Bee Lindy has been writing book reviews since she was a child. Her notebooks are full of reviews that she wrote before she had her first personal computer.
Before the advent of the Internet, Bee had her first personal computer, and has been saving reviews on computer files ever since.
Her first reviews appeared in her high school and college news papers many moons ago.
More recently she has written reviews as a guest reviewer on various book blogs.
Professionally, she is a fundraiser for various non-profit organizations which entails a great deal of writing. Bee lives with her husband and two dogs.
Bookpleasures.com welcomes as our guest Christopher Tuthill, author of The Osprey Man. Christopher Tuthill’s short fiction has appeared in The Mythic Circle, Dark Tales from Elder Regions, and Tales of Reverie.
A native of Riverhead, on Long Island, and a graduate of Catholic schools, Chris grew up around many of the places and people that inspire his writing.
He lives in New York’s Hudson Valley with his wife and children. He works as a librarian, and his hobbies include board games, baseball, hiking, camping, and telling stories to his three children.
Among his other interests, he is co-founder of the New York Tolkien Conference.
A native of Riverhead, on Long Island, and a graduate of Catholic schools, Chris grew up around many of the places and people that inspire his writing.
He lives in New York’s Hudson Valley with his wife and children. He works as a librarian, and his hobbies include board games, baseball, hiking, camping, and telling stories to his three children.
Among his other interests, he is co-founder of the New York Tolkien Conference.
Bee: When did you first have a desire to write? How did this desire manifest itself?
Christopher: I’ve wanted to be a writer for about as long as I can remember. Certainly, since I was in first grade or so.
I remember reading books like Charlotte’s Web and The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and being completely mesmerized.
Just amazed that someone had invented these stories and made them seem so wonderful and real. I thought there could not be a better thing to do than that.
Bee: How completely do you develop your characters before beginning to write?
Christopher: I have a sketch of what I want the character to be, and then I put the characters in a situation and learn about what they’re capable of as I write and rewrite the story.
Some characters are more fully developed than others when I start. It can be a lot of fun to find out what characters are like and how they react as you tell a story.
Bee: Tell us about your cover. Did you design it yourself?
Christopher: The publisher of the book gave me a choice between that image and another one.
I love superheroes, as you can see from reading the book, and I thought the cover, in which a hero is ripping open his shirt to reveal his costume, fit in well with this story of two kids trying to write a comic book.
Bee: What writers have you drawn inspiration from?
Christopher: I’ve been inspired by and enjoy many different writers, but some of the ones who mean the most to me include Ray Bradbury, Frank Herbert, Tolkien, and Philip K. Dick.
There are some from different eras that I also love to read, like Washington Irving, Poe, Mary Shelley, and others. I read a lot, so it depends on when you ask me what my answers will be. But I’m always inspired when I read something that speaks to me.
Bee: Jacob is a complex character for a child. Can you tell us more about him?
Christopher: I think most children are complex, at least the ones I know are.
My own children, for example, can carry on a pretty sophisticated conversation about what they are feeling, or about books or movies, or a board game we’re playing.
And then they can also act in completely wild ways when they’re around other kids. It’s a real joy to see this.
Bee: How has being a father impacted how you write?
Christopher: Being a father changed my perspective on most things. The focus of your life becomes your children. I read to them all the time, pretty much daily.
I read many books to them during the covid lockdown—it became our nightly ritual and it was really fun. And re-reading some classic children’s books made me think a lot about writing for children.
I wanted to write something I thought they would enjoy reading, and something that would communicate to them the things I felt as a child. I don’t think I would have written this book the way I did if it weren’t for my children.
Bee: What do you do when you are not writing?
Christopher: I’m a librarian, so I’m often helping patrons, reading book reviews and buying books, teaching and doing research. When I’m not at work, I am doing things with my kids.
We are board gamers, and we enjoy video games, and sports. We also love doing things outside, like hiking and camping. I’m also a lover of music and try to get to concerts when I can. I love classical, jazz, and rock.
I’m particularly fond of progressive and classic rock. There is a lot of crossovers with that stuff and science fiction and fantasy.
Bee: What lead you to being a co-founder of the New York Tolkien Conference?
Christopher: That was a really fun event that my friends and I did three times in the city, where I work.
We are Tolkien enthusiasts who knew each other from going to conferences, and thought it would be worthwhile to host our own.
We had a lot of interest from all over the country, and people even came from other countries to attend. We had some fantastic presenters and scholars share their work. It was really neat to see such enthusiasm for Tolkien and fantasy, which is something I’ve loved my whole life.
Bee: What are you currently working on?
Christopher: Right now, I’m working on a contemporary fantasy novel involving neighborhood kids and a sinister force that has invaded their town.
They have to team up to try and save their neighbors from this stranger who wants to disrupt things.
It’s got all the things I love in a book—some elements of fantasy and horror, but there’s also a lot of humor involved.
It’s somewhat reminiscent of a book like Something Wicked This Way Comes, a favorite Bradbury novel of mine.
Bee: Where can our readers find out more about you and The Osprey Man.
Christopher: My Website
Thanks once again and good luck with all of your future endeavors.