If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring? 

Pilgrims. 

No? Bad dad joke? I thought it was hilarious. 

A big thank you to the anonymous members of our community that BOMBARDED me with questions. Holy smokes... My inbox went from 29% full to 36%. Y'all are insane, and I love it. I have a pile of questions and responses to last me until October-ish. Maybe December. Regardless, I appreciate the site's involvement. 

Let's get down to business. Now, it may seem like I'm playing favorites, and I would never do such a thing.  Coming from GA's purple-people-eaters, this month's interview was with one of my fellow Promising Authors. To further combat my "alleged" favoritism, it's a simple coincidence the story mentions Kentucky. Just because I'm in the Bluegrass State doesn't mean I can't help what stories come into my inbox. Anyway, let's look at some responses from @Wayne Gray about his story, "Engineer Benson."

• • • • •

Engineer Benson
Wayne Gray
Story Status: In Progress / Rating: Mature 

How do you find a writing a story were everything is really experienced by the reader as if they are reading the journal of the title character; was this easier or harder than writing in another style?

Writing from the perspective of a journal is a challenge. It's a version of the first-person subjective PoV (Point of View), and the limits it places on me as a writer are what make it enjoyable. We depend on Wayne (and Mark) to tell us what's happening. Just as with anything subjective, their perspectives are somewhat unreliable. How unreliable, we don't know right away, and maybe we will never know. That's simply a part of it. The reader has to accept what is given by these flawed people as the only version of the truth they have access to. Frankly, I love that. And I'm not going on about it because I plan to totally pull one over on the reader due to this flaw. It simply adds a new dimension - we only know what the person writing does. And we only know what the person writing is consciously willing to admit and document. That's a long way to say - it's harder than my typical third-person PoV stories, but I enjoy the challenge.

Do you find writing about this type of dystopian world easier or harder based on the popularity of the genre, ie. The Walking Dead, etc...

Oh, good question. It's one that's pertinent to the break I took writing the story. Early in writing this tale, I began watching The Last of Us. And a plot point integral to that story surfaced, which made me have to completely rewrite a big chunk of my tale. My outline mirrored The Last of Us so closely I'm sure someone would have believed I lifted material from it. I didn't, but it was just too close to be a coincidence in the discerning reader's head. So yes. Absolutely, in this case, it made things far harder. The more I watch the show, the more I'm convinced The Last of Us creators were inspired by Project Zomboid (PZ). PZ has been going for over a decade now and is rich with lore, so it wouldn't surprise me. That's the game that inspired Engineer Benson in the first place, so I guess I'm in good company.

*** Warning***

You are entering spoiler territory. As requested by the author, this statements acts as a warning.

How hard was it writing the chapter about Pamela and her choosing to sacrifice herself in order to try and help Wayne and Mark?  Was her character based on someone from your own life, or just your creation?

Ah, Pamela. That was a hard scene and chapter. Pamela was entirely a creation to show the horror of the setting. Things are "not good," and that was a way to show it in a rather direct fashion. I also wanted to show that there's still bravery in the world. In spite of everything, there are people who are trying to do what's right.

Thanks for asking about my little story. I certainly appreciate your interest.

• • • • •

Thanks, Wayne! It was a pleasure interviewing you. #goteampurple 

With a line of questions and responses, I have plenty of content for y'all for the next several months. But I'll never turn down more questions. If you have 3 questions for an author about any story they've written, send them my way. I'll do my best TMZ reporter impersonation and get your answers. 

Have fun, pilgrims!