#ThursdayswithTaryn with Fellow KY #author Michael Embry

Thursdays with Taryn

Michael Embry

Please help me welcome my fellow Kentucky author, Michael Embry to Thursdays with Taryn and find out more about his recently released short story collection, Laments.

 

What book(s) most influenced you as a writer?

I suppose the biggest influence was Ernest Hemingway. I liked his short sentences and carefully chosen words. Most of my favorite writers are from the first half of the 20^th century including John Steinbeck, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and William Faulkner. As I’ve grown older, I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for Mark Twain. Of contemporary authors, I like John Updike, Anne Tyler, Richard Ford, Sue Grafton, Elmore Leonard, Cormac McCarthy, and John Irving (and many others). 

If you read books more than once, which ones do you tend to read over and over again?

 I must admit that I don’t read books over and over. I may go back and read a passage, chapter, or excerpt, but I find that there are so many books to read and so little time, so I move on to another book. I do go in cycles about what I read. Sometimes I’ll read mysteries, then move on to romances, then to biographies, etc. I like variety.

Tuesday Trio-

1)   Movie- Citizen Kane

2)   Music- The Moody Blues

3)   Decadent Dessert- Red Velvet cake

What’s the most interesting or bizarre bit of trivia you’ve learned from researching for a novel?

 When writing “A Confidential Man,” I learned that chemical compounds can be broken down on clothes to determine a brand of whisky.

Novel on your Nightstand:

Who/what are you currently reading? “All the Living” by C.E. Morgan.

Whom would you cast as your Main Characters/Hero/Heroine in any of your stories if your book became a movie? (doesn’t have to be actors)

Since my novels generally feature older characters, David Strathairn and Meryl Streep would be my choices to bring them to life on the silver screen.

Blurb-

Sometimes best intentions become laments over time. A coach uses harsh discipline on a sensitive player he wants to become a leader. A father wants his son to learn responsibility so he suggests he join the military. A mother hesitates to help her daughter because of moral issues. A friend tries to protect a widow from harm’s way. These stories and more delve into actions that don’t always turn out as planned.

Available at the following-

Amazon

Barnes & Noble

Smashwords

Createspace

Michael Embry was born in Louisville, Ky. He spent more than 30 years as an award-winning journalist, working for Kentucky newspapers in Madisonville and Lexington; a national news service with stops in New York, Milwaukee, Lexington, and Louisville; and as editor of Kentucky Monthly magazine.

Embry graduated from Eastern Kentucky University with a journalism degree. He also has 45 hours in graduate work in special education.

He has written three non-fiction sports books (as Mike Embry, five novels and a short-story collection. His latest book, released Aug. 10, 2012, is titled "Laments." His novels are the young adult "Shooting Star," murder/mystery "A Confidential Man," and contemporary mainstream "Foolish Is The Heart," "A Long Highway," and "The Touch."

Embry is listed in Who's Who in America and is involved with the Kentucky Book Fair in Frankfort, Ky. He has served as a judge in the Kentucky Literary Awards contest. He is also a member of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and U.S. Basketball Writers Association. He is listed in Who's Who in America.

He lives with his wife, Mary, and Yorkie, Baxter, in Frankfort.

You can learn more about Michael at his

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