
BBB: What inspired you to become an author?
JPM: I didn't decide to be a writer, it was decided long before I arrived. There are some of us who have to express what they are feeling, their interpretation of the stories unfolding in front of them, seekers of the threads in the chaos that lead us to some kind of limited understanding, and failures at everything else (at least in our eyes).

JPM: Ropes of The Sun has been percolating for over ten years in my brain. I knew the characters long before I knew the story. As I matured, I gradually begin to see their worlds and the pushback from an American reality that had left my characters far behind in the backwaters of our country.
BBB: Tell us about your character, Sam Rifle.
JPM: While Sam Rifle is an important character as is Louie Crave and Heber McNinch, it is Sheriff David Ortiz y Pino, a loner and rancher, whom I chose as the major character because his problems are what so many of us are facing in our later years.

JPM: Writer’s Block is the author searching for the voice to drive the novel. Sometimes, it is found within weeks of the idea for a novel (Slow Walk in A Sad Rain) or it takes years (Ropes of The Sun). Once the voice is found, the rest flows.
BBB: What are you currently working on?
JPM: I am currently working on a book about a Gullah Root Doctor named Alama St. James who is arrested for violating the National Security of the United States and her retribution on those who brought the charges. It is loosely based on a true story from the Korean Conflict. I am updating it to the Vietnam era.
BBB: How can readers discover more about you and your work?
JPM: You can find out more about my books and an occasional blog on my website www.johnpmcafee.com.