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Meet Gordon Osmond Author of The Page
http://www.bookpleasures.com/websitepublisher/articles/7962/1/Meet-Gordon-Osmond-Author-of-The-Page/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 March 30, 2016
 


Norm Goldman, Publisher & Editor of Bookpleasures.Com Once Again Welcomes Gordon Osmond, Author of Three Published Novels and Eight Produced Plays

                     

Bookpleasures.com once again welcomes as our guest Gordon Osmond. Gordon has written three published novels, guides to sports and the English language, an “unauthorized autobiography,” and eight produced stage plays. His most recent work, The Page was recently published.

He has reviewed books and stage plays for CurtainUp.com and for the Bertha Klausner International Literary Agency. He is a graduate of Columbia College and Columbia Law School and practiced law on Wall Street for many years before concentrating on writing fiction and non-fiction.

Norm: Good day Gordon and thanks once again for participating in our interview.

Gordon: Entirely my pleasure, Norman.

Norm: In your opinion, what is the most difficult part of your writing process and as a follow up, what did you find most useful in learning to write? What was least useful or most destructive?

Gordon: The most difficult part for me is knowing when to stop, whether we’re talking about a sentence, a paragraph, a chapter, or, indeed, a book. The problem lies in the conflict between the ego, which is excessively satisfied with the status quo, and the conscience, which is nagging you to work harder to produce better results.

I would say that my legal training and practice were immeasurably helpful in developing my writing skills. There’s nothing like the pressure of a client’s economic fortune or failure depending upon how well you write to induce you to write well.

I hope I never allowed the unuseful to progress to the point of being destructive.

Norm: What do you think is the future of reading/writing?

Gordon: Mostly cloudy with intervals of sunshine.


As for writing, modern technology assures a huge increase in quantity, whether by access to internet communication or the ease of publication. Based on my limited observations, I’d say this quantity glut has been accompanied by an almost commensurate and consequential decrease in quality The coarseness of most internet communication has spilled over into much of today’s fiction.

Readers are also increasingly overtaxed, forcing them to regard the “delete” key as essential to their survival.

I think we can look forward to the day when crammed acres of bookshelves are replaced by a slim, but capacious hard drive.

Fortunately, there are rays of sunshine. But hey, that’s your next question.

Norm: Who are some of your favorite authors that you feel were influential in your work? What impact have they had on your writing?


Gordon: The writings of Ayn Rand shaped my life, of which my writing is but a part, albeit an important one. Rand gave me a philosophical framework and intellectual grounding that has served me every day. Her reason-based precepts and premises have allowed me to face every day with a clear sense of justice and coherence that eliminates the confusion and contradictions that seem to drive others to depression and despair.

The authors that have most influenced the artistic side of my writing are Tennessee Williams, Noel Coward, and Oscar Wilde. Among we, the living, I very much admire the works of James F. Broderick.

Norm: What would you like to say to writers who are reading this interview and wondering if they can keep creating, if they are good enough, if their voices and visions matter enough to share?

Gordon: I would suggest they examine the basis for the wonderings. If it’s rational, perhaps they should consider other endeavors. If it’s only neurotic insecurity, they should get a grip and plow ahead.

Norm: How did you become involved with the subject or theme of your novella, The Page and what served as its primary inspiration? As a follow up, where did you get your information or ideas for the novella?

Gordon: The position of congressional page has always fascinated me. As I was growing up in D.C., it was every teen’s dream to be a page. Later I became friends with a fellow who had actually occupied that exalted position.

The struggle between environmentalists and capitalists has been bubbling for some time, but the recent decision of the Supreme Court regarding the regulations of the Environmental Protection Agency has brought the issue into dramatic focus.

More than any other factor, however, was my desire to show how a bright young man can progress, regress, and re-progress through various phases of wealth, loss, opportunity, and the all-important awakening of love.


Norm: What was the time-line between the time you decided to write your novella and publication? What were the major events along the way?

Gordon: About six months. It was a smooth ride, due in large part to my having a top-of-the-line publisher located in the U.K., where English is not only spoken, but appreciated.

Norm: What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them? Is there a message that you want your readers to grasp?

Gordon: All of my works have themes, which you might consider messages. In The Page, the theme is the challenge a young man faces on his way to maturity in the face of assaults by fortune, circumstance, and his glands.

If I didn’t think I’d reasonably achieved my goals within the limits of my ability, I’d be still struggling with the thing.

Norm: What did you enjoy most about writing this book and what is the most favorite part of your novella?

Gordon: I was most pleased that I was able to effect a reconciliation between my belief in free enterprise and my even more profound love and respect for the institutions and principles of the United States.

Norm: How did you go about creating the members of the Lovett family, Jim, Candy and Cam?

Gordon: I’ve known lots of mid-Western families, so I just took out a piece of whole cloth and cut it up.

Norm: Where can our readers find out more about you and The Page?

Gordon: The book is aggressively available through most online book sellers. My life is literally an open book. Just go to Amazon and have a look at Wet Firecrackers, my “unauthorized autobiography.”

Norm: Are you working on any books/projects that you would like to share with us? (We would love to hear all about them!)

Gordon: Yes, in addition to my sports book coming out this summer, there will be an anthology of my three most successful full-length stageplays, The Scales, Fertile Deception, and What’s It All About, Albee?”

Norm: As this interview comes to an end what question do you wish that someone would ask about your book, but nobody has?

Gordon: Question: Why should someone pick up your book?

Answer: Because it looks so forlorn on the ground.

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

Gordon: Thank you, Norman, and all the best with Bookpleasures.com, a unique resource for writers and readers.

Follow Here To Read Norm's Review of The Page