James Marquis is a Seattle writer and author of science fiction novels, a memoir, and a collection of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror stories titled Dark Day Dreams, written under the pen name of James Hawthorne. He enjoys writing as a way to explore and expose the ways pop culture, politics, music and literature shape our everyday lives. An Amazon reviewer calls Dark Day Dreams “a book filled with curiosities.” I know Jim exclusively through Facebook. His posts are thoughtful and funny.
Do you remember the first character you created? It was a guy named Time Hunter. He was the hero of a comic book I created when I was around nine or ten. He went back to ancient Egypt.
How did you feel when you saw your work in print / electronic form for the first time? When I first saw my book in print, I was so happy. It just seemed like a miracle. And I felt reconnected with the creativity I felt as a child but had set aside for several decades.
What is your favorite piece of advice for new writers? Immerse yourself in the writing world as much as possible. Your friends and family will be supportive but networking is what actually gets stuff done.
There’s a lot of good stories out there that need more exposure.
If you were king, what would you change about the publishing world? I’d love to see some kind of process in place that would make it possible for self-published writers to get their paperbacks in bookstores for some reasonable period of time. There is a lot of good stuff out there that needs more exposure.
What is your next project? Timeline? My next project is another short story collection. Like Dark Day Dreams, it will feature science fiction, horror and dark fantasy (though I want to do longer stories this time with more character development). Hoping to release it by the end of 2018.
Learn more about Jim Marquis’ books on his Amazon author page.
Interested in promoting your self-published or traditionally published science fiction or fantasy work? Check out the Promote Your Book page on my blog.
J.G. Follansbee 