Aaron Joy

When and why did you start writing books?

At age 11 I started writing. Published my first book in 1999. In 2007 I started doing it annually.

What made you decide to tackle writing as a career?

I didn't think of it as a career, it was just what i was going to be. For much of my life it has not been something that could be seen as anything more than a money draining hobby and a way to keep off depression, but in the last few years I've turned it into a second income.

Who is your favourite author and book?

I'm a huge fan of Jack Kerouac. When I first read 'On The Road' in high school I never wanted to read another novel again, as I thought it would just be downhill. Ironically, as I've gotten I find I prefer the more contemplative 'The Dharma Bums.' Jack is a huge influence on my life and writing, good and bad ways depending on who you talk to. For non-fiction G.K. Chesterton. The way he phrases arguments with wit is unrivalled.

What book are you reading right now?

A biography of James Buchanan, a biography of Stanislavsky: A Life by David Magarshack (published 1950), collected fiction short stories of Aleister Crowley, and Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K. Dick. I always have a couple fiction and non-fiction books I'm reading.

Where do you get your inspiration for your books?

My interest in music, a lot of the time. Used to be from life, but that didn't always lead to a finished product. When I started writing about music that when liked what I was doing and started being profitable. I'm a music encyclopedia, which might be why I can forgot common things.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Spare time? I'm always working. Even when watching TV I'm working. Work is play and play is work. Multi-tasking is my natural state.

Do you have any new books in the works?

A series of detective short stories based around music.

Tell us a little bit about yourself, your hobbies and interests.

When I'm not working on my writing or the business around it, which is pretty much a secondary income and job, I'm a stock swing trader and legal assistant in a small law firm in Portland, Maine. I lead a very modest homebody life with my girlfriend - who has her own obsession as a marathon runner - surrounded by lots of books and our two cats. In recent years I have been involved with Freemasonry and local theater. I love music and that's a huge part of my life. I play upright and electric bass in local bands and blog weekly music reviews.

When and why did you start writing books?

When I was 11 years old I picked up a book of Shakespeare. I was so enthralled with the rhythm and sound of the words that I decided right there I would be a writer. I immediately started writing little stories and plays. My first play was a re-write of Julius Caesar, of course full of garbled English, and my first story featured the detective Sam Spade. Since then, I literally have not gone for more than a few weeks without writing something or multiple things. As of 2021, I'm 44. In high school I fell in love with poetry via Jim Morrison of the Doors, Kerouac and the Beat Generation. In college I started writing regional history of Washington State, which set me on a direction of non-fiction that would migrate into music history. I published my first book in 1999. This was a history book of my local town, which I only sold by word of mouth and did but 200 copies. Very DIY. In 2007 I started taking my writing more seriously and have published numerous books annually since then. In 2010 I had the first year where I sold books every month, and I've never gone a month since without sales. I now have sold thousands of books across the globe and writing is now a secondary income. Writing is as much who I am and how I express myself as it is a hobby and income. Writing is an artform for me, no different than any other art. If I couldn't write and read I would shrivel up.

What made you decide to tackle writing as a career?

Writing is a hobby that only recently became a secondary income that went beyond paying its expenses. I've never seen it as a career.

Which one of your books or characters is your favourite?

Most of my books are fiction, so I don't have a favorite character. Of my non-fiction, which includes novels and plays, all the major characters have a little bit of me in them. So, to choose one would be choosing a part of me I like better than another part. As for books being my favorite - the novel I haven't written yet, but dream of. I'm always moving forward. The day I have a favorite book will be the day I don't write again as I won't need to.

Which one of your books was the hardest to write and stretched you the most as a writer?

"Let George Do It", published 2021. This is the biography of a storyteller/historian of the town of Bellingham, Washington (known for being the home of Hillary Swank and Glenn Beck, and where the ferry leaves for Alaska.) He died at 96 years old when I was a senior in high school. I was just starting a career as a historian and decided to write his biography. I didn't finish the draft and tucked it away as college, work and other activities took over my life. I found the draft and all my notes in 2019, and finished it in 2021. Finished meaning I finished the research and tore it apart literally word by word, and kept tearing it apart, and thinking it was better left in the past. My writing in 1996 was not very good and this was before I'd published my first book. My writing is much better now, not to mention my skills of storytelling and finding flow and pacing ... essentially across the board my writing was just naively primitive in 1996. It was tough rewriting something done in another life, given there's only so much you can do with non-fiction versus the flourishes of a novel. I did numerous re-writes trying to find a new voice, or a voice that fused the past and present. I ended up stopping and starting the editing as I didn't like any approach I tried. I almost gave up, but having a completed manuscript I really didn't want to do that. One day I was redoing the ending, which I didn't like. I stumbled upon the voice I wanted, which was my current voice. I then did something I've never attempted before, but had me looking at the book in a whole new way. I edited it backwards starting with the last chapter and then working slowly to the first chapter. I then went back and edited it in the proper direction. It was a revolutionary approach where I saw each chapter on its own and really tightened them up. When the flow was tight the voice I wanted came through.

Who is your favourite author and book?

I'm a huge Jack Kerouac fan. When I first read 'On The Road' in high school I figured any literature was down hill from there. Ironically, as I've gotten older I've found I prefer 'The Dharma Bums' as its more mature and introspective. As for non-fiction, nobody does it like G.K. Chesterton. His use of wit has been a huge influence.

What book are you reading right now?

I'm usually never reading less than 5 books and burn through a few books a month, including usually a spiritual book, a political history, a music biography, a few fiction books. Between the time of writing this and publishing there's a good chance I'll have finished another book, so no reason to list!

Where do you get your inspiration for your books?

Everywhere. Anywhere. Quite often it can be a conversation that will trigger an idea. The shower and walking to work seem to be places that cause my mind seems to suddenly be flooded with ideas.

What do you enjoy doing in your spare time?

Writing. For me work is play and play is work. Spare time is like the half hour watching TV with my girlfriend before we go to bed.

Do you have any new books in the works?

I always have something in the works. I have a non-fiction music biography now under construction for 7 years. I'm also turning my attention to fiction novels and short stories with music as the theme. I don't like to say details until something is nearly done. I have things I don't finish and things that come out of nowhere, so I don't like to publicize something that never gets seen. I've done that and it haunted me.