Today, I’d like to extend a warm welcome to Larry Garner. Let’s get started!

What is your name and where are you from?

My name is Larry Garner, and I’m currently living in a small town called Hooper in the south-central Rockies in Colorado.

Cool beans. Larry, tell us, what would your perfect writing / reading room look like?

I like a warm, cozy room with barn-wood panels on the walls, hardwood flooring, and southwestern area rugs. A nice old roll-top wooden desk and a word processor hooked up to WiFi would make it complete.

Sounds comfy! Are you employed outside of writing?

I am retire, but still keep busy with various endeavors to make some extra money for my old car addiction. I paint signs, do some welding, have even built a food truck and a taco wagon.

Nice. What was your childhood dream?

I’ve been crazy about cars and speed since I can remember. I always wanted to be a race-car driver. I’m lucky enough to have been able to fulfill that dream.

Okay. When did you publish your first book? What was that like?

I published my first novel, D-E-D, Dead, in late 2012. It was a crazy adventure. I had been told for years that I should write a book about all my stories I tell, but decided to go full-on fiction, and that allowed me the freedom to just let it flow. I’ve had no formal training, don’t use an outline, just let the characters tell me what’s happening. I didn’t even plan to publish, thinking I’d pass the manuscript around to friends and family for fun. My wife said it needed published so that was a whole different set of things to study and learn. I’m glad she persisted until I got it published and shared with a broader fan base.

Who is your favorite writer?

I read three or four novels a week. I have many favorite authors, but my all-time favorite is Robert McCammon. His body of work is eclectic and always leaves me happy I read it.

Three or four novels a week? You better gone and read then! Lol. Are you married Larry? Children?

I am married to a wonderful woman named Marcia. We will celebrate our thirtieth anniversary in January. We have 29-year-old twin sons.

Get outta here Larry. I’m a twin too! And congrats on the 30-year anniversary. That is amazing! Now, Larry, what takes up too much of your time?

It depends on who you ask…but I feel I spend too much time worrying about things I have no control over.

Ooh wee. I think we can all relate to that one. What kind of music are you into?

I’m a rock lover, mostly hard rock. I like the old stuff, but also listen to current artists like Disturbed, Volbeat, Halestorm, and others. I also really enjoy southern rock and especially Blackberry Smoke while I’m writing.

What’s the most difficult thing about being a writer? The most exciting thing?

To me, the most difficult thing about being a writer is making sure I give the reader the best story I can produce, something they will appreciate. The most exciting thing is having readers take the time to contact me and tell me they enjoy my writing.

I love that. Why is writing important to you?

It probably sounds cliched, but I feel it’s important to give back, to provide more material for constant readers like myself. I have enjoyed so many hours of reading since the age of five that I honestly feel a compulsion to make a contribution to the books available for others to pick from.

Well said. What do you love / don’t love about yourself?

Probably the fact that if I decide to do something, I just do it. I don’t listen to the nay-sayers and critics. I do things my way, and feel that if I am pleased with the result, that’s what is most important. I have a tendency to feel that my opinion is the only one that matters. I’m working on changing that, but progress is slow.

Ha! You crack me up Larry. What genre do you write in, why?

One of my novels was a finalist in the Colorado Book Awards in the Crime/Mystery category. The second novel was a finalist in the CBA’s as a Thriller. I call them action-adventure or action thrillers. I write as I do because it is the style of writing I most often like to read. Lots of action, unforgettable characters, and very little fluff.

Outside of writing, what are some of your passions?

Family first. Friends a close second, followed by community. Then there are the cars, the motorcycles, racing, driving fast, and generally anything that turns money into noise.

What advice would you give your younger self?

Climb down, don’t jump!

Lol. Okay. Thanks so much for joining us Larry!

Larry Garner. Copyright©2018. Used with permission.

Bio.

Larry “Animal” Garner is a lifelong gearhead, an avid reader, and author. A U.S. Navy veteran, Garner has worked as a welder/fabricator, auto body repairman, custom painter, farm mechanic and farm equipment designer/builder, and sign painter among many other jobs over the years since his fourteenth birthday. He has designed and built custom cars, motorcycle, race vehicles, and farm equipment. Garner has founded three different charitable organizations involved with raising money to help families of sick or dying children and other community projects. A talented fund-raiser and promoter, he is well known throughout the areas he’s lived. Garner’s first novel, “D-E-D, DEAD“ was a finalist in the 2013 Colorado Book Awards in the Crime/Mystery genre. His second novel, “DED Reckoning-Vengeance takes a road trip“ was published in October 2016 as the second book in the “Hammer” series of action novels. It was named as a finalist in the Colorado Book Awards in March 2017. The third novel in the “Hammer” series will be published in early 2019. Larry is a Colorado native and still lives there with his wife Marcia in a mountain valley in the south-central part of the state.

Keep up with Larry at the links below!

Author Website: http://larryanimalgarner.com/

Amazon Author Central: https://www.amazon.com/Larry-Animal-Garner/e/B00956BATU

Facebook: Personal page – Larry Garner https://www.facebook.com/larry.garner.165

Author page – Author Larry “Animal” Garner https://www.facebook.com/larryanimalgarner/

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/LarryAnimalGarner

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Larry+%22Animal%22+Garner?_requestid=13592519

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6029437.Larry_Animal_Garner

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorlarryanimalgarner/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Larry_Garner69

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