Debut Author Interview ~ Mike Dellosso

Your first book. Wow! Can you believe it?


Not yet. The book’s been out a few months now and I still don’t think it’s sunk in yet. This has been my dream for 10 years and for 10 years I’ve worked toward this end. And what a ride it was (and is), a real rollercoaster.

How does it feel?

There’s a mix of emotions. Now that the book is out there’s a blend of pride in accomplishment and satisfaction and nervousness. As a debut author there are those feelings of apprehension. I’m an unknown and my name is right up there with Joe Blow. Questions abound. What if the book flops? Will my dream be short-lived? Will I be a one-trick pony? A never-was before I even get a chance to be a has-been? There’s a lot of jitters and nail-biting. But you know what? That shows my lack of faith (shameful, I know). I did the best I could with The Hunted, trusted God to find it a home, am doing what is within my power to spread the word about it, and now I need to put it in His hands and let what will happen, happen. And that’s hard to do.

Tell us about your book and your journey to getting it published. How long had you been writing before you got the call you had a contract?



The Hunted is a supernatural suspense and has been compared to the work of Frank Peretti and Stephen King (something I find very humbling). It centers around a small hick town with dark secrets and a beast with darker intentions. The story is fast-paced and offers a little for every taste. There’s mystery, suspense, horror, intrigue, even a dash of romance. And on top of it all, or rather beneath it all, are spiritual themes I hope will stick with the reader long after closing the book. For me, the spiritual themes are the most important part of the book. I want to write good stories, great stories, but above all, I want to write something that will impact the reader on a deeper level, a spiritual level. I want them to see God in a new light and see how He works in our lives in a fresh way. It’s wonderful when a reader writes me and tells me they loved the story but what really gets me stoked is when someone writes and says they were blessed or moved by the spiritual undertones in the story.

Now, about how long things took. I started writing in 1998 in response to a near-fatal motorcycle accident my brother-in-law suffered (that’s another story hopefully for another time). I wrote mainly non-fiction for years while I worked on my craft and got some experience. I started writing The Hunted in late 2005. It took me about nine months to complete, just in time for the Greater Philly Christian Writer’s Conference in August of 2006. It was there I met Kathryn Mackel who critiqued the first three chapters and promised to help me find an agent. True to her word, after the conference she recommended me to Les Stobbe, a veteran agent in the industry. Les agreed to represent me, floated my proposal around, and several months later we got a bite from Realms Fiction of the Strang Book Group. In August of 2007 I got an email from Realms saying they were going to offer me a contract. It was kind of weird because I always pictured “the moment” as Les calling me and telling me to sit down, telling me I got a contract, and me running around the house, pumping my fists in the air and screaming like a little girl. In reality, it was a simple email and I sat there and said, “Cool.” Kinda anti-climactic. I’m trusting, though, that someday I’ll get my moment to scream like a girl.

Do you still experience self-doubts regarding your work?

Oh my word yes. Every time I write something I know “other people” are going to read, I hold my breath, say a silent prayer, and brace myself for getting called a hack or a wannabe. I’m ready for it.

I also have this terrible inferiority complex when it comes to other authors. When I read someone like Athol Dickson or W. Dale Cramer or Dean Koontz I think “There is no way I’ll ever write as well as they do.” That’s really sad, isn’t it? Because deep down I know the truth: maybe I will write as well as they do, maybe I won’t, but that’s not really the point. The point is that I have a responsibility to use the gift God’s given me and to do my very best with it. What’s it say in Ecclesiastes? Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might. I don’t need to be in the business of comparing myself with other writers, that helps no one and isn’t healthy. I should be in the business of comparing myself with my own potential. Am I doing all I can to be the best writer I can be? To be the writer God intended me to be?

What mistakes have you made while seeking publication?

Boy, I made a biggie. When I first decided to write fiction (which was in 2004) I was so anxious to get published and so naïve and ignorant about the publishing business that I rushed into a decision and signed a contract with a POD publisher. Big mistake. I was unhappy with the arrangement from the get-go and when I realized what I had done tried to get out of the contract, tried to reason with the publisher, everything, but it was useless. It’s a mistake I wish I hadn’t committed but it was also a huge learning experience too because it gave me a hunger and drive to “do it right.”

What’s the best advice you’ve heard on writing/publication?

Terry Whalin told me at the Philly writer’s conference that every book needs a champion, to find someone to champion my book and don’t stop until I do. He said the person that perseveres will eventually find that champion. That stuck with me.

What’s the worst piece of writing advice you’ve heard?

Before landing the contract for The Hunted, I was at a writer’s conference talking to a multi-published author about my book and how it was similar in style and genre to Frank Peretti. She told me I should look to the ABA because nobody in the CBA was going to pit me against Peretti. Talk about discouraging.

My counter-advice: Write the story God has put on your heart. Just write it.

Is there a particularly difficult set back that you’ve gone through in your writing career you are willing to share?

That whole experience with the POD publisher. It was very stressful, very upsetting, and almost caused me to call it quits with the whole writing business. It really left a bad taste in my mouth.

What piece of writing have you done that you’re particularly proud of and why?

Well, obviously I’m proud of The Hunted, my first novel. I love the story and the characters and the chills. And my next novel, Scream (coming out March, 2009), is near to my heart because of the underlying theme and the issues the main character struggles with. But a piece I’m particularly proud of and one not many people have read is a short story I wrote while recovering from my cancer surgery this past April (another story hopefully for another time). It’s called The Final Chapter and explores one man’s emotional response to the news that he has terminal cancer. The story has such an emotional blueprint of issues I was (and am) wrestling with (though my cancer isn’t terminal).

Do you have a pet peeve having to do with this biz?

I know it’s been said by dozens of other authors and would-be authors but it would have to be how slowly things move. I’m not a very patient person and want to see things moving along. In this industry things move so slow you can barely see the progress. It’s like watching the hour hand on a clock.

Take us through your process of writing a novel briefly—from conception to revision.

It usually starts with an opening scene. I’ll conjure up some scenario that I think would make a good start to a story and toy with it a bit. I won’t actually start writing until I have the whole first scene or chapter played out in mind. Then I write that first chapter. Now, I’m a seat-of-the-pants writer so there’s no plotting or outlining other than what’s done in my head along the way. After the first chapter is written I run different plots through my head, different turns the story can take, characters, back story, and so on. I usually work in my head two or three chapters ahead of where I am in writing and all the while thinking up a killer ending.

As the story unfolds I keep notes on characters, plot lines, and back story so I can keep everything straight. I don’t outline, though. I abhor outlines. Always have. I want the freedom to be able to change directions if I want to.

As the story progresses I’m constantly thinking about where it’s going, what the characters are doing, how they are developing, and how the story is moving toward that killer ending. Writing the climax is the most fun and is usually when my fingers are flying the fastest over the keyboard.

Do you have a dream for the future of your writing, something you would love to accomplish?
My dream is and always has been to be able to write full-time. I’d love nothing more than to be able to devote myself fully to my writing without it competing with another job. Whether that will happen or not is in God’s hands . . . but I can dream, can’t I?

Was there ever a time in your writing career you thought of quitting?

Many times. One time was during the whole mess with the POD publisher. Another was when The Hunted was done and I was looking for an agent or publisher and nothing was happening. There were many times I thought about just throwing in the towel. I thought my dream of publication was just that, a dream, a fantasy that would never become a reality. I was at the point where I felt it was taking up too much of my time and energy with no apparent return on the investment. I was ready to quit when my wife told me that if I truly felt God wanted me writing I couldn’t quit and that someday it would happen. She said, “So live like it’s already happened.” Wow. That hit me right in the forehead.

What is your favorite and least favorite part of being a writer?

My favorite part is writing the story for the first time, that first draft. I love inventing a world and putting characters in it. I love the freedom of creating, of making something out of nothing. It gives me a miniscule glimpse of the joy God must have felt as He was creating the world.

My least favorite part is the marketing stuff. I don’t mind, and even enjoy, networking online, giving interviews, meeting readers and such, it’s the legwork and time and, yes, money involved in getting there that I don’t particularly embrace.

How much marketing/publicity do you do? Any advice in this area?

This is a tough question to answer because, unfortunately, m ability to do all the marketing things I wanted to do for The Hunted was stymied by my cancer. I was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer, had major surgery to remove a tumor, recovered from that surgery, and started chemotherapy all during the release of the book. That kind of cut my marketing plans off at the knees.

I have done online networking, participated in quite a few interviews, sent copies of my book to various reviewers, held a fairly large book release party, and blogged almost daily about my battle with cancer (www.mikedellosso.blogspot.com). I also have a website (www.mikedellosso.com) that I update regularly.

As for advice, I’m a newbie here and still have a ton to learn about marketing so I don’t feel I’m in a position to give advice other that what one well-established author told me: decide what you’re best at and focus the majority of your time and effort there. If you love meeting people face to face and speaking and such, do book signings and arrange speaking/teaching events. If you love online stuff and are good on the computer, capitalize on that. Go with your strengths.

Have you received a particularly memorable reader response?

There’s a couple things I enjoy most hearing from readers. One is that they couldn’t put my book down. I’ve had men tell me, “Now, I’m not a reader, but I read your book in two days.” To me, for someone to set aside hours from their busy schedule to read my book is quite an honor. It’s very humbling.

Another is that my book invoked some kind of emotional response from the reader. I’ve had a couple people (men and women) tell me they cried at different parts of the book. For a suspense novel that’s not intended to make anyone cry, that’s something. That surprised me.

Parting words?


Thanks for the interview. I hope we can do it again sometime and I can talk a little more about my call to writing and my recent battle with cancer.