Martin Wilsey: The Fast Friday Interviews: CW Lamb

Friday, September 29, 2017

The Fast Friday Interviews: CW Lamb

Charles Lamb

Tell me about yourself?

So, my name is Charles Lamb and I live in Jacksonville, Fl. where I am waiting out Hurricane Irma as I am writing this. Be safe in the knowledge that the generator sitting idle in my garage will see that it is completed. I am probably the most unexpected Author you will find. A “C” student in English, the last thing I ever imagined was writing a novel. For those of you that are English Majors, you can imagine the problems my name creates when publishing a book, thus I went with CW Lamb.

I am a Mechanical Engineer by education, computer geek by profession and a former Marine by the grace of God and several Drill Instructors. My stint in the Corps was not typical, short by anyone’s definition, but it left a lasting impression on me.

My hobbies are only limited by my bank account. We boat extensively, with trips to the Florida Keys as frequent as possible. That goes nicely with SCUBA diving, something I’ve done for almost 40 years. I have a vintage vette that I can only afford because I do all my own work and a newer Harley that is my daily driver. I used to teach both diving and shooting on the side but don’t really have time for that any more.

I am into Photography and play the guitar (poorly). My wife and I have three kids and three dogs, all over the age of 21 (Kids that is).

Tell me about your current Book:

My latest release is book 4 of the ALICE series. It’s a post-apocalyptic tale that is intended to entertain, but some people take these things far too seriously!

When the NeHaw Cruiser appears at the edge of the solar system, Jake must take his single fighter up to meet it, or else the planet could lose the rest of its population.

The ALICE series is a mixture of Science Fiction and Social Science. Imagine yourself, Captain Jacob Thomas, a 21st century warrior. You are trained by the United States Marine Corps to be a leader of men and women in the most stressful environment possible, combat. Due to failures in your personal life, you place yourself in the hands of those at DARPA, the Defense Research people willing to sacrifice you in the name of military advancements.

In a mixture of bad luck, some stolen Alien Technology and an ill-tempered Alien Race, you are awakened 150 years in the future. There you find an Earth with more than half its population bombed out of existence, all major cities are lawless battlegrounds for survival. The planets technology has been rolled back to pre-industrial revolution.

On top of all this, you discover that an Artificial Lifeform, created by humans and feared by the Aliens, is both your savior and your benevolent Svengali. Manipulating your every move, it continuously works in the background, playing on your sense of honor while insuring its own continued existence.

Imagine a world where law and order have been replaced with the need for survival, a place where men and women are forced to fend for themselves. Think of all that’s wrong today and envision what might be, the good, the bad and the extremely ugly. What would you do to survive?

What are you working on now?

I am really excited about my current project. Entitled The Dowry, it’s a bit of a Paranormal Romance where I split the storyline into two streams. Each chapter starts in the past and then cuts to the present.

In the now, I have Robert Garrison, former Army Corps of Engineers Officer, now an Architect that specializes in Historical Restorations. Newly divorced and looking for a fresh start, he is drawn to a late 1850’s Queen Ann Victorian that is on the river and has been left for ruin. Unable to explain his attraction to the place, he acquires the house only to learn it has a bit of a reputation.

The other stream is about Charlotte Foxworth, the daughter of a riverboat Captain, now businessman with several boats to his name. Looking to build her own house on the river, she convinces her father to sponsor her own business as a Landing far south of the Port Of Jacksonville. Her demise is the key to the entire story.

Where is your favorite place to be when you write?

I have learned I can write just about anywhere so long as I am left to my own world. In my home office, on vacation, and even at work (SHHHH! I do sneak in some pages at lunch or early before the day starts) I have been able to spin tales of fiction and fantasy. Most of the time though, I just sit at home.

What is your favorite lesson you have learned about the business of writing?

Don’t follow the rules. I have probably broken every rule passed on to me as “Good Advice.” I reply to my reviews and engage with criticism, doing my best not to take offence. I use each as a teaching moment, both for me and the reader, relying on the thick skin I developed in IT to filter the feedback. In all but one instance the tone of the reviewer softened as they discovered I was honestly interested in what they had to say about my work. That one instance? I disengaged the moment I realized they were not interested in anything but having their opinion aired.

What is your favorite Website?

Two actually.
www.sfwa.org Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, a huge help to a newbie.
www.thehulltruth.com everything you ever wanted to know about boating.