Interview with Author Chris Vaughn

Chris Vaughn is a lifetime resident of the Puget Sound and lives with his wife and son in the Sky Valley, an area nestled in the foot hills of the Cascade Mountains. At the age of 17 Chris earned the rank of Eagle Scout in the Boy Scouts of America and then joined the US Army Reserves as a Combat Engineer. He has made a career out of public service through the Security Industry and is currently employed by the Bellevue School District where he provides security for 5 high schools, 6 middle schools, 17 elementary schools, and several administrative properties. Chris has several manuscripts underway in the action adventure genre, and several children's book manuscripts finished, as well as several self published short stories that are sold on Lulu.com and Amazon.com. He is a contributor to the online magazine Americanchronicle.com and 21 other affiliated online magazines, a member of the Pacific Northwest Writers Association, and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Author Interview Chris Vaughn:

It's rare today to find an author who does nothing but write for a living. Do you have a 'real' job other than writing, and if so, what is it? What are some other jobs you've had in your life?

Chris Vaughn: My real job is with the Bellevue School District. I’m their sole fulltime security officer and provide after hours security for the entire district, which covers all of Bellevue, Clyde Hill, and Medina (about 100 square miles). When I’m not responding to burglary alarms, fire alarms, or crimes in progress I’m randomly patrolling the schools looking for trouble. Working security for a school district is great, one of the best things about it is knowing that even though my work is “behind the scenes”, I’m an important part to the education and safety of hundreds of children. I actually have over nine years of experience in the Security Industry and have worked everything from residential and commercial alarm response, high crime areas, and school districts, to being a bouncer. But like most people, I’ve also held more than just one type of job. I’ve also held positions that range from scuba diving shops to manufacturing neon signs.

What compelled you to write your first book?

Chris Vaughn: I’ve always been interested in writing, but I never pursued it seriously until I was well into my twenties. I actually owe finding my writer’s voice to Clive Cussler and his son Dirk. I had spotted the cover of a novel they’d written together, Treasure of Khan, and mentioned it to my wife as a Christmas present idea. She bought it for me and I quickly found myself hooked on Dirk Pitt. Up to then I had only read two other novels from cover to cover, I now read none stop and have even had more than one book going at a time; it’s become a major part of my life. Experiencing so many other worlds and imaginary lives sparked my desire to write a book. At first it was just for myself, but then I visited my Great Aunt Louise Shadduck, who at the age of 89 had four books published and was working on two more. I thought to myself, heck, if she can sell a book at 89 years old, I can too! And my journey in literature was launched.

Tell us a little bit about your book/s.

Chris Vaughn: Most of my self-published literature has been in the form of short stories. Yes, I’m self-published…Run! But seriously, I’ve sold several through Amazon’s Kindle program and even a few as paper backs. By far the most successful of my short stories is “Garbage Vortex”, which was actually an essay I did for an oceanography class. In it I talk about the effects of the large floating garbage patch in the Pacific Ocean, but I do it in the form of a fictional story. You follow Captain Jack Regal of the Greenpeace ship Sea-angel as he’s interviewed by a reporter from the Hawaiian Gazette. It’s short and to the point, but has some great detail and a touch of irony for the reporter…and I make a guest appearance in the story! I have a couple that fall into the most fun to write category, “The Mole” and “I See Aliens”. The Mole is a short comical story about a retired man named George and his battle with a mole whose intent on destroying his prized lawn. It’s a family favorite and I hope to one day find someone interested in turning it into a four to five minute cartoon. I See Aliens is a children’s styled picture book parody. Using rhyme and cartoons I poke a little fun at the UFO and alien abduction phenomena, the rhyming isn’t the best but the pictures and story are fun to read. But as far as my favorite book? That hands down goes to the Owen Ruger adventure series. I’m so exited about this series and the stories that I’m working on for it. In the series you’ll be following the adventures of Owen Ruger, an ex-Marine, and his friend Rafael Sernansa, a former Cuban smuggler. Working together as Security Specialists, they find themselves in all kinds of trouble in the Pacific Northwest. Each issue of the series is purposely kept between 50 to 100 pages and fairly clean from gore, sex, and language. My goal with this is to keep the series acceptable and less intimidating than a 200 to 400 page novel for the younger readers, and yet with enough action and humor to keep the adult readers interested. A lot of the first issue’s readers have expressed their liking of the 50 to 100 pages, because they can read the entire story in one sitting and easily get into the story since they’re following it without stopping. In the first issue “The Man Beneath Lake Union” a rash of Ecoterrorism strikes the Seattle waterfront. Owen Ruger and Sernansa are hired to investigate the crimes and protect the assets of a large fishing company. But during the rescue of a beautiful woman they see what can only be described as a merman swimming away from the scene, soon they find themselves in the middle of a strange and unusual mystery. Driven by what they saw, Owen and Sernansa race to solve the mystery and stop the destruction before fear grips the city, but they soon learn that everything isn't what it seems and the mystery swimmer maybe just another victim.

Are you currently working on any writing projects our readers should watch for release soon?

Chris Vaughn: I have several other projects underway, including the second Owen Ruger issue titled “A Dish Served Cold” were a villain from Owen’s past returns to seek a little revenge. I also have a full length Owen Ruger novel that is almost finished titled “The Baltazara Plateau”. There’s going to be a ton of action and jungle adventure. Visit my website and watch the book trailer! I also have a list on my site that shows and describes all of my current writing projects.

How did you feel the day you held the copy of your first book in your hands?

Chris Vaughn: I was impressed with how well the cover turned out. I read the book from cover to cover three times, and then showed my wife.

What inspires you and motivates you to write the very most?

Chris Vaughn: For me it’s the feeling of completing the story, taking the main character from the very first sentence and living his adventure to the last period.

What one thing are you the most proud of in your life?

Chris Vaughn: Other than my son, I’d have to say that I’m proud of earning my Eagle Scout rank while I was in the Boy Scouts. I learned so many valuable life lessons from scouting and I highly recommend it to anyone with a little boy. I’m also proud of my reading. I used to be intimidated by larger novels, but now I see a finished book as a trophy and mark each book I finish with a sticker. When ever I get discouraged I glance at my book shelf and see all of the stickers telling me “look at what you’ve accomplished.”

The main characters of your stories - do you find that you put a little of yourself into each of them or do you create them to be completely different from you?

Chris Vaughn: The main characters, Owen Ruger and Rafael Sernansa, are definitely a mix of me. But there are also several traits from my best friends and my childhood heroes. I guess I’m living vicariously through Owen and Sernansa… after all, Owen does drive my dream car.

Is there an established writer you admire and emulate in your own writing? Do you have a writing mentor?

Chris Vaughn: I think you tend to write a lot like the authors you read. I’m a huge Clive Cussler and Steve Alten fan, so I think my writing style is similar to theirs.

When growing up, did you have a favorite author, book series, or book?

Chris Vaughn: Growing up I collected Punisher comics, does that count? Honestly I didn’t enjoy reading until my mid-twenties.

What about now; who is your favorite author and what is your favorite genre to read?

Chris Vaughn: I’m a big action-adventure fan and a sucker for story involving treasure, ocean environments, or a paranormal twist (but not scifi paranormal). My two favorite authors so far are Clive Cussler and Steve Alten; Clive for his phenomenal Dirk Pitt and Kurt Austin series, and Steve Alten for two reasons, his writing style/plots and how personal he is with his fans.

Location and life experience can sprinkle their influence in your writing. Tell us about where you grew up and a little about where you live now. If you could live anywhere, where would you want to live?

Chris Vaughn: I’m born and raised in the Puget Sound area, and spent most of my childhood in the city of Kent (a little south of Seattle). Being in the Security Industry has help a lot with the Owen Ruger series since I’ve gain a lot of experience with the “behind the scenes” of Seattle and other parts of the region. Hmmm… if I could live anywhere? I would own my own island in the San Juans here in Washington with a large cabin styled house, and I’d have a winter condo in Maui on the volcano with a view.

Do you have any pets? What are they? Tell us about them.

Chris Vaughn: Yes, my wife and I are the humble servants of a spoiled long haired dauschound named Baxter, but Baxter doesn’t like to be call spoiled, he prefers “Environmentally Privileged.”

Bring us into your home and set the scene for us when you are writing. What does it look like? On the couch, laptop, desk? Music? Lighting, handwriting?

Chris Vaughn: I tend to write where ever the story hits me. I find myself writing on notebooks, napkins, mail, you name it. It then gets typed up on the computer, usually at work during my lunch or after I’ve clocked out. I’m not a huge fan of music playing while I’m writing unless it’s turned way down.

Do you watch television? If so, what are your favorite shows? Does television influence of inspire your writing?

Chris Vaughn: I grew up with a family that watched a lot of TV and movies so it definitely influences my writing. Some of my favorite TV shows are Ghost Hunters, MacGyver, SeaQuest, Animiniacs, Talespin (yep, still watch cartoons).

What about movies? Same as above.

Chris Vaughn: Love the James Bond series, Indiana Jones series, and I’m a sucker for a good war flick.

Focusing on your most recent (or first) book, tell our readers what genre your book is and what popular author you think your writing style in this book is most like.

Chris Vaughn: The Man Beneath Lake Union is in the action/adventure genre and could probably fit in the Young Adult Novel genre as well. I think the book reads similar to Clive’s writing style since I tend to write like him… hey, he’s doing something right why not write like him?

How long did it take you to write your most recent (or first) book? When you started writing, did you think it would take that long (or short)?

Chris Vaughn: The first issue of the series actually started as fan fiction which gave me a jump. So, The Man Beneath Lake Union took about four months to finish and send to the editor. But the full length Owen Ruger novel has been under the pen for almost three years now. But, I’m only a few chapters away from the first draft. It didn’t surprise me all that much about the time differences between the full length novel and the micro-adventures. When you’re writing a full length novel there is a lot of room to fill and the possibilities for details and subplots is huge. But with my micro-adventures I only have 50 to 100 pages to complete the story with, so it takes a lot less time to fill in.

Is there anyone you'd like to specifically acknowledge who has inspired, motivated, encouraged or supported your writing?

Chris Vaughn: That would have to go my Great Aunt Louise Shadduck who recently passed away at 92. She was an amazing person, on the go until the end. She’s been quoted as being a legend in Idaho and has touch thousands of lives during her life. We all miss her.

What is your main goal or purpose you would like to see accomplished by your writing?

Chris Vaughn: Total world domination! (insert evil laugh here)

Many authors have said that naming their characters is a difficult process, almost like choosing a name for their own child. How did you select the names of some of your lead characters in your book/s?

Chris Vaughn: Owen Ruger is named after my son Owen. When I looked for a last name I decided to try and make it unique and strong, the idea of a gun as the last name surfaced and since Owen Colt didn’t sound right, Ruger was chosen. As for Rafael Sernansa? His name started with the last name, Sernansa is the off shoot from a Mexican General I found during a google search of Hispanic names.

Have you ever had a character take over a story and move it in a different direction than you had originally intended? How did you handle it?

Chris Vaughn: The Owen Ruger character really came to life for me. Before I had decided on a series he was first the main character of the full length novel. As I wrote the story I found that the story would drift in its own direction taking him with it. Soon I found myself with a secondary character name Rafael Sernansa who was increasingly starting to steal Owen’s thunder. This resulted in several rewrites and the decision to make Sernansa Owen’s sidekick. With Owen and Sernansa now a team, other adventures began popping into my head. A series was born.

Now, anything else you want your readers to know? First, thank you for the opportunity to be interviewed. I’d like to finish up by mentioning that I really love hearing from my readers. So please email me and say hi. Visit my Myspace page www.myspace.com/alleywolf and add me as a friend. Visit my main page www.Alleywolf.com and check out all of my other writing projects.

Also, if you buy a copy of the book take your picture with it and I’ll gladly post it on my websites.

Happy Reading!