Name  Wally Runnels

FRANCIS : Where were you born/where did you grow up, did you have an easy childhood?

I was born in San Diego, California. Had a great childhood. I was the only child for ten years and then two brothers came along in two consecutive years. We’re very close.

Give some background information about yourself, are you generally an optimistic person or pessimistic?

I’m pretty much an optimist. Things can happen but I’ve always been able to deal with the dark stuff. I just move on.

Francis: Tell us your latest news, what are your current projects?

I write in a genre that I call Border Pulp. The stories take place on or around the Mexican/American Border. I use the same characters in and around the various stories.

I have two novellas and three short stories on amazom, Kindle. I have a novel currently being read by an editor the uses characters that appear in my published work. It’s Action Adventure with some paranormal. I also have a novel that takes place in WW2. It’s a werewolf story that ends right after that war.

Francis: When and why did you begin writing? How does your present day work compare to what you wrote then?

 I started dabbling a few years ago and got a few things published in some small journals. Finally I took some classes at the University of California in Irvine, California. There I learned structure and form. My current work is much better, but practice improves everything. My current work is much better and offers me a much better marketing tool.



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?

My current material is action adventure and I have been thinking of doing a children’s book. But I’m more interested I using animals as my metaphorical tool.

 

 Francis: Have you ever been flattered by a comparison to a well-known author or by a review?

In my writing group my mentor tells me I should stop writing like Hemingway, in short choppy sentences. It’s a style I like and still do as long as it helps the story cadence.

I’ve gotten several reviews, two great ones by the number two reviewer on amazon and a great blurb written by Mark Onspaugh, a writer, who has published several books.


Francis: What inspired you to write your first book?

 

My first inspiration came out as a short story when someone broke into our ranch house and took food and money. My younger brother Ed put a pistol in his pocket and went after them. While he was tracking them he bumped into a California Highway Patrol Office and they both caught the thieves. There were three.


Francis : Do you have a trademark writing style, what makes your work recognizable?  

People say I have a style. I’m not quite sure what it is.

 

Francis : Do you write short stories? If so how do they differ to your novels?

I’ve written about thirty early on and now I’m in the process of rewriting them. Three are on amazon.



Francis: How did you come up with the titles of your books?


I keep them short for the sake of the cover. I usually do several and then take thm to my reading group and then we debate on which one. But I will always make the final decision.

 

Francis: Are there any messages in your novels, if so what?

I write only to entertain. But in many of my stories I use nature as a device for either good or evil or as a paranormal development.

 

Francis: How much of your books are based on reality, how much are based on someone you know, or events in your own life?

Some are based on events in my life or on people I have met. Our ranch is on the border and that’s where my stories take place. You can’t help but being influenced by that area that’s rich in both supernatural and danger.


Francis : What books have most influenced your life the most? Are some of these books, different to your own genre of writing?

I read Cormac McCarthy a lot and his writing had been influential on me and my work.


Francis: Are you sometimes shocked by some of your own writing/ideas?


Sometimes I come up with off the wall stuff and get nervous when I read it to the group. What’s strange is that the crazy stuff is accepted so readily.

 

Francis: Do you see writing as a career?

I’d like to think of it as a career, but that would be a long way off.



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?

Rocky is my main character who appears in most of my stories. He’s a disabled U.S. Marine who lost an arm and now works as a hitter. He’s tough but vulnerable and has redeeming qualities.


Francis: Were your parents avid readers, have your family played a part in your writing career? How do they feel about your work?

My father has passed on, but he read all the time, and built a library room in the ranch house. He had shelves and shelves of books  that he read many times over. I picked that up from him.

 

 Francis: What makes you proud of your books/life as a writer?

The fact that I’m creating something that I might leave behind after I’m gone.

Francis: How do you come up with the initial concept of a book?


I’m starting on now and it’s hell. My first level stuff is being rewritten and I’m on my fourth opening and doing more. Got to build tension, tension, tension and conflict in the type of stories I want to write. You’ve got to tell yourself -it’s not working do it again. And that’s how it goes.

Francis: Who is your favorite author and what is it about them that you admire?


Cormac McCarthy, he get’s dark and deep and can tell a wonderful story. It’s got to be a good story.


Francis: Who designed the covers for your books, were you happy with result?

I was an Ad Agency  art director for many years. I do my own covers and have established a branded look.



Francis: What was the hardest part of being a writer?

Making yourself write. There’s always a million things to do before you write. Just write.


Francis: Do you have any advice for other writers?

Read the best you can find. Listen to criticism, it’s most often well meant. Work with an editor and keep writing.

Francis: Other than writing do you have any other interests; do they connect up with your writing?

When I had more time I was an amateur archeologist. My brothers and I would hike to find Indian campgrounds and old stage coach roads.

 

 Francis: Are there any films that have influenced your writing? What kind of films do you like?

My favorite film is The Wild Bunch. I have a cope of the script, which I look at accasionally.  The film was gritty like the way I think I write. Good movie.

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?

Rocky – Johnny Depp. Because it happens in Mexico a director like Robert Rodiguiz, or Quentin Tarantino would be my choices.

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 desrve recognition?

Dennis Copelan is writing a series about Hollyweird. His father was a Hollywood editor. His email is: djcopelan@cox.net

Francis: which theme (for example death, misery, and torture) is most prevalent in your stories? 

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.

I’ll take B, hoping that they’re good shots.

 Francis: Do you have a blog/website? Or other important links?

Website and blog: www.wallyrunnels.com

Twitter: @wallyrunnels

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Wally-Runnels/123064374513102