William James came to Stockholm from Dublin, prepared for a blizzard and new challenges in September 2012. Since then he has had a myriad of jobs: a barman, a video editor, a cameraman, a magazine distributor, and a chef. He is, however, first and foremost a writer.
“You have to be a little bit mad to be a writer, a little bit obsessive, or maybe that’s just me,” he says.
James is currently working on the drafts for two novels, but is first focusing on getting more short stories published. He believes doing so is a great way to hone his writing skills while building up a portfolio to show prospective publishers. It can take years to get established.
“There are no short cuts,” James says. “If you want to be a novelist you have to go about it the long way just like everybody else. At the end of the day publishing is a business, and publishers need to make money. They need to see the appeal in publishing someone’s work, you need to be marketable and you need to be bloody good.”
A Fool and a King is the name of his latest short story, a strikingly dark tale set in Texas. (Click below to read it).
“It’s the tale of two men talking in a bar, one of whom might be the one true God, or just a crazy Russian,” he says. “There’s whiskey involved and a three-legged dog and it’s half the reason these bags here are growing under my blood-shot eyes.”
The short story was recently submitted to a publisher after a long process of editing and rewriting. Once it has been submitted it can take weeks or even months before a writer gets a response. Patience and perseverance are characteristics writers need.
“Writing a story, and getting paid for it is no easy task. You need true grit and a lot of coffee. You only sleep when you’re done, when you think you have it right.”
Anlaug Øvergaard Østby
Click below to read A Fool and a King. Contact William James at WilliamJamesWriter@gmail.com, or add him on Twitter: @WilliamJWriter
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