Interview with Chuck Waldron, author of The CleanSweep Counterstrike

What can you tell us about your new release, The CleanSweep Counterstrike?

Matt Tremain is back. Readers told me they liked my character, Matt Tremain, in The Cleansweep Conspiracy. They wanted more. In this sequel, Matt is once again facing his nemesis, Charles Claussen.  As if that wasn’t enough, an even more sinister evil lurks in the background, a shadowy group of conspirators. The clock is ticking for Claussen too. The Brotherhood of Eagles secretly financed his aborted Operation Cleansweep in the previous novel. Now they want answers . . . and their money back. Consumed with a need for vengeance, Claussen risks it all to destroy Matt as the Brotherhood team races to exact their own revenge. When Matt’s new fiance’s life is on the line, Matt goes “all in” to save her.

What or who inspired you to become an author?

I’ve had a life-long urge to write, to tell stories. But Henrietta Blake, teaching a class about writing short stories, transformed my being a writer into becoming an author. Brian Henry, Toronto editor, writer, and creative writing instructor nurtured the process. Many along the way have contributed to my becoming an author, but the real urge comes from a voice within that tells me to keep writing.

What’s on your top 5 list for the best books you’ve ever read?

An impossible limit, but here goes.

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury

The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck

The Spy Who Came in From the Cold,  by John le Carré

For Whom the Bell Tolls, by Ernest Hemingway

After the Fire, by Henning Mankell

Say you’re the host of a literary talk show. Who would be your first guest? What would you want to ask?

That’s an easy one. It would be, David Cornwell, better known by his pen name, John le Carré. He’s the undisputed author of espionage novels.

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

Turning my imagination loose and telling a story, hopefully, a story someone will find interesting. Writing is a solitary experience but greatly influenced by family, friends, the news and all that’s happening in the world. Writing somehow channels my anxieties about all that goes on around me. If anything, I’m grateful for writing when that happens.

What is a typical day like for you?

I’m still waiting for a typical day, unsure what a typical day is for me. Coffee, newspaper and crossword puzzle in ink starts most days. My writing time depends on the stage of the novel; writing, editing or marketing. Spending time with family and fun is important. Walking, riding a bike, and exercise has a way of freeing my thinking. I quit counting the number of inspirational moments I’ve had while doing something completely unrelated to writing.  I have cured myself, however, of trying to write notes while driving.

What scene in The CleanSweep Counterstrike was your favorite to write?

The battle of Apalach. It was great fun using old men using their brains to outwit their youthful enemy. In our youth-oriented society, people tend to become invisible as they reach old age. This scene was my way of turning that cliche on its head.

Do you have a motto, quote or philosophy you live by?

“Salud, pesetas y amor; y tiempo para gastarlas.” Health, wealth and love; and the time to enjoy. Nothing really matters without the joy.

Chuck Waldron is the author of the new book The CleanSweep Counterstrike 

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