My good friend actually did care for his cousin, who was like a brother to him and who was also a great friend of mine, as he slowly died of a terminal illness. Our discussions about how hard that was and the emotional aftermath were the impetus for the characters and their internal struggles.

John F Duffy – 26 September 2022

The Back Flap

A Ballroom for Ghost Dancing is a story about best friends and former bandmates, Adam and Mark, driving to South Dakota so Mark can research an article, and Adam can reignite his passion for living.

After his brother Tommy died, Adam quit playing music and drove away his longtime girlfriend. To help his friend remember that it’s OK to experience joy, Mark invites Adam on a road trip to South Dakota’s Badlands. Along the way, Adam discovers Mark’s hidden motives to travel west, and when the beautiful Bianca enters the picture, the dynamic shifts, drawing out buried secrets and overdue confessions. External circumstances start a ticking clock, forcing Adam to choose between new love and an old friend.

Set in the stoic expanse of the American heartland and awash in comedic banter and beautiful prose, A Ballroom for Ghost Dancing is a story both hilarious and heartbreaking about the value of friendship in the face of loss, and the hidden tragedies that we all have awaiting us, whether we are ready to confront them or not.

About the book

What is the book about?

A Ballroom for Ghost Dancing is about two men who are best friends and former bandmates heading west on a roadtrip. The main character, Adam, has spent the last year grieving the death of his brother Tommy, and he is sort of being dragged along on the journey by Mark, who suggests that getting out of town will be good for his forlorn friend. Mark is researching an article he is writing that is set in South Dakota near the Badlands, and Adam begrudgingly comes along for the ride.

Over the course of the trip, it becomes clear that both men are harboring a lot of secrets, as well as a good bit of regret as they move into the middle stage of life. They find though, that through friendship and a little bit of good old-fashioned risk taking, that happiness might just be achievable, despite the cruelties of time.

When did you start writing the book?

I started writing the book in October of 2021.

How long did it take you to write it?

It took me one month to crank out a first draft, but I had the structure in my head. With a friend of mine, I actually took the roadtrip the characters take, and as I spent hours and hours staring at the road in front of me, my brain was hard at work assembling the story arc.

Where did you get the idea from?

My good friend actually did care for his cousin, who was like a brother to him and who was also a great friend of mine, as he slowly died of a terminal illness. Our discussions about how hard that was and the emotional aftermath were the impetus for the characters and their internal struggles.

Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?

Certainly there were struggles, but it’s hard to put words to them. I think the greatest struggle of all is kicking the public and potential critics out of my head during the writing process. It’s easy to start hearing a voice that isn’t yours, but is instead that of your imagined worst critics, and if you listen to them, or let them shape the work, you’ll fail.

What came easily?

The banter between Mark and Adam, because it is in the style of how I go back and forth with my real life friend the character is based on. It’s very dry and constantly sarcastic. If anything, I had to pull back a bit, to only include that which was absolutely necessary.

Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?

As I said, the Adam and Tommy characters were loosely based on my good friends, but of course, given totally fictional backstories. The other primary characters are all probably chimeras of the people I’ve known through the years, but I wouldn’t say any are solidly based on any specific individuals. The main character Mark is a version of me, admittedly, but he is also very unlike me in certain ways.

We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?

One of my absolute favorite writers is Cormac McCarthy, but I wouldn’t even dare try to write like him. I would fail. End of story. I think that for A Ballroom for Ghost Dancing in particular I was trying to write a very short, crisp, fast pace novel that used a classic, Hemmingway-esque, “American” style of prose. I did a lot of line editing to pare sentences down until only what absolutely had to be left, was left. That’s not to say the book doesn’t have its passages that are more flowery or verbose, but I tried to be sparing with them. Camus’ the Stranger is a clear influence on the book, though again, he was a genius, and I’m a guy who tries to win over the reader with humor because I know I’m not smart enough to win them over with brilliance. In the end, the philosophy for this novel’s prose was, “Minimum effective dose.” Say what needs saying, and nothing else. Also, ensnare the reader with laughter and good characters, and then I’d be free to break their hearts and get a little poetic in the third act.

Do you have a target reader?

I’ve jokingly referred to my writing as “millennial heartbreak,” and later realized that that is actually a pretty apt description. A lot of my short fiction is of an American Gothic style, so all in all, my work lands somewhere in between those two positions. Writing is about wrapping emotions and ideas in characters and plot, like medicine in a capsule. It would be foolish of me to think I had the emotional or philosophical gravitas to write in a very universal way, or to write for an audience much older than myself. It would be like a teenager trying to write for my generation, the result would probably feel naive. So I stay in my generational “lane” as it were, and write for people approaching that middle stage of life, that, “What does it all mean? Am I doing it right? Shit, is this all there is?” phase.

About Writing

Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?

I feel like I’m one of the lucky writers who can just sit down at seven a.m. with a cup of coffee, listen to the right music, and crank out a few thousand words. I just let my subconscious take the wheel and hope my fingers can keep up.

Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?

I don’t usually outline. I will keep a notebook for a novel I’m working on though, and it will be full of ideas. All my research goes in there, or ideas for metaphors, characters, scenes, whatever. I build that notebook out and finally my brain “gets” whatever the story is, and I just go. And like I said, sitting quietly, whether while driving long distances or in those rare moments I have to myself at home, my brain will be in full story assembly mode.

Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?

No. Unless it’s absolutely necessary to stay on course. I just charge forward until I’m at the end and I have a draft.

Did you hire a professional editor?

Absolutely! It’s too easy to get a little nuts, otherwise. And by that I mean, to go a little wild on the page. Earlier I said that you cannot allow the voices of your imagined critics into your thoughts. The result of doing so, however, can be that you go a little off the rails here and there. An editor is there to find those areas where you need to pull back, or maybe sometimes push harder. They call you on your bullshit when what you’ve written is a cliche, or not believable, or just plain crap. I’d much rather have an editor tell me that than a reviewer after the book has been published.

Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?

Yes. Always. Music is hugely important in my life, and in this particular novel the main characters were touring musicians in the aughts, playing in the punk/indie/emo genre. Several real bands from that era get shout outs in the book, and I listened to them while writing. I made a playlist that I listened to to get me in the zone, and it was full of bands like Death Cab for Cutie, Jets to Brazil, Modest Mouse, Rainer Maria, Sunny Day Real Estate, Bright Eyes, and more. I have actually given copies of the book to several of the musicians that get mentions in the novel.

Also, I should say that there is a particular song in the book that itself is a central feature of the story. It is real song, and it’s beautiful, and it’s also a total mystery as to who wrote and recorded it. So I listened to that song quite a bit too.

About Publishing

Did you submit your work to Agents?

I did, but with an understanding that I would only wait two months for responses. When I set out to write the novel, I did so fully intending to self publish. When the book was done, I figured, “screw it,” I’ll see if I get any bites from agents. When none were forthcoming in a short time, I quickly moved to self publishing.

What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?

I’m a very DIY person. I built my own house. I made an 11 part podcast series that I was lucky enough to sell to I heart radio, but I made it fully intending to self release it. I don’t like gatekeepers and I don’t like waiting for someone else to tell me that I’m good enough to do what I’m passionate about. I will own all of my successes and all of my failures.

Also, I think the modern publishing method is kind of bullshit. Pub Houses basically get writers to pay for the labor of selecting what to publish by only dealing with agents who charge their clients percentages of their eventual contracts. I certainly understand that publishing houses need to screen material, but they could pay employees to do that. Instead, writers are paying for the pleasure of having barriers put in front of them, and I think that sucks.

Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?

Oh, professional, 100%. You can write a masterpiece, but if you put a janky cover on it, no one will read it. I see people slapping self-made covers on these books they spend so much time writing, and I just shake my head. I’ll pay top dollar for a cover. Rafael Andres did my cover, and he did such a great job. He can be hired on Reedsy. He was also great to work with, and I will absolutely be working with him again on my next book. I honestly cannot stress enough that writers should pay good money for a good cover.

Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?

I have a plan, but it consists of various stages of winging it. Marketing is always an experiment, and what works for one book won’t necessarily work for another. Right now I am focused on getting the book in as many independently owned bookstores as I can, and also in doing live events at as many of those stores as will have me. I am a big believer in brick-and-mortar book stores, in the power generated by the feeling of being surrounded by literature, and in the importance of face-to-face personal connections.

Beyond that, I’ve given out a lot of ARCS to garner reviews online. I’m scheduled to be on several podcasts too. Also I am submitting the novel for reviews with a LOT of bloggers and book writers. And maybe if I’m lucky, one of the musicians I have sent it to will enjoy it and tweet about it. My wife is also a digital marketing professional, and we are looking at a few ad strategies.

Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?

Advice is contextual here. There are genre specific writers making careers following a specific path that doesn’t work for literary writers like myself, so what I say will not necessarily apply to a writer of romance or fantasy or horror. The advice would be to save up some money, and be ready to spend if you want your work to succeed. A publishing house wouldn’t publish a book without a lot of professional editing, layout, cover design, and marketing. You cannot expect to succeed if you do not invest in your project.

Of course, write the best goddamn book you can, too.

About You

Where did you grow up?

Just outside of Chicago, IL, then I moved into the city for college. In my young twenties I moved to the Phoenix area, then bounced to Austin. I feel like I did a lot of growing up in those places as well.

Where do you live now?

In the backwoods of Southern Indiana, just outside of Bloomington. I finally had my fill of big cities.

What would you like readers to know about you?

It’s all in the book.

What are you working on now?

Aside from marketing this book, my professional career is in podcasting and filmmaking, so I’m working on a second season of my Image Award nominated series, “After the Uprising,” and I’m also shooting a documentary, piece by piece. I should also mention that I’m raising the best kid in the world, and in my free time I’m slowly grinding away, trying to get better at Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.

And of course, I’m working on a second novel.

End of Interview:

For more from John F. Duffy visit his website and follow him on Twitter.

Get your copy of A Ballroom for Ghost Dancing from Amazon US or Amazon UK.