Interview with Alfred J. Garrotto

Dear Friends:
I invite you to read this interview I did for the monthly newsletter of the California Writers Club, Mount Diablo Branch [Central Contra Costa County, California].

I invite you to read my new book (follow this link)

Approximately how long have you been a California
Writers Club (CWC) member and why did you join?

I joined CWC in 1996. I knew about it beforehand but wanted to have a published novel (A Love Forbidden) before joining a professional writers’ organization. This reasoning was skewed, I admit, because the novel was my fourth commercially published book. The first three were a series on adult faith formation. At the time, I didn’t think those “counted.” Go figure.

How has your CWC membership helped you or your writing?

Membership in CWC has been invaluable in helping me grow (gradually) into    a much more mature writer in every way. Looking at my early books, I feel like 
going back and reediting/republishing them. I am a better, more professional
writer now than I was when I first joined the branch.

You have published a lot of books! What is the total number published, and did you have a traditional publisher
or publish them yourself? If your work was self-published,
why did you decide to publish your work  yourself?

I have just published my 13^th book (5 nonfiction, 8 fiction). I had agents for my earlier books. When I hit the “senior citizen” stage of my life, I realized that I no longer wanted to endure the year or two it took to see my books in print from the time of sale. I switched to print-on-demand for my last four or five books because I can control the entire process from concept to writing to editing and publishing. I have been able to go from first written word to publication in less than a year. 

If your work was published with a traditional publisher, 
how did you find your publisher?

The now-defunct Winston Press (Minneapolis) published my first three nonfiction books. They were very good to me throughout the process, even flying me to their home office for consultation. I had no agent for those books. They sold pretty well in the low thousands).

I had two different agents for my next set of books. These were bought by small publishing houses (Genesis Press and Hilliard & Harris). It was then that I learned the harsh reality of small presses. They did little if anything to market my books. After the agent’s cut plus the publisher’s profit, I got a very small percentage on the sale of each book.

Do you have a favorite, or one that you enjoyed
writing more than others?

Nothing ranks higher than completing and selling my first
novel (A Love Forbidden). I got very emotional—even wept—
when I felt opened the box containing printed copies of my
novel. Seeing the book “in the flesh,” so to speak was
overwhelming. Next to that, my most joyful writing
experience was the planning and creation of Bishop
Myriel: In His Own Words.

How long have you been writing?

            Professionally, for about 30+ years.

             Do you have a website?

Yes, I have a website (https://www.alfredjgarrotto.com) and 
a blog site (https://wisdomoflesmiserables.blogspot.com)
I’m on Facebook at AlfredJGarrottoAuthor
and Tweet at @algarrotto

What are you currently working on?

My novel, Bishop Myriel: In His Own Words, is now
available in e-book and print formats at Amazon.com
(see link above under cover photo. By mid-May it should be orderable at any bookstore. The paperback
edition saw the light of day in March 2020. In Les

Miserables, Victor Hugo outlined in detail a book
that his character, Bishop Myriel, intended to write. 

Then, Hugo added that the bishop got no farther
than the outline.

In my book I dare to write the text for the bishop,
following the exact outline Hugo laid out, just as the
author might have written it. It is a great challenge, but I do my best to crawl inside the bishop’s mind
and channel his beautiful spirit.

In which genre(s) do you write?

I write fiction, nonfiction, poetry, with an occasional
magazine article or book review. My fiction works range
from romantic thrillers to the spirituality of creative
talent (The Soul of Art.).

How have your background, previous work and/or
experience contributed to your writing?

Mightily. I spent 12 years in the seminary and 18 years as a
Catholic priest, before being called to another vocation—
marriage and parenthood. 
For the last 20 years, I have served as a lay minister in
my local parish, so my earlier education in philosophy and theology and my life experience in parish ministry
were not wasted.

What do you like about writing?

The most fun in writing is that you never know what is inside
of you until you see it on a page. When I look at any of my
published work, I’m likely to say, “This is really good. I wonder who wrote it?” Even though my name is on the cover
or in the byline of a magazine article, I’ve had the same
experience of wondering where all those ideas and their
literary expression came from. It can’t be the same guy
I see in the mirror every morning.

Who or what has influenced you the most as a writer?

It may sound corny, but I think of my ability to write publishable
prose (and some poetry, too) as pure a gift from the Creator Spirit.
I don’t want to seem too pretentious, but that’s how I identify
my primary muse. 
I’d say my greatest source of inspiration has been the Mt. Diablo
Branch of the California Writers Club and all the amazing authors
I’ve met and been influenced by over the last quarter century.

How do you define success as a writer?

I write because I cannot not write. I am not a famous or
even noteworthy author. I make very little money
considering the hours, weeks, and months of thought and labor
writing and publishing demands. I am a “successful” author,
if I am faithful to my originating inspiration to write and have
done my best to translate that inspiration into language that
might inspire others in some way. In short, I am a success if I gave it my best effort and feel good about the finished work.
Anything else that follows is a welcome surprise.

What part of the writing process is most difficult
for you? 

Most difficult socially is to balance the time I need to write with family time—I can’t write in 5-10 min. spurts. When I’m on a roll, it’s hard to break away and be present to the
people around me.

In the independent publishing process, the hardest part is meeting the specs of the automated software. This is especially true of paperback and hard cover publishing. I’ve found KDP persnickety but doable. I finally had to hire book designer Andrew Benzie to upload my cover and interior
to IngramSpark. 

What kind of research do you do, if any, and how longdo you spend researching before beginning a story/piece of work?

In writing Bishop Myriel, my research has been ongoing for a
number of years. I’ve read the text so many times that it’s
ingrained in me. I did have to do some research but found
everything I needed online (mainly Wikipedia for dates
and name spaces/spelling, etc.).

Paying attention to pre-awakening (morning) inspirations is valuable. I get some of my best ideas, answers, solutions in the haze of waking up.

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

I’d say it’s more energizing than exhausting, but there are
limits. After in intense session, I need to just shut down,
then pick it up again later (or the next day.

Do you have any advice for new writers?

I run into so many people who want to write but never seem 
to make time for it. They say everyone has at least one book in 
them, but only a few of us actually take the time to do it. If onewants to write, there’s no other way but to do it.

What are your future writing goals? I have at least two more books in me, if God gives me the yearsand good health to accomplish this. 
(1)   I want to write a 3^rd volume in my Wisdom of Les Miserables series. Bishop Myriel is #2. The first was Lessons
from the Heart of Jean Valjean. I intend to finish with Inspector Javert:  In His Own Words. Part of me shrinks from
entering that man’s dark hole, but I’d like to fill in some
blanks of his life. 

(2)   I want to do a second expanded edition of The Soul of Art.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

No, I’ve probably said too much already.