Joshua Danker-Dake

answers the Usual Questions

Joshua Danker-Dake

Joshua Danker-Dake is an American writer and editor.

He also serves as the Strategy and Tactics Editor for Diplomacy World, the flagship publication of the Diplomacy hobby.

Has your interaction with fans, for example, at conventions, affected your work?

Not directly, no. It's great, though, as far as keeping morale and motivation high.

When people come up to me and say, "I really liked your book," even when they're just being polite that never gets old.

Is there any particular incident (a letter, a meeting, a comment that stands out?

A number of fans have said to me, "The Retail was great. When are you going to write a sequel?" I'd never really thought about a sequel; I had one story to tell with those characters, and I told it. But then Publisher's Weekly liked the book so well they said, "Here's to a sequel," so at the very least now I'm open to the idea, should it ever sufficiently coalesce in my head.

Do you have a favourite author or book (or writer or film or series) that has influenced you or that you return to?

Oh, there are so many. C.S. Lewis. Tolkien. Orwell. Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Philip Jose Farmer's Riverworld series. T.H. White's The Once and Future King. Folkt ales and mythology of all kinds. Miyazaki';s wonderful film, Nausicaa and the Valley of the Wind.

Who is the person you would most like to be trapped in a lift with? or a spaceship?

Saint Paul. And a translator, since my ancient Greek is at a toddler level.

Who is the person you would most DISlike to be trapped in a lift with? Or a spaceship?

Jeffrey Dahmer.

book cover, Retail by Joshua Danker-Dake; x

What would you pack for space? (Is there a food, beverage, book, teddy bear, etc that you couldn't do without?)

Coffee. Chap Stick. NASB Bible. My collection of bombastic European power metal.

What is the most important thing you would like to get/achieve from your work?

Money. Celebrity. Movie and TV deals. Pop Vinyls of my characters. Heavy metal songs written about my fantasy and sci-fi works.

What is the special satisfaction of your work?

Improving in the craft. Attempting to tell a bigger, more complex story than I've ever tried before, and then actually doing a halfway decent job of pulling it off. Writing something and then coming back to it and being able to honestly say, "Hey, this is actually pretty good."

submitted by Joshua Danker-Dake

November, 2015

For other answers to The Usual Questions Click here

Just the facts:
Born: St. Louis, MO
Resides: Tulsa, OK
Bibliography/Awards:
Bibliography:
The Retail (novel)
The Spare Room and Other Stories (anthology; with Sean Danker-Smith)
Awards:
Best Screenplay, Oklahoma Writers Federation, Inc. contest, 2015

Web site: www.joshuadankerdake.com
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