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[Father Luke]

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Due to a scheduling conflict this interview was done correspondence stylie.  But it's totally bitchin' anyway.  No names have been changed (to protect the arrogant).  Bon appetit!

GG: How did you come to take up residence at Literary Mary?

SY: I bailed on WF a few months prior to everyone else’s departure, for the most part. I came back to read now and then, but I was enjoying some small success in another forum, posting up a storm and winning quite a few contests. I was accepted as a moderator and enjoying my time there, but I missed a few of my old chums and often checked in at WF and the fledgling LitMary to see what they were writing. A friend mentioned me in a poem, and I couldn’t resist anymore, so I joined Mary and the rest, as they say, is misery.

GG: What caused your lapse in sanity when you decided to take a position as staff?

SY: Rum mostly, but I enjoy helping others to develop their writing, and after starting those workshop threads I figured that I could push my ideas through easier if I was a moderator. Now I’ve an idea for a contests section for Mary that I’m working on, so I suppose it’s paying off.

GG: When did you write your first piece of fiction?

SY: I’ve been writing short stories for a long time, I’ve always enjoyed writing. My first serious piece of writing is my current writing project, which has been three years in the making. After the first year of world-building and other necessary background work, I started the actual story and after a few reworks I have it pretty much where I want it. I’m considering one more slight change, but for the most part, I think I’m ready to seriously start writing it now. I think.

GG: Is it a piece you still enjoy today?

SY: Very much, I haven’t lost any of my interest in it. The hard part is deciding what to include and what should be omitted, I have too many ideas on the content.

GG: What form of fiction do you enjoy most, and why does it appeal to you?

SY: Adventure Fantasy is likely my favorite, I love the creation of new worlds and new rules, something about hero’s and villains and magic still inspires me.

GG: Where do you get your inspiration?

SY: My writing and my artwork both gain their inspiration from many places… I’m very much a potpourri of writing styles and genre’s. It can be a simple thing like a phrase or news story, or something from my past, something entirely created or considered from my imagination, or anything I’ve read or seen. Usually a small thing will trigger an urge to write, I always keep a journal or sketchbook handy.

GG: Who/What has influenced your writing?

SY: Movies, books, songs, people… there are so many things that inspire me it would take forever to name them all. I enjoy my introspective pieces the most, where poetry is concerned, and usually it comes from some past experience or imagined circumstance. My fiction is usually inspired by authors I appreciate, or the stories I make up on the fly for my son. The stories are pretty involved, and my son often helps me develop them… we’re currently working on month three or so of a story that involves ninja clans, samurai warriors, and a cast-off village of thieves and murderers, wherein we find three boys that grow up the greatest of friends and the fiercest of rivals. It’s all quite entertaining.

GG: What is your biggest challenge with writing – besides finding the time.

SY: Aside from time, my biggest problem is keeping it under a million pages. Knowing what to omit and what to include is a problem for me, I overwrite scenes often… any editor willing to look at my work is going to regret that choice profoundly.

GG: Do you write on-site with journals and pencils, or on a computer?

SY: Usually I develop my ideas in sketchbooks and journals, but the thrust of my writing is all done on my laptop. The ability to save and transport easily is something to appreciate, and of course spellcheck and backspace are beautiful things.

GG: Where did you go to school?

SY: Where haven’t I gone to school… I think I’ve had enough non-transferable credits to have a degree in poorly planned education choices. I’ve attended city, state and UC colleges, from Davis to Clovis Community. I’ve also gone through places like ITT Technical College and Microcomputer Education Center for specialized IT and electronics training. For the most part, it’s all slanted towards Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science. I want to get into Nanotechnology and plan on attending the nanotech program at UC Merced in a few years.

GG: I have to interject here and say that nanotechnology is the only tiny thing I lust after.  I mean, have you seen the Nippendenso car?  Well, here it is. Okay, I'll stop being such a science slut...

...I was thinking you should take a printing press class somewhere and print some chapbooks with your art and poetry combined.  Ever thought of doing that, or have you already?

SY: I love that idea, and you’re cruel for suggesting it… all I need is another pursuit. You know how difficult it is for me to not overdo things! Now I’m going to end up with a printing press in my shop… might open my own publishing house in a few years too… hmmm. Seriously though, I love the idea, might just add that to my upcoming course list.

GG: Muah ha hah haaaaa!!!  But seriously - what are you reading right now?

SY: The drawback to loving fantasy is that you often find yourself stuck on book four in a six part series… and waiting on the last two to be written, let alone printed. I’ve about four sets of those right now, most notably Songs of Ice and Fire. Martin is dragging his ass on book five and if I knew where the bloke lived I’d throttle him soundly. Currently, I’m reading the Sembia: Gateway to the Realms series, re-reading some favorites like Plutarch’s Lives and others, and I recently bought Silverstein’s new poetry collection, hoping to start it soon.

GG: Is there a writer you look to as a mentor?

SY: I don’t really have anyone that guides my writing as a mentor would… living in the mountains makes that kind of interaction difficult. There are many established authors I often read to help me in developing styles though; it’s almost a Frankenstein approach to writing. My fight scenes often draw on RA Salvatore’s sequenced action, my character dev is something drawn from Martin, Greenwood, Hobbs and others. I look to many writers as my example… I guess the writers I appreciate serve as a collective mentor, of sorts.

GG: What’s wrong with onions?  one of my best poems is titled ‘onion’.  I’m offended.

SY: There’s absolutely nothing wrong with onions. So long as they are battered and fried. Or caramelized. Or on you’re plate instead of mine.

GG: Did you just say "your plate or mine?"  I didn't know you had a lisp; but mine.  Have you written fiction based on your real life?

SY: I have, and want to again. Short stories mainly, but I’d like to give serious attention to a coming of age fiction that includes my own life experiences. I’ve a romantic notion that the history of me might fascinate other people… though it seems less likely when I’m sober.

GG: Do you often or always incorporate a character in your other stories that represents you?

SY: I think so… yes. I think that most of the characters I draw have some aspect of my id that I exploit and modify. It helps me identify with them, and hopefully, the readers can do the same. There are many characters that are completely dissimilar to myself, but for the most part I think I write characters based on a tangent of my own life. If I were pushed in a certain direction, or if I’d been born to such and such, as it were.

GG: You’ve written fantasy fiction -- what inspires you?

SY: Many things… I think it all started with pen and paper role-playing games. Yes, I was a dungeons and dragons geek. Worse, I also played the Robotech and Gammaworld spinoffs… I was truly nerded out. I think though, that my appreciation for art and writing really stemmed from that creative outlet. Once you’ve imagined great battles and adventures it becomes second nature to share them with others, through art or storytelling. I’m very much a daydreamer.

GG: Has any of your fiction yet been published?

SY: I’ve yet to finish any serious works, and I expect to have problems when I finally decide to submit something through an agent, but hopefully someday I’ll have it all figured out. To date, nothing has ever been published, save a few poems and a few short stories that found a home around the net or in small print circulation.

GG: Do you write in any other genres?

SY: I’ve written in many different styles and genres; a look at my poetry will prove how fickle my tastes run. Comedy, drama, first-person narratives, Shakespearean snippets, free-verse minimalist strokes… I’d probably do well at one if I could make up my mind.

GG: Which genre is your genre of choice, and can I work ‘genre’ into this list a few other times?

SY: For poetry, I prefer classical forms… something that rhymes or a metered prose… usually a reflective or social setting, something with a personal edge and a significant meaning, of a sort. For fiction, adventure fantasy… high ideals and the struggle of the righteous against the wicked… yeah, that’s my cup o’ noodles. And yes, you’re a very capable writer, I’m sure you could.

GG: What woke you up this morning?

SY: I usually wake up on my own, in the wee hours. Country boy and all that. Woke up at five ten this morning, though it took a cup of coffee to really bring me around. Think I went to bend around two.

GG: What are you most proud of?

SY: My son, my friends and my house. I’ve put a lot of work into all three, and I’m proud of my connections with them.

GG: What do you do for a living?

SY: I’ve some money saved, so I’m lucky enough to do side work now and then and generally get by, more or less. I work in IT and contract to various groups, usually on government contracts. I also have a sort of side business building custom computers (just finished a monster that I even airbrushed!), and building and publishing websites. I’m sometimes contracted to streamline business procedures such as reporting and communications for various clients (usually in the medical field) and I do a lot of construction trades, usually home improvements for friends or designing and building water features and decks for clients around town. Koi ponds are wonderful, everyone should have one.

GG: What other kinds of things have you done?  Dream job?

SY: I’ve done so many jobs… from working in grape fields to playing music for dancers at seedy nightclubs. I’ve been a management exec and a ground floor flunkie. I’ve washed cars, given tattoos and delivered pizza for a living. It’s pretty sad really, but it made for some interesting times. Dream job: Porn actress casting agent. Or Prosthetics Engineer.

GG: I know you to be a wonderful father, how do you find balance?  Is writing something you feel brings you peace, or adds to chaos?  (not a trick question)

SY: Now I feel bad about the porn actress joke…  but, thank you. I’ve always been a pretty laid-back sort (for the most part), so finding balance has always been kind of simple. If something really bugs me, I try to change myself to suit the situation. If I can’t, then I beat the hell out of what’s bugging me and things tend to work out. I’m spiritual (non-denomination) so I can appreciate a few obstacles in life. When things get to be too much, I just think on all the things that are going right and it usually gets me through. I’ve had a blessed life. A kiss from my kiddo always brings me back on track. As to the writing part, I think it does both… but always in a good way.

GG: What are you looking forward to?

SY: Old age, someone to share it with and my son growing up. The next book, the next ‘I love you daddy’, the next fishing trip. Sledding, surfing and most assuredly diving. I’m supposedly going to Tavarua at the end of the summer, if it all works out… looking forward to that a great deal, wanted to go there since I was ten.

GG: You’ve lived in or traveled to some very interesting places.  what were they, and what brought you there?

SY: The Navy brought me to most of them, though I’ve always enjoyed traveling. I’ve lived in Chicago, Virginia, Texas, California and Hawaii here in the States. I’ve lived in Keflavik in Iceland and spent a lot of time in Europe, from Norway to India. Favorites include Iceland, Ireland, Spain, France, Monaco, Norway, Greece, the Virgin Islands (St. Thomas) and of course, the US. Mexico is another favorite, I love all sorts of places.

GG: Where would you most like to live?

SY: My dream is to retire to a nice boat here on the west coast. I’d want a small house in Monterey, and the ability to sail up and down North America, with a few trips to Hawaii, Japan, and Australia. That’s the life for me, fishing, sailing, surfing and diving into my golden years.


GG: I don’t think you should ever leave The Mountain, you’re such a romantic and a sucker for nostalgia.  $0.02, please.

SY: Oh, you never leave the mountain. No matter where I go or what part of the world I land in, most of me remains here on the mountain. Something about pines and the bright, dry warmth of a central California summer… I don’t think I could ever sell this place or leave completely. I actually have a few places picked out where I want to croak… it’s all very romantic.

GG: Norm or Cliff?

SY: Cliff, the world needs more irreverent humor… there’s way too much serious out there for my tastes.

GG: Do you or would you shop at Wal-Mart?

SY: No and Never. I hate Wal-Mart with the passion of a ten suns. Though there is something nifty in buying milk, shoes, GI Joe’s and a refrigerator all at the same store.

GG: Thank God.  I hates me some Wal-Mart.  Wal-Mart is the devil in a store-suit...  What would you be doing right now if I weren’t harassing you?

SY: Harassing you? Today is a gorgeous day though… might have spent it on the lake… I need to finish that painting for rooze too! Augh!

GG: I notice a lot of the male writers on LM use the term ‘mate’.  who really started that?

SY: I DID. That’s all me, and don’t let any of these aussies tell you different. Aussienglish is the international sign of the webjunkie… and I’ve been a pitiable echatter since the early nineties when I was a sysop on the shittiest BBoard in the world. After a few years of VPChat and other bits of frooha, the webslang stuck. I’ve so many accents now that I can’t remember what the hell language I’m speaking half the time. But yeah, that was all me. Danny lies. He’s a kiwi.


GG: What really went down between you and Faye (aka EstherHoffmanHoward)?  You know, she’s going around town talking smack.

SY: She and I crossed wires at one point, and not in that sexy way. I think it was simply a communication breakdown… you see she expected me to meet her somewhere and tragically, I was in the hospital for a few days on an IV for something called ‘Stilts’ which means that your blood pressure runs amok depending on your physical positioning, standing or sitting or laying down. Anyways, after I returned home with the all clear, things were said and mistakes were made… it hurt us both a great deal, I think. After a few months we were able to forgive each other though, and we’re fast becoming friends again. It’s all very complicated. Why, what did she say to you?
Damn you estherhoffmanhoward, you break my wee heart.

GG: Well you know, when I say she was talking smack, she was really talking smack.  She went on another of her benders and started riding the horse, as they say.  Poor Faye.  She’s got trust issues, and now she’s “in mourning for an armful.”  An armful of hugs that is.  But aren’t we all love junkies, really?

The Academy would like to thank Sy for granting us this scrutinizing look into his daily life.  We’re ready to take the pins out of the specimen and release him now.  Fly!  Be free!