Interview with Floyd Schneider

Author of Death Came Calling, But I Wasn’t Home

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

Born in Texas, raised in Colorado (mainly), now living in Spokane, WA

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

I was in eleven schools before high school. US Army immediately after high school: ’66-’69. 101st Airborne, Vietnam as a combat sergeant. Four Purple Hearts and one Army Commendation Medal for Valor under Fire. College in Colorado, married Christine. Graduate school in Portlant, OR. With two small sons (Erich, 5, and Michael, 2), we moved to Austria and spent fifteen years there, ’80-’95. Some time in Russia, ’95-’99. Teaching college level in Iowa, ’99-2006; Teaching college level in Spokane, 2008-present.
Currently teaching professor at Great Northern University in Spokane.

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

I tell lots of stories in my classes, and the students have constantly badgered me into writing a book about my time in Vietnam. When I got laid up for eight days from a foot operation and was not allowed to get out of bed, in order to keep from going stir-crazy, I wrote the initial draft in those eight days.

How would you describe your books to first time readers?

Easy reading. Lots of action.

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

I’ve received emails from all kinds of people: old, young (junior high and up), academics, non-academics, authors, politicians, military, religious people.

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

Editing, editing, editing. Every time I re-read the book, I found more errors. I had two other editors, and they found fewer and fewer errors, but even after the book was published, I found two errors that needed immediate correction.

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

I would tell myself to spend time thinking about the end of the road, not just the journey. Actions have consequences and the fewer regrets a person has, the easier one sleeps as one gets older.

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?

I am still employed. Wishing that I could read and write full time.

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

a) I LOVE to read and write. b) I recognized early the necessity of learning to focus on the details in publishing: formating and cover. I realized that I needed to delegate the cover to a professional. It was worth it.
c) I accepted the task of learning how to market as quickly and broadly as possible. Most writers do not enjoy promoting themselves or their books, but unless they can pay someone else to do it for them, they need to learn to do it themselves, or very few people will read their books.

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

a) Editing. I’ve had to learn to enjoy it. b) Publishing. I’ve learned the mechanics of both worlds of traditional publishers and independent publishing. Each has its strengths. Publishing is not creative, and I prefer to write. c) Marketing. Forcing myself to do it on a regular basis.

When do you think you will write your next book?

I started working on my next book immediately after publishing this one.

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

I have used traditional publishers and I have used Independent Publishing.