Chas Halpern
Author Interview - Chas Halpern
Author of The Physics of Relationships
Lexi is a sixty-year-old widow whose solitary life is thrown into turmoil when a desperate young woman moves in with her, soon followed by the unexpected arrival of her best friend, who has separated from her husband of forty years. The Physics of Relationships is a highly readable, intimate story about loss, aging, female friendship, family, and renewal…told with grit and humor.
Author Interview - Chas Halpern
Author I draw inspiration from:
I admire so many authors. Here are just a few: Elizabeth Strout, Meg Wolitzer, Tobias Wolff, Abraham Verghese. I could go on....
Author Interview - Chas Halpern | Author I Draw Inspiration From
Favorite place to read a book:
I read in my living room, during the day. I don't read in bed. I like to be fully alert.
Book character I’d like to be stuck in an elevator with:
I wouldn't like to be stuck in an elevator with anyone. That sounds frightening. Of course, someone with superpowers could get us out (Superman?) or someone super intelligent (Sherlock Holmes?).
Author Interview - Chas Halpern | Book Character I’d Like to be Stuck in an Elevator With
The moment I knew I wanted to become an author:
It took me a while to write a novel...a long while. I wrote a few short stories while I was still in my twenties. Then I became interested in screenwriting. I eventually made a living as a scriptwriter and director for commercials and marketing videos. I wrote spec screenplays in my spare time, but I never had much luck with that. My screenplays were mostly character-driven, indie films. That's a hard sell. I eventually realized that I had more of a novelistic sensibility than a movie sensibility. That's when I decided to write novels.
Hardback, paperback, ebook or audiobook:
I read mostly paperbacks, unless it's a library book. I guess I'm just old-fashioned. I like to hold the book in my hands. My second choice would be an eBook. I don't mind that. I definitely prefer printed words. I listen to podcasts frequently, but when I read a novel, I like the printed word. It allows me to inject my own imagination into the story.
The last book I read:
I'm rereading OLIVE KITTREDGE by Elizabeth Strout. I'm blown away by her ability to describe emotional states without ever naming them outright. I'm inspired by her technique. For me, her portrait of a small town in Maine is like an exotic journey into a foreign land. But it's more than that. It's a journey into the heart and soul of its inhabitants.
Author Interview - Chas Halpern | The Last Book I Read
Pen & paper or computer:
I write on my computer. I've been doing that for so many years that I can't think (can't imagine) without my fingers on a keyboard.
My handwriting is almost illegible. And it takes too much time. I wouldn't be able to keep up with my thoughts.
As for my writing process, I write in the morning for 2 to 3 hours, five or six days a week. I find that it's important to be consistent with your writing in order to initiate the creative friction required to imagine a story. By "creative friction" I mean generating enough momentum that your mind starts to work unconsciously on your story, even when you're not writing.
That's especially important because I don't outline my stories in advance. Generally speaking, I let the characters tell me where the story should go.
Book character I think I’d be best friends with:
That's an interesting question, but I've never thought about that. I would be more inclined to become friends with the author of a story than a character in a story. I think I could be good friends with most authors.
If I weren’t an author, I’d be a:
For many years, I wanted to be an indie film director, an auteur, directing my own script. Even to produce a small film, you have to raise about $1 million. I tried, but failed to raise the money. Now that I'm writing novels, I'm perfectly content. Directors have to get up in the morning at 5:00 a.m and work for 10 or 12 hours a day, sometimes more. Ugh! I like being on my on schedule. All I need is a computer and my imagination. I don't need to raise a million dollars.
Favorite decade in fashion history:
Honestly, I like the freedom of fashion today. The fashion police have loosened the rules. You get to choose your own look. My look happens to be t-shirts and jeans. Boring! I know. But, as a writer, I spend most of my day inside my own head. And apparently, inside my head, nobody cares what I wear.
Place I’d most like to travel:
My wife is French and Swiss. When we travel, which is rare, we go to France and/or Switzerland to visit old friends and family. There are many places I would like to visit - Nigeria, for instance, because it is a country that has nurtured a number of very good writers. I get a sense that African is a continent full of energy, on the verge of becoming a cultural powerhouse. I would also find it interesting to visit Moldova, the land my paternal grandparents left to emigrate to the US.
My signature drink:
Does coffee count as a signature drink? I also drink red, tart cherry juice mixed with water everyday. I mix it with water because it's too sweet otherwise. I'm not a big drinker of alcohol, but I find it very hard to pass up a flute of champagne. Champagne makes me bubbly. Really! Is it just me? Or is there some scientific basis for that bubbly feeling?
Favorite artist:
My favorite artist is my wife, Pouké. I also love Francis Bacon. His portraits speak to me. They capture the vulnerability, the corruption, the dark side of humanity. There seems to be quite a bit of darkness manifesting today. Maybe it's always been there. Maybe I'm just getting more cynical as I age.
Number one on my bucket list:
I have no bucket list, per se. I'm doing exactly what I want to do, writing. I want to share my stories with as many readers as possible. That is how I communicate with the world around me. That is how I make my little mark on humanity.
Find more from the author:
http://ChasHalpernAuthor.com
http://chashalpern.com
https://www.facebook.com/chas.halpern/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/chashalp/
Instagram @guernicaeditions
Twitter: @guernica_ed Facebook: @guernicaed
About Chas Halpern:
I have made a living writing and directing videos for global tech companies (Google, Microsoft, Oracle, Cisco, Intel). I’m known as a storyteller, with a sub-specialty in humor. My novel, THE PHYSICS OF RELATIONSHIPS, will be published by Guernica Editions on November 1st of this year. I’m also a screenwriter. Awards include top honors at the international Script-to-Screen Festival. I wrote a PBS documentary about special effects in motion pictures, which was shown throughout the U.S. and internationally. I’ve written for a Disney Channel science series. And a dramatic comedy I wrote, “Positive”, has been optioned and is currently in development.
