Thanks to Gabriel Rheaume, author of The Shores We Walk, for this interview
How long have you been a
member of Book Junkies and how did you stumble upon the group?
I’ve been with Book Junkies a little less
than a year. I was searching for groups for authors and readers, so Book
Junkies appealed to me.
Has the group helped you?
What do you like about it?
I like that a question rarely goes
unanswered, and that we can all share our experience and learn from each other.
What books have you written so far?
The
Shores We Walk.
What works in progress do you have?
I have a lot of brainstorming going on,
taking notes and experimenting with different styles.
How long did it take you to write your
book?
I started writing it in a creative writing
course at University. I wrote it over a four-year period, changing style,
direction and purpose.
Do you write linear, or jump back and
forth? Do you plan or write by the seat of your pants?
I mainly write through inspiration, but
force myself to write as well. I often disrupt the chronological order in my
writing, so being lineal usually doesn’t affect the outcome.
Why do you write?
I told my girlfriend, now deceased, that
her family was so dysfunctional they should be in a book or movie. After she
committed suicide, I felt it was my honour to tell the story.
How long have you been writing?
I’ve been writing my whole life and have
always been encouraged to write by teachers, friends and my dad, who is a
writer as well.
Where and when do you write?
I write anywhere. I’m not the ‘sit at a
desk’ type. I tend to write where I am. Parks, greyhound buses, trains or in
bed are where you would probably see me writing the most.
Which character from your books do you like
the most/ are most like?
The
Shores We Walk is based on a true
story, so it’s really difficult to see the characters as ‘characters’.
What/who inspired you to write and still
inspires you?
People, the human experience, irony, travelling,
culture, major cities, vast countryside and being from Detroit; finding beauty
in blight.
What do you think is the ideal recipe for a
good novel or story?
I think the word ‘recipe’ shows that there
is more than one way to do something right. I do find writers who have a
formula are very interesting like Charles Bukowski, who writes about women,
alcohol and gambling, or Chuck Palahniuk, who tends to write about 12-step
meetings, loss of identity and nihilism.
Have you ever based a character on someone
from real life? And did you tell them?
My friends were the inspiration for The Shores We Walk, and
as each one passed away through suicide and drug overdoses my story became more
complex. As for the few characters that are still alive, I did ask for
permission.
Fave things: animal? food? drink? colour?
band? song? place? item of clothing?
My interests change a lot with my mood, but
I like food with curry, music with integrity, the atmosphere of New Orleans and
the comfort of home. I also like scarves.
When you were a kid, what did you want to
do/who did you want to be when you grew up?
I think it’s a very American thing to want
to be famous, so I always wanted to be a basketball player, even though I was
always the smallest person for my age.
Would you say that your dreams have come
true or are you still working on them?
The best thing about dreams is that they
can always change, but I do fear that if my dreams did come true, I would have
nothing left to live for.
Who is your favourite character from any
book and why?
Tyler Durden from Fight Club. I love his radical proactive approach to life,
interesting idealisms and the idea that destruction is a form of creation. I
also like his charm, charisma, cynicism, dark humour and nihilism.
Which book do you wish you had written?
The poem Howl by
Allen Ginsberg, because it defined the Beat Generation and generally blew a lot
of peoples’ minds.
What three authors would you take to the
pub?
Hunter S Thompson, Jack Kerouac and Aldous
Huxley.
Are you published or self-published? What
is your experience?
I self-published and it has been going
really well. I have to do a lot of work on my own as far as promoting and
marketing [are concerned], but I like having the control.
How do you find the marketing experience?
I’ve enjoyed it. I’ve done a lot of
travelling to promote my book and I do live readings. Having stage fright, I
get a real thrill after reading, and I love any excuse to travel and get my
book circulating around the world.
What other hobbies do you have?
I’ve been looking for a healthy hobby for
years. There’s a store near me called Hobby Lobby; perhaps I could find the
answer there.
Complete one of these stories in 100 words
or less…
There
was once a wee worm called Fred, who
had a rather large head… eh, I don’t think I should finish this limerick.
What question do you wish I’d asked and, of
course, what is the answer?
Q: Will you provide a sample of The Shores We Walk?
A: This is a scene from my book where a
character’s father has just passed away and this is the stream of consciousness
from the afterlife.
I thought I had seen it all back then. Life
seemed to be such a burden. I felt as though the Earth was roped to my back and
I was the one spinning it around. My heart was the core and was constantly
erupting. The second I was released into the universe all things became
transparent. Every defect of human character shows in the soul like light
shining through a stained-glass window. I looked back through my own soul, and
saw every betrayal and truth as though the world’s wrongs were boiled to the
surface. Life was not always bad, but I didn’t realize that until mine had already
ended.
I wish I would have
appreciated her. I spent all my life selfishly starved of worth, needy of
vacant praise. Not until I saw her young broken heart did I understand how
unconditional her love was for me. When I died I felt guilt for every indecency
I had created and I felt a vacuum, pulling from my very center. I know that her
living soul felt the same, every waking day. Her mother gave her life, but I
could not provide one.
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