One of the great things about book blogging is that you get to connect with many talented authors. Lately, it’s seldom that I continue conversing with an author beyond completing a review request, but when I read Lethal Lawyers by Dale E. Manolakas, I was so captivated by the book that there was so much I wanted to learn about her journey as an author.
Thankfully, with Dale being as gracious as she is, she agreed to an interview. Now we can all learn a little more about the author as we await her new legal thriller, Hollywood on Trial, to release on October 23rd.
In the interview, Dale talks about her history in law, the moment she knew she wanted to write and the challenges that she faced. She even offers some practical advice for aspiring authors. If you take away anything from this interview (like I did) then be sure to drop a comment below!
Gary S: You write legal thrillers, and in them your expertise in the field reveals itself. The amount of detail you go into really shows how much experience you have. What exactly is your professional background like?
Dale E. Manolakas: I considered it a privilege to go to law school and become a litigator at two major law firms in Los Angeles. It is a world few attorneys can use authentically in legal thrillers because these attorneys, as depicted in my works, are too busy or don’t have the desire. I have clerked at the United States Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit and have been before the bench litigating and behind the bench.
So what I bring to my work is multiple perspectives, together with authenticity and accuracy. Simply put, I know from whence I speak. Louis Auchincloss is an author, now deceased, who wrote major law firm works that were sheer genius. I consider the trials in my legal thrillers the centerpieces of my books and my signature.
G: What was the exact moment when you KNEW you wanted to write for a living?
D: I knew I wanted to write for a living through my relationship with Ray Bradbury. I was at his home in Cheviot Hills visiting, this time talking about our cats, small things, and also his plays. He loved the theatre as I do. The characters I performed in his plays were rich and full. Just being in his writing room, full of decades of memorabilia and awards, was a history lesson in the world of books, plays, and screen writing. When we spoke about writing that particular day, he was warm and encouraging. The most interesting concept I took away was that the characters write the book.
As I took my writing more seriously, I realized what he said was true. It gave me the piece of the puzzle that was missing—uncertainty is part and parcel of the work.
Every morning your characters challenge you, disobey you, resist you, and guide you.
G: What was the biggest challenge you had to overcome to make your author career a reality?
D: Knowing that the first sentence may tell you where you are going, but not where you will end. It is a leap of faith to write. That leap is taken every morning and every morning is new. Every morning your characters challenge you, disobey you, resist you, and guide you.
G: Was there something that made you choose between traditional publishing and self-publishing?
D: Yes. Control. I create my own everything, including my own mistakes, and I have made many. It’s amazing to master the craft of fiction writing, cover creation, advertising schedules, going wide on all platforms, and marketing in general. It is hard work and I feel rewarded when it all comes together.
I am now creating my own sound studio to audiotape my books. I have practiced by making my own book trailers for YouTube and have learned so much. From my biography, you can see that I am a highly trained actress and I want to give audio-taping my own books a try. Sometimes doing it yourself is easier than proofing other peoples work. Since legal books have so much legalese, I think it may just be easier.
G: You have around six books now, Including Hollywood on Trial. What has been your biggest lesson learned when producing these books?
D: I am addicted to producing works that address major legal issues of our time. Each of my books takes on a legal issue that I want to discuss, present, and expose. I have found freedom in expressing different perspectives through characters. There is so much to say that I wish I could produce faster. I certainly admire Stephen King’s amazing productivity.
G: How long does it take you to write a book and publish it?
D: That is a complex question. Writing is not the loggerhead. Being technically sufficient in formatting and finalizing the book is the hard part. I am getting faster as I master the technical skills involved. In the beginning, it took me hours to learn how to produce an em dash and correct elipses. It took me weeks to format my first paperback. However, the “daily grind” of the technical is less onerous when you have done it again and again. I published two high quality unique books this year and would like to keep that pace up. I will not sacrifice quality though. And, by quality, I mean a unique voice, with a unique message, with revelations that inspire, frighten, repel, and reveal the hidden. I usually have three books in my head and two in progress at any one time.
I get up at four in the morning and use the dawn of the day to create words
G: What is your daily schedule like as a committed writer?
D: I get up at four in the morning and use the dawn of the day to create words and worlds other than my own. I do seek a quota from two-thousand to twenty-five hundred words—some days are better than others. I always take a running start by editing about a page or so before tackling the new. After the words are produced, I take care of the business of writing, the endless learning curve of cover creation, book trailers, advertising, email list expansion, professional relationships, setting up a sound studio, and nuancing platforms for sales. If you do it all, it is a full day of work, eight hours minimum. And, yes, I have a complex and full other life, but that cannot break your focus at four in the morning or if you have a laptop.
G: Your genre is dominated by huge brand names, has that ever intimidated you?
D: Not really. I stopped being intimidated by much in life decades ago. I love the authors in my genre. I would love to meet them someday. I learn a lot from them. We each bring a unique voice and those voices give hours of pleasure to legal thriller fans.
G: Have you thought about stepping into new genres in the future?
D: I would love to flex those creative muscles, but I won’t. I have written short stories in science fiction and read Scientific American regularly. The stories that run through my head are alive and fun. But, alas, to market yourself you must remain genre specific, at least in the beginning. I also have a book of poetry I am preparing for publication—another formatting nightmare.
G: What advice would you give to aspiring authors who can only dream of being where you are today?
D: When you are in the free-fall of creating a book, especially in the first fifteen thousand words, trust yourself and your characters—both of you know where you are going. As a partnership your creative work will inevitably get you where you need to be—the end. Will there be some mishaps along the way? Yes. If there weren’t, then you and your characters wouldn’t be human and wouldn’t be very interesting.
We appreciate you answering these questions and we look forward to the release of Hollywood on Trial.
Visit the website of Dale E. Manolakas to find out more about the author.
