When and why did you begin writing?
I have always written little things like occasional poems but never anything big. In May 2015, my job took me away to another state where I was living in a motel room alone. I was bored and lonely during the time I was not working. I sat down at the laptop one evening and started typing. I wasn’t sure what I was doing. I was thinking about what I could do to surprise my wife for Christmas. Then it hit me to use this pastime to create a story for her. The story just kept growing.
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
This is a little hard to say, but I still don’t consider myself a writer. Probably when I finish the one I am working on now, but until then I think of myself as a computer programmer who has a story to tell.
Why did you choose to write in your particular field or genre?
My wife loves James Patterson, Lisa Jackson, and J.D. Robb. Because my story was going to be for her, I decided to make my story like the ones they write. We also love to watch things like CSI and some of the Dateline mysteries on TV.
What is the biggest thing that people THINK they know about your subject/genre that isn’t so?
I think the biggest thing is that is full of blood and gore like in Horror, but it doesn’t have to be. I admit in some murder mysteries there could be a lot but not all thrillers are the same.
Are you a full-time or part-time writer and how does that affect your writing?
I am a part-time writer and so I am slow at developing the story. I only write when I get a break like at lunch.
What are some day jobs you have held?
I have been a Computer Programmer, Greens keeper, Cook, Frozen foods Manager and Produce Manager for grocery stores, Car Salesman, and teachers aide. This along with being a dad takes up a lot of time.
Do you have a special time to write, or how is your day structured to accommodate your writing?
I write when I get time which lately has meant during lunch at work.
What have you written so far?
I have one novel out entitled The Bunker. I am currently working on a sequel to it, which I am trying to get done for this Christmas entitled The Huntress.
Do you work to an outline or plot sketch, or do you prefer to let a general idea guide your writing?
I tried to do outlines, but I find that if I let the story flow it seems to work better for me.
Can you share with readers a little bit about your latest book?
When Jim Edwards wakes up in a locked apartment with a girl whom he grew up with, he is surprised as she had been reported as have died five years before. He finds out that he is the last of a long line of gentlemen who had been brought to spend time with her. Lynn Montgomery was the most popular girl in school but she had been listed as a passenger on a plane that had crashed.
The gentlemen had been noticed by the FBI who had assigned the case to Agents Jesse Jaines and Paul Gassert. They start following the trail of the gentlemen and find that Lynn is alive. As they go deeper into the case, they end up in Seattle where they find out that Lynn was alive but it was unknown where she was.
They go to inform Lynn’s Parents. It turned out that Mr. Montgomery, a local business owner, was Paul’s old Army Sergeant in Viet Nam, who had kept a new weapon that they discovered. The grenade he had picked up put anyone near it to sleep. This grenade was taken to his lab and taken apart and studied.
Lynn and Jim, who discovered love with each other and marry themselves, in the meantime had finally managed to escape from the storm cellar, or bunker, they were being held in. Lynn finally knew where they were. The ranch where her grandparents had lived was where the FBI met the two of them.
Lynn had been attacked in high school by Johnny, the star quarterback. Johnny had been sent to try to re-capture Lynn and Jim. Meanwhile, Jesse and Paul are trying to track down answers as to who is behind the kidnappings. Johnny manages to recapture Lynn and Jim only to have his partner help them escape.
After they escape the FBI hides them in the very place they escaped from in the first place, the ranch and the bunker. Johnny was watching decoys after finding what he thought would be a new partner. He decides not to use Rhonda, however, as he discovers that he has fallen in love with her. Rhonda is an Intern at the FBI and is asked to accompany Jesse and Paul to the Ranch.
While Johnny is waiting for the decoys to come out, the boss calls him and tells him that Lynn and Jim had been found. He calls to warn Rhonda only to hear the gunshot. In the end, Lynn and Jim find out who it is and why they were captured. Will the FBI come in time to capture the boss who comes in to kill Lynn and Jim?
Tell us more about your main character. What makes him or her unique?
He is so naïve. He is nearly 30 but doesn’t really know anything about women.
Who is your favorite character in your book and why?
My favorite character in the book would have to be Jim Edwards. He is loyal and compassionate but very naïve. He has loved this girl for so long and yet doesn’t know anything really.
Who is your least favorite character and why?
That would have to be Johnny. He just uses everybody to get his way. The reason he started seeing Rhonda was so he could find out more about the FBI. A real slime bag!
If your book was made into a movie, who would you cast?
With an unlimited budget I would cast Emma Watson as Lynn, Keira Knightley as Jesse, Hugh Jackman as Paul, I really don’t know who to cast as Jim, someone who can sell the care which he represents.
What was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?
The hardest thing was keeping it secret for that long. I was writing it as a Christmas present for my wife and had to keep I quiet.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
I loved the story I was telling. I tied in places where I lived and worked into the story and made the characters live there. The story though was the main thing.
What is your next project?
My next project is in the works now and will be called The Huntress. It actually follows the girl who was one of the villains in The Bunker.
If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
James Patterson.
How can you discover more about Greg?
Waking Writer 