Interview with John Darling

Author of Anticipating Sunrise

Where are you from originally and where do you reside now?

Michigan originally, now in California for the last 40 years, with a stop off in Arizona for 20 years in between.

If you currently reside somewhere besides where you were born, what’s the story that lead from there to here?

My dad moved us from Michigan to Arizona when I was 7 years old, I got married 20 years later and soon after that, my wife and I moved to California.

What made you decide to write and publish your first book?

I am not a novelist, but I have been writing and publishing short stories for decades. I didn’t write my first mystery until I had been writing for about 45 years so I was happy when the first magazine I sent it to wanted to buy it, but since the editor raved about the story so much so, I politely turned down his offer and wrote a series of stories around Detective Anderson and then self-published them under the title, “Into the Dark Desolate Night”. “Anticipating Sunrise” is a collection of short romances that I have written over the years.

How would you describe your books to first time readers?

Collections of short intense work of romance, detective, and science fiction

Who do you feel is most likely to connect with the topics you write about?

Since I write in all genres, I think I have something for everyone, though I am told that romance is what I write the best. That observation by more than one person, lead me to compile “Anticipating Sunrise”

What unexpected or surprising thing did you learn during the process of writing and publishing?

How well I write detective stories. I have been a fan of the genre for decades but never wrote one until I finally came up with an idea for a story. It was so well received, I was shocked. I guess reading and watching all those books, movies, and TV shows rubbed off on me.

If you could, what advice would you give to your past self before embarking on this journey?

Don’t be upset by rejection. This caused me years of writing time when for a while I essentially quit writing.

How many people would you ideally like to reach with your books?

As many as possible.

What has been the biggest challenge and frustration during the process to date?

The challenge is to keep writing in the face of rejection, the frustration is when an editor tells you how much they love your work but won’t publish it.

What’s your biggest strengths when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

Imagination, imagination, imagination. In that order.

What’s your biggest weakness when it comes to book a) writing, b) publishing and c) marketing?

None that I can think of off-hand.

When do you think you will write your next book?

I am working on Volume II of my Detective Anderson mysteries right now. It is called “Back from Black”. I have three stories completed.

I am always writing romances, so another anthology like “Anticipating Sunrise” is in the offing.

Are you self published or did you use a hybrid publisher, or a traditional publisher?

I use Amazon to publish my collections because, unless you are famous, an editor will not look at collections.