Spotlight interview: (April 2011)
Q1: Thanks for participating in our Authors.com Spotlight Interview series! Please introduce yourself and your book to help our readers get to know you.
A: Hi Folks!
I am Sean Noonan, a former sea captain, and I write Fantasy Adventure books for the younger folks, and the young at heart. I spent twenty years at sea after having left St Andrews University, sailing round the world on a variety of ships including super tankers.
Currently I run my own company and travel the world assessing ships safety and helping to implement safety measures. The time away from home means I miss my family of course. About a year ago I decided to write a story for my kids. I now consider myself to have two full time jobs, my work with ships and my writing.
My series is the Everlasting and Fantastical Adventures of Elannah and Sam. The first two adventures are published and available from all good internet outlets across the world as books or e-books, they are “Of Lights in the Nights” (ISBN-13: 978-1432752897 ) and “A First Christmas” (ISBN-13: 978-1432760892).
The first book is an introduction to the main characters and a fun adventure set in the half sleep in the Land of Dreams. The children meet Rodger the Badger, a special friend who knows things that others don’t and helps them to have their magical adventures. He tells them of a spectacular fireworks show up in the Great Northern Mountains and they all fly off to see this dream display.
The second book is about the magic of Christmas when Elannah and Sam create a surprise party for one of their friends who has never celebrated Christmas before. They have a series of adventures whilst they gather together the special ingredients to make the party the best there has ever been. The party at the end of the adventure has some totally unexpected visitors with a special present.
I have really enjoyed the writing both of these stories and have many more ideas for future books. I have another four books started in my head. It gets crowded in there as they all jostle for space and want their say. Sometimes it’s hard to think with all of the noise going on.
Q2: Please explain how you came to be a writer, what inspired you to write your book(s) and how long it took.
A: My children are my inspiration.
I spend a lot of time away from home and I wanted to create a stronger bond between my kids and myself, so about a year ago I wrote them a story to read at bedtime. It was a tale on fireworks night, with a fantastical fireworks display in the Land of Dreams. I grew up partially in Malta, a wonderful Mediterranean island famous for its fireworks, where my love of those magical displays was born. I remember standing on the balcony of our flat looking out over the harbour in Valetta at the night sky, blooming with spectacular colours. I was mesmerised watching, what to me was such a magical sight. With my first story have shared some of that love with my kids and the readers. The tale also introduces us to some of the characters that inhabit the adventures yet to come and has an exciting unexpected twist at the end.
Q3: What did you enjoy most about creating this book?
A: I believe in the power of the imagination as the key to all that we can achieve in life.
The best thing about creating the adventures is the fun I have doing it and the look of wonder and excitement on my kid’s faces when they hear the tales. I love the way their imaginations are inspired to take the stories beyond what I had originally dreamed. Both my kids contribute to the story creation process with character names, twists in the plots and even the illustrations.
Q4: What facets of your life, both personal and professional, are woven into your book, if any?
A:. The stories are full of the fun and adventure I have always had in life. We all see the world from our own perspectives, coloured by our own experiences. From my love of fireworks and Christmas time, to the creation of the series of characters who help inspire and motive me, such as the troll wizard Grumphspawn. When I was much younger I played a lot of D&D and my favourite character was a wizard. The name Grumphspawn comes from a statuette of a troll I bought in Edinburgh back in the nineties. Together they have fused to become a likeable but grumpy wizard who helps Elannah and Sam throughout their adventures.
The third book Salty Seadogs and Oceans of Fun takes place on the Seven Sleeping Seas in the Land of the Midnight Sun. I have woven wonders from my time at sea throughout this adventure; having spent twenty years at sea I had many useful experiences to draw upon.
I think all authors give of themselves when they write. I heard someone say the other day that all artists give from their souls, that is what makes them special and precious in the world. I had not thought of it like that before, but I can see what he meant.
Q5. How did you get published?
A:. I have always been lucky in life.
When I was convinced by friends and relatives that the books were good enough to have published, I was recommended a publisher in Colorado, OutskirtsPress. Having spent many years happily playing in the Rockies when on leave in the mid nineties, I felt a connection and so contacted them. They were very pleased to publish the books, providing me with excellent advice and opportunity.
At the moment I have several other publishers interested in the series and the ongoing adventures. We shall see what happens next…
Q6: Did you have any surprises or hiccups along the way during the book writing and/or publishing process?
A:. The biggest surprise for me was the reviews.
I enjoyed writing the books and knew that my family and friends liked them but to have others, professionals and strangers love them too was just amazing. Not just children but people of all ages.
I have had a couple from India write encouragement, inspiring me to write more, and some wonderful folks from the USA who went out of their way to phone me and tell me that the adventures are some of the best they have read. That is all quite humbling to be able to touch other people’s lives and bring them a measure of happiness.
I was also surprised at the reaction of my children. Not just that they liked the stories but that they wanted to be involved. From Elannah, taking out her pen and paper, to Sam and his enthusiastic want to name characters and add his own ideas to the creative mix. His latest name is Coco M’Tam a French monkey that will be in one of the later books. This is not only inspiring for me, it adds motivation and helps the flow of the adventures. If I ever wonder what I need to add next I just ask myself what would Elannah and Sam like?
Q7: What one thing did you wish you'd known before you started this project?
A:. I feel I am more an author by accident rather than by design.
I was quite the novice when I started writing, certainly not connected with the literary world except as a voracious reader. I had finished the first two adventures when I found out about the Writers and Artists Yearbook. This for me was a very informative read and full of useful tips with information about the industry. I recommend this book to anyone with an interest in writing or otherwise becoming a part of the literary world. One particular tip in it that I hadn’t appreciated was the way in which stories are edited again and again, then proof read. When you first finish writing a story you still have a long way to go with the polishing up. It’s a little like finding a diamond all rough and covered in mud. There is a lot of additional work to do before it can achieve its full potential as the centre piece of a ring for a loved one.
Q8: You're a fly on the wall when readers are discussing your book. What would you hope to hear them say about it?
A:. This is a great question, quite unusual for interviews.
It would be good just to have my readers so caught up with the characters and plots that they want to talk about them. The characters in my books are like my friends, in some ways, and it would be nice if they lived in other people’s lives too. As my hopes are that my stories inspire the imagination, then I hope that the readers let their imaginations run riot creating their own stories and adventures, either using the characters from these books or from their own dream worlds. I have had kids come up to me in the supermarket (after hearing the stories at school) filled with ideas and inspiration. We should always encourage creativity and curiosity in the world.
Q9: Tell us one thing about you that most people don't know or would surprise them.
A:. I never saw myself as a writer, until recently.
I love that phrase from Forrest Gump, something like --- ‘life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’ll get’. Too true.
When I was in primary school at the end of the last year before moving up to secondary school, I was awarded a special prize for my writing. Not a prize for excellence, but rather a prize for the worst hand writing in the class. In fact my writing techniques still leave a lot to be desired; not just my hand writing but the editing of my books does require a lot of effort. My forte seems to be my imagination and the way the stories come to me. That keeps me going as I and my family polish up my rough work into something fit for the world to see. The rewards at the end of the hard work are well worth the effort and despite any barriers, I persevere. All in all it just goes to show you that you never know where life’s paths will lead you. So follow your dreams and you may find yourself achieving them too.
Q10: What single piece of advice would you give new authors?
A:. Enjoy life to the full.
Be determined, persistent and true to yourself. Give freely of yourself and you may be surprised by what you may gain.
The Writers and Artists Yearbook by the Writers Guild is excellent material for any who want to pursue writing or any of the associated arts in the industry. It holds many pearls of wisdom from well known author, publishing experts and other great sources more knowledgeable than I am. I wish I had read it years ago, but then it wouldn’t have meant as much to me as I hadn’t considered myself an author until recently.
Q11: Share a short summary of a typical day in your life with us please.
A:. I am not your typical author, though who is really?
I work all around the world and travel extensively, so I have to fit creating the stories into my hectic lifestyle. We must all balance life with our families as well, so my time for writing is not a regularly available commodity.
As I travel I write when I can. Whether it’s on airplanes, in lounges or when I find some time in hotel rooms. I even remember sitting waiting in an agent’s office in Alexandria for the authorities to grant me access to the port; while I was waiting I took my computer out and just started to write. It was a great way to spend the waiting time.
I am lucky to be able to write even in crowded areas, focusing on the stories and blotting out the distractions. The only distractions that readily get through to me are my family, which makes working from home more challenging. However all things are possible and I am sure we will cross that bridge when we reach it.
Q12: Describe where you do most of your writing. What would I see if I was sitting beside you?
A:. Do you like flying?
Most of my stories are written on airplanes. I tend to visualise the coming part of the story as we taxi down the runway, then as soon as the seatbelt sign has been switched off, I break out the laptop and tap away on the keys. All the years of writing professional reports has enabled me to be a fast typist, which really helps as my hand writing leaves a lot to be desired.
I don’t see much when I am writing as my attention is fully on the stories. But I am sure if you looked out of the window you’d see all manner of clouds, sunshine, stars, mountains, oceans. It works best when I have a power cable in my seat and am not limited to the battery life of the laptop, but basically I take what I get when I get it and consider myself lucky to do so.
Q13: What's your motto or favorite quote you like to live by?
A:. ‘All of our problems and all of our solutions are products of our own imagination’ --- Albert Einstein.
Or the one from Muhammad Ali --- ‘The man (person) who has no imagination has no wings’.
I want to give all children wings and the ability to fly.
Q14: Is there anything else you'd like to share with us in closing such as your website, an imminent book launch or what you're working on presently?
A:. My Facebook page is
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Everlasting-and-Fantastical-Adventures/162128613818589
From here you can link to my blog page and the Amazon outlets.
Currently I am tidying up the third book Salty Seadogs and Oceans of Fun to be published later this year. A tale of a Seadog who has lost his itch, of two kids who set out to have a dream holiday without parents to tell them what they can or can’t do, and of a purple pearl that holds the key to happiness, but is lost at sea. From mermaid dances and a wise Octopus named Two Feet, to the Night-Mares and Night-Stallions running wild in the Sea of Storms the adventures just kept building.
The fourth book A Halloween Secret has us returning to our favourite characters in the Land of Dreams, when Elannah and Sam go trick and treating to Grumphspawn’s home. However all is not as it should be in the castle. The two pigs Piggywiggy and Oink run away from a very grumpy Grumphspawn who slams the door in the friend’s faces, only to open it again with smiles and friendly greetings. The friends embark on a spooky Halloween adventure to solve the mystery of the ‘two Grumphspawns’ with Raspberry Rock Style, Rodger the Badger and The Petal Princess.
Thank you very much for the interview and the opportunity to share thoughts with your readers.
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