Meet the Authors: Stephen Conley

Today, it is our pleasure to introduce...

Stephen Conley

Brief Bio:
Although Stephen doesn't currently have anything in print, an interview he conducted with crime master James Ellroy is scheduled to be published in a 2011 collection. His work can be seen online at Pulp Metal Magazine and at Thunderdome: The Writer's Collective. He attended a creative writing workshop taught by Cliff Hudder in the fall of 2010 at Lonestar Montgomery College and has a story published in their local journal. His short story, If My Parents Don't Love Me (I'll Go Live with My Rats), will be published in the Stories for Sendai anthology. He blogs at The Stooge: http://st00ge.wordpress.com/.

What genres do you write?
I'm mostly interested in crime stories or realistic portrayals of the mentally ill, which is where my story came from. I saw a documentary of a little girl born with schizophrenia and I imagined her as a functioning adult. I'm bad at metaphors and symbolism right now so that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

What are you currently writing? Sum it up in 10 words or less.
Kid in ghetto finds Koran and becomes Muslim amidst gangsters.


What do you do when you're not writing?
I love breweries and going out on the lake or to concerts. I've been keeping myself out of trouble lately though so a lot of time is spent playing with my dogs or watching the HBO program The Wire.

What is your ultimate goal as a writer?
If I can write one good book I'll be content. But my ultimate goal in my writing and in life is to make people happy. That's it.

How close are you to achieving this goal?
I make people happy all the time. Not even close to the other goal though.

What is the single most important piece of advice you can give a fellow writer?
Read what you want to write. And don't be afraid to put your work out there. It's like showing parts of yourself that you keep hidden otherwise. The world will never see you if you keep it to yourself.