Featured Interview With Gideon Stevens
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born in North Carolina, and lived there until I was 18. Then I lived in Texas, New Jersey, Virginia, California, Boston, Baltimore, Virginia (again) and now I’m back in North Carolina. Some of that travel was because I was in the U.S. Coast Guard, some of it was just wanderlust. I think I’ve settled down now, but you never know.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I was in first grade when I had that wonderful experience of being “lost in the book” for the first time. The book was P.D. Eastman’s “Sam and the Firefly.” There’s a post about it on my website.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I’ve read a lot of the famous Sci-Fi writers: Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, and other familiar names. At some point I wanted to branch out, so I asked a librarian how to find good books. She told me to look for Pulitzer Prize winners, on the theory that if it won a prize, it’s probably pretty good. For the most part, that advice has not disappointed me. Sometimes it takes a bit of effort to adapt to the language used in the classics of literature, but the effort is usually rewarded. Those are the authors that inspire me, although I write in a more modern idiom. Especially John Steinbeck, George Elliot, Thomas Hardy, and William Faulkner. I don’t imagine for a moment that I reach their level — but they inspire me.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
“Tin Man and Rabbit” is my first novel. I’ve been working in the publishing industry much of my life, so I thought I’d give it a try. I made a conscious decision to begin on my birthday. The night before, I had a little talk with my brain. “Okay, brain, you’re not much, but you’re all I have. While I’m sleeping tonight, I want you to work out a story I can write.” Then I went to sleep. I had a lovely dream about a couple getting lost in the woods. When I woke up I thought, “A romance? Really?” The first step was to figure out why they were in the woods, and once I had that, the rest of it just blossomed by itself. I wrote for 16 hours that first day, went to bed exhausted, then woke up raring to go again. That happened day after day. I’d have the file open on my computer in the morning before the coffee was ready. I forgot to eat some days, barely slept, and didn’t leave the house. I completely forgot about Facebook and television. 10 days later I was done. Then I spent about a month revising and gave it to an editor. She pulled it apart and helped me make it better.
The story centers around Tom and Lisa. He’s a divorced loner who is being forced by a greedy developer to sell his childhood home. She’s the real-estate agent who is helping him find a new place to live — and a new way to look at life. But Lisa’s ex is jealous, another (sexy) real-estate agent is making moves, and the entire town is talking about them. One reviewer said it would make a good romantic-comedy film, so I’m day-dreaming about that now. Sandra Bullock, of course — but Tom Hanks or George Clooney — I can’t decide.
It’s a story that will quicken your pulse, make you smile, and give you sweet dreams. I think that’s what you want from a romance, whether it’s real or fiction.
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