An Interview with Dave Hugelschaffer

How did you get into writing?

I did a lot of reading when I was a kid. We grew up with a black-and-white TV with three channels, one of which was in French. In the evening, particularly in winter, we often sat around and read as a family, chatting intermittently. We read everything, from fiction to memoir to how-to books. I read "Shogun" and "Tiapan" when I was eleven. I developed a love of story.

I tinkered with a few short stories as a kid but I was too busy outside to really think about writing. I was one of those kids happiest building tree forts or mucking around on a raft.

I went to Jamaica for a few weeks in my early twenties, saw Ian Fleming’s old house, thought writing would be the perfect portable occupation. I could write books and travel the world. It was a bit naïve, but naivety is great qualification for a greenhorn aspiring writer. The odds against becoming a successful published writer who can afford to travel the world are astronomical.

When I took a job in Fort Chipewyan, a remote community in Northern Alberta without a road leading to it, I had a lot of time on my hands, so I started to write.

What was your first book or story that you completed? Did you ever get it published?

I never wrote much for short stories, just jumped right into novels. Sort of sink or swim. I wrote my first book using an old surplus manual typewriter, hammered out about 130,000 words, and sent it straight off to a publisher. One draft. Of course it was not published, but the rejection indicated I had promise.

Doesn’t take a lot to keep a novice going, if he’s as pig-headed and stubborn as I am (another great qualification for an aspiring writer).

How did you finally get published? When were you able to write on a full time basis? Please explain your success story?

Now that’s a long story, spanning nearly twenty years and hundreds of rejection letters. You hear stories about writers who could wallpaper their house with rejections—that was me.

Why did I keep going? I couldn’t resist the odds. I did a lot of market research, but I did it in the wrong market. I looked south of the border, saw three hundred million potential customers and had dollar signs in my eyes.

Consequently, I sent wads of queries to the US, not understanding how difficult it is for a Canadian author to break into the US market. I even had two agents down in the US. No dice.

Finally, I started to look at the Canadian market and found a receptive publisher with Cormorant Books. They’re a literary house, didn’t publish genres like mystery, but the owner, Marc Cote, had worked with mystery earlier in his career and was looking for some high quality material.

He bought the first two books in my Porter Cassel series. I broke the rules of publisher-hunting, as my books weren’t what they had stated they were looking for, and I didn’t use an agent.

But that’s how it is sometimes. You have to be good, and stay in the game long enough to get a chance to be lucky.

How do you stay motivated to finish a novel? How do you stay focused?

Motivation? Well, either you have it, or you don’t. You have to enjoy the creative part of writing (everyone hates editing but, hey, it’s part of the deal). And you have to know why you are writing. If you are writing for yourself, great—keep a diary, break all the rules. If you are writing for anyone else, and it’s fiction, you are now in the entertainment industry. In the business. Act accordingly. Be entertaining.

What is your writing schedule like? Do you write in the mornings, evenings, and for how long?

I write in gusts, spurts, and fits. I don’t write in summer or fall because there’s too much real life to do.

Don’t sacrifice everything for a dream with astronomical odds. Stay balanced, or you won’t stay writing. It’s a long game. In the grip of a frozen northern winter, when others are plunked down on the couch, I write.

Imagine how much writing you could do if you didn’t watch TV. I plot all year long, often while I drive. I research all the time as well, as many of the people I interview are extremely busy and I have to grab them when I can. But the real, ass-numbing sessions in front of the computer are in winter.

How do you get your ideas? What is your method for remembering them?

Ah, yes – the eternal question. There are ideas all around you. Everyday you are marinated in ideas. You just need to start thinking about motive. Stories are about people, and people do things for a reason. When I was young and wanted to be a writer I had time and few ideas. Now, I have ideas oozing out of everywhere and no time. How do I remember them? I write them down.

If you get writer’s block, how do you get over it?

Writers block? No such thing. My issue is lack of time. If they ever invent a time machine, I want one that makes more of it. If you can’t think of something to write, go do something else. It’ll come to you.

What are your thoughts on self publishing?

A few writers use this avenue with success, usually to catch the attention of a traditional publisher. The entire system is geared toward traditional publishers and distributers. There’s a reason – quality.

If you self publish, no one, including readers, have any idea if the quality is there until they’ve spent money. Would you invest or spend under that criteria?

What piece of advice would you give to someone thinking of becoming a writer? What is a good starting point for them?

Live an interesting life.

To find more out about the author and his work, go to Dave Hugelschaffer's website.