would like to see COL Kahless being played by Ryan Gosling, perhaps, Adam Beach as COL SEAL, and Rachel McAdams as LTC Pastukhova.
Francis: Do you socialize with other writers or creative people? Do you know any obscure or up and coming authors/or perhaps other creative people who deserve recognition? I frequent Goodreads forums, and interact with readers and authors alike.
Francis: which theme (for example death, misery, and torture) is most prevalent in your stories? Honor, courage, duty are the themes.
Francis:Which method of death would you choose out of the following (
A) being ripped apart by lions
(B) facing a firing squad made up by shadowy figures, who you suspect you have had major altercations with, during the course of your life.
(C) you find yourself in a hospital, in a country far from home, with doctors and nurses you can’t communicate with, attached to devices that indicate you are in a critical condition. You don’t know how you got to the hospital/country. Death is inevitable however. (C)
Francis: Do you have a blog/website? Or other important links? http://www.morrisegraham.com
Where were you born/where did you grow up, did you have an easy childhood? Born Coldwater, MI., raised in central Louisiana. Growing up was not particularly easy, but I made it.
Give some background information about yourself, are you generally an optimistic person or pessimistic? I live in Arkansas, married, father of four, 60 years old. Work in telecommunications and write and edit books whenever I have time. I am generally optimistic.
Francis: Tell us your latest news, what are your current projects?
I am taking on editing projects for other authors, and working on my Free Ebook Project, restoring classic works and offering them for free on my website.
Francis: When and why did you begin writing? How does your present day work compare to what you wrote then? My first short story was a paranormal story I wrote when I was 19. I no longer write anything in that genre.
Francis : What genre do you consider books to be? Have you ever thought of writing in another genre, for example if you wrote a Children’s book, how would it turn out? I write in science fiction, but would like to try my hand in a detective novel. I hope that I would hit my stride and produce a very good read.
Francis: Have you ever been flattered by a comparison to a well-known author or by a review? Yes. Harry Turtledove.
Francis: What inspired you to write your first book? I was the webmaster and president of a gaming clan. I was archiving some old short stories written by some of the players, and I decided that I could do at least as well. I set out to write an eight-paged short story and never found and exit strategy.
Francis : Do you have a trademark writing style, what makes your work recognizable? Mine is a narrative style, which tends to tell a story, aided with descriptions to draw the reader in.
Francis : Do you write short stories? If so how do they differ to your novels? No, at this time I do not write short stories.
Francis: How did you come up with the titles of your books? My original title of my debut novel was “Battlezone: Operation Wolfhunt.” It was based on the storyline of an Activision video game called “Battlezone.” Atari owns the rights to it now, and they wanted control over my book to use the name “Battlezone.” So, to maintain my independence, I changed it to “Warzone: Operation Wolfhunt.” Atari conceded that we had nothing else to talk about. The original project was to be a two-volume series, but the first one grew so large, that I had to split it. Now the first volume was called “Warzone: Nemesis,” while the second volume will be “Warzone: Operation Wolfhunt, and the third will be “Warzone: Unlikely Alliance.”
Francis: Are there any messages in your novels, if so what? My basic themes are honor, duty, courage and faith—and that the good guy always wins in the end.
Francis: How much of your books are based on reality, how much are based on someone you know, or events in your own life? This is entirely a work of fiction, however, events of my life and people I have known all find their way into the story, in part or in some subtle way.
Francis : What books have most influenced your life the most? Are some of these books, different to your own genre of writing? The Bible influenced me most as a person. As a writer, I think James Clavell’s “Shogun,” Tony Hillerman’s Chee/Leaphorn detective series have definitely made an impression, as well as the “Star Trek Captain’s Table” series.
Francis: Are you sometimes shocked by some of your own writing/ideas? If they turn out better than I expected.
Francis: Do you see writing as a career? Yes. When I retire from my day job, I will write and edit books full-time.
Francis : Is there a character in one of your books that really stands out for you? Could he or she be compared to any well-known literature character? My character Major Norsemun reminds me of Dr. Reed from the series “Criminal Minds,” though not an exact attempt at replication.
Francis: Were your parents avid readers, have your family played a part in your writing career? How do they feel about your work? My dad liked to read detective stories, murder mysteries. My mom has read my book and likes it. My father is deceased, my mom is proud of my accomplishment.
Francis: What makes you proud of your books/life as a writer? When someone tells me they read the book and they enjoyed it.
Francis: How do you come up with the initial concept of a book? See the previous question about how I chose the title.
Francis: Who is your favorite author and what is it about them that you admire? I do not have a singular favorite author, but I can whittle it down. Tony Hillerman, for his amazing powers of describing scenes, James Lee Burke for his amazing ability to describe people, and Clive Cussler for his ability to get his MC into one jam right after another, barely leaving you space to catch your breath.
Francis: Who designed the covers for your books, were you happy with result? I am presently having graphic artist Akau Anyieth do a new cover for me.
Francis: What was the hardest part of being a writer? Marketing
Francis: Do you have any advice for other writers? First off, you are not as good as you think you are. Never fall in love with your own words: edit and cut ruthlessly. Never stop learning and always learn from your mistakes. Start with a dream, write it down, and then get beta readers and editors to help you. Then edit, edit, edit, and edit some more until you think your eyes might bleed from looking at it. The biggest criticism of indie author’s works is poor editing.
Francis: Other than writing do you have any other interests, do they connect up with your writing? I love fishing, gardening, reading books and watching movies.
Francis: Are there any films that have influenced your writing? What kind of films do you like? My editor once described my debut novel as “Star Trek meets John Wayne.” “Star Trek,” and “Shogun” by James Clavell strongly influenced my debut novel.
Francis: If your books were adapted into being films, which director dead or alive would you want to direct them? Which actors would you like in the films? What would be the overriding mood of the film? I would like to see COL Kahless being played by Ryan Gosling, perhaps, Adam Beach as COL SEAL, and Rachel McAdams as LTC Pastukhova.
Francis: Do you socialize with other writers or creative people? Do you know any obscure or up and coming authors/or perhaps other creative people who deserve recognition? I frequent Goodreads forums, and interact with readers and authors alike.
Francis: which theme (for example death, misery, and torture) is most prevalent in your stories? Honor, courage, duty are the themes.
Francis:Which method of death would you choose out of the following (
A) being ripped apart by lions
(B) facing a firing squad made up by shadowy figures, who you suspect you have had major altercations with, during the course of your life.
(C) you find yourself in a hospital, in a country far from home, with doctors and nurses you can’t communicate with, attached to devices that indicate you are in a critical condition. You don’t know how you got to the hospital/country. Death is inevitable however. (C)
Francis: Do you have a blog/website? Or other important links? http://www.morrisegraham.com