Authorial_04_LA_FINAL_low_with watermark

Frank E. Hull
Author of Anthology Hull
Family 1880-2019
Authorial Magazine: Tell us what’s
unique about your book. Why should
people read it?
Frank Hull: Anthology depicts a trip
across 3 generations of social
change in the southwestern
US. The story is woven into a
biography of an atypical, unusual,
wispy, accomplished family trying
to live the American dream. I
believe readers will find the satire
refreshing and the anecdotes
entertaining while enjoying the
unique dialogue.
AM: Did you know the last line of your
book or how your story would
end from the very beginning? Did
you already know before you even
started writing it? Tell us more
about your writing process.
FH: I didn’t know anything about the
book at the beginning. I started this
project to kill time while suffering
from sleep apnea. Seriously! I
awoke nightly at 2 am and began
writing as a means to go back to
sleep. Later, as the book took form,
I wrote as an avocation—a family
history for my grandchildren. I
always write from 2 to 5 am when
there are no distractions and I
can focus my creative energies on
content and dialogue.
AM: Do you notice a pattern in your
writing? What rules in the end or
what usually wins in your stories?
FH: The only pattern in my writing is
my desire to communicate facts
as honestly as possible and not to
discredit characters or label people
in my book. I rather let the reader
make their own judgment. Nobody
really wins or loses in Anthology.
Rather it’s just a biographical
story told.
AM: What did your first book teach you
about yourself? What did you learn
about yourself to never repeat in
your other projects or in other areas
of your life?
FH: Anthology taught me that I
possessed the talents to be a good
story teller. I kind of discovered
myself while putting the stories
together. The effortless way I was
able to construct things from
the beginning, motivated me to
continue the project and expand
the focus. I can’t think of anything
I stumbled across that I would hide
in any future literary pursuits.
AM: Did you ever imagine your life
being the way it is now?
FH: No, I certainly didn’t expect my
life to be this way now, at age 70. I
am happy, surrounded by friends,
a small but healthy, happy family
and a BFF lady friend. I live in
one of the most beautiful cities in
the US, I’m reasonably solvent and
my health is coming around. I feel
very blessed.
AM: Would it be fair to say that you’ve
used—in writing your book—the
good, the bad, and the ugly parts of
your life?
FH: In writing Anthology, I had to
include a lot of autobiography
for it to make sense. It would be
fair that I included my “dark side”
in describing things. I only hope
my honesty didn’t carry over into
others people’s lives and have the
book be an awkward revelation
of things.
AM: Is there someone you consider
as your greatest influence in your
writing? If so, please do tell us
more about him or her and why
you consider him or her as such.
FH: I got a lot of my material from my
grandfather, Frank, and my Dad.
They both would pour a few drinks
and sit down in my presence and
chat away about family and stories
and rumors about relatives. Also, I
had a ringside seat for all this and
a good enough memory to recall
events from my early childhood
and adolescents. The pictures all
landed in my lap as the result of
being the youngest in the family
and last in the namesake of Hulls.
authorial magazine | 29