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Keith Steinbaum

Keith Steinbaum

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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Authors shouldn't have this mindset. I guarantee you it's a lot more difficult to write about a war scene for an author who's never even put on a uniform, let alone been on a battlefield, yet look at the many war stories that have been written by authors who didn't. Same goes for stories from the perspective of astronauts when the reality is that perhaps 100% of those books about space travel were written by those who never donned a space suit. I didn't grow up in a world comprised of only men, and even though there are differences between how men and women react or think in certain instances, there are also many things we share in common about human behavior in various situations. Not all women are alike, and neither are all men, so we as authors do the best we can to find that connection with the opposite sex as it pertains to our stories.
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    • AllAuthor AllAuthor 4 years ago
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    • If you could choose three people to invite for a dinner party, who would they be and why?
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Because your question didn't specify if the three people need to be currently alive, I'll choose three that are all deceased. Assuming they'd somehow all speak English so that we could understand each other, I'll invite Jesus, Buddah, and Mohammed. Why? Because I'd like to see if I could gain insight as to why these are the three most influential figures in the history of mankind. And, in addition, this would give me a chance to see if they like my cooking...
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    • AllAuthor AllAuthor 4 years ago
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    • How do you think concepts such as Kindle, and e-books have changed the present or future of reading?
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • These are tremendously helpful inventions and here are four reasons that come to mind: Firstly, they make book buying affordable to so many more people. Secondly, they allow the chance to read a sample first before purchase, and then if the reader wants to invest in the whole book it's downloaded within a few seconds. Thirdly, the font can be enlarged for those who can't easily read the smaller print offered in regular books. Lastly, the interior book lights allow for night reading without preventing your significant other next to you in bed from an ability to fall asleep. (book lights that attach to real books are too bright when the lights are off). One negative, and this is a big one for me, is that it's hurting the brick and mortar bookstores who sell soft and hard cover books. I'm old school and truly appreciate the sensibility that a book store offers the soul.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Being a sixty-five year-old man I'm either qualified to answer this by observing from more life experience than most in terms of age, or not qualified because I'm observing from the outside for the majority of today's generation. That said, with the seeming growing addiction to cell phones, internet streaming, and video games, something has to give for people's free time and literary art is certainly one of the victims. I do believe that attention spans have been made shorter in duration through our technological dependencies on speed so reading a book is probably something that less people are inclined to do than in the past. As an author, and as someone who values what books offer people, this of saddens me a lot.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Because I've only written two books I admit that novelists who have at least several on their resume might offer more insight into the reason for their selection. But I chose this question to answer because I'll be getting that opportunity with my publishing company, Black Opal Books. Despite the fact that my first novel, The Poe Consequence, was originally self-published, they agreed to read it as a possible acquisition as long as I owned 100% of the rights. It turns out that they did, indeed, offer me a contract and the book will be re-released through them in March of 2020. I've already thought about certain parts that I'll want to tweak, or even a scene that I plan on removing, so your question will fortunately become a reality for me in the near future.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • When I graduated college my goal was to become a professional song lyricist and I worked very hard trying to achieve that dream. So, yes, I did see writing as a full time career but not as an author. I had some songs on albums and even a couple in a forgettable movie but that dream eventually died when the reality hit me that it just wasn't going to happen.
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    • AllAuthor AllAuthor 4 years ago
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    • Have you ever incorporated something that happened to you in real life into your novels?
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Yes! For example, in my first novel, The Poe Consequence, there are two L.A. street gangs that play a prominent role in the story. For many years I worked as a landscape professional in Section 8 housing areas and other gang neighborhoods (only during the day, of course). I took a lot of what I saw and heard about and incorporated that into my story. Another example is in my second book, You Say Goodbye, which found its original inspiration for a main character after I read the L.A. Times obituary article about a young girl who died of cancer at the age of eight. That young girl's name was Alexandra Scott who started selling lemonade in her front yard at the age of four to raise money for childhood cancer. That front yard effort was the starting point for the Alex's Lemonade Foundation which is now an international movement. I have a main character in my book patterned after Alexandra.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • The importance of these two facets can't be overestimated, especially a cover. There's just too much competition for attention when someone is scrolling book sites for something to read, or browsing through a bookstore, so the immediate appeal of the visual is a must to even have a potential reader give your book a chance. And a good title is also an attention grabber to add to the intrigue and/or curiosity. Bottom line here is that the two things together are synergistic, each enhancing the other.
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    • AllAuthor AllAuthor 4 years ago
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    • Have you ever experienced "Writer's Block"? Any tips you would like to share to overcome it?
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • First of all, this is quite common and the creative process sometimes needs recharging, so I accept the need to be patient with myself. If it's not there it's not there, so step away and do something else for awhile. But it's important to remember that fictional writing allows us to journey into our own minds away from our current realities, so I remind myself each time I write to appreciate the world I'm entering and developing that is all mine. This mind-set limits writer's block for me.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Yes, I do read my reviews both good and bad. In terms of the bad ones, I'm happy about the fact that those are in the minority. But they do sting, of course. The ones that frustrate me are the comments that seemingly make it seem as if the reviewer didn't read most of the story, leaving out key scenes or character relationships that are imperative for an honest review of the complete book. But ones that offer constructive criticism that back up their points are taken as learning experiences despite the hurt that can ensue. However, because most of my reviews of the two books I've written have been good to great ones, of which I'm very grateful, that's what gives me the self-esteem through validation of my writing and fuels my confidence that I'm not fooling myself about what I can bring to the table as an author.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Self-publishing is the most popular way toward the goal of seeing your book in print, but the offer of a contract from a publishing company is true success in my opinion. It's one thing for your family or friends to tell you they think your book is really good, but when your story is found to be at a high enough level of quality and enjoyment to be offered a contract for it, that takes it to a whole different mindset.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • My younger writing self got the best advice I could receive within the first few minutes of my first creative writing class when the teacher told us that if we were there in the hopes of making money on our eventual book we were fooling ourselves. But if we were there because we had a story to tell and wanted to learn how to best do that, then stick around to learn how. As for my own advice to my younger writing self, I'd make sure that the younger me knew that the hundreds of hours I'd wind up spending during all parts of the day and night, along with the sacrifices of time spent away from things I'd normally like to do (such as get enough sleep) will all be worth it in the end because of the invaluable and priceless feeling of accomplishment and self-esteem that I'll receive when I finally type those last two words - The End.
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    • AllAuthor AllAuthor 4 years ago
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    • Writing can be an emotionally draining and stressful pursuit. Any tips for aspiring writers?
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • 1. Have an idea that you think is so interesting that a lot of people will be anxious to read about it and which will maintain your own interest to keep going.

        2. Develop an outline for a beginning, middle, and end, knowing that it will constantly need tweaking but which gives you a game plan to follow. In my first creative writing class the teacher told us that most people start a story but don't finish it. What an outline does, (and I paraphrase her here) is to give you enough provisions to make the long journey through the desert. In other words, if you give yourself enough material to work with, your chances of completing the story are much greater.

        3. Be patient with yourself! Do you have a publisher calling and harassing you to remind you about a deadline you face? No, you don't, so if you have a bad day of zero productivity that's the way it goes sometimes.

        4. Be prepared to critically edit your work, (at least twice and probably more) and when you finally think it's ready to be published, spend some money to have it professionally edited. It's a painful but necessary process toward your goal. You don't necessarily have to agree with everything the editor recommends, but if you reject most of the suggestions you're probably doing yourself an injustice.
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      • Keith Steinbaum Keith Steinbaum 4 years ago
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      • Full transparency, this is a 'cut and paste' portion from my website that I feel answers both of these questions as well as I can:

        Many of us are driven to write through experiences born from pain, generating a need to uniquely express our own inner turmoil. Light-hearted inspiration is certainly an enviable reason to tap into one’s creative juices, but those feelings don’t stimulate the kinds of thoughts that lodge within me and grow in complexity. I can pinpoint a tragic, life-changing event occurring in my mid-teens that transformed me into a writer, and it seems that the weightier side of life continues to be my motivation.
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