Member Spotlight: Dave Tamanini

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world?
Writing fiction is important to me because it’s fun and keeps me grounded and in the present. It gives me a chance to pursue excellence in my way. Transcribing thoughts creatively into written words makes them visible and clear. You can see them on the page (or screen). You can work and rework the words until you get to that moment of — “Yes, that’s what I mean to say.” For the world, writing is important because it allows clear communication so that people can exchange, analyze and build upon ideas.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block?
Although I don’t know, I’ve heard the answer to writer’s block is two glazed donuts.

What is your favorite time to write?
I change it up. My goal is to do writing stuff for four hours every day. For months I may work best in the morning and then I’ll kind of segue into afternoon work. Also, I try to work Monday through Friday. (a side benefit of being social security age!

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers?
Thomas Edison said, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” That advice applies to creative writing one hundred percent.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age?
Many things excite me about being a writer in this period. I’d say the freedom to read, to learn about things and to publish ideas far and wide with the power of the internet are at the top of the list. I’m not sure how I’d be able to write well if I didn’t have my connection to the internet at the ready every minute of the day.  

Dave Tamanini’s Tituba: The Intentional Witch of Salem is out now.