The Palms by Clay Anderson

5/5/2024

Multi-volume author, Clay Anderson introduces us to his latest novel, “The Palms”:
Sixty-eight-year-old Ronnie Wells has recently been paroled for a murder he committed thirty-six years ago. He lives in a run-down trailer park outside Pensacola, Florida. Daily life for Ronnie changes when he befriends Mary, the seven-year-old girl who lives next door with her mother, Clara, a drug-addicted prostitute. In Mary, Ronnie finds the daughter he never got to raise. Clara is reluctant to the friendship at first but soon realizes Ronnie is the only man she’s ever known who didn’t want to use her. To escape Joe, Clara’s violent pimp, Clara and Mary move in with Ronnie. With Ronnie’s help, Clara gets clean, but her past still haunts her. Her relapse kicks off the series of events that lead Joe to kidnap Mary, putting her in the hands of human traffickers. Ronnie must decide if he will return to his old, violent ways to save Mary.

Literary fiction is an interesting version of almost any genre. The writing is leisurely and permits more depth and texture in a story. Everything is more detailed and the emotions grow naturally.
The Palms is no exception and fits well within this genre.
Exploring the past of some of the characters provides a richly embroidered backdrop for their daily life and actions. The author captured the essence of his characters so well.
I love the story and the writing, however, only 4.5 stars from me because I am so picky about some things.

You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Palms-Clay-Anderson-ebook
https://www.goodreads.com/-the-palms
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/the-palms-clay-anderson

You can follow the author:
https://twitter.com/DClayAnderson
https://www.dclayanderson.com
https://www.instagram.com/clayanderson_author
https://www.threads.net/@clayanderson_author

Copyright © 2024 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction

40 Comments

Clay Anderson link

5/5/2024 04:34:02 pm

Thank you for writing the review and allowing me the opportunity to be interviewed.

Mark

5/5/2024 05:51:59 pm

Welcome to the Word Refiner channel, the home of the only live interview for authors on the internet.

You are welcome, Clay. I appreciate that you have hired me to promote your book. Let's get started.

First question.

Please, tell us more about yourself. Perhaps something a little bit beyond your bio.

5/5/2024 08:18:41 pm

I am thirty-eight years old and live in the mountains of North Georgia with my two dogs. I hold a BA from Kennesaw State University, an MA from Mississippi State University in American History, and an MFA in Creative Writing.

I taught American History for six years, but I decided to return to school and get my MFA at Reinhardt University.

In October 2019, I opened Bear Book Market, an independent bookstore in Dahlonega, Georgia. We will be celebrating our fifth year of operation in October.

I am attending school at the University of Georgia for a Social Work degree. I want to help people with literacy in the poorer regions of North Georgia.

5/5/2024 08:50:48 pm

Higher education can be wonderful, the knowledge gained, the skills learned and connections that can last a lifetime.

I think you are the first owner of a bookstore that also writes books I have had the pleasure of making an acquaintance with. I love bookstores, whether old or new, they contain valuable treasure for me.

Improving literacy is a noble goal. I am working with my two younger granddaughters, 8 1/2 and 10 1/2, trying to increase their literacy and love of books in general.

New questions.

What is your favorite genre to read for pleasure?

Has writing changed the pleasure of reading for you?

5/6/2024 03:06:30 pm

That is a challenging question for me to answer. I enjoy everything from Southern Gothic literature to Reece Witherspoon's book club picks. But, what I read the most is history. My favorite book is Ordinary Men by Christopher Browning.

No other book has shifted my philosophical outlook on the human condition quite like it. In essence, the book is about how ordinary men committed extraordinary evil and that, given the right circumstances, we all could. Those who understand it's possible will more likely not engage in evil acts because they recognize what it is.

Writing has kept the pleasure of reading the same. Reading is my method of self-care, so I always make time for it. Also, reading history books always sparks ideas for my writing, especially when creating characters. Everyone would be surprised to realize how similar we act and react like our counterparts in the 19th, 18th, and 17th centuries.

I'll also pick up the latest Reece Witherspoon or Jenna Bush book club books to read. I have to keep up with the latest reading trends so I can relate to them and give recommendations to my customers. Name any popular author; I've read at least one of their books.

5/6/2024 03:46:05 pm

When I was much younger, I read sci-fi almost exclusively with an occasional fantasy story thrown in. I love stories about time travel and dragons. Since promoting books for nearly 10 years, I have become a fan of good writing in almost any genre. My favorite genres are, in order, sci-fi, fantasy, historical fiction, and cozy mysteries. I enjoy pretty much everything I read but that is as far as my list goes at this time.

That book sounds quite good. I understand that we are all capable of evil in different ways. In daily life, it manifests when we think about ourselves alone and give no consideration for what the other person might be going through.

Reading as self-care is important for me also.

As people, we haven't changed that much over time, merely the trappings and the toys we play with.

New questions.

Why do you write?

How has writing changed your life?

5/6/2024 07:06:06 pm

That's an excellent question. I started out writing The Palms to come to grips with this duality I found with my grandfather. Ronnie is based on him. Although my grandfather never killed anyone, he did shoot up a judge's truck with a shotgun (the judge was not in it at the time). He spent time in a Florida prison. He was not a good person to begin with. He abandoned my grandmother and mother.

But that was before I ever met him. When I knew him, he'd been clean off drugs and alcohol for over a decade. He was just as kind as you could ever possibly imagine. I'd spend summers with him, and he'd take me fishing and have BBQs with a whole pig on a spit, which I'd never seen before. Everyone liked him in the trailer park where he lived.

I never knew the negative stuff about him growing up. Only after he'd passed did my mom tell me about how plum wild he was. So, writing The Palms was my way of coming to grips with the fact that you can have done bad things, but that doesn't mean you're a bad person.

That's the long-winded way of saying I write creatively to come to grips with problematic beliefs or ideas I want to understand.

Writing has changed my life a great deal and given me inner peace. I don't care about becoming the next Cormac McCarthy. I sell most of my books in my bookstore. It is gratifying when people come back and tell me how moved they were by the book. That's why I do it.

5/6/2024 08:34:48 pm

I think more than a few writers write for similar reasons. Dealing with serious questions such as your grandfather's different periods of his life are worthy of exploring. Most, if not all of us, have situations in our past that we would be happy to forget. But those events and choices are a part of us. Changing even one of those things could affect the rest of our lives in ways that may not be what we want. Unintended consequences happen frequently with decisions that we thought were well planned.

New questions.

Does your work, past or present, have any influence on your writing?

Who was the first person to inspire you to write?

5/7/2024 09:59:47 am

My work experience has influenced my writing. Since I now own a bookstore, I can see what people gravitate towards and what books they enjoy. I use that as a measuring stick to play with the creative ideas jumping around in my head.

The first person who inspired me to write was William Gay. I never met the man, but I loved his books. They are part of the grit-lit genre, and his writing style and storytelling blew me away. I reread his book every year. I encourage everyone to read at least one of his books.

5/7/2024 11:16:11 am

There are so many genres. I have never heard of grit-lit.

New question.

How would you describe grit-lit?

5/7/2024 02:14:07 pm

Excellent Question: Writers of Grit-Lit are primarily from the South or Southwest. Their work is hyperrealistic gothic literature that focuses on a sense of place. The narratives are dark, and the characters are highly flawed. The novels don't always have heroes; the bad guy often wins.

The Grandmother of Grit Lit is Flannery O'Connor. The seeds are also seen in The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner.

Modern examples are:

Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell
Provinces of Night by William Gay
Serena by Ron Rash
No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
Gods of Howl Mountain by Taylor Brown
Feast of Snakes by Harry Crews
Joe by Larry Brown
Fourth of July Creek by Henderson Smith

These are just a few of the titles that account for Grit-Lit.

5/7/2024 02:54:09 pm

Thank you for explaining about grit-lit. I am not acquainted with the writings of anyone in that group except for Cormac. I haven't read his book, but I did see the movie and it was dark and twisted in my opinion. I am not part of the target audience for that genre.

New questions.

Have you ever seen a UFO or UAP, Unidentified Aerial Phenomena?

How many drafts did your book go through before publishing?

5/7/2024 05:28:25 pm

I have never seen a UFO, but I am open to the idea that there is life on other planets. The universe is just too vast not to have something. I'm not sure who created the Universe either—perhaps some higher power or the God of the Bible. I heard a quote that struck me. "The reason God created billions of planets is the same reason he created billions of eggs, to allow for failure."

I go through several drafts. The first is just getting it out on "paper." After that, I print out the whole book and go through it with a blue pen (it has to be blue). Instead of fixing the document in Word, I take the marked-up manuscript and completely retype it. Then I send it to my dearest friend who is terribly mean. She has a PhD in English and loves nothing more than cutting me down to size. I then implement her recommendations and finally send it to a line editor to polish it up.

Craig Crawford

5/9/2024 08:39:45 am

I like that quote. A lot. If "God" can make room for failure, so can we . . .

enjoying the interview--I like flawed characters too, in reading and writing. I think they represent most of us and they're much more interesting to read about, getting to know their quirks and the "whys" of when they do and when.

5/9/2024 08:58:42 pm

Thanks for dropping by Craig. Haw are those stories coming along?

5/7/2024 05:45:53 pm

I have not seen a UFO either, though my sisters say we did but I have no memory of it.

That is an interesting quote.

Four drafts. That number is smaller than what some authors go through. Some use a spouse or family member as an alpha reader, then the author might send the new manuscript to several beta readers. At least one more draft, some do two with a time interval of a few weeks to a few months then send the new manuscript to an editor. After working through those suggestions, they might send it to a proofreader for a final polish. Six or seven drafts can easily be the result.

I bet your friend loves words and can wield them with great passion as you do.

New questions

Who designed the cover of your book? Feel free to drop a link if appropriate.

How many drafts did the cover go through?

Did you reissue the book? There are two covers on your Amazon author page, all books.

5/8/2024 11:39:55 am

Excellent questions. I designed the cover, and it took a lot of tweaking to achieve what I envisioned. There weren't drafts; I was just playing with what I made.

The original cover was crafted by the micro-press that initially published the book. However, when the company ceased operations, I took the reins and started from scratch. The novel, now self-published, has seen a significant boost in sales compared to its previous stint with the press.

Now, I primarily sell it through my bookstore. I've sold several hundred copies of it. That's good and bad. It's good because it gets the book out there, but lousy cause it doesn't show up on my Amazon account. But it has a great showing on Goodreads, so it makes up for it.

5/8/2024 12:14:34 pm

Great! A lot of authors have in their mind what the cover should look like. Unless they are experienced with graphic design programs, they hire a cover designer and go through several iterations until reality conforms to their vision.

It sounds like you were able to recover the rights to your novel from the defunct publisher. Congratulations.

Having a venue where you can sell your book makes you the envy of so many authors. The people who buy your book in person can still leave a review on Amazon as long as they have an established account. It just won't be labeled as a 'verified purchase'.

New questions.

At first glance, the cover seems obvious, but I frequently miss a detail or two. What do the elements on the cover represent?

Was it hard to come up with the title?

What was the process?

5/8/2024 08:12:33 pm

The elements are just the desolation of the place. The trailer park, I think, is a character as well. The location drives the narrative, so I wanted to really highlight the poverty of The Palms.

It was easy to come up with the title. I stole it from a real trailer park. It was the one my grandfather lived in. It was called The Paradise Palm Villas, which was utter nonsense because it was a trailer park, but everyone who lived there called it The Palms.

5/8/2024 08:38:16 pm

The cover does portray the poverty and hopelessness of the inhabitants by extension.

The title was very easy. Amazingly so. Many authors struggle with a title to help their book stand out in the crowd. Your title is perfect. The original owner of the trailer park had high hopes for his investment. I bet it was really nice when it was first completed.

New questions.

Were the character names difficult to develop?

How did you choose them?

5/9/2024 10:55:42 am

The characters names were easy to develop. Ronnie Wells was just a hybrid of two of my roommates names from college. Reggie Wells and Ronnie White. I didn't tell them ahead of time, so when they read the book it was a funny surprise.

For Mary and Clara, I picked them because they were easy to type "on the run." Clara's name was originally supposed to be Samantha, but I kept mispelling it as I typed, so I went for something easy.

5/9/2024 01:40:32 pm

That was fun for your friends.

One author told me about how he named many of the characters in his book after family members. They were all excited. He shared writing progress with them. One day, a relative complained about the actions of a namesake character, saying she, the relative, would never do such a thing. It caused a rift in the family for several years.

Wise choice for the name.

New questions.

Have you written and published any short stories before writing your book?

How long had you been writing before the first short story was published?

5/9/2024 08:17:53 pm

I published two short-stories before finishing my novel. They were published in two different journals. One was called “El Nagual“ and the other “The Sow.” I also had an article published in an academic journal. I wrote them while working on my MFA, so I’d been writing before the novel was complete. Mostly though, my first foray into writing was academic.

5/9/2024 08:52:22 pm

Short stories are a great way to polish your writing skills. It can be difficult to not exceed a certain word count. Writing short stories can earn you cash, and some contests offer cash prizes.

I have recommended to writers that short story writing contests, especially those that provide feedback from the judges, can help a writer improve their writing skills. I do have a warning, there are a lot of shady contests out there. Some want to extract as much as they can from your wallet, others want to steal your intellectual property. Here is a copy-and-paste link about those things: Beware Bogus Writing Contests! Look for These 8 Red Flags. https://annerallen.com/2019/05/beware-bogus-writing-contests. You can also use the search box below to find the link. There are other blogs I have links for on my Highly Regarded Blogs page.

New questions.

What other books and genres have you written?

Is this your newest book?

Will you be writing more?

5/10/2024 12:35:29 pm

I have written another book, Though I Walk, a suspense novel set in the North Georgia mountains, where I now live. It is my newest published book. I am currently working on a third, which is loosely based on Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple but set in Atlanta, Georgia. I find the human condition fascinating, so I’m trying to understand why nine hundred people would follow a madman into the jungle, kill a congressman, and commit mass suicide. It is from the perspective of a devoted follower who changes their mind, but it might or might not be too late!

5/10/2024 01:05:09 pm

Great. More grit-lit I am guessing. A fascinating genre.

Jim Jones and the Peoples Temple was a big deal in San Francisco in the early to mid 1970s. At the peak of his influence, Jim Jones was courted by political operatives and candidates in the day. Jones could command his very faithful flock to help whatever ballot measure or candidate of his choice and they would follow through vigorously. I lived in San Franciso at the time and the guy made me feel really nervous. Red flags were flying with anything having to do with him, so I kept my distance. I have no doubt it will be a good story.

New questions.

Are you planning to continue writing singles in this genre?

Is there a different genre you would like to explore?

If so, what genre are you thinking of?

5/10/2024 06:00:30 pm

Yes, I plan on writing singles in the genre. And I don't want to expand into different genres. I don't have the mental bandwidth to branch out. It takes a lot of talent to write in other genres. I was told to "write what you know," and I feel most comfortable writing in the Southern grit-lit genre. But that could always change with time. Perhaps I'll write some creative non-fiction. There's a crime that occurred in my hometown that I wanted to turn into fiction, but it was too barbaric that it would be an injustice to the victim. Maybe one day I’ll write about that.

5/10/2024 06:43:24 pm

There is a lot to be said for writing what you know. Someone said, I think, imagination is for filling in the blanks. If I were a writer, I would probably do the same.

I wouldn't be surprised to see a rom-com set in Alaska with your name on it someday. That would be pretty opposite of what you currently write, now wouldn't it? ;-)

New questions.

What do you think of the current controversy regarding AI, Artificial Intelligence?

Did you use AI in any of your writing or planning for your books? I am not including research in this question because most of the major browsers have embedded AI in the browser.

5/11/2024 11:10:41 am

I dislike AI, especially when it comes to academia. It is so advanced that it stays one step ahead of the program’s teachers can use to detect it. I didn't use AI in my novel because I originally wrote it before it was a thing. I won't use it in my writing in any way, shape, or form. As someone with a background in academia, I thoroughly enjoy researching topics.

5/11/2024 01:33:50 pm

I agree with you about AI. I do not think it has true creativity. It is merely a very large list maker and averages the lists in one form or another.

Now we hear that AI can lie to us or have hallucinations. It will cause humans to doubt whatever they see or hear. I am already in that position. I don't believe any videos or recordings of people especially if there is a political slant. The ability of AI to create real looking fake videos has poisoned the well for me. I do not think I am alone.

Research. I love research. When I was a boy, I would go to our unabridged dictionary to look a word up. I would easily lose an hour or more before closing the dictionary.

New questions.

Have you encountered a troll reviewing one of your books?

How did you handle it?

5/11/2024 08:37:42 pm

Excellent question. I have had a troll give me a one star once on Amazon and Goodreads. He was an Indy author like myself and he asked me to read his book and give him an honest review. So I did and gave him 3 stars. Well, he went ballistic and, without reading my book, went on Amazon and Goodreads and gave me a 1 star. There wasn’t really anything I could do about it. I figure it will come back around on him eventually.

5/11/2024 08:53:17 pm

That will come back to him.

Reviews are pretty subjective. Every reader experiences the book differently than the author wrote it. Each reader has a unique set of experiences and filters that color their experience.

I have had authors get angry at me for finding a bunch of errors in their book. Their frustration dissipates pretty quickly, though. They realize I am helping them. Some of them had multiple editors and proofreaders.

New questions.

What was the first paying job you worked as a kid and how old were you?

Have you done any public speaking?

If so, will you be doing more in the future?

5/12/2024 02:40:17 pm

My first paying job was working in the warehouse of a construction company during the summer I was in high school. They'd tell me what the different trucks needed for their job, and I'd gather them and load them on the truck. We had to arrive at five in the morning, and it was non-stop loading and unloading. It paid great for a 16-year-old, but I knew it wasn't for me.

I was a teacher for so long that I don't have any problems speaking in front of people. I've taught classes of 30 to 300, and it's never bothered me. I've always told people that to be a compelling teacher, you have to be an actor and put on a performance. I was a showman on stage every time I stood up in front of my students. That's how you don't lose their attention.

5/12/2024 04:16:40 pm

I bet you gained some muscle while working that job.

My first job was picking strawberries for a grower. I think I had to be at the pickup point at 5 am. It was a mile and half downhill in the morning. It felt like 5 miles after work.

That is a brilliant tip! Act the part! I love it and it makes a lot of sense.

New questions.

Have you entered any writing contests?

Have you won awards of any kind for your writing?

5/12/2024 08:26:01 pm

Yes, the Palms was nominated for Georgia Author of the Year (I didn’t place), it won first place the Reader’s Choice Award for Southern Fiction. It also won first place for BookFest in the Domestic Thriller genre. I was shocked to have won anything. It really encouraged me to keep plugging away on my new projects. I might have lost heart if I hadn’t won anything.

5/12/2024 08:37:36 pm

Congratulations! I think the awards were well-earned. Your writing is going to get better the more you write.

New questions

Among present or past family members and friends how many are or have been writers or authors?

Is there anyone you know who might claim you as their inspiration for writing?

5/13/2024 11:45:26 am

Before graduate school, I'd never met any other writers. I did have a great-grandfather who was, in my opinon, a brilliant painter. He never had them shown, but we have his originals, and they are amazing. His job was painting railroad cars, but he painted scenes as a hobby. He would've been seen as a great painter if only he’d been born in a different time. His paintings are neat because they are painted on any “canvas” he had. Most are painted on slats of wood he’d hammered together, which makes them more unique, in my opinion.

I don’t think I have anyone who would consider me an inspiration regarding my writing. I know that I’ve inspired some young people to open small businesses. It was certainly scary for me to open up my own business. It made it worse that six months after I opened up, COVID-19 happened, and we had to shut our doors. But we survived and thrived using what we called “book bundles.” People would tell us the genre and number of books they wanted, and we’d send them out by mail. Lots of people ordered them from all over the United States. We even had one family order several book bundles from Canada. I’ve been very blessed that the bookstore has done so well in the world of eBooks.

5/13/2024 12:42:15 pm

Your grandfather was cool. To go from big rolling boxes to small pieces of wood is quite a talent.

Even though Covid closed the bookshop doors, you pivoted and found a way to continue selling books. That is the mark of a good entrepreneur and businessman. I can easily imagine the thrill of the buyers when your box arrived and they could begin their mystery date with a good story.

I love books and always have. I cannot buy real books at this time, I have to settle for reading on my Kindle.

Last question.

I noticed that your book is in Kindle Unlimited. How is that working out for you?

5/13/2024 03:29:21 pm

Kindle Unlimited is always a surprise. Whenever I check my reports, it's nice to see someone starting or finishing my book via Unlimited. I never get much money from Amazon, which is fine. The few that do buy it always reach out and say good things.

Thank you so much for this amazing opportunity. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole interview process. This is a fantastic method of learning more about authors, and I appreciate you allowing me to participate.

5/13/2024 04:24:35 pm

Authors get paid a fraction of a penny for each page read. Amazon has paid out many millions of dollars to authors in the last few years.

You are welcome, Clay. I have enjoyed our conversation quite a bit. I loved your book, you are a good writer. I am excited to see what flows from your fingers in the future.

Until next time, keep on writing.

The Palms by Clay Anderson

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