I’d like to welcome T. J. O’Connor to the blog for #ThisorThatThursday!
Favorite things: What category? Well, let’s talk about overall favs… Good people, especially readers and book people. Then there’s good food—I love to cook and eat! Good spirits and wine; that goes with the cooking. 40’s swing music… rock and roll from the 60s-70s. Old movies, especially sci-fi and old horror movies. Of course, my family, friends, and my Lab companions as I am a man among dogs. Adventure of course. Then, and not so finally, I’m a Harley pilot. I dearly love riding my Harley and cruising the beautiful Virginia towns and byways and, of course, into West Virginia and others.
Throw Outs: Angry, “my way or the highway” people—far too many of those in the world today. Bad food. Cheap wine. People who say “reading is stupid.” Most politicians. I’ll leave it there.
Things you love about writing/Things you hate about writing:
Love About Writing: Readers and book people. My agent and publisher of course. They have been amazing and supportive and keep me going. I love the research and backstory for my books. I always overwrite that and have to cut, but it’s worth it! I love book touring and going to trade shows, conventions, and book festivals meeting people and talking books (even if they don’t buy mine.) Writing is a solitary sport-I am mostly a loner-so I love the lifestyle (when I’m not consulting of course). I turn on some swing music and lose the day at my computer. I absolutely love that. I love my characters, too. They take my stories on their own adventure and show me how it’s done. Thank God! They’re smarter than me.
Hate About Writing: Typing “The End.” It’s bittersweet at best. Sad because it’s over and then my second hated effort, editing. I absolutely hate cutting chapters and characters because I liked what I wrote to begin with. But, I am plagued by overwriting and no, my agent doesn’t like 150,000-word first drafts! Go figure! Other than that, I don’t dislike much. Even the down side of writing—publisher rejections and harsh review—I can deal because it’s part of the life. Swallow it. Write on. Learn from it. Then, kill them in my next book.
Hardest thing about being a writer/Easiest thing about being a writer:
Hardest Thing: The absolutely hardest thing for me was finding my amazing literary agent, Kimberley Cameron. She has been a coach, critic, motivator, mentor, and friend. It took a few years to find her, and the battle was well worth it. Other top few hardest things are those reviews that miss the point - like hitting me on the cover or printing errors. I have no control over that so beating me up because of it is totally missing the intent of a review. But, Insha Allah. It happens. Other stuff like showing up to a book event and someone forgot to order my books. I always travel with a case but then they want 40% to sell them and I’ve already paid for them! Again, Insha Allah! Hardest thing, as I’ve stated in previous question, is “The End” and saying goodbye to my characters. Editing means cuts to them and it bugs me. The entire time writing the story is a partnership between me and my characters and I thoroughly love the trip. When it’s over, it’s depressing.
Easiest Thing: Yikes, what’s easy? I think plotting and characters. I have a computer folder with dozens of story ideas and characters. I’m fortunate that I have had an adventurous life for the most part. I’ve met and worked with the most amazing people and the most sinister people. I draw on my life’s experiences in anti-terrorism and investigations to develop those stories and ideas. To me, it’s harder to trim them down so I don’t cross the line of confidentiality then to develop from the start. Other easiest things: talking with strangers and fans about the books and sitting for hours at a book signing meeting new readers. Absolutely love it.
Favorite foods/Things that make you want to gag:
Favs: Steak. Greek and Italian food I learned to cook while living in the Med. I love cooking things like cioppino, Greek chicken and sides like tiropita and spanakopita, and calamari. Great, now I’m hungry.
Gag foods: Liver. Bad restaurant food (especially in an expensive place). Bad wine (and again, especially the expensive ones). Fast food (I love it but can’t eat it, so subliminally I convinced myself I hate it).
Favorite music or song/Music that drives you crazy: Fav Music: 40’s swing, 60’s and 70’s rock. Jazz all around.
Music that Drives me crazy: Old-school western music. Loud, vulgar rap music—I don’t so much hate the music as the way it’s played in traffic or in public.
Things you always put in your books/Things you never put in your books:
Always in my Books: Real characters. I write thrillers and mysteries. I don’t write “superman” characters that are always right, always the strongest, and those who can hit a flea at 1000 yards, blindfolded, with a handgun in high wind. I like to have flawed characters who struggle. The lead characters in many of my stories have a sense of humor and adventure they flaunt. Oh, and even when not writing cozy mysteries, I always have a dog – as I am a man among dogs.
Never in My Books: Deep discussions about race, gender, politics, or religion. I write for entertainment, not to drive an agenda. I’ll leave that to others. I do not write the superman characters as stated above.
Favorite places you’ve been/Places you never want to go to again:
Fav Places: Wow, I’ve travelled a lot. But, in no certain order: Greece where I lived for over three years and ran anti-terrorism operations with the finest people I’ve ever known— loved the history, food, and people; Turkey, loved the history, food, and people. Was in and out of there during the first gulf war. The people were so supportive. Absolutely loved the small villages the most.
Places I Wouldn’t Go Again: The “Hill” District in Pittsburgh… accidentally went there as a rookie OSI agent running a criminal case. Strayed in driving my obvious Fed Mobile, in my nice suit, and noticed quickly the cars on blocks, bars on windows, and thugs and gangbangers gathered everywhere. Youth, dumb-ego, and fear made me stay and run the case. The bangers followed me and were astonished that I stayed and walked the streets. A nice guy in a corner store (bars on windows, steal door, and three locks) grabbed me off the sidewalk and said, “Boy, you better get you a…. out of here. They’re gonna kill you. You don’t belong here. They comin now. Go now.” Realizing the time and I had an appointment for a late coffee, I heeded his advice and left. Quickly.
Favorite books (or genre)/Books you wouldn’t buy:
Fav Books: Most books. But I mostly enjoy thrillers and murder mysteries—new and established authors, too.
No Read Zone: I hate to say it, but I do so much technical reading for my profession that I only read off-work for pleasure. So I don’t tend to read: self-help; religion or social-engineering works; books with a strong agenda (or a poorly disguised one)—if one starts preaching to me about social agendas or politics they want me to adhere to, gone. There’s enough of that on TV, the news, and in my work. Sorry, nothing wrong with those works, but not for me.
Favorite things to do/Things you’d run through a fire or eat bugs to get out of doing:
Fav Things to Do: Wow, the list is long… read, write; pilot my Harley motorcycle; play with my grandkids; hang with my labs; watch grands play soccer and volleyball; cook and have friends and family for dinner/BBQs; travel on book tours and meet readers and other authors; ANYTHING writing related—sign me up!
Run Through Fire to Avoid: Crappy restaurants; people preaching an agenda (whether I agree with or not); gravel roads on my Harley; people who hate dogs; people my dogs hate; most politicians; and people who say reading is stupid.
Most daring thing you’ve ever done/Something you chickened out from doing:
Daring Things: Wow, I’m in the anti-terrorism business, and while I’ve slowed a little since my days running around the globe, the list is long and shall remain unreported. I’ll just say: scuba diving in illegal Greek waters; cruising my Harley into a biker bar because I needed to eat and get gas—while a Harley pilot, I am not a member of the many outlaw biker gangs and it shows (it sure did those two times I picked the wrong lunch spot!); chasing investigative leads into parts of Philadelphia and Pittsburgh—alone— as a rookie government agent who had more guts than brains and was nearly killed in the process. The bad guys thought I was insane and were too busy laughing at my “clearly not from here” self to get me before I escaped.
Things I chickened out on: It sounds like BS, but I never have—not even “The Hill” district. Truly.
The coolest person you’ve ever met/The celebrity who didn’t look like he/she did in pictures/video:
Coolest: Most other authors. I brag a lot about the writing community and always admit I’m honored to be a small part of it. I can count on my one hand with two fingers left over the number of other authors I’ve met that I didn’t like or respect. More than any group of people I find authors to be giving, supportive, fun, and genuinely wonderful people. Robert Duvall. I had the pleasure of living near him for a year (me in a barn loft apartment and him on his ranch estate), occasionally at Dank’s Deli in Middleburg, VA, and then met at a charity gala in Virginia. Truly a kind and generous man. Always gracious to fans and strangers. One of those celebrities who knows why he is one— his fans.
Celebrity Who didn’t look like themselves: Wayne Newton. I protected him in Greece on a USO tour he did. He was absolutely not what I expected, and I won’t say why. Let’s just say that after that, I did not volunteer to protect celebrities much again. Not that he was bad or anything, but the lifestyle and demands were a bit hard to take. I was there to keep him alive. He was there to support the troops so I and my team gave into demands we never would have otherwise. Yikes.
The nicest thing a reader said to you/The craziest thing a reader said to you:
Nicest Thing: I loved your books from the first time I read Dying To Know. I met you at a signing and you were exactly what I had hoped authors would be like—interesting, kind, and interested in my writing, too.
Craziest Thing: I met you last year at your first book signing of Dying to Know (this was several years ago). I’ve been to six events and signings since. I even got a room at your hotel and followed you back home. I wanted to speak with you again but was afraid of what you’d think. (Oh, really? Afraid of what I’d think about speaking to me again or stalking me?)
