Interview with Kevin Hopson, author of 'Broken Family'
Prior to hitting
the fiction scene in 2009, Kevin Hopson was a freelance writer for several
years, covering everything from finance to sports. His debut work, World of
Ash, was released by MuseItUp Publishing in the fall of 2010. Kevin has
released several other books through MuseItUp since then, and he has also been
published in various magazines and anthology books. Kevin's writing covers many
genres, including dark fiction and horror, science fiction, and crime fiction.
His latest book is the crime/mystery, Broken
Family.
You can visit Kevin’s blog at www.kevin-hopson.blogspot.com.
Q: Welcome to The Writer's Life! Now that your book has been published, we’d
love to find out more about the process.
Can we begin by having you take us at the
Prior to Broken
Family, I had never written a straight-up crime/mystery story. The two
crime fiction pieces I previously published both had a sci-fi element to them,
and I wanted to do something different (and more realistic) this time around.
One of my inspirations for the book was Craig Johnson’s Walt Longmire Mysteries series. However, the idea actually came
from a movie description I read while scrolling through the cable guide on my
television. I don’t recall the name of the movie, and the plot for Broken Family ended up being much
different, but that’s where it started.
Q: How hard was it to write a book like this and do
you have any tips that you could pass on which would make the journey easier
for other writers?
Every book is a challenge, and this one was no
different. I always spend a lot of time doing research for my books, especially
when I’m not very knowledgeable on the subject, and that was probably the
biggest hurdle I had for Broken Family.
Some people write in their field of expertise, which eliminates a lot of the
leg work. However, my background is in finance, and – unfortunately – the
subject matter doesn’t excite me when it comes to possible storylines. As a
result, I might suggest to others that they try to write in their field of
expertise if they truly have a passion for it. Otherwise, pick a genre you
really enjoy and do the necessary research to make your story as accurate as
possible.
Q: Who is your publisher and how did you find them
or did you self-publish?
My publisher is MuseItUp Publishing, a Canadian
company that puts out e-books and print books covering many genres. I came
across MuseItUp back in 2010 when I was shopping around my first two stories.
MuseItUp was a fledgling back then, but the company has grown significantly in
the past four years.
Q: Is there anything that surprised you about
getting your first book published?
I think the biggest surprise was just getting
published. I labored at writing for a year or two before finally finding
success, so it was a great accomplishment for me.
Q: What other books (if any) are you working on and
when will they be published?
My young adult/dark fiction story, The Landfill, was just released by
MuseItUp Publishing on April 4. Additionally, I recently signed a contract for
a science fiction novella titled Shifting
Alliances, which is scheduled for release this fall.
Q: What’s your favorite place to hang out online?
Probably Facebook. Though it can be a distraction,
especially when I’m trying to write, it’s an important place to connect with
friends, family, colleagues, and readers of mine.
Q: Finally, what message (if any) are you trying to
get across with your book?
I don’t think there’s a message I’m trying to
deliver with Broken Family. I might
have an underlying message with some of my books, but my main focus is to
entertain people and make the reader think.
Q: Thank you again for this interview! Do you have any final words?
Thank you for having me. I encourage everyone to
write whether they do it for a living or not. It’s great therapy for the soul!
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