To celebrate my writing club’s diamond anniversary and publication of our anthology, I wanted to interview the authors of the book, Prose Colored Glasses. Today’s author is Dan Biby and his work is in the book, Prose Colored Glasses Prose Colored Glasses: Writers Club, Enid + Free Shipping (amazon.com) available on Kindle and paperback.
Dan was first published at 17 and has been writing for more than four decades. He’s authored four books and numerous other nonfiction works, including advertising copy, interactive training guides, and journal articles covering virtually every business and technology subject.
His hobbies include wandering the backroads of North America, stalking wild critters with his trusty Nikon, and spending time on his ranch.
PC: What genre do you like to write?
DB: It’s difficult for me to name just one. I like variety to keep things fresh and interesting. It’s not unusual for me to be working on two or three projects at the same time. If my energy wanes on one genre, I’ll move to another. But, to answer your question specifically, I enjoy writing humor, science fiction, and western the most.
PC: How did you come up with the plotline/idea for your current WIP?
DB: My inspiration came from following the almost-daily advances that scientists and engineers are making in AI, robotics, and quantum computing in order to improve our lives. Plus, I’ve always been fascinated by works from Asimov, Crichton, and Kubrick that depict such technology going rogue and attempting to destroy humanity.
Those storytellers used creative ways to depict how AI can go awry, namely using bad ’bots and narcissistic supercomputers in unique settings. My current WIP is a similar story, but in a new, unique setting.
PC: Which comes first for you – character or plot? And why?
DB: That depends. In my science fiction story, the plot comes first because the chain of events is the focal point of the story. In other words, the characters must react to goings-on outside their control.
In my western novel, I developed the characters first because the story is a narrative of the protagonist’s adventures.
PC: If you could hang out with any literary character from any book penned at any time, who would it by, why, and what would you do together?
That’s easy. If given the opportunity, I would circumnavigate the world in 80 days with Phileas Fogg. The adventure would be a blast and the vistas breathtaking. Spending time around someone with his intellect and eccentricities would be most interesting.
I wanted you to get to know the people of my wonderful club. I know you will enjoy them as much as I do. Keep reading, there will be more in the weeks to come.
What are you reading/writing this week?
I once again have a brave author from the Enid Writing Club who has come forward to be interviewed. My writing club, the Enid Writers Club, will be 100 years old January 6, 2023, and the interviews are part of our celebration. Our author this week is Paula Benge.
My writing club, the Enid Writers Club, will be 100 years old January 6, 2023. We have accomplished a few things in celebration of this event and one of them is to publish an anthology. We gave each author a certain number of pages in the book to showcase their talent and then listed them alphabetically by last name. Our first author is James C. Arnold.
It’s almost Halloween and time for a little spookiness. I wrote a novella a few years ago that was set in Vermont during the fall at a quaint inn. Penny is running away from something or maybe running to something else. Time will tell. But even a witch needs a little advice now and then.
Yesterday was full of fun! I started the morning with a workshop hosted by the Enid Writers Club. We had 3 dynamic speakers: Stephen Jones, John T. Biggs, and Rilla Askew. There were about 35 people in attendance at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church and we enjoyed the intimate setting. I met some new people and as always gathered some new ideas.
Happy fall! It has finally cooled off in Oklahoma and we are hoping for some rain. But the temperatures are wonderful. Sweater weather has arrived.
I did a girl thing this week—a mother/daughter/cousin thing. And we had so much fun! My daughter and I flew to Oakland, California and stayed at my cousin’s daughter’s (would she be a cousin or second cousin?) house and then drove to Sonoma, California for wine tasting. We had a darling Airbnb and shopped, tasted wine, and ate fabulous food. The youngest of the bunch did the driving in California and we saw San Francisco and the Golden Gate Bridge from a distance. We toured the Jack London home/museum and his surrounding ranch. We sampled wine from exquisite cellars. My cousin and daughter might or might not have gotten lost in a hedge maze. (We could hear them giggling so we knew they would eventually come back.)
When my first child was two years old, I enrolled in a yoga class at the local church. They had continuing education classes and that seemed like a good idea for a stressed-out mother of a two-year-old. And I loved it. It gave me stress relief and I soon found out it also enhanced my strength. I had never been an athlete, but I soon learned how much better I felt when I exercised.
The air went from crisp to heat again this week. Thursday is the first day of fall and someone needs to tell the Oklahoma weather. I wrote about how cool it was last week, and of course we’re back to heat again.
On October 15, in Enid, Oklahoma, the Enid Writers Club will host 100 Years of Writing a day-long workshop held at St. Matthews Episcopal Church featuring three very different writers. There will be something for everyone.
Today is a somber day, 9/11 or September 11, Patriots Day. I thought about reminiscing about that horrible day but decided to go with something a little more upbeat.
Peggy Chambers "Views from the Hammock" site 