M A Comley, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author

Interview with best-selling author Rosen Trevithick.

1.     When and why did you decide to become an Indie writer?

I was on holiday in Fowey, an inspiring Cornish estuary town, when I read in an article that authors no longer needed at ISBN to self-publish for Kindle. I’ve always been a keen creative writer but found it difficult to reach my target audience. This was the push I needed to write and finish a novel.

2.     What genre do you write in and what genre do you prefer to read?

I write in a variety of genres including crime and psychological fiction, but humorous fiction is the genre I feel most comfortable writing. This year, I’ve started writing humorous adventure stories for children but I am primarily a writer for adults.

I prefer to read comedy but I do like a bit of mystery and suspense. Ben Elton’s books epitomise what I like in a read – humorous mysteries with a bit of social commentary thrown in for good measure.

3.     Where do you sell most books, USA or UK, Amazon or Barnes and Noble?

The vast majority of my sales are Kindle books. I tend to sell the most books in the UK, but the US is a close second. So far I’ve sold a grand total of … drum roll please … two books on Barnes and Noble (as opposed to tens of thousands on Kindle).

4.     During your childhood who was your biggest influence?

Roald Dahl, hands down. He was the king of humour and grisliness. He had some great plots too. I read Matilda and The BFG over and over again. We had an audiobook of The Witches, which I never tired of hearing. I remember The Witches coming out on video. It was filmed in Newquay, Cornwall, which made it even more appealing to me.

Michael Morpurgo was also a big influence.

5.     Are you fortunate enough to write full-time?

Alas, I am not even fortunate enough to work full time full stop. I have health problems which massacre any chance of regular employment. I do try to fit in writing whenever I can. Originally, I wrote fiction to add structure and focus to my life, but over the last year, self-employment has started to look like a viable long term option. I still have a long was to go, but things are moving in the right direction. This is a big deal for me because there were a number of years in which I thought I’d never work again.

6.     If Hollywood came knocking who would you want to play your main character?

My only recurring characters are in my Smelly Trolls series and that’s based around the lives of three children. It’s hard to mentally cast child stars because they grow up so quickly – I do try and keep my wild fantasies realistic!

However, there are odd characters who seem well suited to certain actors. For example, both Maggie Smith and Stephanie Cole would be superb at depicting Muriel, the cantankerous mother-in-law from My Granny Writes Erotica. She has some great lines that I can’t help hearing read in Maggie Smith’s voice.

7.     Name 6 people, dead or alive, you’d love to have as guests seated around your dinner-table.

Stephen Fry, Roald Dahl, Kay Redfield Jamison, Simon Pegg, Michael Morpurgo and Ben Elton.

8.     What one piece of advice have you found the most important in your writing career?

It’s hard to narrow it down to one piece of advice. Being prepared for knockbacks and letting them wash over you is a useful skill to have. I’ve heard of writers who gave up publishing after their first negative review, but bad reviews happen to everybody and you have to be strong enough to keep going if you want a career in publishing.

9.     What are your plans for the coming year?

I’ve just started writing a third Smelly Troll book, which will completeish my first ‘Trollogy’. I also plan to release a second short story collection – Seesaw Volume 2.

I’m hoping to do more work with primary schools. This summer I worked with a class of ten-year-olds to make their own short story collection. It was very rewarding and I’m keen to get stuck into similar projects with other schools.

10.  And finally, if you were stranded on a desert island what three books would you choose to have with you?

101 Ways to Survive on a Desert Island

Sharks and How to Tame Them

Long Distance Swimming for the Stranded

Rosen's website: http://rosentrevithick.co.uk/

Rosen's most recent book: My Granny Writes Erotica http://rosentrevithick.co.uk/my-granny-writes-erotica/

Rosen's facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/rosen.trevithick

Rosen's twitter page: https://twitter.com/RosenTrevithick