Featured Interview With Morgan Bauman
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I moved around a lot growing up–probably about ten to twelve times total. I spent most of my childhood in Phoenix, Arizona and most of my young adulthood in Las Vegas, Nevada, though, so I’d say that I come from the desert. Unfortunately, the desert life didn’t suit me. When I graduated high school, I moved to the Pacific Northwest, and I’ve lived here ever since.
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
My parents have home videos to verify this for any skeptics out there, but I’ve been in love with books since I was a baby. They’d pull out a stack of twenty or thirty books and read them off one at a time. When they reached the end, I’d demand another round of stories.
I started telling stories of my own as a toddler, usually with finger-painting, but I didn’t get serious about writing until high school. When a good friend said she wanted to read the story I’d just described, well, I decided to give it a go. The first draft was an abomination, of course, but aren’t they all? Regardless, I didn’t know it was terrible–all I knew was that I loved writing more than I’d ever thought possible, and I couldn’t imagine stopping for anything.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
My favorite authors right now are probably Mercedes Lackey, Neil Gaiman, and Lindsay Buroker. I reread Joust recently and loved it just as much as the first time I read it. Good Omens is my go-to book for recommendations; I’ve had eight copies borrowed and never returned. Then there’s the Flash Gold Chronicles. That first book hooked me, and I can’t help but leap out of my seat when I see there’s a new one.
All of those fall under the broad banner of fantasy, I suppose. I’ve always been predisposed toward science fiction and fantasy. Making the unreal become real is the greatest power of a book, in my opinion. I try to back up all of my own fiction with enough fact to make it feel possible.
I draw most of my inspiration from research into subjects I find fascinating, particularly psychology and sociology. I do extensive research into many topics, though, depending on the work in question. For example, I did 1000+ pages of peer-reviewed research just for my 5000 word short story, The Great Ships.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Rewritten opens in the perspective of a character who faces active deception. Every character has a reason to lie to her and keep her from seeing the whole picture. Fortunately, Ray is a bright and tenacious girl who fights for her answers, and every mystery finds its resolution by the conclusion of the series.
At its heart, Rewritten is a story about learning to forgive yourself–not by justifying your mistakes, but by learning and growing from them.
In all honesty, of everything I’ve written, my Qol stories are the most important to me. I mentioned earlier that a friend told me she wanted to read the story I’d told her–well, that story was Rewritten I: Fallacy. I started it back in October of 2003 and spent a decade rewriting and editing it and its sequels before they finally hit the presses.
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