The Black Lens by Christopher Stollar

Summary:

In honor of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month and in celebration of The Black Lens recently winning the Grand Prize at the Self Published eBook Awards, we welcome Columbus-based author, Christopher Stollar. Christopher has an extensive background in journalism, which he has leveraged over the last 5-years to write an award winning thriller on the terrors of human trafficking. Although the novel is fiction, it’s based off of hours of thorough research and real-life testimonials, and it takes you first-hand through the terrors of being stuck in the world of human trafficking. In this interview we talk with Chris about the process of writing a book, how he went about his research, why he chose the topic to write about that he did, the best methods for getting a book published, and what the future looks like for him with respect to writing!

Mile Markers:

00:00:00 Intro to the episode, Subscribe to Conquering Columbus Plug, AWH Plug, Max Effort Muscle Plug, ProKure Klean Plug
00:02:52 Conquering Columbus Intro Music
00:03:56 Intro to Christopher Stollar and The Black Lens wins the Grand Prize at the Self-Published eBook awards
00:05:30 Background on Chris, starting as a journalist out in Oregon
00:06:45 What got you interested in writing?
00:08:15 What inspired you to write a piece of fiction, and ultimately The Black Lens?
00:10:45 What does the research process on sex trafficking look like as a journalist?
00:12:10 What is sex trafficking?
00:13:30 What was the process like from idea to creation with the book?
00:17:10 What was it like interviewing the victims as you were doing research for the book?
00:20:30 Instead of starting with a cause, start with a story
00:20:00 Writer’s block & the writing process
00:25:00 Publishing a book
00:29:00 What feedback did you get once the book was released?
00:29:45 Pulling it back to publishing a book, because we like to keep you on your toes
00:31:45 Spreading awareness of the book and the future for Chris
00:34:00 The Black Lens
00:35:30 Statistics, they’re tricky
00:36:20 How can people help in the fight against sex trafficking?
00:38:30 What does Live Uncomfortably mean to you?
00:39:40 Closing remarks
00:40:45 Outro, Subscribe to Conquering Columbus Plug, AWH Plug, Max Effort Muscle Plug, ProKure Klean Plug