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MEET TOM WISEMAN (3/2011)
by Bonnie O'Brian

What did you most like to do when you were a child?

Tom Wiseman

I loved creating things and using my imagination. Usually, this came in the form of creating spaceships using my large set of Legos.

When you were a child did you ever have moments when you decided that you were going to be a writer when you grew up?

No, not at all. In fact, I didn’t really appreciate books or reading until my thirties. Now I can’t get enough of them.

If you didn’t write as a child, then when did you start writing and what inspired you to start?

I started writing in 2004, shortly after I had become a private pilot. A story started to form in my head about a pilot who had been tricked by terrorists and I just thought it would make for an interesting story. The rest is history.

When was it published?

My first book, GREY SKIES AHEAD, was published in August of 2010.

Do you do other types of writing - for example, educational, nonfiction, magazine work?

On top of writing fiction, I have also been writing general aviation articles for examiner.com since June of 2010.

What kinds of things inspire you to write?

I would say more than anything, technology inspires me. What will our world look and be like in say fifty or a hundred years? What type of machines will we have, what will they do, and will they benefit mankind or hamper us?

What are you working on now?  When do you expect to start submitting it to publishers?

I am really excited about my current project, which is about a killer humanoid who escapes from prison and the detectives who are tasked with tracking him down. The story is set in the year 2135 and should appeal to crime, suspense, thriller and even sci-fi enthusiasts. It should be ready to start shopping around to agents within a month or two.

Do you write every day and do you have set hours that you work?

I do my very best to write every single day, even if it’s just a paragraph or two, but with two young girls at home, it is sometimes very difficult to find the time. I tend to write much more on the weekends after they have gone to bed.

Is there anything about yourself that you’d like to share - hobbies, where you were born, special talents other than writing/illustrating.

On top of working in Sacramento as a senior technical support technician, I am also working on my Computer Science degree. I joined the USAF in 1985 and spent 10 years working on bombers, and then 6 as a computer & network technician. In the early nineties, I was part owner of a small programming company.