Interview with Author Tim Downs

Tim Downs is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Indiana University. After graduation in 1976 he created a comic strip, Downstown, which was syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate until 1986. His cartooning has appeared in more than a hundred major newspapers worldwide. Tim has eight novels and two non-fiction titles published. His first book, a work of non-fiction, was awarded the Gold Medallion Award in 2000, and his third novel, PlagueMaker, was awarded the Christy Award for best CBA suspense novel of 2007. Tim lives in Cary, North Carolina, with his wife Joy.

Tim will be the keynote speaker for the 2010 ACFW conference in Indiana. His website allows you to read the first chapter of any of his books here.

Tim, thank you for being here today! Some people are natural born storytellers and you are one of them. I enjoy reading your stories and am looking forward to getting my hands on Wonders Never Cease soon.

1) It seems like your stories have a theme around them. Can you tell us how you plan that theme and how you write that theme into the story?

Each of my stories has a central theme, and that becomes the unifying element that ties the whole story together. Novels are so long that you can get lost in the middle of them; theme is the thing that reminds you what the story is about so you can keep from getting too far off track. My Bug Man novel First the Dead, for example, was set in New Orleans the week following Hurricane Katrina. On the surface the story is just a mystery about a bad guy who used the hurricane as a way to cover up some unpleasant business and Nick Polchak’s attempt to foil his plan. But the theme of the story is really about our spiritual impulse to search for a Father during times of suffering. That’s why I introduced the character of JT Walker, a young man who seeks Nick’s help in finding his father after the flood. That theme ties the whole book together and gives it much more meaning and depth than it would have if it were just a simple detective story.

2) Plotting. How do you plot? What do you know before you write that first chapter? Give us the trade secrets!

I’m afraid those “trade secrets” vary from author to author. Personally, I always write a “plot summary” before I ever write a word of the book. A plot summary contains one little paragraph for each chapter of the book where I briefly describe what will happen in that chapter. My plot summaries are usually about 20 pages long. I think of them like a road map. If I wanted to travel from NC to San Francisco, I might make out a list of the major landmarks along the way to keep me on track—but I wouldn’t make an itinerary for every minute of the trip. That would take all the fun out of it! In the same way, I get up every morning, look at my plot summary for the chapter I’m working on that day, and I know what I have to accomplish—but I can have fun making up all the details of the story as I go along. The benefit of writing a plot summary is that I can work out all my plot problems before I ever put pen to paper. That’s a lot less painful than writing 300 pages and realizing you’ve written yourself into a corner!

Thanks for the tip on writing a plot summary!

3) How do you manage your work day to allow enough time for writing yet do the marketing necessary to sell books you have already published?

That’s a very, very tough question. There’s no end to what you can do to market your books, and that’s what makes juggling the time demands so difficult. I try not to mix the two activities—when I’m writing, I write, and when I’m marketing, I market. I’ve been trying to consign most of my marketing activities to one day a week, but that doesn’t work for interviews—you have to take those whenever they become available.

4) You and your wife, Joy, have some non-fiction books, can you tell us about them?

Joy and I have written two books on conflict resolution in marriage, and they’re both being repackaged and rereleased in July. One is called Fight Fair: Winning at Conflict without Losing at Love, and the other is called One of Us Must be Crazy…and I’m Pretty Sure It’s You. Fight Fair is about style of conflict (how we fight), while Crazy is about substance (what we disagree about). Fight Fair shows couples how to decide on their own personal rules for conflict, while Crazy identifies seven fundamental differences that are the underlying source of most of our conflict in marriage. Both books are from Moody Press.

5) How active is your speaking calendar? And again, talk about time management with being out of town.

I’ve been a professional speaker for thirty years and I still do quite a bit of it. The good thing about writing is that it’s a portable job, so even when I travel I can usually get some time in for research or writing. Time management seems to be the key to everything, especially writing; I’ve met a lot of people who have a passion to write but just can’t seem to find the time to sit down and do it. Personally, I prefer long, uninterrupted periods for writing—it’s hard for me to just put it down and pick it up again.

We are all looking forward to your keynote address at the 2010 ACFW conference in September!

6) You are the official Bug Man. You write suspense thrillers. Tell us what interested you about writing your current release Wonders Never Cease?

I didn’t start writing Bug Man stories because I like bugs—it was just the most interesting character and topic I could think of at the time. I’ve enjoyed writing Nick Polchak, but I don’t want to become known as just the “Bug Man writer.” I like creative stories, wacky characters, clever storylines, and humor—and if I can have those things, I don’t care what the story is about! Wonders met all those criteria. It’s just a fun little story that I wanted to write.

7) Tell us about your next novel coming out?

My next novel is another Bug Man story, which was almost a requirement since I left Nick hanging at the conclusion of Ends of the Earth. The novel will be called Nick of Time and it picks up with Nick and Alena, just as I promised readers it would. Since the book doesn’t come out until next March I can’t tell you too much about it, but I will tell you this: The opening chapter involves Nick and Alena meeting with a wedding planner. Hilarious!

Sounds like a fun book! Thank you for being here today, I appreciate your time. See you at the ACFW conference in September!