Author Interview with Michael Meyer

1. Why do you write? 

I have always been fascinated with words. For instance, when a cashier at a store wants to swipe my card, I become alarmed. Why would I want someone to swipe my card when I am swiping it? If you are going to come visit me, are you coming or going? The possibilities are endless. My Master’s thesis was on categorizing two-word verbs. There is a huge difference between snap to and snap at. Language is all-powerful. I love the magic of words, of creating scenes and dialogue that will get the reader’s rapt attention.

2. How many books have you written? 

I have published three books now on Amazon Kindle. COVERT DREAMS is an international thriller set in both Saudi Arabia and Germany. THE FAMOUS UNION is a rollicking romp through the halls of academia with often-eccentric characters who are forced to cope with the comical chaos created by the powers-that-be. THE SURVIVAL OF MARVIN BAINES is a whimsical look at one man’s attempt to cope with middle age.

3. What inspired you to write your (latest) book? 

I love to read thrillers set in exotic locales, and, since I previously taught at a university in Saudi Arabia and since I was once a student in Germany, I wanted to create a suspenseful thriller set in two locations I know very well.

4. What is your favorite genre to read? 

I am an eclectic reader, but I often find myself reading history, the fall of the Tsar, World War II recollections, the early days of the Weimar Republic.

5. Is your writing style at all influenced by those of your favorite authors? 

Absolutely. One reviewer of my THE FAMOUS UNION said that he saw flashes of Vonnegut. And of course similarities to CATCH-22 are quite evident in the book also. COVERT DREAMS has been compared by some of my reviewers to the works of Ludlum and Baldacci.

6. Which is your favorite book that you’ve written? 

I love all three, but my friends and family members all say that COVERT DREAMS is my best novel yet.

7. What is your opinion of the art of writing? 

It is an art. Using language to garner laughter, sorrow, or any other emotion is an art in itself. And, as in any work of art, hard work is demanded in order to get things just right.

8. What advice would you give someone who is just beginning their own novel? 

Keep at it, and write for yourself. Write something that you would enjoy reading. Have fun as you create, not knowing precisely how things will end. Be a reader as you write.

9. Do you have any funny and / or interesting stories about how you’ve come up with plots or characters? 

I spent over forty years as an English professor, and bits and pieces of the often-absurd behavior I observed, mainly in meetings, found its way into THE FAMOUS UNION. When my wife was forced by Saudi Arabian men to get out of our car and push it, since females are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia, making me steer because we could not get the engine started, I learned from personal experience the huge unbridgeable differences of cultures that also find a home in COVERT DREAMS.

10. Coke or Pepsi? 

Neither. Beer for me, preferably IPA.

You can find Michael's books here, available on Amazon Kindle.