Describe your creative space. Do you work at home, in public spaces, etc.?

I’ve forced myself to learn to work in any place, especially in busy cafes, which I enjoy, since we don’t often get to choose when we can do work, but at least half of my writing is done very early in the morning, at home, at my desk via keyboard. At other times I enjoy using pen and pad in old cemeteries or slogging out a few hours of writing in a busy cafe.

What kind of materials do you use? Do you write by hand or type? What is your favorite writing utensil?

Keyboard, pen and pad, notebook on smartphone (very handy for spur of the moment starters). I have no favorite anything. No ideal setting. That’s too much pressure on inanimate objects.

What is your routine for writing?

Up very early. Try to write, read, revise, and submit some every day. At least four

(usually more) hours of writing activity a day.

How long have you been writing? When did you start writing?

Seriously writing for about ten years.

Who is your intended, or ideal, audience? Who do you write for?

This is difficult. Much of my work is Appalachian / mountain-centered, though the my hope is that readers from within and without the region find the work. For the more earth-based work, everyone. Depends on the project. I’m not limited by region or issue or topic or mood.

What inspires you to write? If you are blocked, what do you do?

I just completed a YEAR of a poem-a-day, writing a poem or more a day for that period, so being blocked is a common myth we tell ourselves. Uninspired? Sometimes. Tire? Yes. Blocked? Never. No one is.

What other things do you do besides writing? Do you dance or play golf, etc.?

I was in higher ed for 15 years. I’m a painter and photographer. Write lots of fiction as well. Blog. Help manage an antique / vintage store. Buy and sell vintage lovelies.

What is your favorite part of the creative process?

Bringing something new into the world.

What is your advice to aspiring writers?

Read. Read. Read. Frakin write. Revise like hell. Submit your work. Get over the possibility that someone won’t like or “get” your work. That WILL happen.

Check out Larry’s work in Volume 3, Issue 2.