Who Are You?
Desmond Hall, Soccer-Hockey-Track-Fencing-Dad, Writer, Mets-Jets-Knicks fan living in quiet desperation in the Boston area.
What Do You Write?
The awesome Jason Reynolds described my first book as “one of those tales that ties you up, turns you inside-out, and wrings you like a wet cloth.” So, who am I to argue with him?
I like thrillers with a lot at stake for complex characters who are hell-bent on getting something.
I got started writing when a nun kept me in from recess when I was eleven. She showed me a story about an elephant that I didn’t even remember writing and told me I wasn’t going to go out and play until I finished it. And…I didn’t get to play kick ball that day–and am I ever thankful.
I don’t avoid any themes per se, but one day I badly, badly want to write a novel in second person, because it seems like a lot of fun.
I think above all I love discovery. Finding answers in the story that I had never conceived. Being open to what is going on on the page, and what your characters are telling you to do. That’s especially a big deal me because I’m a voracious plotter. So, though my thoughts and plans on how the story should go is essential to my process, it’s also great to let go, and allow my characters to “tell me” what they want to do. This also comes into play when I work with my editor. Caitlyn lays out notes in a way that’s special. She points out things to do but she also writes things that leads me to some of those great discoveries I mentioned. In a way, we play off each other to come up with new ideas. I love that. This is something I loved during my advertising days where I worked with a partner, often late into the night in search of the “big idea.” And when that idea hit, it feels like the proverbial home run on the last pitch of the game. And it’s the same in fiction writing.
Simply put: I love the art of writing but not the loneliness.
Where Do You Write?
My favorite “office” is the basement of the local public library between 10am when it opens and 3pm—in this sort of post-apocalyptic room that juts out of the building into an empty alley. It’s quiet and not much to see. All I have to do is put my phone out of my sight and work.
When Do You Write?
It’s almost a cliché to say I write every day, but I do. Also, when I don’t physically put anything on screen or paper I think about my characters and plot—which is also writing no matter what anyone says.
Why Do You Write?
Injustice and anger are probably somehow responsible for writing. In high school I’d wanted to be a journalist after reading about the “muckrakers” especially Upton Sinclair. Pointing out injustice, planned disparity, and corruption is a huge responsibility—and I’d like to add that the hard-working journalists and other members of our fourth estate don’t get enough credit. They’re vital to the upkeep of freedom—probably why so many have been attacked at this time when our freedoms are at risk.
How Do You Overcome Writer’s Block?
A great trick that an agent taught me is to write a query letter based on the character or scene that you’re working on (stuck on). Doing so really focuses you and reminds you of what’s important, and what it is that you’re trying to accomplish.
Bonus: What Do You Enjoy Doing When Not Writing?
Movies, books, and trying to improve my tennis game before I get too old to swing a racket or before the pickleballers take over all the tennis courts.
My thanks to Desmond Hall for today’s interview.