A Tale of Puzzling Mystery: Author Interview with Sherban Young

This is my second interview with Sherban Young who writes delightful mystery plots and puzzles. But don't take it only from me. Fleeting Memory was named to Kirkus Reviews’ Best of 2011, and Fleeting Glance received a starred review (reserved for books of exceptional merit). 

 

Since we last visited you’ve published three more books. What have you learned in that time frame to improve your writing or marketing skills?

I think it’s a matter of getting comfortable with your characters.  I’m very comfortable in the series I’m writing at the moment (the Enescu Fleet series).  

As for marketing, sometimes I feel I haven’t learned much.  I’ve probably learned what not to do more than anything.  It’s different for everyone but I’ve found that certain approaches, such as buying advertising, were a waste of my time (and money).

What do you see as some of the best ways an author can improve their social media platform?
I’m probably not the best person to ask, since I’m awful at social media.  I think it helps if you already use and enjoy social media.  I don’t.  The best advice I can offer is always keep social media at the forefront of your mind.  Include it in your email signature, press releases, etc.  Probably not ignoring it, as I tend to do, is a good idea as well.

How long does it take for you to complete a book now as opposed to your first or second book?
My first two books each took approximately two years to write.  My most recent book, Fleeting Note, took about six months.

When working with your editor, is there any one thing that you are constantly being reminded about doing?
I’ve found that using a professional editor or proofreader is essential.  No matter how closely you go over something, there are always going to be errors you miss when you’re reading your own work.  Your mind just fills in the correction.

How do you write? Did you do individual character development before doing the full plot?
For the Fleet series, I always start with the theme of the book.  For instance, the first book was literature, the second art and the third music.  From there I work on the puzzles tied to that theme.  

 

Since it’s a series, a lot of the character development carries over from the previous books.  On the whole, my stories are more character driven than plot driven.  I build from the inside out.  I build the plot around the characters and the situations they land in.  I’ve found that when I think of the plot first and try to build the scenes and characters around that plot, it doesn’t come off as naturally.

Besides writing these books do you submit your writing to other sources as well – such as short stories or writing contests?
I have in the past but not really anymore.  They can be great venues, though.

You’ve done two series now one with Enescu Fleet and another with Warren Kingsley as your lead character. Are there more books in store with them?
I’m sticking with Fleet for right now.  I may do something with Kingsley again, but probably not a full novel.

Now that you have several books published, what have you found works best now in promoting them?

I think the best approach, whether you do your own promotion or get someone else to do it, is to have specific goals.  Not only does that help focus what you’re trying to accomplish, but you can evaluate beforehand what endeavors are the most worthwhile.  The scatter shot approach can work too—that’s usually what I do—but it’s easy to become disorganized, and you’re going to have to rely on luck a lot more.

What made you decide to republish your short mystery puzzle book? How has it sold in comparison to your original book, Dead Men Do Tell Tales?
Deadly Allusions is the e-version of Dead Men Do Tell Tales.  Dover Books changed the name when they bought the print rights.  Since we last spoke, I’ve had my cover artist, Katerina Vamvasaki, redesign the cover for Deadly Allusions so it matched the other MysteryCaper books.  (Also, it just looks really cool.)  

As for sales, Dead Men is selling better than the e-version.  Part of that may be that Dover has great sales channels, and they’ve been around forever.  They know what they’re about and they make it easy for people to find their books.  Allusions started out as a series of iPhone apps and those also sold better than the e-book.  

Like Dover, apps have a marketing mechanism built right in: the app store and web pages dedicated to apps.  Hopefully, I can work on getting the word out better on the e-book.  Dead Men/Allusions makes a great accompaniment to the Fleet novels because they all feature scholarly puzzles.  (That was my attempt at getting the word out.)

Do you have any writing advice or tips for other writers that you would like to pass along?
Just keep doing what you’re doing (unless what you’re doing is all wrong, then don’t do that.  I think WC Fields said something to that effect.  Or if he didn’t, he should have.)  Seriously, just make certain whatever you do, you love.  That’s really the only thing that matters.

If you would like to learn more about Sherban and his writing, here are some options:

Kirkus review1      Kirkus review2          Webpage           Amazon

Interview with Mystery Writer, Sherban Young author of Dead Men Do Tell Tales

My interview today is with Sherban Young who writes mystery novels with a splash of humor and a mix of trivia. He is definitely not your standard mystery writer. I know once you read his ideas you will want to buy his books, so read on!

Prior to writing your current mystery books, what was your writing background?
I was a literature major in college (Loyola), but like most writers, I've been writing my whole life. Writing just becomes who you are.

My first major project came while I was at Loyola. My friend and I created a CD-ROM adventure game called Majestic. It was published and did quite respectably (well enough to justify all the attention we had diverted from our studies). My friend did the lion's share of the work - the graphics and programming - and I wrote the story and puzzles. Creating those puzzles would later inspire me to write Deadly Allusions (Dead Men Do Tell Tales).

What writers are your inspiration? Whose style, if any, do you think you emulate?
Without a doubt, P. G. Wodehouse is my largest inspiration. It always makes me think about a Bob Dylan quote I read once. He said the first time he heard Elvis sing he knew he'd be a musician himself. That's how it was for me and Wodehouse. The first time I read a Wodehouse novel, I knew I'd be a writer. Writing had interested me before then, but after that I knew.

You've written what I consider a unique style of mystery book which is both stories and games. One is Deadly Allusions and the other is Dead Men Do Tell Tales. What gave you the idea of doing these books?
Dead Men Do Tell Tales is the print edition of the Deadly Allusions e-book. My publisher changed the name. I'm working on getting the Allusions e-book title changed over to the Dead Men name - it's less confusing that way.

I originally wrote the Allusion puzzles for my website, something to get people to visit my page. The puzzles were pretty popular and I decided to turn them into a trio of iPhone apps: Deadly Allusions, Deadlier Allusions and Deadliest Allusions (12 puzzles in each).

I also brought out the complete collection (61 puzzles) in a Kindle edition. The apps were very well received by reviewers, and a few months later I was approached by Dover Books about selling them the print rights. They brought out the 61 puzzle collection last December under the new title Dead Men Do Tell Tales.

In each of these stories, you have a puzzle that the reader needs to figure out. How do you develop those puzzles? Could you give me a specific example of one of your word puzzles and how the reader would solve it?
When I first started writing mini-mysteries for my website, I tried to be more traditional with them. There was a mystery and a clue pointing to the culprit - something someone said or something out of place. I didn't like them. It just wasn't an approach that spoke to me.

I still liked the format, however, and so I had the idea of mixing trivia and knowledge into the mystery. I had always been fascinated by the old-fashioned mystery scenario, where a murder victim gives a clue with his dying breath. Agatha Christie's "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?" is a famous example of this. I also liked the more cryptic version, where the dying man, unable to speak, fumbles around and latches onto some telling clue - something that somehow identifies his killer.

I took that concept a step further. The mysteries in the collection feature a dying clue left behind by the murder victim. This clue always has some cultural or scholarly reference. An example I give in the introduction goes like this: Let's say the murder victim is a sports enthusiast. He's shot and with his last ounce of strength he grabs a Babe Ruth baseball card. We learn that one of his associates is named George Herman. George Herman, it will turn out, is the killer. (Babe Ruth's real name was George Herman Ruth.)

There are puzzles relating to literature, history, art, food, word origins, movies, sports etc. All the editions include hints, and I actually encourage readers to take their investigations online (or at least into a dictionary.) That is part of the fun - the sleuthing. It's also a great way to learn a new tidbit.

The puzzles are all done humorously. I like to call them murder-filled crosswords without the squares. My new novel, Fleeting Memory, features a Deadly Allusions style puzzle, which the characters are compelled to solve in the course of the book.

Amazon shows you as having 6 books “in print.” Three show as paperback and three in print? Why have you done three in e-book format only? I ask this as I don't read e-books as my favorite place to read is either in a Jacuzzi or a hot bath. Until they make a totally waterproof e-reader I probably never will.
I decided to mix things up with my two newest books - Fleeting Memory and Double Cover. I brought out the e-reader editions first, with the print editions to follow later this summer. Similar to how Dead Men came out.

Although I share your love of traditional print books, I think there's room in anybody's library for both. E-books have the advantage of a cheaper price (or should have), instant gratification and ultimate portability. Print books are more romantic. They look nice, they feel nice, they don't electrocute us in the bath. So I think it's wonderful for readers to have the option, depending on the book and the situation. I'm romantic and I love toys, so I love both mediums.

I see your first two books were published in 2000 and 2002 then the next one didn't come out until 2009. What did you learn about writing and publishing during that break in time?
I think what I learned most is flexibility. For a while, a long while, I was fixated on going the traditional route in publishing - that's the romantic side of me again. But the fact is, that traditional route is drying up. The industry is changing - for the better I'd say, but that wasn't always apparent to me. It is now.

As a percentage of writing time spent, how much time to do you spend on doing re-writes as opposed to the initial formulation of the story?
I spend a lot of time rewriting. It's essential. I think this is not only true at the end of a project but at the beginning. If you go into a project fully aware that you're going to rewrite it, you can approach it much more relaxed. The ideas flow.

Someone once described the process as writing to figure out what you're writing about. I think that's an apt way of putting it. You diddle around, get things moving a little, then you go back and start writing seriously. The serious writing is in the rewriting.

What is the best advice that you've been given about your writing?
Don't spend too much time on the opening, trying to make it perfect. You're just going to end up rewriting it anyway.

How have you found the time to write and do all the editing that goes with it?
I'm fortunate enough to have another source of income. I'm my own boss and can set my own schedule. As far as finding the time - I really don't do anything else. Wow, that's sad.

Are all your books self-published? Why did you switch from PublishAmerica to Dover Publications?
I don't think the term self-published applies as well as it once did. I prefer independent. When I first published with PublishAmerica they weren't even called PublishAmerica. They were America House then. After my first two books, it just wasn't a good fit anymore.

Dover Publications is a traditional publisher - and a very nice one. I enjoyed working with them. Their niche is game and hobby books. They do a lot of reprints, but they occasionally do originals, like mine. Dead Men Do Tell Tales is a beautiful edition.

After a lot of thought and examination of the market, I decided I'd bring out my two newest novels independently through Amazon. I feel I know enough about the industry now to devote my energy to marketing my own imprint of books, instead of using that same energy to find an agent/publisher; wait while that publisher publishes the book; and then finally - after years have passed - finally begin the marketing process.

It's a myth that the author can sit back and do nothing while the publisher makes him or her famous. Very few authors enjoy that luxury. After a book comes out, there is still a lot of work that needs to be done, and it just makes sense that I put that effort into me and my audience.

I see you have a phone app for Deadly Allusions. Did you design it? What goes into making an app?
I did design the apps. I had a little background in programming and with that, and a lot of help from Apple's sample code and various online tutorials, I was able to bring my mini-mysteries to the iPhone. The stories were the focus of designing the app.

What do you do to promote your books? For others who self-promote what ideas would you suggest someone avoid?
I'm no expert on promotion. I do know this, however - whether you go through a large publisher, a small press or you are your own press, book promotion is constant work. Blogs have emerged as a great venue. I think that's a win for everybody. When you market online, potential customers can sample or buy your book right then, while they're thinking about it. That's a great plus.

I'm not sure there is anything you need to avoid. Try a little of everything and then once you see what works, jump on it. Sort of like rewriting. Marketing and re-marketing.

What other books do you have in the process now?
I'm working on bringing out a new edition of The Five Star Detour, to go along with Fleeting Memory and Double Cover (they all relate to each other). I'm also in the process of revising another book - a separate detective novel, with just a hint of sci-fi.

If you would like to learn more about Sherban and his writing, here's three options to do just that...
www.mysterycaper.com,
www.goodreads.com/sherbanyoung
www.amazon.com/Sherban-Young/e/B0042I5KRE.