Author’s Month on Clutch – A Salute to Scribes: Freeze

Tuesday Nov 11, 2008 – by Clutch

Sometimes a good book really is all you need. They have the power to transform, take your mind off of troubles, whisk you to fantasy lands, and even if for a mere hour, allow you peek into the intimate details of someone else’s life. So we’re saluting the authors who keep us on the edge of our seats and leave us wanting more–sharing with you our favorite scribes who put pen to paper and uplift voices for the unheard.

Name: Freeze
Website: www.randomhouse.com

Clutch: Who or what inspired you to become a writer?
Freeze: I discovered a passion for writing while I was doing a nine year bid in prison for selling drugs. I use to charge guys to write letters for them. So I guess my biggest inspiration was the guys that I did time with. I listened to a million and one war stories. And I also looked at them and knew that I needed to do something different with my life so I don’t come back and have to hear a million more. [LOL]

Clutch: If you weren’t a writer, what do you think you would be doing?
Freeze: Before going on an extended vacation (courtesy of our beloved federal government) I had a record label in Virginia Beach, VA. Music has always been a love of mine, so I’d probably be working on putting out a platinum selling artist.

Clutch: In your opinion, what’s the one thing one must possess if they want to become a professional writer?
Freeze: It’s my belief that if any writer wants to stand out and not just be another author with a book on the shelf, he or she must possess creativity and the gift to hold the reader’s attention from start to finish.

Clutch: How has the Internet and Social Media helped you as a writer?
Freeze: Well, of course I didn’t have access to the Internet while I was locked up so I had to depend on other authors and writers. They kept me informed. I would read any and everything I could get my hands on….books, magazines, newspapers.

Clutch: Tell us about your current book?
Freeze: Oh, this right here….This is that FIRE!
Follow young Arkadian Frost as he and childhood friends rob banks to obtain money just to survive. After going to prison where he was forced to be a man, Arkadian came home with ambitions of being The Man. The only problem is that his best friend, Mike is already the man and will not bow out gracefully. Greed and a secret divides their crew. Friends become enemies. People die. The only person he can trust is his woman ShuShawn, who is his ride or die chick. Together no one can stop them, except maybe the Feds…. who were watching everything.

Clutch: What advice would you give to up and coming writers?
Freeze: When I write (long pause for effect) — I want the reader to see it in his or her head like they’re watching a movie. People have been emailing me constantly telling me how much they love the book and that I should turn it into a movie. I also make my characters believable. Readers fall in love with their favorite character.