The Comfort of Distance received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Ryburn Dobbs.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
The book is called The Comfort of Distance and it was published on October 27, 2020
What’s the book’s first line?
“The car finally came to a stop, and the man in the trunk heard two doors open.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
The book is primarily about a forensic anthropologist who is asked by his estranged brother, a sheriff’s deputy in South Dakota, to help solve the mystery of body parts turning up in the Black Hills. The main character, the anthropologist Sebastien Grey, has a social anxiety disorder and throughout the book we see him pushing past his comfort zones as he demonstrates his own brand of brilliant deduction.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
I have always wanted to write a novel but never thought I had the “material.” One day it occurred to me that, as a forensic anthropologist myself, I had a lot of real cases that could form the framework of a very interesting book. So really, it was the culmination of many years of experience, rather than a particular person or event.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
As I look back on the finished work, I realized that, merely by accident, I wrote a book that has something for almost anyone. There are interesting characters, a mystery with lots of forensic clues, a bit of humor, a hint of romance, as well a few moments of suspense. This book should appeal to just about anyone.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
The most distinctive thing about Sebastien Grey is his personality disorder. In real life, only about two or three percent of the population suffers from Avoidant Personality Disorder – it is very rare, but very debilitating. It literally defines a person’s entire approach to life. The challenge with Sebastien is getting past the awkwardness and exposing the brilliance. Unfortunately, the character reminds me of myself – not because of the brilliance by any means, but because I too suffer from the disorder. Wasn’t it Fellini who said, “all art is autobiographical?”
When did you first decide to become an author?
I first decided to become an author thirty years ago. It’s only in the last few years that I gave myself permission to actually do it.
Is this the first book you’ve written?
Yes, this is the first book I’ve written. I’ve had this sucker in my mind for a good decade. It feels good to finally get it on paper.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
I spent many years teaching anthropology and consulting as a forensic anthropologist. I also worked as an investigative analyst in law enforcement. These days, when not writing, I work in analytics for a large corporation.
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
It depends on the day’s obligations. If I get a few hours in each day, I feel fortunate. But I’m not a fast writer, and I’m a horrible typist. The process for me is pretty slow but steady.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
The best part of being an indie is the complete control and freedom at every step of the process. I’m not waiting on anybody that I don’t want to wait on, and I don’t need to please anybody but myself. If things don’t go well, it will be because of things within my control, things that I can fix, rather than things I can’t fix. Ultimately, the market – the readers – will tell me if my writing is worth reading, not an editor who thinks it may (or may not) be worth reading. And I can act on that feedback.
The most challenging part of being an indie is a corollary to the above. If I want my books to be high quality (and I do), then I need to do everything I can to ensure that. Which for the most part means hiring really smart and experienced book people for editing and design. This costs money.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
You can’t calibrate reality against what’s in your head. By that I mean we all need opinions outside of our own to help us see things more clearly. So, don’t write and publish in isolation. Get whatever editing, proofreading, design help you can afford. Even free help is better than no help. And be humble about it. For example, when I hired a developmental editor, I told myself to just do whatever he suggests (within reason and budget). I forced myself to trust him, even if I didn’t fully understand or agree. We ended up chopping parts out of the book that were very dear to me. But the book was so much better for it. As proof of that, The Comfort of Distance is extremely well-reviewed, especially for a first novel by a person who has never even tried to write a short story before.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
I might under the right circumstances, although it wouldn’t be for vanity’s sake. I don’t need the trad stamp of approval to validate me as a writer; if I’m writing and people are reading, then I’m a writer. But if a traditional publisher wanted the rest of the Sebastien Grey series (for example), I might do it as long as there was no clause against me continuing to independently publish other things when and how I wanted (the hybrid model). I wouldn’t allow my entire writing life to be put in a corporate chokehold. Writing brings me too much joy to let that happen. But the reason I might do it (to answer the original question) would be to leverage larger distribution channels and to take advantage of the in-house expertise.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
Joy motivates me. It’s too bad it took me so long to find out that the process of writing really makes me happy. Every day spent writing, even a hard day, ends with me feeling elevated. It just feels like something I’m supposed to be doing.