Today, we’re speaking with Inkubator Books’ author T.J. Brearton. T.J. is the author of the acclaimed Shannon Ames FBI thriller series.
Inkubator Books: When did you start writing?
T.J. Brearton: When I was young. Maybe nine or ten.
IB: What does a typical day of writing look like for you?
TJB: It’s all over the place. I’ve written in the early mornings before the day job, and then since writing became the day job, it’s really different every day. Part of that is what I’m working on, what stage it’s at, but it’s also due to what else is going on in my life.
IB: Do you base your characters off people you know or are they all the product of your imagination?
TJB: Someone said that a writer has a small repertory theater in his or her head. We use the same stock characters over and over again. I think that’s true.
IB: What’s the most difficult part of your writing process?
TJB: The writing, haha. No, but really. I’ll quote someone else whose name I forget: my favorite part of writing is having written.
I doubt myself a lot. Mostly in the beginning. I feel like with each new book I’m learning to write all over again.
IB: What comes first for you – plot or characters?
TJB: It depends on the project. In the old days, a book sometimes started with a line. With my Shannon Ames series, her character is important, but it’s the plot that drives the stories. A standalone book of mine, Rough Country, was about a military veteran, and getting that right was important. I based him off of a friend (I guess that amends my answer about whether I base my characters off anyone… well, maybe it doesn’t either; the main character really was his own guy, but I used my friend’s experiences to authenticate him, if that makes sense). What was the question?
IB: Which of your books is your favorite? Why?
TJB: As Cathryn Grant rightly put it, the last one I wrote. (Ed note: Cathryn is a fellow Inkubator Books author.)
IB: How would you describe your ideal reader?
TJB: As having the ability to read and a pulse. Just kidding – both are optional. As long as they buy the book! Haha. Hello? Is this thing on? No, for real – I’m so grateful to my readers. If they’ve picked up the book and are reading it, they’re ideal. If they’ve picked up any book, mine or not, they’re ideal. They can just be standing there, not doing anything, and they’re ideal. That’s how it works.
IB: What are you doing when you aren’t writing?
TJB: I have a bit of a problem doing too much. I have three kids and we’re very active and into outdoor recreating and nature. I garden and have chickens. We own a house on three acres and it’s my job to take care of it all. My wonderful, amazing wife has an important, energy-consuming job in the community and I’m happy to cook five days a week. The fact that I cook mostly vegan meals is a problem I invented for myself.
IB: What does your writing space look like?
TJB: I built an office in my unfinished basement. So it’s a lot of concrete walls and a knotty pine tongue-in-groove ceiling. But it’s cold. My wife regularly comes down to find me at the desk in a winter parka. If I cry and complain, she might bring me hot cocoa.
IB: Have you ever traveled to research for a book?
TJB: Yes (he said, eyeing his itemized tax deductions) …
IB: What genres do you like to read? Who are some of your favorite authors?
TJB: I like sci-fi, horror, literary fiction, upmarket, crime. Pretty much anything except romance, erotica, or fantasy (though I used to read those books based on Dungeons & Dragons back in high school). I like Dennis Lehane. I read some of the big splashy best sellers – Gone Girl, The Silent Patient. I couldn’t get through that book about the magical library. Noah Hawley is good. I’m reading The Stepson by Jane Renshaw and really enjoying it!
IB: How do you come up with names for your characters?
TJB: Sometimes they pop into my head. I also have lists of names, usually culled from movie credits (first names and surnames used separately!).
IB: What was your favorite childhood book?
TJB: The Monster at the End of This Book.
IB: Have you ever abandoned a book you were writing? How did you know it was the right thing to do?
TJB: They’re all abandoned, as the saying goes. You don’t finish a book; you abandon it. But I know what you mean. Yes, I’ve given up on some before ever submitting them to a publisher. Well, I’ve given up on several before submitting them – I just sort of self-published them without doing any marketing. Six or seven of those. And then there are some more that never even got to the point I might submit OR self-publish them. These are kind of like the circus freaks. Malformed, missing body parts, wandering around in the night.
IB: Do you have any tips for first-time authors?
TJB: Probably to read Bird by Bird by Anne Lamott.
IB: Who inspires you?
TJB: Everyone, really. Life is hard!
IB: If you could eliminate one thing from your daily life, what would it be?
TJB: Hmm. Honestly, I don’t think there’s anything. I guess that makes me incredibly fortunate. Which is true. I am beyond lucky in this life.
IB: Do you have any pets?
TJB: Yes. A cat that was rescued from the woods. She’d survived out there as a kitten for weeks. As such, we named her Rambo.
IB: How do you approach your genre in a unique way?
TJB: I think just by being me. No one will ever approach it quite the way I do, or you do.
IB: How do you manage the “whodunit” aspects of your story as far as clues and revelations? Do you outline?
TJB: With the books I publish through Inkubator I certainly do! Otherwise, I am a pantser, writing my way through a story until the whodunit jumps out and surprises me.
IB: How do you relax?
TJB: I don’t. Haha. I meditate. I watch TV. I know I’m supposed to say “read,” which I do, but reading actually gets me more excited than relaxed. I’m a very slow, engaged reader. I have to really pay attention, because the reading sends my mind off in all sorts of directions – relating some experience, ideas for my own projects, etc.
IB: Who are your first readers when you write a new book?
TJB: I have a small, dedicated group of advanced readers. Occasionally, if I’m working on something on spec, I’ll send it to a couple of beta readers. The difference being, it’s not even been copy edited yet when beta readers see it. They basically become story editors for me.
And what do they get in return?
Well… nothing, really. They’re just amazing, helpful people.
(Ed note: Sign up today to be an advance reader for T.J.)
IB: What’s one thing you wish your readers knew about you?
TJB: I think – I hope – that it comes through in the work: that writing for me isn’t a gimmick. It’s not some way to deploy my marketing skills. (I don’t have any.) It’s not a way to get famous. I just have to create things. My path didn’t lead me to becoming an actor, or a film director, or a painter, though I’ve worked in all these mediums. Writing has always been there, and I’ve put everything into it. This is a condition of my life; it’s what I need to live.
IB: Which do you enjoy writing more: dialogue or internal thoughts?
TJB: An interesting final question. Probably dialog. I change dialog every time I revise a scene. It’s like I hear the actors in my head, and they’re improving each time I call action and we go through it. Internal thoughts are good, but I always wonder if I’m getting the amount right. Have I said enough? Have I gone overboard? Kind of like here, for this interview.
Thanks to T.J. for sitting down with us today. We are eagerly awaiting the release of the next book in the Shannon Ames series, No Way Back, on March 20, 2022.
Want to read T.J.’s books? Check out his titles on Amazon.
You can find T.J. at: tjbrearton.net
