Guest Author: Boo Riley (aka Dave Arp)

Dave Arp (aka Boo Riley) in Alaska

Welcome to Chirp 'N Chatter, Boo! (Love the moniker!) Also love the photo...but it sure looks cold. Brrr! 

Congratulations on the release of ME AND JAKE. It sounds like an interesting, touching story with bursts of fun lying in wait here and there. Let's chat a little, shall we?

I'm always curious about the story behind the story. What inspired you to write Me and Jake?

Actually, Jake did, a Black and Tan Coonhound, he and the little boy, now a man, who called Jake his friend. I met Anthony Turner on a drilling rig off the coast of Louisiana in 2004. He told me about the childhood he and his brother lived and escaped from, and I decided to document it, as it happened. I soon discovered that no one wants to read about a man abusing his children. I rewrote it in a present/past/present/past format so readers could see the redemption from the beginning—with the same result, no takers. Me and Jake is the fiction tale, a hint at abuse and survival that never seems to get told. It took me fourteen years to finally sell just a small portion of my friend’s story.

Persistence pays off yet again! Perhaps it'll take hold and readers will be raring for more of Jake and his friends. Speaking of readers...what book are you currently reading?

Presently I’m reading two books: the Bible (for the nth time) and Josephus The Complete Works by Flavius Josephus and translated by William Whiston A.M. I’m four months into what I can only call a side-by-side comparison of Biblical History. Josephus’s works is twenty-seven hundred pages. I’m on page five hundred eighty. It’s a journey.

A journey indeed...both of your current reading choices! Do you usually insert a spiritual theme into your books? If so, do you have a favorite?

I do insert a spiritual theme, but not always as per a set plan or outline. I’m a by-the-seat-of-my-britches writer who likes to wait until my characters stop to ask for directions before I decide which way they’re going to go. I can’t say that I have a favorite theme. Though, the Biblical story of Joseph and his brothers is special to me. Me and Jake leans that direction.

I hear you. I write by the seat of my pants too, most of the time -- although I'm learning that it's necessary to at least lay out a simple plot, because those editors just think they need to know what a book's about before they'll buy it. Imagine that! :) 

Joseph's story is one of the most beloved, most inspiring stories in the Bible. I love it too. 

Thank you for stopping by to chat for a moment, Boo. Best of luck to you and Jake!

  

About Me and Jake:

Ty told his twin brother, Cameron, that he felt like something was going to happen to change their lives. Little did he know how prophetic that statement would be, or how soon it would come to pass. What seems like a series of coincidences are anything but, and what’s more amazing, Ty’s coon dog, Jake, might not be a dog at all.

Ohhh...that pulls at the whiskers of curiosity, doesn't it? If Jake isn't a dog, what might he be? I know what I'm thinking...what about you?

Grab your copy of Me and Jake and journey along with the
uhm..dog?...and his friends.