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Q1. Hello, can you please introduce yourself? Readers would love to know more about you.

A1. I’m a bohemian. I’ve lived sort of an unconventional life. I began drawing comics at an early age. I couldn’t read or write yet, so I narrated picture stories to my family. In high school I experimented with acting and playwriting. I was a fine arts major in college, where I painted landscapes, continued with comics, and portraiture. I was especially fond of figure drawing. I wrote an early precursor to Bastymania, a series of short stories intended to be a book, but in the 1970’s publishers were not interested in “comics for adults.” I tried my hand at children’s book illustration but was not successful. I went back to school and obtained a certificate in Art Therapy. I used that to teach art to at-risk children and nursing home residents. I got married, moved to a small town and took up gardening. I tried my hand at turning one acre of woodland into a botanical garden. I don’t recommend trying to force wild Mother Nature into something tame and pretty, unless you can afford to have someone come in and do it for you; but then it’s no fun.

Q2. What were the key challenges you faced while writing your book “Bastymania: Love is Strange”?

A2. I was diagnosed with nacular degeneration, an age related eye disease that leads to legal blindness. There are treatments, but no cure. I realized my eyesight was going, and if I ever wanted to write and draw the graphic novel I always wanted, it would have to be now. That was 2023. I had to work large, use several different magnifying lenses, and a mirror to check for distortion. I also had to rely on a very simple drawing style, giving the artwork a “raw” look, which was not ideal, but I wanted it to be hand-drawn.

Q3. What books or authors have most influenced your own writing?

A3. Michail Bulgakov is my idol. The Master and Margarita was written during the Soviet Era, and he rewrote it many times out of fear of censorship and imprisonment. Everyone can now read the book unredacted, and it is a masterful work of political and social satire! It is often hysterically funny, even if you don’t know the history of the time, but it’s better if you do. John Fowles’ The Magus is another favorite. I’ve reread it many times over the last forty years, it always seems new to me.The Becoming Fair One, a short story by Oliver Onions, is a great Gothic horror story and a psychological thriller from the 19th century. Bulgakov’s sense of satire especially rubbed off on me. Fowles’ characters are real and three dimensional. You want to know them.

Q4. What’s your favourite spot to visit in your own country? And what makes it so special to you?

A4. I haven’t traveled much. My favorite spot is the Catskill Region in New York State. My husband and I spent many years hiking the rocky mountains of the Catskills. I liked being in the wild, the quiet, the scent of hemlock and the discovery of an occasional waterfall.

Q5. What inspired you to write the book ‘Bastymania: Love is Strange’?

A5. My brother Louis and I grew up during the era of rock and roll. We spent many hours in his room spinning 45’s on his record player. We called ourselves amateur musicologists of 20th century pop. I always wanted to write a graphic story pertaining to the era.
An early form of Bastymania was written in 1971. It was a series of short stories featuring fictionalized rock stars.
It percolated in my head off and on for forty years.

Q6. How long did it take you to write your book ‘Bastymania: Love is Strange’?

A6. It took two and a half years. My eyesight was an issue, so it was a bit rushed. Normally it probably would have taken four. I was working against time, so I put in six hour days six days a week. I don’t recommend working like that.

Q7. On what platforms can readers buy your books?

A7. Bastymania is available on Amazon KDP in ebook and paperback.

Q8. Tell us about the process of coming up with the book cover and the title ‘Bastymania: Love is Strange’?

A8. Bastymania is more like a novel than a comic book, and it contains a riot of characters who appear over a span of years. The main characters also change and grow over time, so I thought I would do sort of a collage of their past and future, showing them in all their personas and moods. The title is derived from the frenzy that accompanied the Beatles’ debut, called Beatlemania. The name of my band is the Bastion. Their fans call them the Basties. Hence, Bastymania!

Q9. When writing a book how do you keep things fresh, for both your readers and also yourself.

A9. I have never published anything before, but I like to write, and I write a lot. I have been keeping a journal since the 1980’s. I don’t just write anything. I carefully curate all my entries, subject matter, everything. I write as if a reader might want to read it, even if I am the only one.

Q10. What is the most valuable piece of advice you’ve been given about writing?

A10. Always write from what you know. You are a treasure trove of experiences, memories of people places and things, and emotions, knowledge acquired over years. Don’t be fantastic. You don’t have to make anything up. An instructor told me this many years ago.

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