Today we welcome author Micah Thorp, a physician, writer, and lifelong Oregonian. We’re thrilled to be publishing his third novel (more info coming soon!) next September. His first novel, Uncle Joe’s Muse, was a Foreword Indies Book of the Year Award Winner and a Next Generation Indie Winner in 2022, and the follow-up, Uncle Joe’s Senpai, was called “a comedic gem, seasoned with just the right amount of insight and wisdom so it lingers long after you’ve finished.” We’re excited to tell you soon about his third novel, which marks a diversion from the previous two and presents quite a different type of story. Micah is, without a doubt, an author to watch. Read more about him below, and join us in welcoming him to the Type Eighteen Books family.

Five Quick Questions for the Author

Who are some of your favorite authors, and why?

My favorite authors are Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison, and Ken Kesey. I’m not sure why I’m drawn to this particular group, given the disparity in the style and substance of their work. Hemingway was the master of the simple declarative sentence. Morrison’s writing is a rich matrix of description and metaphor. Kesey alters point of view and tense seamlessly sometimes in the same sentence. They are exceptionally different, but all uniquely great.

When did you know you were a writer?

I’ve always enjoyed writing, though even now I find it difficult to identify myself as a writer. I wrote a book in medical school – by hand – while doing a rotation on the Omaha Reservation in Nebraska.  I stayed in this little house with a bunch of guys, one television that had two channels and didn’t have much to do. It reads like a first novel, but I enjoyed the process.

I didn’t do much writing again until about seven or eight years ago. Life gets busy and you have to be selective with your hobbies. During the pandemic I started to write more seriously. I felt at that time I had something worth sending to a publisher and in 2022, Uncle Joe’s Muse was published. Over the next year, I wrote a sequel, in part because the first book didn’t seem to have a solid ending.

My new novel is something I’ve been working on for at least the last four years. I really wanted to write something that was serious, and addressed complex topics and complex characters. I wanted to stretch my writing as much as I could.

Where were you born? Do you think the places of our lives inform our writing?

I was born in North Carolina, though only because my father was serving in the military. My formative years were all spent growing up outside of Springfield, Oregon, in a rural area, the Mohawk Valley. I went to Oregon State University and medical school in Iowa. My last two years of medical school, I traveled fairly extensively before returning to Portland.

This new story is heavily focused on place, specifically the Mohawk Valley. A book I’ve been working on more recently focuses on the Portland area.

What advice would you give to those interested in writing?

Read a lot. And read good stuff. Pick books that have high quality writing even if they don’t tell a story you might otherwise be interested in. When you do write, differentiate between creative writing and everyday writing. They should occupy different spaces in your brain. Finally, focus on editing as much as writing. Great writers are great editors. I heard an interview with Toni Morrison where she said she couldn’t read a newspaper without a pencil in hand to edit. Writing can be like sculpting. You take something rough, and slowly, a bit at a time, work it into the thing you want it to be.

What do you think is the most important part of storytelling?

I firmly believe human beings are hardwired to tell stories. We are a narrative species. Good storytelling requires leaving the reader (or listener) with something to think about, something that lingers long after they’ve set down the piece. It may be a perspective, a character, or an insight, but whatever the case, it should change how the story’s receiver views the world.

Check out our newest author’s website: https://micahthorp.com/, and watch for updates about his upcoming book!