The Long Road received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Daniel Oliver.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
My novel is The Long Road. It was published in February 2018.
What’s the book’s first line?
I struggled to keep my white Audi close to the speed limit.
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
College student Hank Galloway dreams of working as an engineer for NASA, but his struggles with mental illness threaten to derail both his professional and personal goals.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
I felt compelled to write the book because of my experiences battling my own mental illness. I thought that sharing some of these experiences would reduce stigma surrounding mental illness.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
First and foremost, someone should read The Long Road for entertainment. Hank’s first psychotic episode is highly entertaining, only to be matched by his second and third later in the story. I don’t want the reader to take what happens to Hank lightly. In fact, his episodes are very serious, but I do want the reader to be immersed in the world of mental illness enough to escape from his own world and be entertained.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
Hank is most distinctive because he is very high-functioning for a person with mental illness. Most consider the mentally ill to be unemployed, collecting disability, and even a danger to society. Hank continues to get through his coursework to become an engineer despite his hospitalizations. In this way, his life parallels my own because I struggled with mental illness while preparing for and getting through graduate school.
When did you first decide to become an author?
I first decided to become an author in 2011, while composing a journal about my mental illness.
Is this the first book you’ve written?
Yes.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
Before I became a writer, I worked as a Physician Assistant. Right now, I’m lucky enough to be able to write full time.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
Learn about marketing your book as soon as possible, even before your publishing date arrives. Marketing is key to a successful book launch and sales afterwards.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
Of course! Hopefully my novels would get into the hands of more readers if I did sign on with a traditional publisher.
Is there something in particular that motivates you?
Again, reducing stigma surrounding mental illness is my main goal. That and entertaining the reader.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
I most admire Charles Dickens because he didn’t shy away from bringing up social issues of his time through his fiction. He was an activist as well as an author.