I wanted to share this recent interview I did with “Romancing the Books and More.”
INTERVIEW
Thanks for coming to talk with us, Gregory. Please tell us something unique about you that we can’t learn from your bio.
Growing up, I was homeschooled. That gave me a unique perspective on the world compared to most of my peers. I was always extremely curious. I had to learn many societal norms and cultural trends by observation rather than participation. I watched people and then made calculated guesses about how to behave to best “fit in.” Hard as this sometimes was, I believe that this background was perfect for the growing storyteller in me. I observed the culture of my own time like the set of a play. As a child, I tried to copy the actors I saw on that set. Later I started writing about them.
What’s your favorite part of writing?
I love going on the journey with my characters. When I start a novel, I seldom have more than a rough outline. As the characters develop, they start to tell their own stories and the plot often goes places I didn’t expect. In a historical novel, such as Love of Finished Years, a much different narrative develops out of the story than could be learned in a history book. This is enlightening to me as the writer, and I think readers will find it enlightening as well. When discovering history through the perspective of characters, human nature adds an element that can be both tragic and comic at the same time.
What stories do you have in the works right now?
I have several exciting novels I hope to publish soon. Some are contemporary, some are historical, but all have similarities. Most of them, like Love of Finished Years, feature strong and relatable female protagonists. Whether writing historical or contemporary fiction, I like to develop characters and stories that tie into the world events of that time, yet also transcend time and place.
What authors have influenced you as a writer?
I really love the early Twentieth Century American authors—Hemingway, Steinbeck and Fitzgerald in particular. Their writing styles are very different, but I have gleaned things from each which I have attempted to incorporate into my own craft. Hemingway has a style of storytelling which I think is perfectly suited to today’s readership. His narratives are concise, there’s never a wasted word, yet it is full of descriptiveness, emotion and nuance. I have also learned so much from my father, Michael R. Phillips, who is a career novelist.
If you could live in one of your stories, which one would you choose and why?
I don’t think I would want to live in any of them! That’s because to write a good novel, you have to put your characters through hell. A compelling setting for a novel is a time or a place with conflict or upheaval. As fascinating as I find World War One, I wouldn’t have wanted to live through it, nor would I have wanted to endure the experiences Elsa did as a young immigrant in New York City. The beautiful thing about a novel is seeing your characters rise above the struggles that life puts in their way. But being a character in a novel is not something I would wish on anyone!
Thanks again, Gregory.