Seumas Gallacher is becoming a bit of a local celebrity, backed by the growth of an online reputation as a successful publishing guru and a marketing maverick! The Abu Dhabi based Scot manages the entire creative and business cycle, from conceiving and writing his thrillers, to marketing them through traditional bookstores and via Amazon.com (where he has achieved over 60,000 downloads so far!).
Tempo tracked Seumas down to get him to reveal his secrets. To say the man is ‘exuberant’ is an understatement. We found his energy and enthusiasm infectious…
When did it all start for you?
I dabbled with short stories, articles and poetry as a typical rebellious school kid, thinking, as one does as a teenager, that my stuff might change the world. (Fat chance!) The writing bug was always in me I suppose, and I decided about four years ago it was finally ‘just time’ to write ‘that novel’ that we’re all supposed to have inside us. That resulted in THE VIOLIN MAN’S LEGACY, and was followed very swiftly by VENGEANCE WEARS BLACK…So far so good.
I try to manage/budget my time among the various elements of writing, editing, blogging, and the SOSYAL NETWURKIN universe, which is paramount to build and maintain a presence these days.
I’m a former banker and now have my own Management Advisory Services business that assists corporate and family businesses that need restructuring; from gentle realignment all the way to complete turnaround scenarios.
Where do your ideas for stories come from?
Ideas jump into my head from all over the place. As a crime thriller author, it’s so easy to just watch the cable news channels and see all the nonsense that’s happening…rich pickings galore right there. Then I add some of my own experiences, an amalgam of characters, of places I’ve known. Sometimes the real life stuff is crazier and less credible than fiction. Writers I admire come from all genres, but constants are Sir Winston Churchill, Charles Dickens, and John Steinbeck among the oldies, with newer authors like Stuart MacBride, Carlos Ruiz Zafon and Lee Child to the fore.
What’s your writing process like?
Mornings are allocated for creative work— the actual story-telling— I’m what’s known as a ‘Pantser’ rather than a “Planner’; I tend to go with the flow to see where the plot will lead me, although I generally have a strong idea of how the stories end.
Tell us about your books
The first two books I’ve already mentioned feature a trio of former SAS commandos, running their own specialized security firm, looking after high-value shipments and personnel. They encounter highly-organized crime cartels in various parts of the world and set about using their black ops skills to sort out the baddies. The third novel is now Work In Progress “SAVAGE PAYBACK” with more of the same. I’ve at least another two books in concept stage in my head already. I’m told this is a ‘good’ thing as I’ve created a franchise, and readers seem to embrace that.
How have you managed to sell your books?
Downloads on Amazon Kindle have been simply astonishing, with 62,000+ in aggregate to date. I also have paperback copies now in Jashanmal, Borders and Macgrudy’s outlets, as well as at the airports in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. I’m also in the process of placing them in hotel lobby shops around the UAE. I’m actively seeking a UK-based literary agency in order to try to acquire a major global publisher.
I have to say, the challenge starts AFTER the writing finishes. The new buzz phrase is ‘BUILDING THE PLATFORM’ which entails getting your name and work in front of readers and (hopefully) buyers. I’ve had a steep learning curve on how to properly utilize Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads, LinkedIn and blogging.
The inevitable question: what advice do you offer aspiring authors?
The most constant advice I give is to stop ‘aspiring’ and ‘be’! If you write, then you are already a writer, and call yourself such. After that, it’s like any other trade or craft…it’s vital to practice. That may sound boring, but for example, I started doing a blog a year ago, not even knowing what a blog was. In December I was voted ‘Blogger of the Year’…so that proves that all things are possible. Lastly and eternally, ENJOY it!
By Ajir Shujahi
