Author interview: C. Raymond Gray

Today I'd like to welcome C. Raymond Gray to the blog! He is the author of The FunGKins and was kind enough to answer a few of my questions.

1. When did you first know you wanted to write?
When I was eight years old I found a tattered and water logged copy of the Hobbit
halfway through it I just knew I wanted to write of Adventures, Fantastic Worlds,  Magic and of Faraway Places.

2. Which authors inspire you the most?
J.R. R. Tolkien, M. Knight Shyamalan, The Brother's Grimm, Victor Hugo and Chaucer.


3.How did you get the inspiration for your novel?
We had just put in off white carpet throughout the house and my son Tyler who was eight at the time tracked purple footprints down the hall and up the stairs. When I called out to him from downstairs he came running is his sock
feet. When I asked him why he did such a thing he looked up at me and began to whisper while looking around as if he was being watched saying, "Now dad before you get carried away I want you to know something. This is not my fault it's the Mushroom People. They're trying to get me in
trouble." I looked out the kitchen window only to see the purple mushrooms he had trampled into the ground. I know I should have been upset for his lying but the name The Mushroom People somehow had gotten stuck in my head. I went over to my desk top and typed the words The Mushroom People. So
I started telling the story in my son's schools and other schools around town. Everyone seemed to love the story and from there The mushroom People took on a life all its own. To give the story a more unique feel and appeal I changed the name to The FunGkins which has grown it a four bookseries.


4. What is your favorite part about being an author?
As an author and storyteller I have the greatest job in the world because I get to take children on fantastic voyoges of adventure and watch their eyes light up as their imaginationcomes alive with excitement. Now what could be more enjoyable than that??

5. What is your least favorite part about being an author?
There is nothing about being an author I don't like. For me this is my Bliss I'm glad I found mine, many never
do.

6. Could you write a bit about what your publication process was like?
For me this all has been sort of an education. I mean the amount of information one must consume in order to publish a book that is at or above the industry standard is adaunting ?task. One thing the bugged me the most was editing, especially trying to get rid of Orphans and Widows page after page. Then there is the front matter and the fact that this is the first page book buyers look at and in many cases this is how the quality of your book in judged. But, I
can tell you this, to see your hard work in print is the closest thing I can think of to a child being born.

7. Do you have any upcoming projects?
The FunGkins is a four book series of which three of the manuscripts are already finished. Howeverour next publication is The Magic Camera a fairy tale for children eight to twelve. 

About His Book (from Goodreads):
With the evil Leprechauns (The Shangaar), hot on their trail, who would ever guess that the fate of the littlest people would fall on the shoulders of a 10-year-old human girl named Clara Gooday? Her unwavering belief in the Littlest People may be the very thing that saves The FunGkins and all of Halladon from a fate worse than death. 

But first, she will have to deal with the evil Mr. Mustashio; he is one hundred and fifty years old but doesn't look a day over forty. Working for the evil leprechauns, he has moved into the funeral home next door, masquerading as an undertaker. But why have he and his sly talking dog Snodsty come to town? Clara is sure Mr. Mustashio is evil and is out to capture the FunGkins. 

With her trusty magic telescope in hand; she can become invisible at will. Armed with her bag of tricks it's her plan to watch every move, the seven foot tall skinny man and his talking dog make. 

Clara Gooday lives in Pirate's Cove a small town on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. The town has strangers living there. With their bird-like features, they are even stranger looking. Some are good while others are pure evil. They all came to Pirate's Cove the day Clara was born. But for what reason are they there? Who is Clara really? What secret does she hold? What if she's part of the legend foretold? 

Clara has many questions, but when she meets two FunGkins she and her Aunt Tilly are shrunken down to size, and whisked off to the magical world of Mushroom Valley. There all of her questions will be answered. Accompanied by her Aunt Tilly a school teacher. 

Clara's journey will take you on a roller coaster ride of adventure. One where there are so many twists and turns that there are just too many to mention here. So if it's a thrilling adventure, you have been looking for buckle your seat belt and hold on tight, for this is a ride you can enjoy all day and all through the night.

Find out more about the book!