Robert J Randisi – Author of 500 Novels. Believe it or Not!
Robert J Randisi has been called many things. He has been described as “the last of the great pulp writers”, he has been called “a living legend” and he has been called "the world's biggest private eye nut.”
Whatever words you use to describe him, it would be accurate to call him prolific. To date he has written, and published, over five hundred novels.
Whassat?
Yes, strange, but true. While most writers struggle to write that one book they’ve always wanted to write, this amazing writer has written over five hundred novels during his incredible career.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, he made his first sale at age twenty-two. He co-founded and edited Mystery Scene magazine and co-founded the American Crime Writers League. He also founded The Private Eye Writers of America in 1981 and created the Shamus Award.
Robert has written in many different genres, but most of his books have been westerns and crime stories. His adult westerns are now being distributed from Speaking Volumes LLC. They will be distributing 200 of the books from his Gunsmith series as well as all of his Angel Eyes, Tracker and Mountain Jack Pike novels. His books will be available as both POD trade paperbacks and in audio form.
Darrell - Can you describe a typical day of writing (and do you have a word limit per day)?
Robert - No word limit. I used to have a page limit of 20 a day, but that was when I was working on one book at a time. Depending on my deadline, I'll do anywhere from 10 to 40 pages a day on a book. As for a schedule, I usually wake up at 11 am, have breakfast, start writing until dinner (5, 6) then nap for two hours and write all night until 4 am or so. Then I read until 5 am and go to bed. The nap usually bridges the gap from one book to another when I'm working on two at one time.
Darrell - Do you plot a story out completely first or do you let it lead you in certain directions if the need arises?
Robert - I have never plotted a book from start to finish, and I've written and published over 500 of them. There is too much that can happen to change that, so why waste time? I usually follow the plot along with the main character, experiencing what he experiences.
Darrell - It's easy to imagine that mystery books will still be around for years to come, but do you think Western novels still have a long life ahead of them?
Robert - I do. Our history is always there, it doesn't go away. There is a dedicated western readership in this country. Sometimes they have to carry the banner alone, sometimes they get some help. But they'll always be there.
Darrell - There's often a debate about 'literary' books as opposed to 'popular' novels. Why do you think this is?
Robert - What's the debate? Which to read? Which to write? It doesn't make much difference to most readers. A book is a book. As far as writers are concerned literary books get you notice but no money, popular books get you money but no notice. The word "literary" pretty much means you're going to read a book where nothing happens.
Darrell - If you had a single piece of advice to hand to someone trying to become an author, what would it be?
Robert - Write every day, as many hours as you can. Don't worry about page count. You'll have to worry about that soon enough, when you start writing to a deadline.
Darrell - Where do you see the future for writers now that ebooks have arrived?
Robert - I'm not a big fan of e-books. I like the way real books feel and smell, too much. But a book is a book, and you'll always need a writer to produce them. E-books are threatening to publishers and book stores, but not to writers.
Important Links:
The Speaking Volumes website address is:
And Robert is contactable on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/randisi.Gunsmith
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