Interview With An Award-Winning Writer. Me.

Interviewing myself. Yes, it is as weird as it sounds.

Mark Starlin

Me: Today, I have the unique privilege of interviewing myself. Sure, it may seem a little narcissistic, but who else is going to do it? The New York Times? You? That’s what I thought. Nope, it falls to me.

My guest today is award-winning author Mark Starlin. Or, as I frequently call him in my mind, “Dummy.”

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Me: Mark, tell us about your writing award?

Mark: Well, the truth is, they hand out writing awards like they toss out candy from a Thanksgiving Day parade float. You are bound to catch one eventually. Safety goggles are recommended. I got mine early in my writing career.

Me: Excuse me. Did you just say “career?”

Mark: Well, not like a money-earning job kind of career. Have you read my writing?

Me: Yes. I even wrote it. Best not to think too hard about that, though. Let’s get back to your award.

Mark: As I was saying before you interrupted, I got my creative writing award in Jr. High School for a humorous ghost story.

Me: Wait a minute. Are you calling yourself an award-winning writer because you won a writing contest in Jr. High school?

Mark: No, you are calling me that. Actually, I was a runner-up.

Me: You’re embarrassing me.

Mark: I have proof.

Me: Isn’t it weird that you kept that certificate all these years?

Mark: Not as weird as interviewing myself.

Me: You have me there.

Mark: It was in a box of stuff I brought with me when I got married. Then my wife found it and put it in the file cabinet with our marriage license, birth certificates, passports, and my work accommodations. Don’t go there. This is tedious enough already.

Me: Alright, enough of this writing award sham. Let’s talk about your current writing. What have you written lately?

Mark: I wrote this.

Me: So did I.

Mark: Bazinga! Actually, I haven’t written a lot in the past few months.

Me: Why?

Mark: I burned out. My writing career is a tale of apathy, obsession, joy, and heartbreak. And that was just yesterday.

Me: Go on. It can’t be more boring than your writing award story.

Mark: After my brush with fame in Jr. High. I didn’t pursue writing until my 20s. When I started a couple of novels and quickly abandoned them. I was working and raising three daughters with my wife, and I was obsessed with music and playing guitar. I didn’t have time for writing. Or I should say, I wasn’t passionate enough about writing to make time for it. Plus, the odds of getting anything published in the 1980s were astronomical. There was no Amazon back then.

Hey!

Me: Sorry, I nodded off.

Mark: Alright. Fast forward to my 50s. I started posting silly little thoughts and stories on Facebook. To my surprise, they got lots of likes and comments. I actually had an audience for my writing and was enjoying the experience.

Well, we all know what happened to Facebook. About the time I could no longer stand Facebook, I discovered Medium. This was in early 2018.

I decided to put my silly Facebook stories on Medium to see if they got any reads. They did! Not only that, I discovered a fun, creative writing community on Medium. And unbelievably, I started making hundreds of dollars per month writing. I was hooked. I began writing longer fiction and humor, essays, and even some poetry.

Me: But...

Mark: But, two years later, Medium changed the payment method, and most writers’ earnings got cut by 80% or more. Writers started to leave (including many of my favorites), and the writing started moving toward clickbait. It wasn’t fun anymore.

Me: Then...

Mark: Aren’t you supposed to ask questions?

Me: Then what happened?

Mark: Dummy. Then I discovered Substack. I started posting my silly little One Minute Wit stories on Substack. But they didn’t get much attention. I think I had 20 followers for six months. Although I did very little promotion, so it was to be expected.

Me: Please continue. I am riveted!

Mark: People are right. You really are irritating. Anyway, I stumbled across an article (on Medium) about publishing by Elle Griffin, where she revealed the hard truth about publishing and bookselling—that very few books sell more than 1000 copies. And how she was planning to serialize her novel on Substack.

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I need to mention that after a year on Medium, I decided I would write a novel. I had written and posted two chapters of a novel on Facebook about a fictional character I created named Baron Britpop Blastfurnace. The chapters were popular, but I didn’t pursue the project with any passion. But after a year of writing on Medium, I decided I actually could write a novel. So I set a goal to finish the novel by my 60th birthday. I reached my goal and serialized the novel on Medium. Then I self-published it.

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After reading Elle’s article, I shared my serialization experience in the story comments, and Elle invited me to join her Discord server for Substack writers. I quickly caught Serial Fiction Fever (not to be confused with Saturday Night Fever.)

I decided I would write a space sitcom serial live on my Substack, and the sequel to my novel, and a weekly newsletter, and new stories every week for paid subscribers...

Hey, I never said I was smart. It was the perfect recipe for burnout, and it worked. I burned out.

Me: So that’s why you haven’t written much lately.

Mark: Yes. Fortunately, I was able to finish the sequel to my novel, and leave my space sitcom at a natural stopping point. But then I was done. I couldn’t face the thought of writing anything. I needed a break. So I stopped writing for a month. I got rid of all my writing commitments and deadlines. I got my acoustic trio back together after a year and a half of COVID-forced break. And I returned to my first creative passion, music.

Me: But you have been continually publishing a weekly Substack newsletter for two years.

Mark: True. But those stories are mostly stories I wrote during my first three years on Medium. Stories that no one sees anymore. Substack has given them a new audience.

Me: That’s smart.

Mark: I am glad you recognize my genius. I would never say that about myself. I am too humble.

Me: Naturally. You are well-known for your humility.

Mark: Indeed.

Me: So, are you planning to write more?

Mark: Absolutely. I just plan to be smarter about it. I am easing back into it. I have already written several short stories. But I am not chasing money anymore. I am writing as a creative outlet. For the joy of having someone enjoy and comment on my stories. That is the best part for me.

I will gladly accept any money my writing earns, but it is not my primary goal. I just spend money on stuff like food and bills, anyway. How boring.

Me: Don’t you want to write the Great American Novel?

Mark: I did, but I set it in the Austrian Netherlands in the late 18th century.

Me: Dummy.

Mark: Actually. I am glad. I wrote the novel I wanted to write. No publisher told me what to change. It is 100% me. Quirks and all. And to my immense delight, a small number of people read it and loved it. They even told me so. Not just my Mom, either.

Me: Well, that sounds better than racking up stacks of rejection letters from publishers.

Mark: I think so.

Me: What’s next in your writing “career?” You are obviously out of Jr. High. So probably no more awards.

Mark: Nope. I don’t need any more awards. One is all it takes for bragging rights.

My next big writing project is the third book in the Baron Britpop Blastfurnace series. I will write it on my Substack, one chapter at a time. Then I will follow my creative whims wherever they take me. And I will continue publishing my Mark Starlin Writes! newsletter, of course.

Me: Well, I think we have bored our readers enough for one newsletter.

Mark: Absolutely. And since we are being honest, you might want to consider taking a class—or several—on interviewing.

Me: Bazinga!

Mark: Kirk out!

Thanks to Elle Griffin for the idea.

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You can read my novel, Baron Britpop Blastfurnace, and its sequel, Elise Boissonneau, on the Mark Starlin Writes! website for free. - Mark

https://markstarlinwrites.substack.com/s/baron-britpop-blastfurnace

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While you are welcome to enjoy my newsletter for free, you might want to consider this. Statistics show that none of my paid subscribers have ever been attacked by zombies. So if you are pondering becoming a paid subscriber, zombies will be one less thing you have to worry about.