Today on The Diamond Mine, we welcome author Dave Arp! Also, to all you readers, please leave a comment in the comment section (link is located after the interview on the bottom of the page) and you will be entered in the drawing to win a free copy of ORB.
Hi Dave! So, what is
Orb about?
Once a Marine, now a
private investigator, Wes Hansen sat down a billionaire to talk about finding
the man who assaulted his daughter. The job sounded easy enough until Wes
discovered the only witness is a dog, and his only physical evidence is two
identical business cards embossed with a bare eyeball and the name MESHACH.
Before it’s done, there’s a little romance and a lot of danger.
Sounds like a pretty
cool story!
And here's an excerpt from it:
Meshach sat in the dark
living room watching Shanteel’s house through the open patio doors. His
backpack at his feet contained the computer, the cash, all of it. Just in case.
Lightning flashed offshore.
A gust moved the curtains. The thunderstorms had arrived. Weather was as
unpredictable as the broad who’d stuck his own pistol in his face. She’d nearly
killed him. Only a finger’s width away. He grinned at that thought. She’d never
know.
Headlights topped the
levee—an unrelated vehicle, someone returning her car, or the poster boy cop? A
glimpse at the bridge of lights mounted on top of the car told him the latter.
A man exited the cruiser and walked toward Shanteel’s. He was off duty, dressed
in civilian clothes, but no doubt still armed.
He trotted up the stairs to
the front door and entered without knocking. The door slammed. Another light
came on.
Meshach glanced at his
watch: 11:07. He’d like to hear that conversation. He’d bet money it was one-
sided.
Lightning illuminated heavy,
menacing clouds. The smell of rain rode on a cooler wind. Wouldn’t be long
reaching the area now.
Minutes passed: 11:21. The front door opened. The cop
stepped out and slammed the door behind him. He walked with authority and
determination. Either the wildcat had tried to emasculate him again, and he was
fleeing for his life, or he was out to avenge the slight she’d suffered. He
trotted down the steps. As he reached the walkway that would take him back to
his car, another quick flash of lightning flared almost on top of them. The
thunderous crack stopped him in his tracks.
Hard to tell what direction
he looked, but Meshach could guess. Another bolt arced cloud to cloud. The guy
stood with his hands planted on his hips, staring toward Meshach.
Could he see Meshach staring
back from just inside the door? Meshach hoped he could.
In a second, the distance
between them filled with a torrent. Wind blew rain sideways through the doors
into the living room. Lightning split the night in half, revealing emptiness
where the cop had stood.
Sounds like a great read!
How did you get the idea for this novel?
I’ve tried to answer
this question in a blog and to myself several times. I can’t. I was reading the
Bible one day and an idea began to form. I didn’t act on it and begin to write
until going through some old photos of a friend and me hunting in Alaska. A
picture of him set the story in motion. I’d share more, but I’d give away the
story and that would be no fun.
That’s true! Do any
of your characters share any traits with you?
Wes Hansen and I share
a few traits. I don’t think I could write without a little of me going into one
of my characters. Wes and I are far from perfect, but we’re fixable.
I think our
imperfections can make us pretty interesting as story characters, or as humans!
Do you write novels
from an outline, or from a general idea of a storyline?
I write as my
characters live through the story. I see what they see. I go where they go and
do what they do. Though, to keep track of the location and activities of Wes
and the man he’s after, Meshach, I had to build a spreadsheet. I was rereading
one day and thought, Good grief,
where is Wednesday?
I know what you mean,
since I write the same way. Sometimes you do need to go back and make sure
everything makes sense sequentially and in light of plot circumstances or
changes.
Do your characters develop as you write them, or do you have a set
idea of them from the beginning?
They develop just like
my story does. I usually have a general idea that I stick to, especially for
the moral aspects, but I don’t dress them with hair, eyes and clothes from the
start.
I think it’s good to
leave out some of the physical details of the main characters so that the
reader can imagine the people themselves. And sometimes too much description can be tedious
to read. Of course, that’s just my opinion, as there are a lot of great stories
that rely on lots of description.
Did you always want
to be a writer?
I never had the first
thought about writing until I was in my forties. When I did, I discovered my
spelling was atrocious, punctuation was worse, and telling was easier than
showing. Telling is easy. Showing takes effort. I was not a “B” English
student. I’m not a “B” writer, but I’m working on it.
I hear you! Telling
is as easy as speaking. Showing does take a lot more effort, and I’ve still got
room for improvement on that skill!
What’s your favorite
thing about being an author?
I’ve been hooked on
books before. Ludlum, Clavell, Clancy, L’amour, numerous other fiction writers
kept me up late at night reading, trying to see what lay around the next
corner, the next page. Is it narcissistic to smile when someone tells you they
were up late because they couldn’t put your book down? Maybe a little. I don’t
care.
It’s gratifying when
someone tells you that, or how they wished your story was longer. One of the
perks of being a writer!
How much time are you able to spend on your writing?
I write in spurts. At
home, early morning is my quiet time. Early as in four or five until seven when
I take my bride a cup of coffee in bed. I’m a drilling foreman and spend six
months a year on an offshore drilling rig. My idle time there is spent writing
or reading, mostly writing.
How nice to have a
job that affords you the opportunity to spend time writing! That’s great!
Do you have an
underlying theme to your stories?
I don’t have an
underlying theme, per se, though my first novel, Me and Jake, was based on a
true story and hints at child abuse. I write Christian fiction. God and a
belief in Him and Christ are always mentioned. I suppose the conflicts in each
of my stories are a tale of good and evil.
And that makes for
pretty compelling conflicts, in stories and in real life!
What are you working
on now?
I have two works in
progress. Riley James is 40,000 words across the Saudi desert, but still
40/50,000 words from Jordan, trying to escape The Bloodletting. He and his
newfound friend, Matu, are moving at night and hiding where they can with the
snakes and scorpions to escape the scorching sun during the day. And I’m
working on Sleeping With My Boots On, a non-fiction memoir with a friend who
spent 4 tours as a combat medic.
Wow! Sounds like
exciting stories are on the way from Dave Arp. Thanks so much for the
interview, Dave!
Now, here is a short
bio, plus Dave’s social and purchase links. And don’t forget to leave a comment
for a chance for a free copy of Orb!!
Bio:
David was born in Arizona
and raised in Texas where he began a career in the oil and gas drilling
industry soon after graduating high school. Since then, he’s traveled the
world. He discovered his love for writing while working for Saudi Aramco,
drilling wells throughout Saudi Arabia. Today, he splits his life evenly
between home in Colorado with his wife of 32 years, Karen, and a deep-water
drilling rig on the Gulf of Mexico.
Pelican Book Group page for ORB:
Amazon
Media –
Other books by Dave Arp:
