DAN TURPIN BOOKS FAQ

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I am a writer, actor, and director. I worked in Hollywood for several years; I was a recurring character on General Hospital for a while. I also acted in films with Michael Madsen and Dennis Hopper, a movie of the week called Hell Hath No Fury, some commercials, and so on. My stage name is Clifford Dalton. You can IMDB me for more information about my life in Hollywood.

What is your book about?

When teenager Genevieve Dahlia is sucked out of an airliner door during a violent thunderstorm, she finds herself in an extraordinary kingdom in the clouds.

What made you decide to write Taking Back Cloud 16?

I was sitting outside one evening and saw this cloud that looked like a castle. And as the sun set, the cloud turned a brilliant gold color, so it looked like a golden castle in the sky. This is what gave me the idea to write about the cloud kingdoms.

Did you do any research for the book?

Most of the locations in Taking Back Cloud 16  I am familiar with, so that brings an air of authenticity to the writing. I did do some research online about Scouting for the prologue, heraldry, dragons, clouds and Latin.

 When you’re not writing, what you do with your spare time?

I am a member of the California animal rescue. We rescue animals all year round and especially during fire season. People will panic and leave their animals behind and I go in with my horse trailer and rescue anything from fish bowls to pigs. Also, I am a avid conservationist and environmentalists. I’ve planted over 1000 trees on my ranch in California and everything is organic. I rescue local animals as well that have been abandoned on the highway. People drive out where I live, in the country, and dropped their animals off. I rescue them, take them to the  veterinarian,
 get all their shots, advertise to find the owner, if no owner responds, then I put a classified ad In the newspaper and find the animal a good home.   I once had three dogs show up at my ranch at the same time—a big one, a medium-sized one, and a small one—and none of them had a collar. They were very skinny and thirsty; they were also very sweet. I put them in my backyard and gave them some food and water. I advertised and put up signs, but no one claimed them. So I took them to the vet, and they had all of their shots. Then I found good homes for them. A blind couple took the medium-sized dog . I would always check on the families that took the dogs to make sure they were happy with them—if not, I would take them back. This blind couple had two children. One night someone tried to break into their house through one of the children’s bedroom windows, and the dog barked and scared the intruder off. So they really love that dog.

Do you have a favorite book?

I have a lot of favorite books. Anything by Raymond Chandler and Edgar Rice Burroughs. But if I had to pick a few, they would be A Princess of Mars, The Big Sleep, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Watership Down and Jonathan Livingston Seagull. But my favorite writer of all time is Sophocles, and my favorite story is Antigone. I love all the Greek plays.

How do you write your books—on paper, notepads, or the computer?

Originally, I started out writing longhand, and then I started writing on the computer, and now, with Dragon software, I dictate my books. But I still take notes on paper, usually the story line, plot points, and characterization. I write in longhand and then dictate to the computer.

What are you writing now?

The second book in the Cloud 16 series. It’s really going to have several new exciting characters, a great storyline, and many surprising plot twists.