An Extensive Interview with Tom Sumner of Flint, Michigan Radio

Tom Sumner is an extremely friendly and generous interviewer, and I greatly enjoyed talking with him in this interview. He seemed to enjoy speaking to me too, as he kept asking me to stick around for the better part of an hour. What ensued was a great conversation in which I could discuss with him so much of what it’s like being a debut author, and especially what it’s like being a debut author during the COVID-19 pandemic.

My favourite moment of this interview is at about the 20-minute mark when Tom references my tennis:

Tom: The discipline and physical activity that that entails is an awful lot different than sitting for hours, days, weeks and months at a time at a keyboard. How do you balance your physical self against the cerebral and the more introspective writer part?

Me [laughing]: That’s a great question. It is funny, I do find that when I’m more coaching and training and stuff I’m all happy and confident, and when I’m in a phase where I’m more writing suddenly I’m neurotic and unhappy and filled with regret and remorse and things like that, it’s funny.

This interview was a great experience, one I’ll remember fondly.