An Interview with Author Gordon McAlpine (as Owen Fitzstephen)

Author Gordon McAlpine (under pen name Owen Fitzstephen) has a brand-new book available today entitled, The Big Man's Daughter, and we here at NTG were lucky to sit down with Gordon/Owen to discuss his new book and the craft of creative writing.
 
Nerds That Geek: What can you tell us about your new book?
 
Gordon McAlpine: Rather than simply refer here to the jacket description or initial blurbs, I’d prefer to quote a recent review from the Thrilling Detective Website, as it captures an element of the book that may not be immediately apparent: “[The Big Man’s Daughter is] a ballsy, carefully assembled and psychologically sharp read that tears into the guts of what it’s like to be young, scared and not sure where you’re going. Or where exactly you’ve been. If you’re a Hammett fan you’re going to love this.”

NTG: What are you most excited for your readers to experience?
 
Gordon McAlpine: I look forward to providing readers a rip-roaring mystery while also exploring the way that stories within stories may ultimately become inextricable from one another, creating a single narrative of greater depth than may first be apparent.
 
NTG: What is it you love the most about creative writing?

Gordon McAlpine: I love that a story never turns out quite like you thought it would. The act of writing, the scene by scene process that engages narrative urgency in every exchange, cannot help but turn the author’s original concept in new directions that may complicate or even invalidate an initial plot outline but rarely fail to delight. This process of discovery is what makes the long hours worthwhile.
 
NTG: What is a unique story that you haven't tackled yet that you'd love to write?
 
Gordon McAlpine: Unique stories are not so common. When I come across one, I’ll tackle it in manuscript before I talk about it in print.

NTG: What's next for you after this release?
 
Gordon McAlpine: During this hunkering down period I’ve written my first play, a black comedy about writer’s block, psychotherapy, and Chekov’s gun on the wall. It’s proven a great pleasure. Now, if only theater opens up again…

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Gordon McAlpine - Author of 'The Big Man's Daughter' as Owen Fitzstephen.