I had the pleasure of being interviewed last week, and will be posted on Tuesday, July 17th. His questions went far beyond “Where do you get your ideas?”
Follow Mark on Twitter @PDI_Podcast2016. His page looks like this:
Mark, how did you get into podcasting, and why primarily genre authors (action-adventure, mystery, suspense, thrillers, sci-fi …)
MARK COMBS: It's a vehicle through which I can invite almost anyone to sit down with me for a digital cup of coffee and get a positive response. I'm drawn to those genres I guess because they seem to best reflect life in the raw... unscripted and
unbridled.
HALLIE: How did you get from biblical history to edgy modern crime fiction?
MARK: Oh boy... there's a couple of worlds that you wouldn't immediately connect. For me, if the biblical text is separated from the ancient culture that produced it, then it becomes subject to the whim and fancy of modern day spin, which really doesn't interest me at all. In any study of the ancient culture, you begin to get a sense of who the writers were as people and of the message they were trying to preserve for their generation.
That takes me to my fascination with the modern day novelist. Regardless the story line, the heart and thought processes of the author bleed through on every page and that relationship captivates my attention in a unique way.
HALLIE: Way back when, who was the first author you interviewed, and how’d it go?
MARK: I started with KJ Waters; she was intelligent, entertaining, and easy to talk with. A closer, more personal friend came next.
Gary S. Pritchett had just released his first work and he had done so much to encourage me that I wanted to try to do something to encourage him. Then, I met MJ LaBeff; she took a reciprocating interest in my written work and the podcasts. She promoted both and almost single-handedly exploded the listening audience.
I gave a little ink to each of them in the back of my book, Don't Forget Your Cape. They're all heroes in their own way for me.
HALLIE: Who was the first author you interviewed, for PUBLIC DISPLAY OF IMAGINATION, and how’d it go?
MARK: My first two professionally published and marketed authors were Brad Parks and Carter Wilson. Brad caught me off guard with his away-from-home office set-up at Hardee's. I'd be totally distracted in such an environment, but, as you can tell from his books, it works exceptionally well for him. I was also quite taken by his commitment to research.Carter drew me in with the way he uncovered his storyline. I got the impression that his mind's eye would be drawn to the imagery of a old framed oil painting, hanging in a dimly lit room that depicted a scene that he was compelled to investigate. As our conversation unfolded, I could envision him standing in front of the piece, studying every minute detail.
I really liked his approach to peeling back the layers.
HALLIE: You felt SO well prepared when you interviewed me. How do you prepare for an interview?
MARK: When I read Stephen King's book, On Writing, I was
intrigued by his description of how telling a story is a bit like unearthing a find in an archaeological dig for him. My goal is to research enough about each author so that I can properly set a tone that brings the audience to the "dig site" and then we explore from there. My goal is to infect every listener, to let them "catch the bug."HALLIE: Do you have any advice for budding podcasters?
MARK: You can easily research and learn about equipment and how to set things up, but getting a look at the overall picture of what's really involved in bringing it all to life is important. Devote quality time to each step of the process.You have to invest time in scheduling guests, recording the conversation, editing the recording, and producing the end product. Then, you have to devote daily time and effort to marketing the show. All of those things are important to achieving the goal.
Once you have an audience, you have a promised date with that audience on each production day. The reveal of a new episode is an absolute thrill.
HALLIE: And… taking a page from the kinds of questions you ask: If you could interview any author, living or dead, who would it be?
MARK: One is Agatha Christie. I've heard that she would write her mysteries without designating a guilty party upfront, then go back through the work and try to determine who, among the suspects, is the actual culprit. I think it's incredibly unique.
The second person is the ancient prophet Ezekiel. He wrote his text during an absolutely soul-crushing time for his people. Once proud Israel, who served the supreme deity, Yahweh, was being conquered; their fortified cities were being destroyed and the survivors of the brutal siege warfare were being systematically taken into captivity by the nation of Babylon. I cry when I read what Ezekiel wrote and I'd love to explore those emotions with the aging writer.HALLIE: Any budding podcasters out there? Mark should be checking in to answer any questions.
ABOUT MARK COMBS
Author, Mark DeWayne Combs began his writing career by publishing weekly motivational blogs for a business networking group that he founded in the fall of 2007. More...
