Keith Parker Member Member since 2025

Where do you prefer to do your creative work?

At a little pub near my house. It is in a building erected in 1814, complete with original hardwoods and weathered brick. It may be the closest the Western Hemisphere can ever come to the perfect brewpub.

Do you read literary journals and magazines regularly? If so, which are your favorites?

I submit to and publish with lots of periodicals, love them all and really don't one to single out one over the others. My literary neighborhood, though, is that type of speculative fiction set in the present day where reality simply goes awry for my characters, so if a magazine publishes that type of fiction (slipstream, magic realism, etc.) I will definitely read it!

Who are your literary (or artistic) heroes?

• Stephen King
• Joyce Carol Oates
• Dan Simmons
• Ernest Hemingway
• Pat Conroy
• Kurt Vonnegut
• H.P. Lovecraft
• Dr. Suess.

If you could only take one book on a ten-year voyage, what book would you choose?

Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

How much of a typical day (or week) are you able to dedicate to your creative work?

About 1-2 afternoons per week, although I am continually making notes, thinking up ideas, figuring out how to win the Nobel Prize in Literature... the little things.

What makes you procrastinate when you could be doing your creative work? What are your strategies for finding focus?

Writers are not supposed to say this, but the best way to find focus is to pull a pint of ale (and drink it).

How do you celebrate your successes, such as acceptances? How do you handle rejections and other setbacks?

When I get a piece accepted and published, I tell everyone. The sad truth is that most people either don't care or, if they do care, they still won't read what I've published. This used to bum me out, but I've made peace with it.

Rejections are rejections. I ignore them. I write for me.

How much time do you spend reading for pleasure or edification?

Actual reading? Very little. I have a very hard time concentrating these days. I do listen to a lot of audiobooks and podcasts, but I don't know if that counts.

Do you have a personal creative style? How would you describe it?

My specialty is dialogue. I have mastered it to the point that people have said they reread my stories because my dialogue is so good. My main style is to write short punchy sentences, with strong action verbs and unique adjectives. I do not use adverbs and I eschew comparative phrases using "like" and "as". I particularly like specific descriptions: Instead of saying she drove an old sedan, I will say she drove a dented 1979 Plymouth Volare with cracked red seats and a Pioneer cassette player with a tape stuck in it.

Where do you find inspiration?

Usually from bad luck. When things go sideways in life, the writer is being offered story ideas on a silver platter.

Also, the New York Times Crossword is an incredible source of inspiration.

What single creative achievement are you most proud of?

I have had a story accepted for publication with Amazing Stories, one of the original science fiction and fantasy magazines, and one of the best ever!

What fictional character would you most like to be?

Indiana Jones

If you could choose to be born in any era, which one would you choose and why?

This one because, despite its flaws, is the one where people don't die of horrors like tuberculosis and don't have to endure the acrid smells of cigarette smoke.

What advice would you give to a young, budding writer (or artist) with less experience than yourself?

Write or draw what you want.

Do not create for anyone else.

And, do not market yourself.

Creatives are not in sales.

For your first draft (or sketch), do you prefer analog or digital tools, or a mix?

Digital

Do you incorporate generative AI/LLMs into your creative process? If so, how?

Nope

What is your favorite word and why?

The F word... for obvious reasons

What would you like your epitaph to say?

Write Drunk, Edit Sober

Are you an unreliable narrator?

Yes, all writers are.