Hello, all! As I mentioned in my last post, our anthology group, Wandering Grove Press, has put out our first anthology: The Ceaseless Way: An Anthology of Wanderers’ Tales. The paperback version is on sale for $9.99 USD until the new year, so this is a great time to pick up a hard copy if you’re interested in one. If you prefer ebook, it’s available on a number of platforms for $5.99 and will remain at that price.
This is a collaborative effort, and so I’d like to introduce you to some of my collaborators. In that spirit, here’s an interview I conducted with Fraser Sherman, a North Carolina-based writer of nonfiction and speculative fiction, whom I’ve known since I was part of the Durham Writers’ Group more than ten years ago. For more details about Fraser’s two stories in our anthology, you can read his blog posts here and here (and check out his blog in general–he updates daily and has a lot of interesting things to say!)
(Fraser also interviewed me and two other collaborators, Ada Milenkovic Brown and Allegra Gulino, so please check out those interviews as well!)
- Do you think your two stories are a good representation of your usual style and subject matter? Is there anything about them that’s unusual for you?
Impossible Things Before Breakfast is very much my cup of tea. Historical fantasy, 1970s (the decade of my teen years. I have a lot of affection for it). Fiddler’s Black is darker and messier than usual for me. - Are there any anthologies or collections you’ve really enjoyed reading lately?
Janet and Roger Carden of Crimson Streets, an online pulp magazine, gave me copies of several anthologies of stories they’ve published (I was in the first one). They’ve been fun to read. - What writers have had the greatest influence on you throughout your writing journey?
HP Lovecraft has influenced a number of my stories, including Fiddler’s Black, though none of them turned out classically “Lovecraftian.” Arthur Conan Doyle and Raymond Chandler have influenced the style of some of my writing. And the Kaye Gibbons quote I mention below is a big influence on my editing. - What is your editing process like? How long does it take you to bring a story from start to finish?
No telling. It takes me several drafts to figure out where the story’s going, then a couple more (usually with beta-reader feedback) to work out the plot so it flows smoothly. Then I edit for errors, spelling and word choice. The novelist Kaye Gibbons says you should write until the next word is inevitable — I don’t think I usually succeed at that, but it’s what I aim for. - Do you have any hobbies that aren’t related to reading or writing?
Bicycling. Baking bread. Watching movies. Occasionally I do sudoku. - Are there any songs or pieces of artwork that capture the “vibe” of your stories (or of other stories in the anthology)?
Fiddler’s Black was inspired by Abba’s “Dum Dum Diddle” but it ended up poles apart. - Are there any real-world places that inspired your two stories?
I used Durham NC’s Bean Trader coffee shop for a scene in Impossible Things Before Breakfast. - What would be the ideal place and time to enjoy each of your stories? What snacks and drinks would pair well with your stories?
Your call, readers! If you read them eating something I hate, I won’t complain.
Thank you, Fraser, for your interview (and for being our rock and general tech wizard throughout the creation of this anthology). Tune in soon for more interviews and a bit more information about the anthology from my perspective!
Cover image by GetCovers; original cover concept by Arden Brooks.
Katherine Traylor 
3 thoughts on “An interview with Fraser Sherman of ‘The Ceaseless Way’”