Verna Loves Books: ~Author Spotlight~ Lee Debourg

Saturday, August 2, 2014

~Author Spotlight~ Lee Debourg

Lee DeBourg is a humble scribe, having recently brought two novels to the Literary World. He does not think of himself as a writer: Writing is something he does at the margin.

Having grown up on a family farm in the Midwestern USA, he acquired a degree in Sociology, then worked a series of techie jobs. He considers himself 15% choirboy and 15% outlaw. The other 70% is that of a quiet, hard-working guy, responsible and dignified. He possesses a head full of useless information and storehouse of insights gained over a few decades.

Deciding to try his hand at creating fiction, he produced a debut entitled Concurrent Relationships. He had so much fun in so doing that he immediately launched into a second, more involved effort entitled Young, Only Once. Both works are now out in the literary world as of April 2014.

1. What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?

Readers have their own tastes. The author hears the entire, conflicting range of opinion. I write too much sex, or not enough. The stories are boring, and unique. The characters are not interesting, or unforgettable. The plots are male fantasy, or entirely believable. The writing is simplistic, or fluid and effective.
The reader makes her own decisions, and they are final.
Compliment-hmm. When I finished my second manuscript the spouse posed an interesting question: What kind of War and Peace did you write?
In my defense, Young, Only Once is only half the length of War and Peace.

2. Is anything in your book based on real life experiences or purely all imagination?

Many moons ago I did work as a bartender at a ski resort, so the basic premise arose from that experience. I also have a lifetime of many activities, some of those insights being incorporated within the novel.

3. Can you tell us about your upcoming releases? If you have any.

I will begin work on a third novel sometime this Fall. The past year has been involved with self-pubbing and promotion of my first two novels. While this has been a great deal of fun, I have not been working on a new manuscript.

4. What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

Working too many hours and being a responsible hubby rounds out my life. I do proofread and edit my spouse's academic efforts, as she pursues her PhD.

5. You have multiple personalities, describe some of them Read my novels. I am a classic underachiever, the same as the male main characters in my books. We have skill and ability to do many things well, but don't necessarily realize so until we try something new. Then we surprise others....

6. What made you decide to write your first book?

Boredom, and the desire to try something different. I was looking at Latin phrases for inspiration, and realized they could be chapter themes for a novel. An examination of Aphrodite's two attributed personalities, Ourania and Pandemos was enough of a plot outline, and I was off to the races...

7. Do you have any strange writing habits?

Ink pen(s) and blank paper is all I require. I write at the margin, weekends and spare time. The funny thing is, I still do not think of myself as a writer. Writing is just one more thing I do, though it is time-consuming.

8. If you could cast your characters in a Hollywood adaptation of your book, who would play what characters?

Central casting for the guys. They are Everyman. The females would be more demanding, everyone from quiet and bookish to those who demonstrate the High Drama of their continuing Emotional Trauma. Females are always more complex than men.

9. Who are the authors that inspire you?

Like the majority of men, I read for information first, entertainment as an afterthought. If an author can present information new to me, with insight and humor, they are deemed a good writer. Douglas Hofstadter and Primo Levy immediately come to mind, along with John le Carre and John Mortimer.

10. Is there anything you would like to say to your readers?

If you feel the urge, by all means take the plunge and create your own Intellectual Properties. Keep in mind, the author's role is to stay out of the way. The story is primary, not the writer's Ego. The Reader is the most important variable in the Literary equation. Present Story that entertains/ intrigues, and after the fact the Reader will ask, "Who wrote that? Is there any more from that author?"