An Interview: On the Edge of the Dark Lake of Michigan

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Hey, folks. Today I had a radio interview with Cindy Swanson of 101 QFL, a station in Rockford, Illinois. Here’s a link to her blog, where she reviewed On the Edge of the Dark Sea of Darkness, and here’s a link to download or listen to the interview.

I’ve been hiding out in the local coffee shop most days, writing furiously to meet my deadline for book two (the title hasn’t been decided yet), enjoying myself but at the same time remembering that writing takes a lot of work. I’ve been consoling myself with Anne Lamott’s freedom-giving advice for writers: You have to be willing to write a crappy first draft before you can get to the (hopefully) good final draft. I keep wanting to go back and self-edit, to worry over sentence structure, to liven up the dialog, but the book would never get written if I did that too much.

With songwriting, you have the freedom to sweat over every word and every line as you go, but with novel writing, at least as far as I can tell (I’m still quite the rookie), you have to write something before you have anything to work with. It’s like the first draft is the clay with which you make the book. In order to make the book, you have to find the clay.

AP

P.S.  If any of you have read the book (and liked it, preferably), would you mind posting a little review over at Amazon.com?  I’ve heard that it’s helpful.

Andrew Peterson is a singer-songwriter and author. Andrew has released more than ten records over the past twenty years, earning him a reputation for songs that connect with his listeners in ways equally powerful, poetic, and intimate. As an author, Andrew’s books include the four volumes of the award-winning Wingfeather Saga, released in collectible hardcover editions through Random House in 2020, and his creative memoir, Adorning the Dark, released in 2019 through B&H Publishing.


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5 Comments

  2. Bret Welstead

    Great interview. Thanks for posting the link.

    I can hardly wait until my boys are old enough for me to read the Narnia Chronicles to them. That’s something I’ve been excited to do since I read them myself. We’ll also need to go through the Wingfeather Saga…

    I wanted to let you know, too, that my 3-year-old son loves Slugs and Bugs. He sings it all the time, he’s memorized most of the words, and he’s come up with a dance for “Tractor, Tractor.” The other night at an open mic, I had him sing “God Made Me.” I had to sing the verses, but he sang out the chorus almost all by himself! It was one of those moments where I realize how blessed I am to be his daddy.

    Thank you for writing, for using the God-given talents and passions for a greater good!

  3. Cindy Swanson

    Thanks, Andrew! The pleasure was all mine.

    By the way, I read the Chronicles of Narnia to my kids as well…and I re-read them myself probably once a year!

  5. Dave Kendall

    Weird!

    Cindy’s son, Jonathan, was my roommate in college and he was the person who turned me on to Andy P back years and years ago…

    worlds are colliding.

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