That’s writing in a nutshell. Conveying a message with a voice that’s authentic and a story that’s relatable.
Patrick Sangimino – 17 April 2026
The Back Flap
“Dogs Chase Cars details the downturn in the newspaper industry through the eyes of a longtime Kansas City sports columnist, who is driving to work on a November Friday, expecting to be the latest casualty in a business that has shed far too much blood in recent years. It takes place over a single day, but flashes back to those seminal moments – from covering a World Series game in 1989 that was halted by a 7.1 earthquake to accidently breaking the story of a Hall of Fame quarterback’s rumored trade while doing his business at a urinal – that stand out in a storied career. It’s a tale of changing times, changing technology and the ignorance and arrogance of the industry’s decision makers, who assumed the profits of the past would never wane.”
About the book
What is the book about?
Dogs Chase Cars, my debut novel, is a fiction about the downturn in the newspaper industry through the eyes of a longtime sports columnist, who is driving to work on a November Friday expecting to be the latest casualty in a mass layoff. The story takes place over a single day but flashes back to the stories he covered and the relationships he forged that were too often taken for granted.
When did you start writing the book?
The seeds for this book were planted in 2016 after a mass layoff at a competing newspaper cost many good journalists their jobs, many of them people I considered to be friends. It was a wake-up call that our industry was changing, and no one was safe from what was speeding down the tracks.
How long did it take you to write it?
Work got in the way of the project, which had an outline and some notes parked in a computer file on my home laptop for years before I finally picked it up again in 2023. I wrote for about two hours each day and had the first draft completed in about nine weeks. It went through the editing process and, after some suggestions from my editor, the real work began of moving around chapters and writing new transitions. Two months later, the book went through a second edit and after whiteboarding it with a group of published authors and another round of changes, the manuscript was ready for query. To answer a very short question way too verbosely, the process of writing Dogs Chase Cars took about a year.
Where did you get the idea from?
As stated earlier, the idea came from what was taking place in the newspaper industry and the feeling of outrage and helplessness I felt for the many journalists, many of them award winners who were at the top of their field, suddenly being out of jobs they loved and excelled at.
Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?
I would say the struggles came in getting away from the chronological concept I started with. When my editor suggested it jump around from past to present moments in the protagonist’s career and life, I worried that it might cause confusion for the reader. What I learned was that the back and forth regarding time periods was something they naturally adjusted to.
What came easily?
I think the stories of life in the newsroom, things I have personally felt and encountered, flowed easily and authentically. In addition, some of the sports stories, all of which actually took place and feature the names of some athletes the reader might remember, was fun to relive.
Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?
The characters are basically hybrids. Different characteristics were taken from former newsroom colleagues, friends and other acquaintances.
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?
My writing voice was honed after years of writing daily for newspapers and magazines. I grew up reading people like Scott Ostler, Tiim Keown and Ray Ratto, guys who could turn a phrase that would make you laugh. I grew up reading a lot. My favorite authors include John Steinbeck, Thomas Wolfe and Roger Kahn, who wrote The Boys of Summer, a novel about his life and experience of covering the Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers, to be a literary masterpiece. These writers all did something different, but they all knew how to convey a message, and all had a unique voice.
That’s writing in a nutshell. Conveying a message with a voice that’s authentic and a story that’s relatable.
Do you have a target reader?
This book appeals to a broad cross section of readers. I think sports fans will love this book. Anyone who has been affected by an uncertain job market – and in this economically troubling time with threats of automation and things like A.I. – that’s just about everyone in the workforce. It also will appeal to anyone who lost a father, has gone through a divorce or is a parent.
About Writing
Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?
In a perfect world, I wake up early, brew a pot of coffee, crank up the music – jazz or classical, music with no words so I can’t sing – and sit in my work space to write for a couple of hours. When I am in a writing mode, I might write for just two hours, but my time away from the keyboard is spent thinking about the character, where he goes next and how he gets there.
Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?
I have a very rough outline, but it is written in pencil. Nothing is etched in stone. Sometimes, the writing process comes to a fork in the road and takes the project in a direction I could have never envisioned. Those little detours are sometimes fun – and sometimes a reason for my editor to question me. It’s always an adventure.
Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?
Every week or so, I take a day away from writing and read everything I’ve written to give me a 30,000-foot view of the entire project. Does it flow? Does it make sense? Is it the message I am trying to convey? And will it get me to where I want the story to navigate. Also, by rereading certain parts, I can expand on ideas, while condensing others. Edit thyself is newsroom mantra.
Did you hire a professional editor?
I did hire a professional editor. After finishing my first draft, I had no idea what to do with it. A friend of mine, a New York Times best-selling author, hooked me up with her editor, who read the first three chapters and decided he wanted to be part of the project.
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?
As I said, classical and jazz are my two musical genres of choice while writing. Music with lyrics or words allows me to escape into the music. And while good writing has a rhythm to it, I think there is a subliminal benefit to the need for music.
About Publishing
Did you submit your work to Agents?
I queried more than 100 agents to help me to publish Dogs Chase Cars, but received no interest, which was frustrating to me. The system seems flawed that agents get to serve as the gatekeepers to what gets into print by the big publishing houses.
What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?
The more agents I dealt with, the more I leaned toward self-publishing. Is it a perfect system? Not at all. But seeing my book, holding it in my hand for the first time, was a surreal experience, something for which I am proud.
Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?
It was professionally done. After finishing the first draft, I didn’t know what to do so I called a friend of mine who is a New York Times best-selling author, and she got me in touch with her editor. He asked if he could read the first three chapters of Dogs Chase Cars. After doing that, he wanted to be a part of the project. That gave me some validity that the book was worth publishing. And after he worked his magic on it by rearranging chapters and expanding themes, I am thrilled with the result.
Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?
Remember, I am a retired journalist. Of course, I am winging it. I wish I knew more about this process and how to get my book onto the shelves of every bookstore and library in the country. I’m learning as I go along that it’s an arduous and sometime glacial process that requires far more patience than I was born with.
Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?
If you believe in your project, don’t let an agent tell you that it’s not worth publishing. There are other ways to get your book into print. However, just because you’re now a published author doesn’t mean you’re going to become a best-selling one. At least, not right away. Keep pushing. Keep believing. And keep writing.
About You
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in Pacifica, California, a small coastal town on the Pacific Coast Highway located about 13 miles south of San Francisco.
Where do you live now?
After spending more than three decades at numerous papers in the Midwest, I moved back the San Francisco Bay Area in late 2024 to be closer to family. I live in Sunnyvale, California.
What would you like readers to know about you?
I am a retired journalist who is now volunteering with a high school journalism program. I am the vice president of a local youth baseball program and someone who is spending plenty of time with a family that includes a mother, a daughter, a brother, two sisters, nieces and nephews and a bushel of cousins.
What are you working on now?
I am working on a sequel to Dogs Chase Cars that deals with life’s second chapter. What does one do with the rest of his life after the job he had held – and loved – for so long is suddenly taken from him.
It’s a story of finding a purpose for getting up each day, for finding that reason to keep moving forward. It’s also an homage to coming home to a place you’ve been away from for so long and recognizing the changes, not only in the place itself, but also the protagonist himself and how he views a place so many years later.
End of Interview:
For more from Patrick Sangimino visit his website and follow him on Instagram and Twitter.
Get your copy of Dogs Chase Cars from Amazon US or Amazon UK.
