Q1. Hello, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.
A1. Hi, I’m Sean. Here’s a brief creative bio on me: Sean Bridges was born in Wiesbaden, Germany. He’s an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nicholl award-winning screenwriter and author. He’s a Stephen King Dollar Baby with his festival winning audio production of One for the Road.
His Audible Parade Productions created a serial audio thriller, Triple Six and are currently at work on their next horror/suspense audio series, Parasite Zero.
He produced and directed two documentaries in the Caribbean. One in Jamaica for teachers and students. And one in Trinidad for the Port of Spain, Vision 2020. He’s worked on a number of projects for Troublemaker Studios out of Austin, TX.
He lives and works in the Texas Hill Country.
Currently I’m about halfway through 2024, which has been a rollercoaster of a year (for all sorts of reasons). I work as a bartender at Andalusia Whiskey Co. and my shadow and best friend is a Border Collie named Finn.
Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing your book “Gunbarrel Highway”?
A2. It started out as a screenplay I tried to write years ago but it just wasn’t coming together. So I put it in a drawer and went on to other projects. I was moving in with my now ex-girlfriend (that’s a sentence to unpack in itself) and I re-discovered the old screenplay. I took a fresh look at the material and thought there were some salvageable parts to it. I decided to strip it down and create a skeleton outline. Remove it from the screenplay format, rework the whole concept and tackle the basic idea again as a novel. Once I started down that road it all came together. I discovered it was an idea waiting to become a book.
I started out writing and crafting stories as a screenwriter and I think some ideas that I had at the time didn’t work because they actually fit the world of novels better.
Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?
A3. Richard Bachman, Rod Serling, Vince Gilligan. But this book was my Elmore Leonard nod. I’m a huge Elmore Leonard fan and I wanted to tip my hat to him.
Last year, I found an authentic autograph from him on e-Bay. Scribbled on a small piece of paper, it said: You can be whatever you want in life. Signed, Elmore Leonard. I had that framed and I kept it on my desk as I worked through drafts of this book.
Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?
A4. I don’t have a country. I grew up in a military family so I’m not really from anywhere. It’s always a convoluted question to answer. I love driving and travelling. It’s still a bucket list to get a convertible and drive the length of Route 66. From Chicago, Illinois all the way to the Santa Monica pier in southern California. Honestly, hitting the open road with the right music playing on the stereo is always a great moment, no matter where I’m at.
Q5. What inspired you to write the book ‘Gunbarrel Highway’?
A5. I wanted it to be a page turner. It was a suspense/thriller. A type of story that I like to write. An everyday man stumbles into an extraordinary situation. I spent the past few years around San Antonio and I’m at home with the area and culture and people. Plus I saw it as my own version of The Getaway, a Steve McQueen, race for the Mexican border, type story. Write what you know or what interests you and I wanted to craft a story set throughout Texas.
I’m always fascinated with places that are unique in the world. And Texas is clearly a place unlike any other. That’s never a bad location for a story.
Q6. How long did it take you to write your book ‘Gunbarrel Highway’?
A6. On and off, the better part of a year to write it. But writing was just the start of this journey. I remember crafting the first quarter and having to put it down for a bit. Sometimes life takes priority. But as soon as I could, I got back into the world I was creating, determined to have a completed novel manuscript.
Once I had one in the best shape I could craft, then I went on a hunt to find a proper home for it. I wanted to have this one professionally published. And I collected a lot of rejections from literary agents and publishers.
Until I found an editor at The Wild Rose Press out of New York who liked the manuscript but felt it still needed a professional edit. And I totally agreed. I was looking forward to a working relationship with a proper editor.
I worked with two editors on this manuscript, getting it in shape for a release date. And I’m currently working with them on my next book for The Wild Rose Press.
After the editing process, I was officially offered a contract for Gunbarrel Highway, and I signed with The Wild Rose Press in October 2023. The book will be officially released in November 2024.
So, that would make it a three-year window from initial crafting to store shelves.
Q7. On what platforms can readers buy your books?
A7. This novel will be available as a paperback and e-book through The Wild Rose Press. And as an unabridged audio book through Audible Parade Productions.
Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘Gunbarrel Highway’?
A8. The publisher picked the cover. I was actually looking forward to that. I was curious to see what their artists would come up with. And I liked the final version from the start. It jumps out at you. I did have the ability to craft cover art for the audio book and I worked with a local hill country artist on the concept. She came up with the design for the audio book cover.
I enjoy working with talented artists and seeing what they come up with. I tend not to give notes. I leave it to the artist to inspire me. I trust their ability to do that.
For the title. I decided on it in the shower. The early script draft was entitled, Hit and Run. Which stuck around but I always thought that title was too generic. I always wanted something different, and I tooled around with various options.
One morning in the shower I remembered this song title. Gunbarrel Highway was a hidden track on a popular Midnight Oil album from the mid 1980’s. I knew that was the perfect fit for the book I was crafting. The lead character was on the run with all sorts of people out to get him. To me, it was meant to be.
And then I discovered that there really is a Gunbarrel Highway. It’s a barren road that goes straight forever through a desert in the Northern Territory of Australia. I think it’s more than 1000 kilometers long. It captivates me. I have to admit, it would be amazing to drive that road someday. It’s lifted straight from the world of Mad Max . Can you imagine, driving full bore, lost out in the middle of nowhere. What an adventure.
Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself?
A9. I always want the reader to want to keep turning the page. They have to know what’s going to happen next. That’s the key when I’m working through a novel manuscript. Is it engaging and is it moving forward. Is an interesting story continuing to unfold?
I know when I’m in the heat of a story. My mind and body are living day to day, but my thoughts are always drifting back towards the words on the page. I find myself jotting down ideas on note cards at a moments notice. I learned to always have them and a pen close at hand. I also keep books of hotel stationary for writing down quick notes or ideas or story direction. I can decipher my chicken scratch. I’m never far away from the tale I’m telling.
It can be an annoyance to those around me, but I know I’m working on something that I will see to the end. Because I have to. I have to find out how the story ends. Those are some of my favorite times as a writer. When I’m working through an idea that just keeps moving along and I can’t stop thinking about it.
Q10. What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing?
A10. Don’t worry about what other people are doing, You’re only in competition with yourself. So write and create what you want.
And write what you know. I’ve always interpreted that saying as, write what interests you. If you find the topic of your work fascinating and it captivates you, chances are others might feel that way as well. You have to be engaged in whatever work you’re creating.
Think about it this way. You’re the only audience member in the theater, watching the movie. You’re there because you have to see how it all turns out. If others join you or not, it’s incidental. You need to see how the story ends. So you see it through to the end.
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