Hi, everyone!
Welcome to another edition of Spotlight Saturday at Darlene's Book Nook, where we feature authors and their books!
We will be joined today by Mike Faricy.
About Mike:
Mike Faricy writes crime fiction with a sense of humor and even a little romance. All his crime fiction books are set in Minnesota and populated with whacky, unforgettable characters. His Dev Haskell series takes place in his home town of St. Paul, Minnesota. His books are filled with the sort of oddballs and flakes we’re all curious about, but wisely prefer to keep at a distance. They won’t be saving the world from terrorism, international banking conspiracies or government coups. The situations they find themselves in are due to their own bad decisions, but then bad decisions make for interesting tales. Mike lives in St. Paul, Minnesota and Dublin, Ireland with his very patient wife.
CONNECT ONLINE WITH MIKE:
Welcome back to Darlene's Book Nook, Mike! Please tell us a little about yourself.
I’ve had a lot of varied ‘opportunities’ during my career. Few people know that I worked in the adult industry for a number of years. Sadly no, not as a star or even a supporting role, pardon the pun. I worked for a direct mail organization that sold videos. This was pre-internet days which seems like ancient history now, but at the time was really a license to print money. The company I worked for brought me on as their advertising department, the sum total of the department, me. When I took on the position the company was running a monthly full page color ad in Penthouse magazine offering ten or twelve videos at $39.95 each. They were also mailing out 250,000 annual catalogs. By the time I left the company some years later we were still running the Penthouse ad, mailing a million 116 page quarterly catalogs and mailing 5 million monthly 36 page catalogs. I wrote all the clever copy in the mailings and catalogs plus supervised the printing of the catalogs. It was an experience. We were the largest XXX video distributor in the country which in those days meant the world, again this was pre-internet. I’d have to meet with the ‘stars’ and the various production companies interact with them. It was an interesting experience.
I’ve had a lot of varied ‘opportunities’ during my career. Few people know that I worked in the adult industry for a number of years. Sadly no, not as a star or even a supporting role, pardon the pun. I worked for a direct mail organization that sold videos. This was pre-internet days which seems like ancient history now, but at the time was really a license to print money. The company I worked for brought me on as their advertising department, the sum total of the department, me. When I took on the position the company was running a monthly full page color ad in Penthouse magazine offering ten or twelve videos at $39.95 each. They were also mailing out 250,000 annual catalogs. By the time I left the company some years later we were still running the Penthouse ad, mailing a million 116 page quarterly catalogs and mailing 5 million monthly 36 page catalogs. I wrote all the clever copy in the mailings and catalogs plus supervised the printing of the catalogs. It was an experience. We were the largest XXX video distributor in the country which in those days meant the world, again this was pre-internet. I’d have to meet with the ‘stars’ and the various production companies interact with them. It was an interesting experience.
Do you have a specific writing style? Do you write an outline, or do you write more “by-the-seat-of-your-pants”?
I do have a specific writing style. I don’t work off an outline, but I wouldn’t describe it as seat of the pants, it’s pretty disciplined. I don’t take phone calls and usually don’t listen to music. I review what I wrote the previous day, reading it out loud. I make minor corrections along the way. I’ve just described two to three hours. I’m pretty much in the flow of things at this point and begin writing for the day. I strive for ten pages per day, sometimes it’s eight once in a while it’s twelve. At the end of the day no one is more surprised than me as to what has transpired. I’m constantly reviewing in my head what happened, where it will/might lead. I’ll be on a walk with my wife and she says something like ‘You’re awfully quiet.” I reply that I’ve got a guy duct taped to an office chair hanging out a three story window by a phone cord… she sort of speeds up at that point and leaves me in the dust.
I do have a specific writing style. I don’t work off an outline, but I wouldn’t describe it as seat of the pants, it’s pretty disciplined. I don’t take phone calls and usually don’t listen to music. I review what I wrote the previous day, reading it out loud. I make minor corrections along the way. I’ve just described two to three hours. I’m pretty much in the flow of things at this point and begin writing for the day. I strive for ten pages per day, sometimes it’s eight once in a while it’s twelve. At the end of the day no one is more surprised than me as to what has transpired. I’m constantly reviewing in my head what happened, where it will/might lead. I’ll be on a walk with my wife and she says something like ‘You’re awfully quiet.” I reply that I’ve got a guy duct taped to an office chair hanging out a three story window by a phone cord… she sort of speeds up at that point and leaves me in the dust.
Do you discipline yourself to write a certain number of words daily? Or do you ever have dry periods where you do not write?
I don’t have dry periods. I may pause a bit on occasion, but I’m hashing through something. I often times go back and flush something out or add. I’ve got pages and pages of notes or reminders of stories that are great fodder for whatever I’m working on or a future something. I just wish there was more time in the day or I didn’t have to sleep.
I don’t have dry periods. I may pause a bit on occasion, but I’m hashing through something. I often times go back and flush something out or add. I’ve got pages and pages of notes or reminders of stories that are great fodder for whatever I’m working on or a future something. I just wish there was more time in the day or I didn’t have to sleep.
What is your ideal writing environment? Do you prefer music or solitude? Is there a time of day (or night) that you prefer?
Ideally I prefer 8-5 with maybe a half hour break for a simple lunch. Yeah, I know, boring. But it works for me. I may occasionally have music on but usually not. If I do have music it would probably be something classical as a background that I more or less tune out. I don’t like interruptions and at base writing is a solitary enterprise. Thankfully I have a very patient wife who likes nothing more than to stay away from me while I’m tapping keys on the computer.
Ideally I prefer 8-5 with maybe a half hour break for a simple lunch. Yeah, I know, boring. But it works for me. I may occasionally have music on but usually not. If I do have music it would probably be something classical as a background that I more or less tune out. I don’t like interruptions and at base writing is a solitary enterprise. Thankfully I have a very patient wife who likes nothing more than to stay away from me while I’m tapping keys on the computer.
Are there any authors that influence your writing?
There are quite a few authors, Elmore Leonard, Carl Hiaasen, Vince Flynn, Michael Connelly, John Sandford and William Kent Kruger immediately spring to mind. I write with a sense of humor, possibly some irony as well. I’m entertained by different sorts of tales but for my personal preference I don’t want to write about the former Special Forces guy who just wants to be left alone but terrorists have kidnapped his gorgeous, blonde, movie star girlfriend. So now he’s coming with a vengeance and oh by the way, his old army buddy is head of the CIA. That just isn’t my gig. Tutti Frutti is my fifth Dev Haskell novel. Dev is one of those people we all know, he’s fun, inappropriate, often times ends up with the wrong sort of woman and although curious we would all wisely keep him at a distance. He’s the type of guy a woman might secretly have a get away weekend with but she’d never tell her girlfriends and then he’d smash her car up and her girlfriends would find out anyway. The people he deals with end up in the situations they’re in because of their own bad decisions, but then bad decisions make for interesting tales.
There are quite a few authors, Elmore Leonard, Carl Hiaasen, Vince Flynn, Michael Connelly, John Sandford and William Kent Kruger immediately spring to mind. I write with a sense of humor, possibly some irony as well. I’m entertained by different sorts of tales but for my personal preference I don’t want to write about the former Special Forces guy who just wants to be left alone but terrorists have kidnapped his gorgeous, blonde, movie star girlfriend. So now he’s coming with a vengeance and oh by the way, his old army buddy is head of the CIA. That just isn’t my gig. Tutti Frutti is my fifth Dev Haskell novel. Dev is one of those people we all know, he’s fun, inappropriate, often times ends up with the wrong sort of woman and although curious we would all wisely keep him at a distance. He’s the type of guy a woman might secretly have a get away weekend with but she’d never tell her girlfriends and then he’d smash her car up and her girlfriends would find out anyway. The people he deals with end up in the situations they’re in because of their own bad decisions, but then bad decisions make for interesting tales.
Are you anything at all like your protagonist, Dev Haskell?
Maybe a little bit, okay maybe a lot. My mom yells at me for some of the things Dev ends up doing and she once told me she was tired of reading about all the women I’ve been involved with. Where do you go from there?
Maybe a little bit, okay maybe a lot. My mom yells at me for some of the things Dev ends up doing and she once told me she was tired of reading about all the women I’ve been involved with. Where do you go from there?
In your latest novel, Tutti Frutti, who was your most favourite character to write and why?
There were actually two that were really fun. The first is Candi Slaughter. I got an email from a fan who said she loved the Dev Haskell series but “Dev always ends up with a gorgeous, well endowed young woman and well, that’s just not me anymore.” That got me thinking. So, Candi is older than Dev, has maybe a few extra pounds and he has trouble keeping up with her in the bedroom. The other character I really enjoyed was Swindle Lawless, a ‘cougar’ of questionable repute. I have a feeling Swindle will be showing up in more of Dev’s adventures. I never realized it until it was pointed out to me, but even though Dev is an irreparable cad women seem to like him and in the end he is always saved in some way by a woman. Usually they end up pulling his feet from the fire then ultimately throw up their hands and decide he’s just going to be too much work.
There were actually two that were really fun. The first is Candi Slaughter. I got an email from a fan who said she loved the Dev Haskell series but “Dev always ends up with a gorgeous, well endowed young woman and well, that’s just not me anymore.” That got me thinking. So, Candi is older than Dev, has maybe a few extra pounds and he has trouble keeping up with her in the bedroom. The other character I really enjoyed was Swindle Lawless, a ‘cougar’ of questionable repute. I have a feeling Swindle will be showing up in more of Dev’s adventures. I never realized it until it was pointed out to me, but even though Dev is an irreparable cad women seem to like him and in the end he is always saved in some way by a woman. Usually they end up pulling his feet from the fire then ultimately throw up their hands and decide he’s just going to be too much work.
Can you tell us about your current or upcoming writing projects?
I’ve got Dev involved in a murder investigation. That novel will be coming out this summer. I have a number of titles bouncing around in my head but haven’t landed on anything for that work as of yet. I’m also working on another novella for the Fight Card series due next fall. I did a novella titled Irish Dukes for them in the fall of 2012. A number of projects are always bouncing around in my thick skull.
I’ve got Dev involved in a murder investigation. That novel will be coming out this summer. I have a number of titles bouncing around in my head but haven’t landed on anything for that work as of yet. I’m also working on another novella for the Fight Card series due next fall. I did a novella titled Irish Dukes for them in the fall of 2012. A number of projects are always bouncing around in my thick skull.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
I play in a bagpipe band up here in St. Paul, the Brian Boru Irish Pipe Band. We’re releasing our 50th anniversary CD in May. It’s a nice break from writing with a really great bunch of people.
I play in a bagpipe band up here in St. Paul, the Brian Boru Irish Pipe Band. We’re releasing our 50th anniversary CD in May. It’s a nice break from writing with a really great bunch of people.
What book(s) are you reading now?
I just finished J.A. Konrath’s Bloody Mary and before that Michael Connelly’s Void Moon. I’m currently going through John Sandford’s Virgil Flowers series reading Shock Wave right now.
I just finished J.A. Konrath’s Bloody Mary and before that Michael Connelly’s Void Moon. I’m currently going through John Sandford’s Virgil Flowers series reading Shock Wave right now.
Do you have any specific last thoughts that you want to say to your readers?
Yes, run out and purchase all my books then tell 2-300 of your closest friends. Actually, thanks for getting this far reading about boring old me. To me my writing is a labor of love, capitol ‘L’ on both words. I love doing it and it’s an awful lot of work. I hope you’ll try one of my books I’d love to hear from you, I’m on Facebook and my email address is in the back of all my books. I love feedback.
Favourite music? Old time rock and roll and bag pipes.
Dog-lover or cat-lover? I prefer well trained dogs.
Vanilla ice cream or chocolate? Vanilla ice cream with home made chocolate topping.
I can't live without my... Three cups of morning coffee.
The craziest thing I ever did was... I don’t think the statute of limitations has expired so I’m not going to mention it.
If I could take an all-expenses paid trip anywhere in the world, I would go to... We just got about ten inches of mid-April snow with more forecast for next week so I have to say I would probably take my wife to a sunny beach somewhere. She’d have a great time chatting up all sorts of people on the beach. I’d probably get sunburned and relegated to a chair under an umbrella.
Yes, run out and purchase all my books then tell 2-300 of your closest friends. Actually, thanks for getting this far reading about boring old me. To me my writing is a labor of love, capitol ‘L’ on both words. I love doing it and it’s an awful lot of work. I hope you’ll try one of my books I’d love to hear from you, I’m on Facebook and my email address is in the back of all my books. I love feedback.
~ Fun Facts ~
Favourite music? Old time rock and roll and bag pipes.
Dog-lover or cat-lover? I prefer well trained dogs.
Vanilla ice cream or chocolate? Vanilla ice cream with home made chocolate topping.
I can't live without my... Three cups of morning coffee.
The craziest thing I ever did was... I don’t think the statute of limitations has expired so I’m not going to mention it.
If I could take an all-expenses paid trip anywhere in the world, I would go to... We just got about ten inches of mid-April snow with more forecast for next week so I have to say I would probably take my wife to a sunny beach somewhere. She’d have a great time chatting up all sorts of people on the beach. I’d probably get sunburned and relegated to a chair under an umbrella.
Thanks so much for joining us today, Mike! It was so much fun getting to know you better!
Four lucky winners will win a copy of Mike's latest crime fiction thriller, Tutti Frutti.
2 Grand Prizes (one for Canada and one for USA): Paperback
2 Runner-up Prize (Worldwide): Digital copies
SERIES: Dev Haskell, Book #5
AUTHOR: Mike Faricy
PUBLISHER: CreateSpace
PUBLICATION DATE: March 21, 2013
FORMAT: Paperback, 314 pages
GENRE: Crime thriller
PUBLICATION DATE: March 21, 2013
FORMAT: Paperback, 314 pages
GENRE: Crime thriller
ISBN: 978-1482663037
Another Dev Haskell tale, they can be read in any order you wish. Wise cracking, back slapping, wrong thinking PI Dev Haskell has just landed his dream job, providing security for people who don’t need it in the first place, until someone shoots at them in broad daylight. Things quickly fly out of control and Dev suddenly finds himself under the police microscope, literally tied up in a relationship and dodging a growing pile of bodies that all seem to be linked to him. Another in the entertaining Dev Haskell series from Minnesota’s Master of the Bizarre, Mike Faricy.
To enter the giveaway, you must complete the Rafflecopter entry form below.
This giveaway is open worldwide and will close at 12:00 AM CST on April 20, 2013.
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