Member Spotlight: Steven Robert Mayfield

Why is writing important to you and why do you think it’s an important medium for the world? First of all, it’s a compulsion I can’t resist. It’s also a way to make the world and people in it either behave themselves or get their comeuppances. That, of course, makes it cheaper than psychotherapy. Why is it an important medium? It’s a record of human existence on the planet. The best result is that we learn what works. The worst is that we simply figure out who to blame for what doesn’t work.

What are your tried and tested remedies to cure writer’s block? I write every day, even if it’s only 250 words. I begin by revising what I wrote the previous day, then add to it. Sometimes, the previous day’s work evaporates, but it’s rare that I shred two days in a row.

What is your favorite time to write? I like mornings for most things: coffee, donuts, hugging my wife, writing…not necessarily in that order.

What’s the best piece of writing advice you’ve ever received and would like to impart to other writers? Don’t so much worry about writing what you know as knowing what you write. E.g. Alistair Maclean wrote about mountain climbing commandoes, nuclear submarine captains, and cold war spies, yet he was none of them. He was a Scottish librarian.

What excites you most about being a writer in today’s age? “Today’s age” is for those younger than me. I’m just happy that I didn’t drool on my shirt this morning. I’m also happy to have reached the point where I’m comfortable with my narrative voice.

Steven Mayfield’s The Penny Mansions is out October 24 with Regal House Publishing.