Interviewing Author Randall Allen Dunn
Q1. Tell me about yourself?
A. I write action thrillers that read like blockbuster movies, under my
given name, Randall Allen Dunn. I'm writing fantasy and paranormal
thrillers under my pen name, D.A. Randall, which includes the Red Rider
Saga, about a 16-year old scarface Red Riding Hood fighting a sinister
cult of werewolves. I grew up on movies and comic books and never could
find enough action in the action thrillers I read. So now I write the
kind of stories that I would want to read, full of action and humor and
memorable characters you can root for.
I'm married and have 2 adopted kids, and I've lived my whole life in
Illinois. And whenever we can afford it, our goal is to take another
trip to Disneyworld.
Q. 2.What is your favorite books to read?
A. I love action thrillers, whether it's fantasy, paranormal, science
fiction, or suspense. I love Ian Fleming's original James Bond novels,
for the suspense and larger-than-life villains and plots. I also enjoy
Twilight Zone type stories, and have really been enjoying the writing of
Richard Matheson lately. I like pulp fiction stories and superhero
comics, as well as fairy tales and stories with monsters, so it's
somewhat natural that I ended up writing a superhero version of Red
Riding Hood fighting evil werewolves.
Q 3. When did you decide you were going to write a book?
A. I decided to be a writer in the sixth grade. I've written books for many
years but had trouble connecting with a publisher at the right time with
the right project. Indie publishing has changed all that, but it's still
a struggle to figure out how to help readers discover your stories so
you can sell them and keep on writing.
Q4. How did you come up with the name of your book?
A. The original idea was for a graphic novel about Red Riding Hood as a
young woman who discovers that the wolves attacking her village are
actually men who transform into wolves. I needed a way to call her
something that sounded familiar, as "Red Riding Hood", but more mature
and heroic. So I gave her a clever, loyal horse to ride and had her wear
a red hooded cloak as a symbol of her commitment to stay brave against
the wolves. When she succeeds in killing some of the wolves, the wolves
become frightened and refer to her as "the red rider" who attacked
them.
Q5. What are you working on for 2021
A.'m continuing to work on the entire Red Rider Saga, which will have
7-10 books. I'm also working on a free fan fiction story to publish on
Wattpad, of Buffy, the Vampire Slayer meeting Batman and the Red Rider,
to start releasing as a weekly serial.
Q6. How long have you been writing?
A. I've been writing for about 30 years, attempting to get a few books
traditionally published. I started indie publishing in 2013.
Q 7.What advice would you give other authors?
A. First - especially if you're indie publishing like me - write a series
until it's finished. I was bogged down for years, trying to write 1-2
books here and there, to develop several series over time. But it takes
too long for me to write, and too long for readers to wait to read. If I
had completed an entire series, I could have given readers a finished
series of stories, before asking them to start a new series with me. So
now, I'm finally focusing on completing the Red Rider series, before
completing another series.
Second, I was given good advice from a couple of published authors. Steven
James said to just write, in order to practice and get better at
writing. He also helped me understand that I didn't need to keep
researching forever in order to present real information in my stories
but to present it in a way that it feels real to the reader. And there
are different storytelling techniques I've learned for doing that.
Another author, Travis Thrasher, said that whatever story I was working
on right now, to finish that. Learning to complete a project would help
a writer more than anything else I could do.
Q 8. Where can people find you online?
A. On my website,www.RandallAllenDunn.com
On Facebook,facebook.com/RandallAllenDunn
I also have a Red Rider fan group on Facebook, The Red Riders of Wild
Street,
Q 9. What is your favorite coffee drink?
A. I love the vanilla frappuccinos at Starbuck's. Though I don't like
spelling them. I just discovered it has 2 p's and 2 c's - that's too
many letters to keep track of.
Q10. What is your favorite coffee shop?
A. Starbuck's, as long as they have those frappuccinos and a place to sit
down and plug in my laptop.
Q 11. Do you plan on making a new book in the future?
A. I plan on making new books for as long as I live. After the Red Rider
Saga, I need to complete a series of middle-grade Narnia-type fantasy
novels, a series of Indiana Jones-style action adventures, a suspense
thriller series, a collection of Twilight Zone-type short stories, and a
series of spy action thrillers. So I hope to stay busy.
Q12. How many books have you written?
A. So far I've written ten novels and some short stories. I'm revising
another previously publish Red Rider novel to create Books 4 and 5 of
the new series.
Q 13. Did you go to college to be a writer?
A. Not exactly. I chose a liberal arts college for the classes it offered
in literature and a film study class, but they didn't offer an actual
writing degree. I graduated with a B.A. in Communications and Fine Arts,
focusing on theatre acting. I did independent studies for writing, but
my studies of acting and mentally creating characters helped me learn
how to create my own story characters. After I graduated, I became a
volunteer Drama Director for my church, producing weekly and monthly
dramas for a decade. That experience helped me learn how to be
productive and complete stories for an audience on a regular schedule,
rather than waiting for inspiration to strike.
Keep believing!
Randall Allen Dunn
ThrillerWriter
amazon.com/Randall-Allen-Dunn/e/B009BQGC6U
youtube.com/channel/UCZGeMw_uI69dXkF6mBYTHMw
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