Internationally published novelist and nonfiction author Joseph Massucci was born and raised in steel-town Pittsburgh, Pa. He published his first newspaper (The Berry Street News) at age 10, and has been a writer and editor ever since.

After graduating from Duquesne University (undergraduate-journalism) and the University of Pittsburgh (graduate-rhetoric and communications), Joe spent 28 years in corporate communications. He is now founder and CEO of Safari Multimedia, LLC in Texas.

Joe has written more than 2,500 articles for corporate and trade publications on a variety of technical topics. His editorial assignments have taken him to Egypt, Argentina, Sharjah, The Netherlands and England.

Joe’s debut novel, CODE:ALPHA (Leisure Books, 1997), is a “heart-pounding technothriller” about a beautiful and brainy biochemist whose inadvertent creation — a genetically engineered virus known as “Saint Vitus” — becomes a terrible weapon of revenge for the Middle East’s most dangerous terrorist. With nonstop action, cutting-edge medical science, romance and the very real specter of domestic terrorism, the book has garnered rave reviews from critics and readers alike, with a first printing of 70,000 copies. “Totally believable!” says Kirkus Reviews. USA Today: “This fiction can become reality. Our reality.” Most recently, the book was translated and published in Polish by Amber Press as “KOD ALFA.”

His second novel, a sequel to CODE:ALPHA titled THE MILLENNIUM PROJECT (Leisure Books, 1998), is touted as “one of the most popular books about Year 2000 and the Millennium,” (TIMEANDDATE.COM). The Herald Tribune (Pasadena) says, “This thriller takes readers on a ride made even more compelling by the idea that its events could really happen. A good read, with plenty of bang for your Millennium buck.” The book was translated and published in the Czech Republic by Alpress, and in Poland by Amber Press.

Joe is working on his fifth novel, THE FOLD.

When he isn’t writing, Joe is a recording musician and a photographer. He is married to Patricia and has a 23-year-old daughter, Jenny (who is a singer), two miniature dachshunds, Shorty and Tanner, and a calico cat, Peaches.

A couple of questions for Joe:

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I was writing stories in the third grade. I created characters and dialogue for my friends so we could put on backyard plays for the neighborhood’s parents. My dream since then has always been to create new worlds and new characters through novels.

How has working for Corporate America prepared you for being a novelist?

Writing for Corporate America has been very good to me. Besides sharpening my journalism skills, I’ve been very lucky in getting writing assignments all over the world where I could ask people at the very top whatever I needed for my articles. Over 25 years, this experience has put me in some unusual places — a natural gas offshore platform in the middle of the North Sea, the prehistoric mountains of Argentina, an Egyptian ghetto, a newly discovered tomb, and the engine room of a 70,000 deadweight ton oil tanker.

What kind of books do you like to read?

I’ve enjoyed and have been inspired by Michael Crichton, Clive Cussler, Stephen King, Alistair Maclean, Tom Clancy and H.P Lovecraft. Unfortunately, most of my time these days is taken with nonfiction reading. However, on vacations I’ll grab a mainstream thriller off the bestseller rack — and, frankly, I’m usually disappointed.

What advice can you give writers hoping to get published?

Keep working on your craft until you’ve successfully written a commercial manuscript — that is a novel a publishing house can market to a large audience. This can take years for your first book, or it may not happen until your third manuscript. Someone who gives up after unsuccessfully trying to publish a first manuscript isn’t truly committed to becoming a published novelist.

When your manuscript is as good as you can make it (don’t you dare ask anyone to read a half-assed work in progress!), then comes the frustrating business of finding an agent and, ultimately, a publisher. This part of the process often proves even more difficult than finishing your manuscript. Agents are the gatekeepers to the publishing world, who, like editors, will put their business self-interests ahead of all other considerations. For example, ideas, trends, styles and genres that have sold well in the past will be sought after for today markets. This can actually put new ideas, imagination and creativity at a disadvantage. It’s also the reason the majority of new books I pick up off the bestseller rack tend to disappoint me with stale and repetitive themes and style. However, in the end, no one — not you, an agent, or the publisher — knows what combination of plot, characters, technique, genre or themes will delight an audience and make the next best seller.

To succeed in this industry, always think marketing — from the genesis of your idea all the way to creating an enticing artwork that gets noticed on book racks. Draft a three-page synopsis that reads like marketing copy for the book’s jacket (see the synopsis of my books elsewhere on this Web site). This may be your single most important writing project. Also, draft a sentence or two “hook” that summarizes your story for your cover letter (e.g., “With the most important scientific discovery in the history of mankind at stake, an elusive Dr. Sabbath will stop at nothing to keep his experiment the world’s most closely guarded secret. Only one man can expose Sabbath’s incredible scheme with its global implications — a fertility doctor who was murdered a half century ago.”).

The goal of your presentation is to get agents and editors to dig deeper into your query package to find out more about you and your story. A query package should contain a brief cover letter, your bio, a multi-page synopsis and, optionally, the FIRST fifty pages of your manuscript. If you have the opportunity, attend writers’ conferences to meet editors and agents in your genre and pitch your work with a five-minute oral presentation of your query package.

The key to success is to not give up. As I’ve stated, don’t write just one manuscript and then hang it up if you don’t generate any interest. It’s very difficult for first-time authors to get noticed regardless of the quality of their work. Remember, you’re competing with best-selling authors for editors’ and, ultimately, readers’ attention. If you are truly a writer, you will always be working on a manuscript.

Keep sending out quality query packages, varying your approach if you’re not generating interest in you and your project, until a potential agent or publisher reads your manuscript seriously. It may take hundreds of query letters before you find an agent who likes your style enough to feel confident representing you. It’s a thankless, frustrating, imperfect process.

As for the writing life, set aside time each day — at least an hour for writers who juggle full-time day jobs — to work on a project. Listen seriously to your inner voice that tells you not to give up. If you’re a natural storyteller, with enough perseverance you will get published.

User Rating: / 0
PoorBest