1. What
motivated you to write your book, to force you from taking an idea or
experience and turning it into this book? As I was researching
my book, December 1941, I began to realize what a big and important
month April of 1945 was. FDR dies at the age of 64---who at the time was not just
president of the Unite States----but president of the world as the US was
arming and feeding not just US troops, but also British troops and Soviet
troops.
Hitler commits suicide, Mussolini and his mistress are killed in
terrible fashion, the battle for
Okinawa is raging—the final island before the planned invasion
of the mainland of Japan by Douglas MacArthur’s forces, Auschwitz is discovered
as is Buchenwald, the development of the A bomb is going forward at Oak ridge,
Tennessee and so many other
2. What
is it about and who is it for? It is about the critical months of 1945
leading up to April 1945. All books cover the aspect of the war but my book covers
the domestic side of the war---the many sacrifices by the civilian population
from rubber and scrap drives to rationing
to blackouts and brownouts to having their mail read to a
national speed limit of 35 miles per hour to limits on their phone usages to
paper drives and scrap metal drives to the rationing of gas and food. Never
before or since had America been so united.
3. What
takeaways might the reader will be left with after reading it? The unity of America. The steel will of America. How much
Americans let themselves be told what they could do and not do. Immediately
after December 7, the government sent out a memo to radio stations telling them
what they could and could not broadcast such as troop and ship movements. Local
governments ordered Air Raid drills and blackouts. Rumors swept the country.
Boston was going to be bombed.
4.
How did you decide on your book’s
title and cover design?
The title was obvious
and the cover design was created by my publisher at Nelson/Harper
Collins.
5. What
advice or words of wisdom do you have for fellow writers? There is no such thing as writer’s block. It is a fib told by
wanna-be novelists who used to hang around Elaine’s in NYC. You write and you
might hate it, but you will go back and edit it to make it more palatable. And
become the book. You must think about the book all the time. When you are in
the shower, driving a car, going to be. Think about the book all the time.
6. What
trends in the book world do you see -- and where do you think the book
publishing industry is heading? I think the future is
bright for the publishing industry. We who write nonfiction are replacing
public school teachers because they are no longer teaching real American. I am
certainly happy as many seem to be enjoying my books.
7. What
challenges did you overcome to write this book? None that I can think of. I was certainly enthusiastic. I had
good research material. My routine remains the same. I do research in the
morning and write in the afternoon. In the evening, my wife edits my material and
her edits are added the next morning while I write. I’ve always loved writing
and in fact put everything aside while I write. I used to have a glass of wine
at the end of the day but I don’t do that anymore.
8.
How would you describe your writing
style? Very up tempo, very fast. I don’t dawdle.
Also, most historians write from 30.000 feet but I like to write from ground
level, so the reader can enjoy it. I also don’t lecture people and I certainly
don’t write like a college professor; “Let us now examine the conditions and
circumstances which propelled Ronald Reagan into the presidential
campaign of 1980.” Stuffy and pompous.
9. If
people can buy or read one book this week or month, why should it be yours? I hope they find my reading enjoyable. I hope they learn
something.
About The Author: Craig Shirley is the author of Reagan
Rising, Rendezvous with Destiny, Reagan’s Revolution, Last
Act and the New York Times bestseller December
1941. He is a regular commentator throughout the media and a contributor to
national publications, and was hailed by the London Telegraph as “the best of
the Reagan biographers.” He is the Visiting Reagan Scholar at Eureka College,
Reagan’s alma mater, and lectures often at the Reagan Library and the Reagan
Ranch. He and his wife, Zorine, divide their time between Ben Lomond, a
three-hundred-year-old Georgian manor house in Essex County, Virginia, and
Trickle Down Point on the Rappahannock River in Lancaster, Virginia. They are
the parents of four children, Matthew, Andrew, Taylor, and Mitchell. For more information, please see: https://www.facebook.com/craig.shirley.35
Please Contact Me For
Help
Brian
Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com He is available to help authors promote their story, sell
their book, and grow their brand. He has 30 years of experience in successfully
helping thousands of authors in all genres.
Catch Up & Read These !!
The Truth That Authors Need To Hear
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/04/the-truth-that-authors-need-to-hear.html
Why Authors Need To Know Their Genre
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/04/why-authors-need-to-know-their-genre.html
Do Authors Really Have A Marketing
Budget Of Zero?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/04/do-authors-really-have-marketing-budget.html
What
Is Your Author Origin Story?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/03/what-is-your-author-origin-story.html
How
Do You Assemble A Book Launch Team?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/03/how-do-you-assemble-book-launch-team.html
Are
There Alternative Methods To Marketing A Book?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/03/are-there-alternative-methods-to.html
How
Do Authors Get More Book Reviews?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/03/how-do-authors-get-more-book-reviews.html
What
Should You Do To Promote Your Book?
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2022/01/what-should-you-do-to-promote-your-book.html
Ask
Me Anything About Book Marketing
https://bookmarketingbuzzblog.blogspot.com/2021/12/ask-me-anything-about-book-marketing.html
About Brian Feinblum
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.