I'd like to thank Jerome Peterson for stopping by this week, as well as kindly donating a book for one lucky reader... don't forget to enter to win it, because it could very well be you! Also be sure to visit Jerome over on his blog or on goodreads as he sets up a greater web presence in light of his burgeoning writing career. Well, I'm sure you're at the point where you've had enough of me and are ready for Jerome and his answers to some very interesting questions indeed. So without further ado...
Question: How autobiographical is Thumb Flagging?
Answer: Maybe ten percent; maybe.
Question: For the cliched question, what made you decide to become a writer?
Answer: As a kid I was fascinated with the written word. As I grew older I realized those words came out of someone's brain. I tried my hand at it by writing poems and song lyrics and I like it. As far as writing novels, that happened after a binge of reading books that impressed me with inspiration. I said to myself, "I can do that".
Question: Do you hold the same regard as Jay does for Bob Dylan?
Answer: Ever since I first heard Bob Dylan, his work has always meant a great deal to me. Whatever he has to say, I listen.
Question: Did you have to heavily research the slang and jargon to get the feel of the time period right? Or was it from your own experiences?
Answer: Bill Manville, a fellow writer, suggested I spice up the language as if the travelers had their own phrases, sayings, and of course slang. I took off from there using bits and pieces from poets and sayings I heard during my childhood. My mother was a great one for having odd sayings.
Question: Do you think that the seventies was a time more accepting of hitchhiking then our overprotected isolated lives we now lead?
Answer: Yes and no. I think it depends on the state or states you are traveling through. Hitchhiking seems to be making a comeback. I have come across many sites where people are hitching and letting followers know what's happening through their blog.
Question: If someone were to ask you why they should hitchhike what would you tell them?
Answer: Hitchhiking makes you realize how dependent we are on each other. If you want a wake up call on the value of patience and gratitude along with spur of the moment adventure, hitchhiking can live up to all of that.
Question: How is does the feeling of riding the rails differ from hitchhiking?
Answer: I think riding the rails is far more dangerous than hitchhiking. I say that simply because you are violating the law and you got "The Man" after you. Hitchhiking is much more peaceful and healthier.
Question: You've lived in quite a few places. After a given amount of time in one location do you get seized by wanderlust and just have to move on?
Answer: I like to use the cliche that I'm too old for wanderlust; nevertheless, the bug usually hits when warmer weather rolls around.
Question: How would you describe Willy's saying "Me is free of identity"? Does it relate more to being open to new experiences or to leaving your hangups behind or neither?
Answer: The saying can mean both. Willy taught Jay this as a positive reinforcer to help detach from hangups and prepare for experiences that had inspiration and hope.
Question: Is the danger part of the lure of hitchhiking where one bad ride is all it takes? Or is it just an inevitable downside?
Answer: I think hitchhiking is just as dangerous as driving a vehicle. You could be doing everything right until the other driver comes in your lane and that could be it.The difference lies in perception. Hitchhiking requires much more courage than driving a car simply because you feel that you are controlling your situation in a vehicle, but really you are not. Hitchhiking tells you up front there is no control, it's all a genuine gamble.
Question: The "bad ride" aspect of hitchhiking that is perpetuated in the popular media with a plethora of horror films being devoted to either the killer hiker or driver has lead hitchhiking to have a bad reputation in this day and age. Do you think this is unjust?
Answer: Yes I do! I believe creeps aren't patrolling the highways looking for prey as much as they are in front of their computer screens surfing the internet.
Question: Literature also has another psychopathic Sikes... does Petrie Sykes take anything from his namesake in Oliver Twist?
Answer: Oliver Twist is a great book. I've read it many times. The names and character traits of both are purely coincidental.
Question: I am not going to give anything away, but there are loose ends to this story. Was this done purposefully for the reader to realize the concept of needing to let go and accept?
Answer: Yes. This was intentional to also show that in life some things just don't work out like you think, with no explanation to boot.
Question: Could you ever see yourself continuing the story of Jay and Chloe?
Answer: Yes, that is possible.
Question: What are you currently working on?
Answer: I have another novel coming out the first of 2010: The Haunting of Andrew Sharpai. Currently, I'm working on a historic novel that deals with family loss, immigration, and the tragic affects of bitterness, ignorance, and regret.
Victoria Schwab, AKA V.E. Schwab if she's writing for adults and not YA or middle grade or just embracing the whole J.K. Rowling book readers are sexist vibe, is a #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than a dozen books. She had an eclectic childhood with a British mother, a Beverly Hills father, and a southern upbringing leading to some interesting linguist habits if you are lucky enough to meet her. Her love of fairy tales and folklore has made her someone who is obsessed with writing about magical portals, just look to Kell's abilities in her Shades of Magic series. Because, if anything, doors are what seem to define Victoria's life. A wandering soul she has never settled on just going through one door. Why would you when you could try to go through them all? This lead her to changing her major six times when she was at Washington University in St. Louis. Physics, Film, Set Design, Art History, English, Communication Design doesn't seem so unsettled when you look at all the jobs she's had; department store clerk, assistant caterer, personal chef, dog daycare attendant, bookstore clerk, writer. I for one am very glad she finally landed on writer. 
