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A CONVERSATION WITH OASIS ABOUT DUPULICITY
(FREE FOR REPRINT)
He is the owner and CEO of Docuversion LLC, a full-service editing firm with a client list that will drop your jaw. He is a certified creative writing instructor for the Department of Justice who quickly became known in the industry as a craft expert. And he's no stranger to the title "author". The boy is about his business, and he's putting it down from behind bars. Oasis took time out from his hectic work schedule so we could pick his brain and discuss his new, sensational psychological suspense, Duplicity (Strebor $14.95).
WOW! What a memorable reading experience. Duplicity captured me from the go and took me on one hell of a ride until the last page. I'm curious to know, in your own words, what lesson was Duplicity crafted to teach the main character, motion-picture mogul Parrish Clovis, and your reading audience as well? The lesson? To see people and things for whom they truly are and not for the illusion they present themselves to be. More times than not we initially get caught in the deceitful web of presentation: good looks, possessions, social status, job title, etc., which is the wrong basis for an attraction that leads to deeper feelings. By the time we're able to see beyond the superficial labels and recognize a person's true nature and intent, we sometimes find ourselves with a person or in a situation we'd rather not be. Trust me, it's no fun waking up one day and learning that your so-called best friend is a stranger.
You said a mouthful. So tell me, really, why do you write?
Writing is my way of examining the human condition. There are so many dynamics to people ranging from their frailties to their strengths. I love to take ordinary characters and put them in extraordinary situations in order to see how their personalities and characterizations will assist or hurt them. What will story people do when they have no other choice but to face the very thing they fear? I write to discover the answers to questions like this. In the grand scheme of things, writing fiction is my way of understanding life and my relationship to it; which, at the end of each writing session, helps me to become a better neighbor, lover and friend, and father and brother. We see that you’re always on the grind. Between editing manuscripts for an A-list clientele, teaching semesters of creative writing, and meeting your own writing obligations, what's a typical day like in the life of Oasis? My momma raised a winner. With that said, I begin by greeting each new day with the motivation of a champion. I have to remain a positive competitor in order to live in a negative prison environment and not be of it. Prison is what you make it; therefore, I'm at the most prestigious university in the world. My days are spent — after a vicious workout — homing my craft and educating myself on various business matters, educating others on the craft so they can
create the same opportunities for themselves as I have created for myself, and my nights are spent putting what I've learned into practical application while copyediting the works of bestselling authors.
So, who are some of the authors on your company's repeat client list?
That would violate our confidentiality clause. But if you know how to look, they aren't hard to find. For more info about professional editing, visit www.docuversion.com.
What are you working on?
I usually don't tell what I have brewing in the lab, but I'll give you a taste test. I'm penning a suspense novel called The Wrong Chance. It's a story about a group of college students who plays a prank on the wrong guy, Chance Williams. They just didn't know it would cost them their lives.
Motivation?
Money and all the benefits it brings.
Status toys, women, and power.
Hey, those are your words, not mine.
What's the most important thing in your life?
My girl and my children. Family.
I feel you. Okay, Oasis, vision this with me. It's the first day of the semester. Your classroom is stuffed with students who desire to learn the art of writing novels. It's quiet. You have their undivided attention. All eyes are on you. What would Oasis, the creative writing teacher, say to these aspirant authors?
After I've introduced myself and have given them the credentials that makes it possible for me to stand in front of them, the first thing I would say is when the semester is over, each and every student who applies him- or herself will have the fundamental knowledge to write a well-crafted and marketable novel. And in order to do that, the first principle they must soundly understand and never lose sight of is that writing fiction is a business. I would then go on to warn them that learning the elements and techniques of novel writing is going to ruin their entertainment value in reading books and watching TV because they are no longer a consumer. Books and movies they once thought of as great, they will no longer like. I would advise them if they didn't want that to happen, they should politely excuse themselves from the class. Then I would like them know that, however, after learning the craft, when they do read or watch something through a writer's eyes they can appreciate, they have just experienced the cornerstone of our profession—
the craft well executed.
Then I'll start showing them how to write novels that everyone will appreciate.
Before we go, is there anything else you would like to share with us?
I love to interact with the public. If anyone wishes to learn more about me and my happenings or if anyone simply wants to open a dialogue, sign my guest book. I respond to all correspondence. Readers and media professionals, if you have your own interview questions, email them to oasisreader@oasisnovels.com. Oasis will respond with free-for-reprint answers. If you would like to reproduce the author's photo and book cover or would like to receive his media kit, the documents can be downloaded from his Web site.
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