Driftwood: Stories from the Margarita Road was the winner in the Best 1st Book/Fiction category of the 2021 IndieReader Discovery Awards, where undiscovered talent meets people with the power to make a difference.
Following find an interview with author Anthony Lee Head.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
Driftwood: Stories from the Margarita Road, published October 2020
What’s the book’s first line?
“I think I’d like a piña colada for breakfast.”
What’s the book about?
My book is about wanderlust, freedom, and the need to find a place where we belong. In a series of intertwined vignettes, the book follows free-spirited individuals who have traded life in the fast lane for the tropical paradise of a small, unspoiled Mexican beach town.
As they encounter love, loss, vicious drug dealers, charming rogues, clueless do-gooders, and a devastating hurricane, each of them must decide for themselves if they have finally found a home.
What inspired you to write the book?
In a fit of wanderlust, my wife and I decided to escape the rat race and moved 4000 miles away from home to run a small hotel and bar near the Caribbean Sea. I was inspired to write this book not only by our adventures there but by the drifters, travelers, and vagabonds we met on our journey.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
The main character of Driftwood is a wandering bartender christened “Poppa” by the local Mexican working girls in the beachside town where he lives. The most distinctive thing about him is his sense of adventure and personal freedom. He has discovered the pleasure of wandering the Margarita Road—“the course the heart sets when you want to leave home and start over someplace new and warm.”
I would say Poppa is part Doc from John Steinbeck’s Cannery Row and part Boone Daniels from Don Winslow’s Dawn Patrol.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
Many people dream of escaping at one time or another—leaving their troubles behind and running away to a tropical paradise. The past year of pandemic lockdown has made that dream more enticing to more people than ever.
Driftwood: Stories from the Margarita Road offers readers a glimpse into the good, bad and strange experiences of expats who actually follow that dream. It’s part cautionary tale and part inspiration to set out for adventure. One or both usually resonates with just about everyone who has wanderlust in their soul.
If they made your book into a movie, who would you like to see play the main character(s)?
Poppa, a thirty-something bartender, is funny and adventuresome. He has a good heart and emotional strength he shares with his friends. And he does enjoy the company of attractive ladies. I think Chris Pine would make an excellent Poppa.
Chris O’Dowd would be perfect as Poppa’s good friend Chaz.
I could see Rachel Brosnahan as Mrs. Timmons.
Aaron Paul would be a great Lenny.
I could do this all day! Nexflix, HBO, Amazon…I hope you’re reading this!
When did you first decide to become an author?
I always wanted to be a writer, but the demands of life always seemed to get in the way. It wasn’t until I moved to Mexico and heard the tales of drifters and wanderers who passed though my bar that I knew I had to share these stories with the world.
Is this the first you’ve written?
Driftwood: Stories from the Margarita Road is my first full-length book, but I have been writing short stories, articles, and blog posts for much of my life. And, as a “recovering lawyer” (as I laughingly refer to myself), I wrote many a legal brief over the years.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
The best part of indie publishing is having control over what you write and how it is presented to the world. No one has any say in your creative vision but you. The worst part of indie publishing is promoting and marketing your work—which takes far more time than I ever imagined.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling?
Maybe. It would depend on the book and the publisher. Having seen the difficulties experienced by writer friends who have gone the traditional publishing route (limited creative control, smaller royalties, and more), I would look very closely before choosing to go the traditional route.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
This is almost impossible to answer with a single name. Ernest Hemingway, Robert Stone; Kem Nunn, and Don Winslow all are at the top of my list. Pick any of the four and you will have my favorite author. Oh, and don’t forget John Steinbeck.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
Dog Soldiers by Robert Stone is a perfect piece of writing.