Michael Coorlim describes himself as “Teller of strange stories for stranger people”. He already established as a pro author with many well received books. If you are interested what is really to be into the writer’s business, check out this very interesting interview!

– What is your latest book Jericho rising about?
– Jericho rising is a prehistoric superhero story set in the Levant around 10,000 years ago, in and around the ancient city of Jericho. It tells the story of Clay, a young hunter from the Bear Clan as he comes of age in a world of savage warfare between Clan champions imbued with the power of their totem spirits. When his father falls, will Clay be the one to take up the mantle of Bear? Or will that honor go to one of his brothers, instead?
It’s the first volume in the Hero Historia historical superhero serial, covering the first story arc published over at http://www.herohistoria.com. Each 12-episode arc will cover a different historical period. The ebook version has undergone a fresh round of editing, and includes new material not offered in the free serial.

– How do you find the stories of your books?
– All of my stories come from life. It may be from a conversation that I had, or a story that I heard, or from something that I saw, but the core of every story is some element of the human experience. To tell these stories you need to get out and go live, talk to people, have adventures of your own. Fall in love, fall out of love, get in fights. You know, be human.
– What was the biggest challenge during the write up process of your fiction novels?
– The biggest challenge for me is that I don’t have a safety net. This is my only source of income, and if I spend months writing something that doesn’t sell, those are months I’m not getting paid for. Everything I write is a gamble in that way. Thankfully, people seem to like it.
– Tell us something more about your main characters?
– The main characters in the stories I write are often fragments of my own soul, or reflections on myself when I was younger. In Jericho Rising, Clay’s experiences are informed by what it was like for me when I left home for the first time. In Infernal Revelation, the different characters all share elements of the masks I wore in high school. In the steampunk mysteries I’ve written, the detectives feel like the halves of my id and superego, arguing with me over who I’m supposed to be.
– How much time you need to finish the story and to publish it?
– I’m a fast writer, but I have a lot of other responsibilities these days. I’m trying to start a film production company, and that takes up a lot of time and attention. The nice thing about working for yourself is that you can set your own hours. On the other hand, you don’t have days off, just days you don’t make progress.
Jericho Rising was published in twelve 3000 word weekly episodes, so it took three months to complete before I compiled the ebook. I can write a novel in three months if I push myself and don’t have any other distractions, depending on how long it takes my proofreaders and editors to get back to me.
– Who are you?
– I’m a full time author. I’ve written the Galvanic Century series of steampunk mysteries and thrillers, the literary apocalyptic short story collection Grief, the supernatural serial Profane Apotheosis, and the historical superhero thriller Hero Historia. I’m also a screenwriter, and am getting into film production with Burning Brigid Media.
– What are your writing habits?
– I treat it like a full-time job. 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 50 weeks a year. I find what helps me stay on task is the Pomodoro method of productivity timing – I work for 25 minutes, take a 5 minute break, then work for 25 more. Every 2 hours I take a 20 minute break to make coffee or do some sit-ups or something.
– Are you satisfied by the sales of the book?
– Satisfied? Never. Who’s ever satisfied? We always wish sales were better, that we could reach more readers. If I was satisfied, maybe I’d stop trying!
– What’s next for you
– I’m currently working on two projects. The first is the next Hero Historia story arc, Aea Watched, set in ancient Sumeria. The second is a steampunk mystery set in 1910s China, the 5th Galvanic Century book, Ghosts of Shaolin.
– What are you doing to promote by the best possible way your book?
– I write more books. I have a twitter and a facebook, but that’s primarily to talk to the people who are my fans.
– Why the fiction books are so much popular then the non-fiction?
– I think that people prefer fiction because it deals with emotional resonance that ties in to our own lives. Take Star Wars. None of us have ever been Jedis, but we’ve all faced disappointment from our parents, we’ve all sacrificed for our loved ones, we’ve all blown up death-stars. Okay, maybe not that last one.
We read fiction for that internal resonance, and we read non-fiction to learn. Emotion trumps education almost every time. This is not to say that non-fiction cannot elicit emotion; it’s just that fiction has specialized in it for so long that it’s what we’ve come to expect.
– If you have a chance to write a non-fiction story for well known person who it will be and why you will select him?
– I have a project in mind that involves writing short 1-2 page biographies for lesser known historical figures. It’s still rolling around in my head for now.
– How important for you is the feedback from the readers. Would you give an example how the connection author-reader helped you in your writings?
– It’s very important. I could not write without my readers and their feedback. I may do this for a living, but it’s the readers that motivate me to keep going.
Every time a reader writes to me to talk about my books or just to share what they liked, it’s like a fresh shot of motivation to keep working, keep writing, keep creating.

Check out more about Michael at his official web page
More about Hero Historia series here

To order Michael Coorlim books look below:
Jericho Rising
Steampunk Omnibus: A Galvanic Century Collection
Last Words: A Story of Apocalyptic Loss
And They Called Her Spider (Galvanic Century)