Not long after Tim Dorsey’s first book, Florida Roadkill, was published in 1999, I interviewed the Tampa writer for a piece published in The Orlando Weekly (as soon as I can track that down, I’ll link to it here).

We met at the Old Meeting House on South Howard Avenue. There, Tim, a former colleague at the Tampa Tribune, where he had last worked as that paper’s night metro editor, told me about his approach to gathering an audience for his work.

First, write page-turning books (he didn’t say that in so many words). Second, build a brand (he did say something like that).

Tim’s plan, in addition to continuing his extensive first-hand research on all things Florida and applying the seat of his pants to the chair in the office of his South Tampa home, was to directly connect with his readers.

As a result, loyal followers would be eager to buy the next “Tim Dorsey book” regardless of title, plot or reviews.

He’s accomplished exactly that, gathering a large following of fans via endless rounds of appearances and signings at bookstores, writers conferences and other venues, and a vital web presence at TimDorsey.com.

Tim has even been a guest speaker at academic conferences – I heard him talk to a group of college profs a couple of years ago, when the annual FCEA (Florida College English Association) meeting was held at Florida Southern College in Lakeland. At that particular conference, I gave a paper on Harry Crews.

Tim talks about Nuclear Jellyfish, his recently published 11th book in a decade, in a story written by UF journalism prof William McKeen and published in this week’s Creative Loafing.

Read the CL story here. And click here to read my review, originally published Jan. 25 in the St. Petersburg Times.

Since this blog focuses on books AND movies, a question or two for Tim (perhaps I’ll ask him, next time I bump into him):

What’s the latest on Hollywood’s interest in your books?

And who would be in your dream cast, particularly when it comes to Serge and Coleman?

Serge strikes me as someone who’s not necessarily physically imposing. He’s wildly eccentric (an understatement), a tough but smart guy, an autodidact who has been around the block a time or 100. He can be mean and hell, and funny, too, even if only by accident.

Ben Kingsley is a little bit of all of that in the underappreciated Sexy Beast (2000). And anyone who doesn’t believe that Sir Ben can rock it extremely silly ought to see The Love Guru. No, don’t see the entire awful movie, just the sequences featuring Kingsley.

Mickey Rourke could do something interesting with the role, too, as could his pal Eric Roberts, and maybe even Bruce Willis.

And for the pot-addled dangerous goof Coleman? How about Owen Wilson, or Woody Harrelson, or, for someone younger, maybe Seth Rogen?