RoguesAngels: Not My Ruckus by Chad Musick

Please welcome Chad Musick author of Not My Ruckus

Chad Musick will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

Not My Ruckus

by Chad Musick

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GENRE: Literary

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INTERVIEW:

1. What or who inspired you to start writing?

Arnold Lobel, the author of the Frog and Toadseries, was probably my first inspiration. I read those books so many times, and even though I can’t draw at all (at all), I knew I wanted to tell simple stories that made people feel good. Not My Ruckusisn’t simple and whether it makes people feel good is a complicated question, but I’ve maintained that desire to tell stories that feel real despite being obviously fictional.

2. What elements are necessary components for this genre?

The first question is what genre the book even is. There’s the “misery lit” genre, and I read a number of books in that vein after finishing Not My Ruckus, and I don’t think it really fits. Those tend to dwell on horrible detail after horrible detail, but I’m interested in telling a traditional story. It’s a story that has a lot of trauma, but it’s got the structure and pacing of a story. I think this is what separates contemporary (or historical, if you consider 1980 to be historical) from misery lit. It’s also in the “literary” pseudogenre, and for that I think you need some thingthat you focus on almost to the point of excess. In Not My Ruckusit’s how things sound.

3. How did you come up with your idea for your novel?

A mix of real life – my own and people I’ve known over the years – and some of the Greek tragedies, mostly subverted. I wanted to tell the story of someone growing up autistic and epileptic, undiagnosed, with people taking advantage of that but the person ultimately reclaiming themselves and their life.

4. What expertise did you bring to your writing?

In terms of story, I brought my own life and the stories of friends I’ve had. In terms of technical skill, I was a professional editor for a number of years. I’d wake up at 6 a.m. and write on my own books (Not My Ruckusis my first publication, but not the first book I wrote), and then at 9:30 I’d start fixing other people’s writing.

5. What would you want your readers to know about you that might not be in your bio?

I’m hilarious. Not My Ruckusis a Serious Book, but it’s still got fart jokes in it, and people acting silly, and siblings having in-jokes. Even my most serious stories tend to have jokes.

6. As far as your writing goes, what are your future plans?

I have a fairly intense day job, and writing helps keep me from going too deeply into the math/technical part of my brain and neglecting the creative side. I plan to keep writing for the rest of my life. Later this year, I have a story coming out in an anthology, and a poem being published, and I have another novel being published next year. The story and the next novel are connected, but Not My Ruckusis a standalone book.

7. If you could be one of the characters from this book, who would it be and why?

I would not want to be any of the characters in this book. I identify most strongly with Clare, which is why she’s the protagonist, but it was really painful being a teenager, especially one like her, and I wouldn’t want to do it again.

8. Do you belong to a critique group? If so how does this help or hinder your writing?

I do. I haven’t been as active lately, because I tend to work in cycles (ponder, write, edit, repeat), but I’ve found it really helpful to have other people reading my work to notice when small choices locally have made something inconsistent. As an example, one of my critique group noticed that I had described an object as being destroyed in one spot but had it appearing (later) in a different spot. Your own continuity errors can be hard to spot.

9. Do you outline your books or just start writing?

I decide on the main plot points – the “inciting event,” the climax, the resolution, and a few minor points along the way. After that, I just start writing. I generally have a specific number of scenes I intend for the book to be, and try to make each scene around 700-1000 words. Sometimes these get combined during editing.

10. Who is your favorite character in the book. Can you tell us why?

“Opa,” the grandfather of Clare’s neighbor, is probably my favorite. He’s got a very clear idea about how the world works, but he maintains some optimism anyway. I’m still not sure whether he’s fearless or just supremely confident in himself.

11. Anything else you might want to add?

Not My Ruckuswill almost certainly break your heart. But I do my best to make sure it’s put back together again. The language is at a 7th-grade level (12-year-olds), but there’s a lot of layers within that.

BLURB:

Folks know 14-year-old Clare isn't normal, even for a tomboy. She runs too much, talks too little, carries a gun too often, and holds a grudge forever. Only her papa's job at the bank keeps gossip quiet. It's unwise to risk the cold anger of the man who knows everyone's secrets.

Clare feels prepared for everything from fire, to flood, to what her momma calls demon attacks. When her neighbor Esther kisses her, though, Clare has no ready script. Maybe she could write one, given time she doesn't have. At the moment of that first kiss, Esther's mom is bleeding out from a gunshot wound.

Clare can read the signs everyone else is determined to ignore. A murder was only the beginning. Esther needs protection, whether she wants it or not, and Clare won't abandon her friend just because things are hard.

Maybe one day she'll be forgiven for doing what's needed.

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EXCERPT:

I was watching the sunlight coming through the clerestory— with the attic gone, its windows got a fancier name—creeping ever closer to the edge of the oriental when the doorbell rang.

I peeped through the hole and opened the door for Esther. Papa had said I couldn’t leave, but he hadn’t forbidden me company. She came in without even a howdy, which is what best friends can do, I guess.

She started crying hard and pulling heavy on my neck and blubbering up her words. Finally I figured out she was saying “She’s dead,” over and over.

Esther just wanted to cry a bit and not talk, so we went back to my bedroom. I pulled back the covers and let her crawl in, and then I covered her up and sat on the bed. The canopy was making the light hazy, and I could see the sunbeam traced in dust. Momma didn’t approve of dust, so I should probably clean it up before she got back, but I hoped she’d understand that your friends are more important.

Cleanliness might be next to Godliness, but people must matter at least a bit.

Esther calmed down after a while, except for the occasional sniffle.

“My mom died yesterday.”

I was the world’s worst friend. I had been so relieved momma was okay that I hadn’t even checked on Esther. Me being upset made her cry again, and we went back and forth like that for a long time.

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Chad Musick grew up in Utah, California, Washington, Texas, and (most of all) Alaska. He fell in love in California and then moved with his family to Japan, where he's found happiness. He earned a PhD in Mathematical Science but loves art and science equally.

Despite a tendency for electronic devices to burst into flame after Chad handles them, he persists in working in various technical and technology-related roles.

Chad makes no secret of being epileptic, autistic, and arthritic, facts that inform how he approaches both science and the arts.

Author web links:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheMusicks

Website: https://cinnabarmoth.com/chad-musick/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/20831411.Chad_Musick

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Not-My-Ruckus-Chad-Musick/dp/1953971008

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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE

Chad Musick will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

RAFFLECOPTER:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/28e4345f3742