John Avery is the author of Three Days to Die, the first in his Aaron Quinn thriller series. John sees his writing as a vehicle to connect with readers. His work has been called suspenseful, hard to put down, and fast-paced.
John Avery lives and writes thrillers on a small ranch in the mountains outside San Diego. Having written his first story in the first grade, John has had a life long love affair with the craft.
“My objective as a writer is to entertain, to create fast-paced, well crafted fiction that is both vividly real and slightly surreal, with characters that will scare you, make you laugh, and into whom you may become completely lost.” – John Avery
I was fortunate that John graciously took time from his busy writing schedule to answer the following questions for me:
Can you identify a moment when you knew you wanted to be a writer? What was that moment like?
I’d say receiving my first acceptance letter, for a short story I had sent out, was a defining moment. That wonderful letter, and the small but glorious check that followed, validated the idea that I was a writer. I had chills.
Did anyone encourage you in your writing? Did that encouragement make a difference?
My dear parents were always very supportive, and many others along the way, but one creative writing teacher I had in college stands out as key to my becoming a writer.
Do you have a “day job” in addition to your career as an author?
Hmmm … a newly published indie author with kids in college … I think I’ll be working part time for a couple more days.
Describe the self-discipline required to write a book. Do you have any writing rituals?
I believe that your muse is more inclined to put on her robe and slippers and climb the basement stairs to help you if you maintain a regular writing schedule.
I rise at 6:30 a.m. and shower – giving my brain a chance to wake up slowly and ease into the day. I begin writing by 7:30 a.m. and try to write for at least six hours. If I’m working on a given day, I stop writing at 8:30 and go to work, then I write for a few hours in the evening. I try to write six or seven days a week. I’ve learned that if you want to be a writer, you have to write – a lot!
I also keep at least a dozen notepads going at once, all over the house, by my bed, in the car, and on my person, and I take notes all day long. I never really outline in the traditional sense. I prefer to take an idea and jump in, letting the characters and the story take me where they need to go. This is undoubtedly slower and riskier than outlining, but I believe it results in a truer, more honest story – and, above all else in my writing, honesty is what I want. I believe it is key to truly connecting with readers.
How would you describe your writing style?
My style is fast-paced, with situations that appear both real and unreal at the same time. I strive to create characters and storylines that are as gripping and believable as possible, and I hate when my stories get bogged down with unnecessary narrative and thick layers of detail.
Give a short summary of your book. And how did you come up with the ideas for the plot?
What would you do if you witnessed the murder of a close family member and were kidnapped and forced to rob banks at gunpoint with the killer and his two eccentric thugs? Aaron Quinn is about to find out – and he’s only thirteen …
Three Days to Die is the story of young Aaron Quinn and his courageous single mother, Ashley, as they’re thrust headlong into the brutal and very adult world of felony armed robbery, lust, and murder. Hold on tight as Aaron’s best friend, Willy Abbott, and Michael St. John, a wealthy stranger, risk it all trying to save them from the blood thirsty psycho, Johnny Souther.
Three Days to Die is a fast, fiery, frightening train ride through hell, with bumps, curves, and characters that will shock you, make you laugh, and make you cry …
The premise for the novel came from an on-the-spot short story assignment I had completed in college – a horror story assignment. Well, the story turned out to be a good one, so later I turned the short into a screenplay, and later still I fleshed it out into the suspense thriller you see today.
Interestingly, Aaron Quinn, the novel’s protagonist, was not part of the original story. One day, out of the blue, as I’m writing the screenplay, this kid walks into my study and tells me he wants a part in it. I looked him over for a moment and agreed to write him in. So then my muse falls in love with him and starts firing off all these ideas, forcing me to write and take notes furiously, just to keep up! With one deep breath, the story took on a life of its own and the novel was born, and needless to say, Aaron got the starring role!
Are any of your characters based on yourself?
(said with a smile) Some people say I remind them of the book’s psychopathic killer, Johnny Souther.
What about upcoming projects? What can your readers look forward to?
Aaron Quinn has turned out to be a favorite character for my readers, and based upon the positive feedback and numerous requests, a sequel to Three Days to Die is definitely in the works, with more episodes to follow.
What considerations went into your decision to become an indie author?
Over the last decade, the same thing has happened to writers that happened to musicians (I’m a rock drummer, myself) in the 70’s and 80’s: The castle gates slowly closed and then bolted shut, and soon only huge, established acts were being treated to warm fires, decadent feasts, and dancing maidens, leaving the new, original acts to stand outside in the surrounding forests looking foolish. Then along came the home-recording revolution, iPods and iTunes, and talented new acts started recording, producing, and selling their own CDs and MP3s and booking their own tours. Once exposed, the peasants jumped at the chance to ignore the royal edict and embrace the starving, yet talented outlaws who’d been tirelessly honing their skills in the cold rain and mud, and against the odds, the outlaws began to succeed.
Through eBooks and POD, Indie book publishing is taking a similar path through a very similar forest, and the traditional publishers and literary agents are slowly catching on (just as the big record companies finally did – often too late to save themselves). Readers are not as naive as the royals once thought, and there are scores of talented writers who can no longer be ignored.
I adore my readers, and as always, my goal is to make them happy. Traditional publishing might have taken me years, but by choosing to go Indie I’m already realizing my goal, to the benefit of my readers. I made the right decision.
Are there any authors whose work has influenced you or whose style you particularly admire?
There are dozens. But to name a few:
– J.R.R.Tolkien for his vivid imagery and strong characters
– John Grisham for his pacing and uncluttered plot lines
– Ken Follett for his storytelling
– Cormack McCarthy for his incredible vocabulary and mastery of the literary form
– Larry McMurtry for his down-to-earth, yet powerful and addicting characters
– Earnest Hemingway for his lean, conversational style
– Stephen King for his frightening imagery, mastery of narrative, description, and dialog, and well, because he’s Stephen King
Do you have any encouragement or advice for aspiring writers?
If the idea of completing a 250-350 page novel frightens you, try writing a 90-120 page screenplay first. The formatting software is easy to learn and fun to use and working within the screenplay’s time constraints may teach you some important lessons in pacing and brevity. I know it did for me.
Finally, believe that your writing is good enough to entertain a stranger and keep her reading, then sit down and put in the work to make that belief a reality. Successful writers work incredibly hard. If you’re willing to do the same, you can be successful, too!