Tom Epel interview with David Alan Binder
 HOPS Press, LLC: http://www.hopspress.com/
Personal Website: http://www.elpel.info/
Blog: https://thomasjelpel.wordpress.com/
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-J.-Elpel/e/B001K81DUM
Good Reads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/16683199-tom-elpel?shelf=books-i-wrote
1. How do you pronounce your name? Elpel is pronounced El-pel, kind of like El Paso, but it is German or Lithuanian, not Spanish.
2. Where are you currently living? I’ve been in Pony, Montana since 1989. My grandmother moved here before I did, and she mentored me in edible and medicinal plants and wilderness survival skills. Three years out of high school, I bought land a block from her house and starting building my own.
2. What is the most important thing that you have learned in your writing experience, so far? Use simple language. There is no need to impress anyone with big words. Any word that isn’t familiar to the majority of the population requires a definition embedded in the text, so that the reader can fluidly absorb the new word and continue reading without interruption.
3. What would you say is your most interesting writing, publishing, editing or illustrating quirk? I like to dedicate each book to a different person who is special to me and somehow connected with the book. The dedication and a photo of the person is included on the title page.
4. Tell us your insights on self-publish or use a publisher? My publishing business, HOPS Press, LLC, started very out very slowly. As a young man, I was selling photocopied books with plastic comb bindings. Over time, the quality of my writing improved, and I started printing real books with paperback and hardcover bindings and ISBN numbers. The publishing business matured with my writing, and I really like being able to design and market all facets of a product on my own schedule, without anyone else dictating how they think it should be.
5. Any insights eBooks vs. print books and alternative vs. conventional publishing? Most of our titles are rich with pictures and captions, so converting from paper to eBook can require major reformatting. We are tip-toeing that direction, but otherwise prefer traditional printed books.
6. Do you have any secret tips for writers on getting a book published? The most important step is to write the book you want to write, not the one you think the market wants. Stay true to yourself, and you will build a deeper connection with your audience.
7. How did you or would you suggest acquire an agent? Any tips for new writers on getting one? I’ve never worked with an agent. Maybe I should. On the other hand, being my own publisher and not having an agent has necessitated learning and understanding how to connect with my audience directly, and I prefer that deeper connection.
8. Do you have any suggestions or helps for new writers (please be specific and informational as possible)? A book is never done, especially a nonfiction book. It can take years to get a book ready for publication, yet a publisher may only market the title for six months or a year, then remainder or shred the rest. As my own publisher, I prefer to market a book until I’ve sold every copy, then revise, improve, polish, and print it again. Some of my titles have six editions, each a significant improvement over its predecessor, like wine that improves with age.
9. What was one of the most surprising things you learned in your creative process with your books, editing, publishing or illustrating? Writing continually improves with time and experience. When I finish a book I’m sure it is the greatest work ever written. But by the time I sell out and revise the book for the next edition, I am embarrassed by what seems like shoddy writing, and I wish I could buy up and burn the old books!
10. How many books have you written? I’ve written seven books so far, plus I’ve produced several videos and a card game. Books include:
- Shanleya's Quest: A Botany Adventure for Kids Ages 9 to
99
11. Do you have any tricks or tips to help others become a better writer (please be as specific and information as you possibly can)? Weed out the little words and make your writing more concise and to the point.
12. Do you have any suggestions for providing twists in a good story? I write mostly nonfiction, which is easy, because it doesn’t have to be invented, just documented well. My children’s book, Shanleya’s Quest: A Botany Adventure for Kids Ages 9 to 99 is a fictional story, yet only on the surface. It uses mythology to teach science and botany. It is successful because the substance of the story is real, rather than invented.
13. What makes your or any book stand out from the crowd? I write about topics that matter to me and haven’t been covered adequately by others. There is a niche and a need, and I write the books I’ve been searching for myself.
14. What are some ways in which you promote your work? My books sell through word-of-mouth. People like what they read and share it with others. The challenge is to introduce a new title, often a new topic, to a new audience, to entice enough people to read it and start talking to other people about it. Botany in a Day was the easiest book to market. I delivered review copies to herbal schools, and they recommended it to their students and have continued to do so ever since.
15. What is the one thing you would do differently now (concerning writing or editing or publishing or illustrating) and why? I get excited about a new book and print thousands of copies, when it might be smarter to launch new titles with print-on-demand and refine them for another year or two before doing a large printing.
16. What saying or mantra do you live by? Carlos Castaneda once said something to the effect of, “Death is stalking you over your left shoulder.” I don’t want death to stalk up on me lazing around in front of the television. I seek to make the most of every day I have in this life. I try to keep pushing my own boundaries and limitations to do more and to contribute more to humanity and the natural world with whatever time I have left in this world.
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