A. No. It’s more cathartic and rewarding when a project reaches completion. It’s also an escape into new worlds, scenarios, and characters floating around inside my head.

A. Everyone has an opinion – whether good or bad. So far, I’ve had a great deal of support from other writers and readers. However, believing in yourself and your talent can be a helpful tool in dealing with those that may not see your work as valid. Always listen, then go back and review the criticism, decide if it’s valid, and if so, take it on board for the rewrite.

A. Praise is always a great affirmation that what you have to say is working, but I don’t wallow in it. My work must first pass the important step, and that is my own self-criticism. What comes after that either proves me right or wrong.

A. I have and I do on Reedsy.com. It helps me think differently, like a different person.

A. The first two books are collections of my short stories, so they will have a connection. However, books that follow will be on their own merits and paths.

A. On average, I’m creating approximately six hours per day, but when in full flight, I write until I’m tired.

A. I have a memoir of my youth in 1960s-1970s London that recollects an Irish family’s turmoil. Most of that is personal with some creative licence thrown in to lighten the tone of the book. My short stories are complete fiction, with some based on historic moments in life.

A. Connecting to readers is still something to be learned. On Reedsy, it’s very interactive, but on the sales side, I have trouble finding the time to market my own work – other than Amazon’s and Facebook’s paid advertising. I fully acknowledge that is a skillset unto itself that I need help with.

A. I have favourite genres like Westerns, War, Sci-Fi, and comedy. If I had to pick out an individual, it would be Frank McCourt. His work took me on a roller-coaster of emotional ups and downs in his typical Irish lyrical prose.

A. For short stories, I will spend several days researching, then choose what stands out as material to use and use that as the centre of my story. For my memoir, it’s a continual cycle of research and writing. However, when I was writing screenplays, the typical research took about three months before writing.

A. Get the facts correct. A writer can always take creative licence with historical figures, but my practice is to always get the historical timelines and events correct – unless it’s a comedy. Then, all rules go out the window.

A. I spend a lot of time rewriting, but when a project is finished, it should remain that way. Otherwise, it’s easy to fall into the abyss of heavy self-criticism, and that can be fatal in a writing sense. I’m sure Michaelangelo – when admiring his work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, never once thought that he should have gone back and wallpapered it.

A. Distractions. Life is full of them. But picking out anything in particular, I can’t. To me, writing is not a sacrifice. It’s a journey of growth, learning, and achievement. It is something that does require a great deal of dedication, but if I had to give up anything to continue to write, that may rob me of something valuable that could be written about.

A. No kids. That helps. My partner, Lisa, is very supportive of my ambitions and pursuits. We have a small dog named LC and two cats that don’t get along with each other unless they’re sleeping.

A. Recently retired from several decades working in IT. I’m a classically-trained Tenor and have spent many years performing music from Opera/show tunes to Prog Rock, Rock, and Country-Rock.

A. I like carpentry. It has no affect on my writing, unless I hit my thumb with a hammer. Then, my typing speed slows down. I recently made a Murphy bed that I’m particularly proud of.

A. I lived in the USA from the late 70s to mid-90s and began acting in Los Angeles in the late 1980s. That led to me becoming a writer. Playwriting turned into screenwriting, which turned into drive-on privileges at Universal to pitch movie ideas and develop projects. However, that environment is only financially rewarding, and competitive. I am finally writing for myself in the hope that people like my stories and help me make a mark in the literary world.

A. Don’t know. Perhaps history. Technology seems to centre around current trends. We all need to learn history.

A. Comics were my thing. Especially Batman. However, I was partial to Agatha Christie novels as a kid.

A. In my short stories, they usually reveal themselves within the context of the story. Sometimes, I will come up with a title and write from there, but most of the time, a line in the story will end up as the title.

A. Puccini, 1970s-era reggae, anything with a great guitar lead. Most of the time, I write in silence, but if I need a mood boost, I’ll find something to play to help.

A. I have a dedicated room and desk with a laptop and a 32-inch extension monitor/screen.

A. Closing my space off to distractions. Writing is a commitment, so anything outside of that is a distraction trying to pry you away from that commitment.

A. There’s just me and my partner. She is very supportive.

A. I have a short story titled, “By the Withernsea,” about a 1960s British civil servant taking responsibility to travel to Yorkshire to inform the long-standing station master that the government plans to close the train line his station sits on.

The station master would be played by Jim Broadbent and the civil servant by Tom Hiddleston. A feared confrontation between the two men turns into a delightful budding friendship fueled by Yorkshire hospitality and sincere empathy, and an unexpected return home for the civil servant. Those two actors would be delightful to watch.

A. I like originality. It is very easy to follow a trend, but I prefer something fresh from imagination.

A. Any animal. I’m a lover of all. Being a Taurean, probably a bull.

A. Paid advertising that seems to need a degree in marketing. I’m failing miserably. My favourite way is to use the low-cost Facebook boosts. My least favourite is the multitude of bloggers and YouTube promoters that promise everything but deliver nothing but an invoice.

A. Good question. I’m somewhere in the middle. Once I sell more than 8 books, I’ll look at adopting the author tag.

A. My partner, Lisa. She used to be an actor’s agent and is well read, so I trust her feedback unquestionably. Secondly, I’m about to deliver my memoir to an editor that works for a top UK publishing house. Yes, I will pay her for her service, but will trust her critique.

A. Current project is four months in production.

A. From my experience writing for stage and screen, outlining helps create the framework that a story builds upon. With my short stories, I work out the beginning, middle, and end, then use that as my guideline.

1. Yes, I have, and no surprises. It’s me.

A. I use a lifetime of perspectives and a gamut of imagination.

A. Only self-published, so far. I’m hoping my memoir will get picked up by a traditional publisher.

A. Both, but it energises me so much more when I finish a piece.

A. Book: Angela’s Ashes.

Movie: Bambi.

A. The feedback from other writers on Reedsy.com has been invaluable. It’s a great community of supportive fellow wordsmiths.

A. Not experienced that yet, but the first residual from Amazon went to purchasing a brand new pencil.

A. Yes. I strongly believe that if you have something worthy of reading, then self-publishing is a self-confirmation of one’s legitimacy as a writer. Until one lands a publishing deal, that’s all most of us can look forward to.

A. The same difficulty creating any character regardless of gender is understanding them. However, it’s all too easy to stereotype, so I always consult the female guru that lives with me.

A. In or out of context, it’s perfectly fine – unless you’re a hatemonger. Profanity is a rich part of our language. Why write “Darn” when “Damn” is more explicit. “Shit” instead of “Turd.” And “Fuck” instead of “Fudge.”

Enough said.

A. I use a combination of both, but I prefer my imaginative characters. It’s like a creation of new people that suddenly explode out of my head.

A. 1989 – in my early thirties.

A. The book I’m submitting to you for promotion is a compilation of 32 of my more humorous short stories taken from the 137 short stories in my collection.

Each story from “Short Stories, Tall Tales” is perfect for commuters, 15-minute breaks, or propping up a wobbly table. First published online at Reedsy.com, they come with a plethora of feedback praise that is unashamedly included at the beginning of the book. The stories globe-hop with characters that are sometimes so caricature, that it feels so right to laugh at them. Using different styles like narrative, dialogue and narrative, and all dialogue, there are some very funny moments within.

The book is on Amazon and can be found locally at Short Tales, Long Laughs: A Witty Perspective On Life : Campbell, Chris: Amazon.com.au: Books

A. Distraction, distraction, distraction. Oh, and a little sidetracking.

A. Without sounding too cliché, they seem to choose me.

A. My completed first draft of my memoir had a word count of 85,000. I tried too hard to capture the mood of the years by adding erroneous historical events, so after initial feedback from my guru, the word count is now at 71,000. It has helped me focus on the crux of the story. My Irish family living in London and my relationship with my mother who had me out of wedlock in a societal time that frowned on such happenings.

A. Being able to continually create is fuel enough. However, the holy grail of being regarded as a bestseller propels me forward.

A. I just force myself to write something, even when not inspired. I find that works. When finished, a nice glass of Shiraz or bubbles celebrates the moment.

A. Yes, sometimes. Only the good traits, of course.

A. In my short stories, I prefer pistols. However, in one of them, I have used a candlestick in the drawing room of a WW2 Nazi subversive.