Clay Davis is the author of X-Troop, an alternate-history western with a hint of steampunk for flavor. You can check it out at Amazon.com or keep reading below to get to know him a little better first.
Perkins: Mr. Davis, thanks for joining me. Let's talk writing. What is your first step when you sit down and start typing?
Davis: My first step is to go through my notes from ideas that came to me during the day and from the research I have done.
Perkins: Are you a heavy plotter or do you just pick a starting point and see where it leads?
Davis: I am mostly a plotter but there have been times where I started in the middle and worked my way back.
Perkins: How do you typically like to conduct your research?
Davis: By reading history and those who made it. Most of my research is done by reading books from libraries. I also watch lectures by historians on television as well as in person. My dialogue comes from my research and movies.
Perkins: What sorts of movies are you into?
Davis: Historical movies have the biggest impact on my style, films about the Civil War and Westerns.
Perkins: Do you envision your own work as a movie when you write, or do you try to avoid those kinds of distractions?
Davis: I do imagine The X-Troop as a movie franchise. I think about who I would like to star in a X-Troop film and who would compose the music. I also think The X-Troop would make a good television series and a graphic novel.
Perkins: What actors do you picture playing your characters?
Davis: I imagine my protagonist Colonel Ritter looking like Jay O. Sanders who played General Strong in the movie Glory. I imagine my antagonist looking like Robert Shaw who played General Custer in Custer of the West.
Perkins: What does your editing process look like before you give up and decide to expose your work to the world?
Davis: I submit my work to critique groups who have been very helpful to me.
Perkins: Do you like the feedback you get from them?
Davis: The best comes from published authors who have the know-how to make a good story. The hardest feedback is when I submit something that was not as good as before. That keeps me on my toes and always makes me do the best I can.
Perkins: What areas do you struggle with the most?
Davis: Just writing is a struggle for me. I would like to do better in writing more. Every time I write a chapter it feels like I am pushing a car up a mountain with its parking brake on.
Perkins: Why do you do it, then? Why not just give up and be a fan? What drives you back to the keyboard?
Davis: Believe me I would be a fan of anybody who would write this kind of story. I am writing this story since nobody else is.
Perkins: And what kind of story is that? What distinguishes your work from all the other stuff out there?
Davis: The originality of it. I enjoy adventure stories that bring out the best in the characters in the story. I just like it when people work together to solve a problem and help each other.
Davis: My first step is to go through my notes from ideas that came to me during the day and from the research I have done.
Perkins: Are you a heavy plotter or do you just pick a starting point and see where it leads?
Davis: I am mostly a plotter but there have been times where I started in the middle and worked my way back.
Perkins: How do you typically like to conduct your research?
Davis: By reading history and those who made it. Most of my research is done by reading books from libraries. I also watch lectures by historians on television as well as in person. My dialogue comes from my research and movies.
Perkins: What sorts of movies are you into?
Davis: Historical movies have the biggest impact on my style, films about the Civil War and Westerns.
Perkins: Do you envision your own work as a movie when you write, or do you try to avoid those kinds of distractions?
Davis: I do imagine The X-Troop as a movie franchise. I think about who I would like to star in a X-Troop film and who would compose the music. I also think The X-Troop would make a good television series and a graphic novel.
Perkins: What actors do you picture playing your characters?
Davis: I imagine my protagonist Colonel Ritter looking like Jay O. Sanders who played General Strong in the movie Glory. I imagine my antagonist looking like Robert Shaw who played General Custer in Custer of the West.
Perkins: What does your editing process look like before you give up and decide to expose your work to the world?
Davis: I submit my work to critique groups who have been very helpful to me.
Perkins: Do you like the feedback you get from them?
Davis: The best comes from published authors who have the know-how to make a good story. The hardest feedback is when I submit something that was not as good as before. That keeps me on my toes and always makes me do the best I can.
Perkins: What areas do you struggle with the most?
Davis: Just writing is a struggle for me. I would like to do better in writing more. Every time I write a chapter it feels like I am pushing a car up a mountain with its parking brake on.
Perkins: Why do you do it, then? Why not just give up and be a fan? What drives you back to the keyboard?
Davis: Believe me I would be a fan of anybody who would write this kind of story. I am writing this story since nobody else is.
Perkins: And what kind of story is that? What distinguishes your work from all the other stuff out there?
Davis: The originality of it. I enjoy adventure stories that bring out the best in the characters in the story. I just like it when people work together to solve a problem and help each other.
Perkins: What is the origin of your novel X-Troop?
Davis: The idea for my X-Troop story came to me when I went into a Western-wear tent at a Civil War re-enactment. I saw a Union officer coat that didn't have any insignia on it. I thought that it would make a great uniform for a Special Force like the Green Berets and Army Delta Force but set during the Wild West.
Perkins: Why did you choose to give your story that extra undercurrent of steampunk and not just write a straight Western?
Davis: A typical Western would have limited most of my plot and characters. Steampunk gives me more choices in the kinds of people I can involve and the scenarios I can put my characters into and the different ways they solve problems.
Perkins: Where do you see your series going next? Sequels, or something new?
Davis: I am working on a sequel and a spin off.
Perkins: Well, Mr. Davis, we wish you luck and we look forward to seeing where your adventures lead! Thanks for stopping by!
If anyone has any further questions, feel free to post them below! Otherwise keep your eyes peeled for Clay Davis and X-Troop, now on sale!
Davis: The idea for my X-Troop story came to me when I went into a Western-wear tent at a Civil War re-enactment. I saw a Union officer coat that didn't have any insignia on it. I thought that it would make a great uniform for a Special Force like the Green Berets and Army Delta Force but set during the Wild West.
Perkins: Why did you choose to give your story that extra undercurrent of steampunk and not just write a straight Western?
Davis: A typical Western would have limited most of my plot and characters. Steampunk gives me more choices in the kinds of people I can involve and the scenarios I can put my characters into and the different ways they solve problems.
Perkins: Where do you see your series going next? Sequels, or something new?
Davis: I am working on a sequel and a spin off.
Perkins: Well, Mr. Davis, we wish you luck and we look forward to seeing where your adventures lead! Thanks for stopping by!
If anyone has any further questions, feel free to post them below! Otherwise keep your eyes peeled for Clay Davis and X-Troop, now on sale!