Pump Up Your Book Chats with Stan Crader

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ABOUT STAN CRADER

Stan Crader’s first book, ‘The Bridge’ spent several days on the best seller list for Christian fiction at both BarnesandNoble.com and Amazon.com. His articles about flying have been published in flying magazines and local newspapers. He won a Bronze Quill award from the International Association of Business Communications for articles written for his company’s quarterly newsletter.

Stan was born and raised in Bollinger County Missouri. Coming of age in rural Missouri provided him the material for many of the rich characters in his books. He credits the variety of jobs he had as a child and the people with which he worked for providing him his creative foundation.

Stan’s childhood jobs included grocery store carry out, a paper route, mowing lawns, farm equipment set-up, sawmills, and janitor. “You learn a great deal about people when you see what groceries they purchase,” Stan says.

After graduating from high school, he attended the University of Missouri, where he met his future wife, Debbie at a Missouri / Nebraska football game. It was Debbie who first made Stan realize that his childhood was unique.

They spent the early years of their marriage living in Bollinger County, Missouri. Stan joined the family business and Debbie worked as a community nurse. As a nurse, working with a caring country doctor, she began to collect stories of her own.

The two of them raised three boys and a golden retriever as the life experiences continued. Stan began writing Christmas letters. Friends and family began to look forward to the somewhat informative but largely humorous Christmas epistle.

Stan’s first novel was written after the encouragement of those on his Christmas letter mailing list and the recipients of the company’s quarterly newsletter. He’s flattered beyond measure each time someone who has read ‘The Bridge’ asks about a sequel.

Visit Stan’s site: http://www.stancrader.com

Please note that all proceeds go to support Resurrecting Lives, a non-profit that supports veterans with traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The Interview

Q: Welcome Stan. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and how long you’ve been writing?

A: I’ve been writing for business for more than thirty years. In fact, I’ve won a few awards for business writing and that’s what fooled me into thinking I was an author, which is a little different than being a writer.

My writing for pleasure began with a Christmas letter, which was intended to be an annual newsletter sans the gag-me list of children’s championship accomplishment. After a few years family members begin to suggest I write a book. Having grown up in a very small town, I’d collected a lot of material on which to pen a good humorous novel, so the hard work of writing a novel and becoming an author began.

All of the proceeds from book sales has always been donated to charity. Over the years proceeds have been given to Mid America Teen Challenge, Young Life, and Melaina’s Playland. Going forward proceeds will be directed to www.resurrectinglives.org, an organization devoted to veterans suffering from TBI.

Q: Can you please tell us about your book and why you wrote it?

A: I began the book to fulfill a promise I’d made to my mother who had by then passed away. But the project soon took on a life of its own and I decided to make the book a tribute to rural America. My goal then became to weave story that would provoke the reader’s memory of their glorious childhood.

Q: What were some of the biggest challenges you faced writing it?

A: The first hurdle was to learn to write a 100,000 word novel verses a 2000 word news article. I compare the difference between a sprinter and a long distance runner. I had to learn a new writing skill; that was monumental. And then the time it takes to write a book. Writing and editing a book requires an enormous amount of time. It’s a commitment on the part of the author and their family.

Q: Do you have a press kit and what do you include in it? Does this press kit appear online and, if so, can you provide a link to where we can see it?

A: www.stancrader.com promotes my writing and provides information about me as a person. And I’m one of a billion people with a facebook account http://www.facebook.com/ManofStihl where I post items which I hope are of interest to friends. I recently began posting to Twitter https://twitter.com/stancrader and have a small following there. My goal is to create on on-line presence to promote my brand as an interesting person and author.

Q: Have you either spoken to groups of people about your book or appeared on radio or TV? What are your upcoming plans for doing so?

A: I’ve spoken to countless civic groups, book clubs, and high school students about writing, my books, and other subject. I jump at the opportunity to be a guest speaker and have a list of subjects on which to speak. I been a guest on several radio stations and have been featured in newspapers to discuss my writing as well as flying adventures, such as flying the Lewis & Clark trial, or flying a small plane from Missouri to Athens, Greece.

Q: Do you have an agent and, if so, would you mind sharing who he/is is? If not, have you ever had an agent or do you even feel it’s necessary to have one?

A: I don’t have an agent. I’d love to have an agent, but getting one is such an arduous process I’ve haven’t taken the time to do so.

Q: Did you, your agent or publisher prepare a media blitz before the book came out and would you like to tell us about it?

A: I recently wised up and hired a publicist – LWS Literary Services to handle promoting of all books past and present. My business is marketing but I find the promotion of one’s self very close to detestable. Lynn at LWS has been a great help in preparing and guiding me through the process.

Q: Do you plan subsequent books?

A: Of course there will be more books; once a writer always a writer. That’s like asking a photographer if there will be more photos. The questions is when and if the subject will be of interest to others.

Q: Thank you for your interview, stan. Would you like to tell my readers where they can find you on the web and how everyone can buy your book?

A: Thank you for the interview. www.stancrader.com features links to my utube, blog site, and information about the books. The books can be ordered directly from me or Amazon or Barnes & Noble. All books are available in paperback and eBook.

ABOUT THE BRIDGE

Tommy Thompson recalls with vivid detail the summer of 1967, when he was twelve years old and living in a small town in rural America. At that time in his life, all he wanted was a Honda motorbike, and he believed the smartest person in the world was his Uncle Cletus. The Bridge follows Tommy’s summer-long quest for the Honda and his love, Wendy, whom he pursues with the comical romanticism of a young boy.
During the course of the summer Tommy helps his best friend, Booger, cope with family tragedy. He is terrorized by Clyde Goodpasture, the biggest bully in the sixth grade, and the town of Colby is shaken by news that its hat factory will close. While he isn’t a religious child, Tommy faces these challenges armed with the few Bible verses that he knows and the support of his Christian family. Tommy has a knack for doing the right thing and ultimately makes a sacrifice that shows without a doubt that his heart is in the right place.

ABOUT PAPERBOY

Paperboy tells the story as only an afternoon paperboy in rural America in the sixties can. Thousands of readers identified with the unique characters of Colby while reading The Bridge. They grew to love Tommy and the band of boys, were entertained by their childish pranks, and touched by their generosity.

In Paperboy, change is coming to Colby. The shoe factory has sold and a hat factory is taking its place. A factory manager has been named and he’s definitely not from Colby. There’s an influx of interesting newcomers.

The high school principal is also new to Colby. He must deal with teenage pregnancy, the snooping high school office secretary, and the Colby Curls rumor mill. He, too, has a mysterious past and uses it to his advantage.

The pregnant teen and her auto-mechanic single mother aren’t Colby natives either. Rumors about both abound. The mother has a past which touches the present, and eventually involves the entire town. Tommy and Booger, while delivering the Colby Telegraph, discover that Colby’s patriarch, Mr. Koch, has a heroic but classified history. While raking leaves for Mrs. Whitener, they learn the origin of her accent and how she got to Colby. It’s not what most people think.

Jupiter Storm, the town’s primary purveyor of gossip, whose opinion always exceeds his knowledge, is perpetually annoying. But Tommy and Booger learn that Jupiter is a decorated World War II veteran. And when a threatening stranger appears on the scene, the entire town learns of Jupiter’s unique but redeeming skill. How will Colby be different, and how will it be the same?

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Question of the Day

How do you make sales happen for you?

A lot of hard work! I sponsor a lot of on line parties, festivals and contests. Book sales don’t magically happen, believe me. An author has to work hard to earn her readers. And then she has to work hard to keep them by giving them something they’ll enjoy reading. I try hard to make my books worth a reader’s time.

-- Sheila Roberts, Author of Winter at the Beach