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Tom MacDonald has Boston in his blood. Born in Dorchester and raised in Braintree, Massachusetts, he now works in Charlestown for St. Mary–St. Catherine of Siena Parish as Director of Social Ministries.

MacDonald attended Stonehill College, earning a B.A. in Sociology. Fifteen years into a career as a computer programmer, he went back to school and received a Masters in Business Administration from Boston College’s Carroll School of Management. There he learned that he had the talent to write, which he later pursued at the University of Southern Maine’s Stonecoast MFA program in creative writing, completing a Masters of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in fiction.

Tom’s writing has been influenced by his work in the Catholic church, serving the largest federal housing project in New England, Charlestown’s Bunker Hill Housing Development. Tom’s main goal in storytelling is to depict urban life in a believable yet interesting way, keeping clear of clichés and stereotypes. To accomplish this, he focuses on street dialogue, value systems and norms, reactions to the events of daily life, and the things left unsaid. His hope is that an image of inner city-living, shown through an un-tinted lens, renders a story worth reading.

He currently resides in Braintree, Massachusetts with his wife Maribeth.

Authors Website:  http://www.tommacdonaldbooks.com/

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Conversation With The Author

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TELL US A LITTLE ABOUT YOURSELF, HOW AND WHEN YOU STARTED WRITING.

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Fifteen years into my career as a computer programmer, I went back to school and received a Masters in Business Administration from Boston College’s Carroll School of Management, where I discovered that, though I didn’t have the acumen for business, I did have the talent to write. Encouraged by a BC professor in the Leadership for Change program, I decided to pursue writing. I took three fiction-writing classes at Boston’s Grub Street school, and was then accepted into the University of Southern Maine’s Stonecoast MFA program in creative writing. I completed my Maters of Fine degree in 2009 with a concentration in fiction.

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WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE YOUR NOVEL?

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While pursuing in the MFA program at Stonecoast. It became apparent to me that I had a penchant for telling stories in urban settings. Two instructors in the program encouraged me to write stories about the streets of Boston preferable the underbelly of the city.

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WHO IS YOUR FAVORITE OR MOST SYMPATHETIC CHARACTER? AND WHY?

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Dermot Sparhawk, the first-person narrator. Dermot drives the story.

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WHAT PART OF WRITING YOUR BOOK DID YOU FIND THE MOST CHALLENGING?

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Delaying the solving of the mystery, pushing it to the end of the book as possible.

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HOW DO YOU DIAL UP THE TENSION TO KEEP YOUR READERS ON THE EDGE OF THEIR SEATS?

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Using dialogue to depict emotions and uncertainty. Dramatizing the important information in the story.

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WHAT WRITERS HAVE INSPIRED YOU?

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George V. Higgins, Raymond Chandler, Robert B. Parker, Lawrence Block, Dennis Lehane, Patricia Highsmith, Charles Dickens, Walter Mosely.

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WHAT IS THE WRITING PROCESS LIKE FOR YOU?

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I am imagine the stories in scenes.

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WHAT IS THE BEST PIECE OF ADVICE ABOUT WRITING THAT YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

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Omit needless words.

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WHAT IS THE WORST PIECE OF ADVICE ABOUT WRITING THAT YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED?

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Don’t start writing until you have the story outlined.

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WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU? ANY NEW BOOKS IN THE PIPELINE?

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Yes, a second Dermot Sparhawk in the works.

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