THE ROCK: Who is Roy L. Pickering Jr., tell us something about you?
Roy: After being a full time writer, the job I would most want is to be a professional tennis player. What I lack in skill on the court, I make up for in tenaciousness. I once read the giraffe is the only animal that can touch his nose with his tongue, but apparently that information was false, because I can too. When I met my writing hero, John Irving, in person, I told him that when I win my first Pulitzer Prize, he's invited to the party I'll throw to celebrate. It is my intention to one day keep that promise.

THE ROCK: Where are you from, and currently residing?
Roy: I was born in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I., and grew up in the Bronx, NY from the age of 5. As an adult I've bounced around the boroughs of New York City. Last May I bought my first home in Maplewood, NJ where I reside with my wife.

THE ROCK: Are there any other writers in the family?
Roy: An uncle on my father's side, Vernon Pickering, is a published author and editor of a newspaper in the Virgin Islands.

THE ROCK: What prepared you to become an author?
Roy: I majored in English at NYU, where I took as many writing courses as I could. I've participated in writing workshops post college as well. But ultimately, the way one prepares to be an author is to read as much as possible, and to write as much as possible. So that is what I have done. I've tried to keep my reading list as well as the subject matter and writing styles I employ as diverse as possible. I don't wish to bore myself.

THE ROCK: What inspired you to become a writer?
Roy: I first knew I wanted to become a writer when I read Jules Vernes' "Journey to the Center of the Earth" as a kid. By the time I was finished, my long term goal had become to someday thrill, and move, and entertain people with words on paper the way the words in that book enthralled me.

THE ROCK: What inspired you to write your book?
Roy: Race relations is one of the primary themes explored in my debut novel, "Patches of Grey". I have many strong opinions on the subject, and working them into a novel length story was the vehicle I used to express them. This isn't to say that PATCHES is preachy or an illustration of my particular sense of morality. First and foremost, it is a fictional tale that I wanted and needed to tell.

THE ROCK: Tell us about your newest creation. What is the premise?
Roy: My second novel is entitled "Matters of Convenience". It's basically a love triangle that becomes a love rectangle. That's the short description. The long one would take up too much space. I'm still working on a medium length synopsis.

THE ROCK: Any publishing contracts in the working?
Roy: Just the other day I signed a contract from Gorlan Publications. They are a British company that puts out a magazine called Leafing Through. They intend to publish one of my short stories entitled "The Prizefighter".

THE ROCK: Have you ever self-published? Why or why not?
Roy: To date I have not, but it is something I have recently begun to seriously consider and research. Either self publishing or else finding a reputable POD.

THE ROCK: What are "traditional publisher" looking for?
Roy: Whatever is selling today, that's what they want to publish tomorrow. A pioneering spirit is completely gone from the traditional publishing world. They're looking exclusively for guaranteed hits at the expense of searching for originality and maybe even greatness.

THE ROCK: If you were a publisher, what would be your niche? Why?
Roy: Literary fiction. It's what I mostly read, and it's what I almost exclusively write. I suppose I'm too lazy to develop the expertise necessary to write genre fiction. The lives of ordinary people in common circumstances is more than sufficient inspiration for me to write about.

THE ROCK: For an author, is having a publishing contract with a "traditional publisher" important professionally? Why?
Roy: Yes, of course. It validates the worth of the work. If a major corporation has the confidence to throw time, effort, and money into a book, then presumably it is well written and compelling. That's the theory, anyway. In reality, we all know that traditional publishers put out plenty of junk. And it's equally true that many talented writers with wonderful stories to tell cannot find entry into the traditional publishing world for some reason. They have no choice but to make their voices heard by any means necessary.

THE ROCK: What are some of your professional and personal achievements?
Roy: Short stories of mine appeared in two anthologies last year, one put out by a major traditional publishing house, and one by a smaller publisher founded by a self published author. The first was Proverbs for the People (Kensington), and the other was The Game: Short Stories About the Life (Triple Crown Publications). I had been published many times before in magazines, journals, and ezines, but it was a real treat to see my prose in a book for the first time. Besides my expanding collection of fiction (1-1/2 novels, 1 novella, 50+ short stories to date), I also pen a monthly column of sports articles for www.Suite101.com.

THE ROCK: Who are some of your favorite authors?
Roy: John Irving, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Tim Robbins, Toni Morrison, Tim Sandlin, the list goes on and on.

THE ROCK: Where do you want to be in 5 years?
Roy: Hosting my Pulitzer party, sipping cocktails with Mr. Irving, friends, and family.

THE ROCK: Where can readers find you?

Roy: www.RoyPickering.net

THE ROCK: Thank you, Roy.

BIOGRAPHY
Roy Pickering was born on the idyllic island of St. Thomas, USVI, moving to the Bronx, New York at the age of five. Currently he and his wife reside in Maplewood, New Jersey. Writing has been Roy's calling since grade school when he first came across the novels of Jules Verne in the library. He decided then and there what a wonderful thing a writer must be, able to take people on journeys to the center of the earth and under the sea.

Roy has chosen to take his own readers on journeys into the psyche as he examines the human condition. Rather than embracing a particular genre, or style, or subject matter, he shuns categorization of his writing. He weaves tales in a variety of manners, addressing a wide range of topics as they pique his interest and inspire his creativity.

Roy recently completed his debut novel, Patches of Grey, and is deciding upon the best course of action regarding its publication. A brief excerpt from Patches can be found at his web site - RoyPickering.net. Venturing into the nonfiction market as well, Roy pens a monthly column entitled Sports Issues which can be found at Suite101.com. Here he gets to express his passion for the sports he loves such as tennis, basketball, football, and boxing, and to show his admiration for or exasperation with the athletes who excel at these games. He has begrudgingly abandoned his dreams of becoming heavyweight champion of the world, or star quarterback of the Super Bowl champion Jets, or leading the Knicks to victory in the NBA Finals. But he has not quite given up on eventually winning the US OPEN.

In 2003, Roy's prose was featured in two anthologies that can be found at a bookstore near you. Kensington Books put out Proverbs for the People, which includes his short story, "Lessons". Later that Summer, The Game...Short Stories About the Life was published by Triple Crown Publications. This book of gangster/hip hop literature contains two of Mr. Pickering's tales packaged under a single title - "Mama's Boy". Additionally, an anthology consisting entirely of his own stories [Enigmas of Desire] was epubbed by Free-Fiction.com.

Among his numerous hobbies, Roy is an avid photographer. He has dedicated a page of this web site to showcase a few of his photographs, accompanied by a collection of his favorite quotes.

http://www.rockpublications.com
http://www.the-rock-newsmagazine.com
Virtual Shopping is here! ~The Crystal Palace Mall
Image is everything...why trust it to anybody?