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Meet Joseph Anderson & Judy Millspaugh Anderson, M.D. Authors of Kissing the Underbelly
http://www.bookpleasures.com/websitepublisher/articles/4406/1/Meet-Joseph-Anderson-amp-Judy-Millspaugh-Anderson-MD-Authors-of-Kissing-the-Underbelly/Page1.html
Norm Goldman


Reviewer & Author Interviewer, Norm Goldman. Norm is the Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com.

He has been reviewing books for the past twenty years after retiring from the legal profession.

To read more about Norm Follow Here






 
By Norm Goldman
Published on December 15, 2011
 

Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com Interviews Joseph Anderson & Judy Millspaugh Anderson, M.D. Authors of Kissing the Underbelly



Click Here To Purchase Kissing the Underbelly

Authors: Joseph Anderson & Judy Millspaugh Anderson, M.D.

ISBN: 978-1-4653-6763-1

Publisher: Xlibris

Today, Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.com is pleased to have as our guest, Joseph Anderson & Judy Millspaugh Anderson, M.D. authors of Kissing the Underbelly.

Good day Joseph and Judy and thanks for participating in our interview

Norm:       

How did you decide you were ready to write Kissing the Underbelly and what was your creative process like? What happened before sitting down to write? How did you divide the writing of the novel?

Judy:       

We often talked about ideas for books, but they didn't develop.  One day, Joe came home and announced "I have a great idea for a book, and I even know what we should call it".  I knew right away it was actually do-able.

Joe:       

That was the first we both agreed on a book idea.  It was almost as though we could both visualize the whole concept and we were both on track as to the direction.

Judy:       

We discussed it for four years, and I kept notes on the conversations, but we didn't write anything yet.  Then I got sick and we shelved it.  Two years later, while recuperating, I had a burst of energy and took out the notes and banged out a 150 page first draft.  Some of the "chapters" in that draft just said "Joe, you write this part".  That was April of 2007, so that's the year in which the plot is set.  Then we traded it back and forth for another four years before finishing it.

Norm:       

Are the characters in your book based on people you know or have encountered or are they strictly fictional? As a follow up, what was your principal focus when you created your protagonists, Jonathan and Marina?

Joe:       

They are purely fictional, but are a distillation of and an eclectic mix of people we may have encountered over the years.

Judy:       

As it is for any character, created by any writer.

Joe:      

We wanted to challenge the stereotypes.  We wanted Jonathan to be naive, and not streetwise.  It was important for Marina, as a white woman, to view that neighborhood as a haven, even while Jonathan, as a black man, was not comfortable with it.

Judy:       

Yes, in fact, in the original discussions, Marina was intended to be a college student already living there, that Jonathan meets when he arrives.  Marina had other ideas though, and she changed herself on us when we actually started to write.

Norm:      

Is there much of you in your protagonists, Jonathan and Marina?

Judy:       

They are an interracial couple; we are an interracial couple.  That's about where the similarities end.  They are not us, and we are not them.  We wrote ourselves in though as bit players; as the doctor and the gas station man.

Norm:       

What do you want your book to do?

Judy:       

Joe should answer this, because the book was his idea.

Joe:       

I want to encourage a greater awareness of the levels of poverty, and of the levels of struggle; of how it crushes some, while others find positive niches where they can prevail.

Judy:       

We also wanted to highlight different kinds of interracial friendships, beyond just the relationship of the central couple.

Norm:       

How has your environments/upbringings colored your writing?

Judy:       

I grew up in a liberal intellectual environment and was raised to be colorblind.  My family was considerably more Bohemian than Jonathan's however.

Joe:       

I grew up exposed to many levels and types of poverty; some mine, some other's.  Also, I rose from an environment of intellectual poverty as well.  All of this led me to want to convey my observations to the world.  I have had the opportunity to see things from a number of different perspectives.

Norm:       

What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book?

Joseph:      

How the characters spoke to me; that you can actually hear them speaking, in your head.  It's almost like being possessed.

Judy:      

Yes, I agree.  Once you start the characters, they take over, and you lose control of them.  They tell you who they are.

Norm:       

What has been your overall experience as a published authors?

Judy:      

Nothing yet.  This is all too new to us.

Joe:       

It is a challenge to make the public aware of our work.

Norm:       

Do you feel that writers, regardless of genre owe something to readers, if not, why not, if so, why and what would that be?

Joseph:       

Yes.  I feel that the writer has an obligation to reveal enough about the characters that others can get to know them.

Judy:       

In other words, to successfully bring them to life in the reader's mind.

Norm:       

What will you be doing for promotion of your book and how much of it is your doing?

Joseph:       

Making myself available to any group and/or individual who wishes to engage in dialogue about this book.

Judy:       

In principal, I agree with that, but in practice I have to take into account the fact that I am partially disabled and am going deaf.

Norm:       

Where can our readers find out more about you and Kissing the Underbelly?

Judy:       

The book has a WEB SITE,  as well as it's own e-mail address, kissingtheunderbelly@juno.com .  Readers can contact us via either venue.

Norm:       

What is next for Joseph Anderson & Judy Millspaugh Anderson, M.D. and is there anything else you wish to add that we have not covered?

Joseph:       

I am presently working on a non-fiction book, but I won't elaborate on it yet.

Judy:       

I am accumulating notes for a spin-off novel, but we may not be able to do it together as it will be more based on my medical background.  Our cumulative experiences came together for this book in a way that is not easily duplicated.

Joseph:       

This book is set in Philadelphia because that is the city we know.  The conditions and people and events described are not unique to Philadelphia though, and I hope they will resonate with readers around the world. 

Norm:

Thanks once again and good luck with all of your future endeavors

Click here to read Norm's Review of Kissing the Underbelly

Click Here To Purchase Kissing the Underbelly