Interview with JAY POSEY

April 21, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Angry Robot Books, Dystopia, Ghost Recon, Jay Posey, Legends of the Duskwalker, Morningside fall, Red Storm Entertainment, Sci-Fi, Three, Tom Clancy, Ubisoft

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Jay Posey?

I’m pretty much a professional typist. Sometimes I like to tell people I work with my hands, which I guess is technically true. I’m author of the Legends of the Duskwalker series from Angry Robot Books, and I’m also a Senior Narrative Designer at Ubisoft/Red Storm Entertainment. I’ve spent almost a decade contributing to Tom Clancy’s award-winning Ghost Recon franchise as a writer and game designer.

Your next novel, Morningside Fall, is due to be published by Angry Robot Books in April 2014. It is the sequel to Three. How would you introduce the series to a new reader, and what can fans of the first book expect here?

The Legends of the Duskwalker series is a mid-future post-apocalyptic sci-fi with cyberpunk elements and heavy Western influence. The first book, Three, tells the story of a lone gunslinger who reluctantly agrees to escort a woman and her young son across an urban wasteland to a distant oasis in hopes of finding the boy’s father.

Morningside Fall picks up about a year or so after the events of Three, and continues the story of two of the first book’s main characters. Fans of the first book will get to see more of what the world looks like from inside one of the few remaining great cities, several new characters, lots of action and suspense, a few big surprises, and more about who and what the Awakened are.

What inspired you to write the series? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

I’d had the basic idea of the story for Three for a while and had just never found quite the right setting for it. There were lots of elements I thought were cool and might be interesting to explore, but every time I started investigating one path, I kind of started to miss the other things I’d chosen to leave out. At some point I realized “Hey, I can do what I want if I just build a world where all these things can coexist.” Three, for me, was a small story in a big world. For that novel I was primarily interested in developing the relationship between the three main characters, and exploring ideas on heroism, sacrifice, and fatherhood. But the world I created let me play around with a lot of different ideas about technology and humanity.

I think my inspiration typically comes from a combination of my natural curiosity and my tendency to think a lot about human nature and why we do the things we do. I just like learning about things, so I read about a lot of different subjects, and then I can’t help but wonder what things mean for people in general. I ask a lot of what if questions, and that usually leads me into interesting places. Sometimes scary places.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

Like a lot of writers, I grew up in a family of readers, and given my interest in science and my tendency to daydream a lot, I was just sort of naturally drawn into the world of science-fiction and fantasy. Piers Anthony and Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman were some of my first forays into genre fiction. I never really thought about it as being “genre” fiction, of course. Back then, I just called them books.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

When I’m not writing, I love being a writer. Sometimes when I’m in the process of it, I feel sad and broken and I wonder what I’m doing with my life. But for the most part, it’s really cool to have reached a point where I can share my daydreams with other people in a way that they finding exciting, or moving, or entertaining.

I’m also blessed to be working with Angry Robot Books; they’re a publisher that embraces author individuality, and it’s refreshing to work with people who want to help you succeed and achieve your own vision, rather than trying to dictate what your vision should be.

What’s it like, being an author? Is it what you expected? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

Well, I was assured that becoming a published author meant Instant Fame and Riches, so you can imagine my surprise when Three came out and there was no yacht waiting for me.

Other than that, I kind of go back and forth between being amazed that I reached this particular milestone (getting published) and trying to remember why I thought it was going to be such a big deal. I maybe thought that once I was a Published Author, I would suddenly find it so much easier to write books, but in fact it’s still very hard work, and I still have to wrestle with The Fear on a regular basis (as any creator does). Also, having become a part of that community, I have lots of friends who are published authors, so it doesn’t make me feel quite as special as I had thought it would.

But that being said, every once in a while I remember to step back and look at where I am now in my career, and I’m completely blown away by the fact that I wrote something that is out there on bookshelves in book stores and libraries, and people I’ve never met are reading it and sending me all sorts of very kind and generous emails about how much they love the work and how moved they’ve been by it.

As far as working, writing, and researching, it really depends on the project. I tend to do most of my writing at night, which is mostly a result of having a full-time job and a family. I don’t generally start writing until after I’ve put my kids to bed (after reading to them of course!), so that can make for long days. It’s also why I’m not as prolific as I probably could be, if I were a little more diligent. Research is sort of a full-time thing for me; I’m just interested in lots of different topics, so I tend to follow news and developments in a lot of different areas, and a lot of that ends up informing my writing.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I’ve loved writing since I was very young, but it wasn’t until I was in my mid-20s that I thought I might actually want to try to write at a professional level. I got my start as a screenwriter, which translated well into writing for video games, and then the novels grew out of a desire to create something that was truly my own rather than being creatively driven by someone else’s vision.

It’s funny because I occasionally find myself missing those very early days in elementary and middle school when I wrote with reckless abandon and had zero concept of character arcs or punchy dialogue or pacing. I’m sure those stories would be tedious and derivative to read, but back then writing felt a lot more like play than work so I certainly look back on that fondly.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

I think there’s a lot of great stuff going on in the genre today; a lot of different kinds of stories with a lot of different voices, and it’s an exciting thing to be a part of. I honestly don’t know how or where my work fits in, but I hope I’m doing my part to continue to advance and elevate the genre.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

I’ve got the third and final book in the Duskwalker series going on, and then a few other concepts patiently waiting in line for me to get to them. A short story of mine will be showing up in an anthology called War Stories from Apex Publications, and I’ve got a military sci-fi project that I’m working up. I’d like to tackle a more Young Adult idea I’ve had for a while, but I’m not sure when I’ll have time to get to it.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

I tend to read a few books at a time, depending on my mood, so in my current pile are: The Warded Man by Peter V. Brett, The Darwin Elevator by Jason M. Hough, Empire of the Summer Moon by S. C. Gwynne, Makers by Chris Anderson, and The Consequences of Ideas by R. C. Sproul.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

I was an extra in the movie Patch Adams, starring Robin Williams, back in the late 90s. I played a generic medical school student and I’m actually fairly easy to spot if you know who you’re looking for. Of course I had a lot more hair back then.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

I’m really looking forward to attending Phoenix Comicon this year and getting to hang out with fans and other creators. I’m also going to be especially happy when I wrap up work on the final Duskwalker book.

Thanks for letting me stop by!

Be sure to check out Jay Posey’s website and follow him on Twitter for news on his novels, writing, and more.

Interview with MARK SMYLIE

April 9, 2014 Civilian Reader Comics, Interview Archaia, Artesia, Barrow, Boom Studios, Epic, Fantasy, Mark Smylie, Pyr Books

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Mark Smylie?

Let’s see. I was born in Florida; my mother was Japanese, she had come to the States to study piano at Julliard, and my father is a Presbyterian minister who worked for the Church’s national body as their liaison to the United Nations (now long retired). I grew up in New Jersey and have lived there on and off for most of my adult life (with stints in New York and California). I’ve worked mostly in comics publishing, both as a writer/artist and as a publisher (I founded a company called Archaia that is now an imprint at BOOM! Studios).

Your debut novel, The Barrow, was published by Pyr Books last month in the US and this week in the UK. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader? Is it the first in a series?

The novel was written as a stand-alone but Pyr has agreed to publish two sequels so, yes, for better or for worse I’m afraid it’s yet another fantasy trilogy. The novel is part epic fantasy, part horror story, and I guess what could be termed part undercover detective story. At first glance it’s about a group of criminals and adventurers of few if any scruples that are following a map to find a fabled lost sword, but nothing is quite as it seems.

The novel is, I believe, adapted from a comic series. What inspired you to write the novel, and what was it like adapting the world for fiction?

It might be more accurate to say that the novel is spun off from a comics series I (used to) write and draw, an epic military fantasy story called Artesia, but it’s actually an adaptation (and expansion) of a screenplay begun back in 2004 or so. I wrote the initial screenplay with my brother, John Smylie, and a friend of ours, Hidetoshi Oneda, who was a commercial director that worked mostly in Japan. We were working on the idea of creating a low-budget prequel to the comics series (which given its military content is something that would be very costly to try filming as is). The story was initially intended as a kind of metaphor for the search for weapons of mass destruction, as we were starting to get deep into the messy aftermath of the invasion of Iraq at the time. My brother and I had always talked about the idea of turning it into a novel at some point. In many ways the novel as a medium is much better suited for fantasy writing; you get more of a chance to fill in background and flesh out a world, I think, than you do in comics, where the format of panels and word balloons is much more restrictive.

Where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

All over the place. The setting is inspired by Greek, Roman, and Celtic mythology, late medieval and early Renaissance Europe, Marija Gimbutas’ writings on proto-European Goddess culture, Carlo Ginzurg’s work on shamanism and medieval witchcraft; there are bits and pieces of the poststructuralist analysis of mythology from writers like Vernant and Detienne, classic Joseph Campbell monomyth hero quests, years of roleplaying games and other fantasy novels. The underground scene of the main city in the story is modeled after some years spent living in New York City in the late ’80s and early ’90s when the city still felt a little dangerous, so there’s a kind of postpunk, transgender vibe going on as well which might seem odd for a fantasy setting to some readers (and the film script was originally conceived as Dungeons & Dragons meets Lock Stock & Two Smoking Barrels or The Usual Suspects). Horror films, military history, costume, cooking and cuisine; it all kind of gets thrown in a blender.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

My father used to read my brother and I stories when we were little kids; he read us the Chronicles of Narnia, and he was reading us Tolkien when my father realized we were finishing the pages faster than he was reading them aloud. So my brother and I went on to finish the Lord of the Rings on our own. I’ll read other genres and general fiction, but fantasy literature is where I come back again and again.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

I feel very, very lucky. I mean, it’s a difficult industry to work in with the rewards few and far between, but I’ve been very fortunate to do something that I love and to publish the works of a lot of writers and artists that I admire.

Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

I’ve got a pretty large research library, it’s a reasonably specialized one built over 20+ years of book collecting, so a lot of the time I sort of wander over to my bookshelves with an idea in the back of my head – a remembered illustration, or a chart, or a line of text – and start flipping through pages. I’ll make notes to myself about something that I want to include in the story – a myth, a kind of pastry, a piece of costume – and use those notes to build the details of the world. I think a fantasy setting needs to feel real, like you can smell it, taste it. Though nowadays a lot of readers don’t seem to have much time for exposition; they just want to read dialogue, as though we’re now a nation of script readers. I try to have an outline that I’m constantly reworking as I write, so that I know how what I’m writing is going to tie into where I want to wind up. And then I reread and rewrite.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I don’t think I ever made a conscious decision to be an author. I took art classes in high school, drew comics, played a lot of roleplaying games; I took a creative writing class in college and found it kind of tough going, in part because I was always a genre guy and back then genre wasn’t something you were supposed to aspire to. I tried my first “official” comic book soon after college but couldn’t find a publisher for it; it wouldn’t be until my comic book Artesia came out, when I was thirty, that I would have my first published work as a writer/artist.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

We’re definitely living in a kind of geek Golden Age – whether it’s television, comics, film, novels, there’s an enormous variety in terms of the kind of material that’s out there and so much of it is being produced at a very high level of quality. I think that also makes it very competitive for those of us that are tying to get our work out in this kind of marketplace right now, which can be kind of tough. I’m not sure where my own work falls into it all; Artesia was sort of a pagan Joan of Arc military fantasy story, but The Barrow is more horror-oriented, very much grimdark, I suppose, though I didn’t discover that term until a few months ago.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

Well, in terms of my personal work I’m currently working on the sequel to The Barrow, called Black Heart, along with a board game set in the world of the book and the comics, with an eye towards doing a second edition of an Artesia roleplaying game that I put out back in 2005. I’m still at Archaia as my day job, transitioning over to hopefully starting a games line for the company soon.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

For fiction I’m juggling Steven Erikson’s Gardens of the Moon (I’d never read Erikson before but several reviewers have compared my work to his so I figured I’d better get familiar with it), Scott Lynch’s Republic of Thieves, and Kate Elliott’s Cold Magic. For non-fiction research I’ve been glancing through City of Sin, a history of the underbelly of London by Catharine Arnold, and Israel’s Beneficent Dead: Ancestor Cult and Necromancy in Ancient Israelite Religion and Tradition by Brian Schmidt.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

Given the sex and violence in the book I suspect some readers might be surprised to learn that I have a daily yoga practice (hatha raja vinyasa mixed with ashtanga). Or that I have a lot of cats (not on purpose).

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

World peace and a cure for cancer?

Interview with JEN WILLIAMS

April 2, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Adventure, Copper Promise, Dragons, Fantasy, Headline, Jen Williams

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Jen Williams?

I’m a writer from south-east London. I wear odd socks and live with my partner and our cat. I have a Lego fixation and I own too many notebooks. I don’t get as much sleep as I would like, but then I like to sleep a lot. I think those are the important things covered.

Your debut novel, The Copper Promise, is out now through Headline. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader?

I like to describe it as epic sword and sorcery, so you still get a fat book that could conceivably be used as a blunt weapon, but the story moves at a tremendous pace. Two sell-swords of dubious morals are employed by a mysterious lord to explore the haunted Citadel of Creos, only to find that not only does their employer have a destructive agenda of his own, but that the Citadel is forbidden for very good reasons. A terrible force is unleashed on the world, and our heroes have to deal with it, even though it looks like they won’t actually get paid.

What inspired you to write the novel? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

At the time, I had a few short stories out in the world, and I thought it would be interesting to release a series of novellas. I was also just coming out the other side of a serious Dragon Age: Origins obsession (a fantasy RPG videogame from Bioware) and my love of traditional fantasy had been reignited. I’d written books in various subgenres before, such as Urban Fantasy and Post-Apocalyptic Fantasy, or just Weird Secondary World stuff, but I’d never written something that was dragons, caverns, dungeons and taverns. I decided it would be fun to embrace all those lovely trappings of traditional fantasy, whilst writing them with a modern edge – there were a number of tropes I wanted to twist and play with, such as the Loveable Rogue, the Honorable Knight, and the Minions of the Dark Lord. I started writing the first novella (The Copper Promise: Ghosts of the Citadel) and fell in love with the world and the characters so much the quick novella project quickly became a big fat book.

Also on CR: Review of Copper Promise

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

My very first exposure to the fantasy genre was probably stealing my brother’s Fighting Fantasy books so I could look at the scary pictures. A few years later I remember picking up The Fellowship of the Ring from the library shelf simply because it was so huge, and I figured reading such a thing would make me look really clever (I think I was about ten years old at the time). It was the first book I fell in love with, as well as the book that made me love reading. From that moment on I read almost exclusively in genre, hopping madly from Stephen King to Terry Pratchett to Neil Gaiman.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

I love it. I’ve written a number of books and stories, with many probably doomed to remain forever hidden on a memory stick, but I don’t believe I ever really thought I would get here: to have an agent, a publishing contract, to see my book on the shelves of actual bookshops. It seemed like too wild a dream, the sort of thing that happens to other people, and there’s part of me that still doesn’t quite believe it. There’s also a sense of validation too: when I was growing up everyone told me that writing would be too difficult a career path, and so you spend much of your time worrying that you’ve made a mistake. What if I’m deluded? What if I should be doing something else entirely with my life? When someone comes to you and says, “Oh, I really loved that character. And I laughed so much at this bit. Also, why aren’t these two having sex yet?” you can breath a big sigh of relief because to that person at least, you took the right path.

The novel was originally serialised. How did this impact your approach to writing the story? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

The book was originally split into four novellas. The tricky part of such a structure was making sure that each section had its own complete story to tell, as well as advancing the wider, overall story of the book. It was also important that the book not seem disjointed or like a series of short stories, so themes and character development had to be consistent too. The fun part was being able to have a number of slightly evil cliffhangers, and getting away with cutting out a lot of what I think of as “transition stuff”: moving the characters to where they need to be, or showing the passage of time. From a practical point of view, this meant editing each novella as if it were its own book, and then putting the whole lot together into one document and editing it again with a view to how it worked as a complete manuscript.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I’ve had an interest in stories and wanting to write them for as long as I can remember. Two of the first presents I asked for at Christmas were a desk and a typewriter, and I cheerfully plonked out stories about dragons and pirates all day long. My first “proper” attempt at writing was a somewhat sprawling, heavily Pratchett-influenced book about a rogue witch and her scheming witch-mother. I started writing it one day after a particularly bad shift at work, and over the course of a couple of years it eventually became book-sized, and I even finished it. That book was significant for me because up until then I hadn’t believed that I could write an entire book, and although it’s full of enormous rookie mistakes and blundering cock-ups, I still have a lot of affection for it.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

I think fantasy is in a healthy place at the moment, with a greater emphasis on a kind of realism, not just in the depiction of violence and the consequences of violence, but also in the depiction of characters. This feels like a good change, a move away from the lighter approach of farm boys who reveal themselves to be long lost princes, towards a genre that is taking itself a little more seriously. That is to say, we value what we do and we’re approaching it with the seriousness it deserves.

Which probably sounds like an odd thing to say given that The Copper Promise, as a piece of sword and sorcery with an emphasis on monsters and magic, is a slight step away from the Grimdark trend. What I hope is that the book takes the bits and pieces we loved from old school, pulp fantasy – the wild magic and the dungeons and the spectacle – and applies a modern approach, adding a degree of realism to the characters. I was very keen, for example, to have a female character who was not reliant on a male character to give her purpose as a love interest or a catalyst, and a gay character whose story is central to the entire plot, and so on. Generally I think fantasy is moving towards being more inclusive, and that’s definitely a good thing.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

I’m in the midst of editing the follow-up to The Copper Promise, which is a slightly darker book but with the same themes of magic and monsters and general mayhem-making. Writing a sequel to a debut novel is an interesting and slightly alarming experience, because while I was finishing the first draft of book two, The Copper Promise was receiving its first reviews; it’s very hard not to get fixated on that, not to mention the added weight of deadlines and getting paid for the work. Behind the anxiety though I’ve had a great time hanging out with these characters again, and I’m already looking forward to getting into the third book.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

As I’m knee deep in the editing swamp I’m finding it difficult to concentrate on a single book – once your brain is stuck in hyper-critical mode it’s very hard to turn it off – but I’ve just started Brandon Sanderson’s The Way of Kings, which has some of the most spectacular magic I’ve ever read, and Ash by Mary Gentle, which is an extraordinarily vivid experience. I’m not quite sure why I’ve decided to read two such enormous books at the same time, but when I need a break from all the epic I’m dipping in and out of Twisted Histories, a short story anthology edited by Scott Harrison, in which I also happen to have a short story, The Tides of Avalon.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

Despite writing a book that cheerfully embraces many of the tropes, I’ve never actually played Dungeons and Dragons myself. I was always far too shy as a kid to play a game that involved, well, talking to other people, and although as an adult I’m a fan of RPG video games I still have yet to sit down with the D20 and a dungeon master. Shameful, really.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

Lots of book related stuff! Sending book two back to my editor and starting work on book three towards the end of the year, as well as continuing to fiddle with my notes on the fantasy series I’ll be writing once this current trilogy is finished. I’m very much looking forward to going to my first Fantasycon this year, and returning to Nineworlds in August, where I may even be convinced to attempt some sort of cosplay. Stranger things have happened.

Be sure to check out Jen Williams’s website, Twitter and Facebook for more information on her novels and writing.

Interview with ALISON LITTLEWOOD

March 26, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview A Cold Season, Alison Littlewood, Horror, Jo Fletcher Books, Path of Needles, Quercus, Supernatural, Suspense, Unquiet House

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Alison Littlewood?

Ah, the hardest question of all… I’m a probably slightly odd person who writes probably slightly odd books! I’ve been writing dark fantasy and horror for several years now, and was lucky enough a while back to get a three-book deal from Jo Fletcher Books at Quercus. A Cold Season was picked for the Richard and Judy book club, and it went from there.

Your next novel, The Unquiet House, is due to be published by Jo Fletcher Books in April 2014. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader?

It’s a ghost story set in a rather dour Yorkshire house, following the fates of different generations of the same family. There are sections set in the present day as well as the seventies and the thirties, which each shed light on each other. It’s probably the oddest of my odd books, and in a way it’s perhaps best to read it knowing nothing at all, so I will leave it at that…!

What inspired you to write the novel, and where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

The first thing that made me want to write a haunted house story was seeing the house! The one in the story is based on an actual place, one that looked rather forbidding, but which I fell in love with a little bit too. I find that locations can be incredibly inspirational – some places just seem to sing to me. This house sang very, very loudly, though it wasn’t long before parts of other places I’d seen found their way into the book too: a bench with a strange carving on the back, a cupboard with nothing but an old suit hanging inside… they came together and started to have an impact on the plot. Researching the different historical periods was inspiring too, bringing new influences to bear.

Excerpt: The Unquiet House

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction? What about horror in particular attracts you – in terms of reading and writing?

When I was younger I read anything and everything I could lay my hands on. It was only after I started writing that I began to focus more on genre fiction. My first exposure to writing horror came with a BBC writing competition, and once I’d tried it, I just found that darker ideas, those around the mysteries in life and death and somewhere in between, were the ones that got my fingers tingling. I find it an exciting genre; it looks at the big questions, the ones we’ll never be able to quite explain, and yet it seems that continuing to ask them is an integral part of being human.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

I can’t really imagine doing anything else! I got made redundant from my regular job in the same week as I got a publishing contract, so it all came together at just the right time. It’s great to be able to concentrate on what I love. Of course, it feels a little different writing a novel when you know someone’s waiting for it at the end of the line, but then I’ve always been fairly disciplined about getting the words down. The main difference is that I know I can’t just write a novel and stick it away in a dusty file any more – someone’s actually going to read it! That’s rewarding but kind of scary at the same time.

Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

Not really – I always start the day with a long walk, mainly because I have a big and energetic dog who would scratch the walls down if I didn’t, but now it feels natural to blow away the cobwebs before I sit down to work. I used to have a nice ergonomic desk and chair, but these days I tend to be on the sofa with my laptop and the dog curled up next to me trying to rest his head on my keyboard.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I think deep down it’s something I’ve always wanted, mainly because I fell in love with books when I was a child, but I didn’t try it for a long time because I’d built it up to be something that other people did. I eventually forced myself to join a local writing course, just to get started, and I remember being so nervous I could hardly get the top off my pen! After that, though, I had the bug; I knew I wouldn’t stop.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

I think the horror genre is bigger and wider and more imaginative than people believe. Many people unfortunately have their perception shaped by horror films of the slasher variety. Horror novels do look at fear and death, but they tend to do it in much more depth and with greater sensitivity. In many ways, they’re really about love: how do we deal with losing the people and things we care about? It’s a part of life, and the novels we often define as horror are a response to that. When I started out, I felt I was on the fringe of horror, because my books are more about psychological chills than blood and guts, but now I better understand the breadth of work going on in the genre, I’m happy to call myself a part of it.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

I’m working on the first draft of my next novel – a return to some dark territory, in line with the soul-snatching theme of A Cold Season. I’m also busy editing a script, along with a writer friend and a film-maker, for a potential short to be filmed this year. I’m also working on some short stories on the theme of feathers – I always find it surprising how often birds crop up in my work – for a slightly different project, a combination of mini short story collection and art book, in collaboration with an illustrator friend.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

I’m reading The Uninvited by Liz Jensen – it’s intriguing, with a wonderful main character and a sense of the world being out of joint, with the folkloric meeting quantum physics and the modern world. I’m completely hooked. I don’t always have non-fiction on the go but I’m also reading Gossip from the Forest by Sarah Maitland, all about the tangled roots of forests and fairy tales. I find fairy tales and folklore completely fascinating. There’s something about that little possibility of magic in the world that is a part of the horror genre too.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

I really don’t know! What people usually find surprising about me is that I’m a writer, and more so that I write horror fiction. There’s that ‘oh, but you seem nice’ reaction, as if horror writers are all like the monster in the closet rather than the kid hiding under the bed. It’s that slasher movie perception rearing its ugly head again!

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

Hopefully moving house, mainly because I’ll be getting a bigger library. I have the shelves all planned out; the rest of the move, not so much. One track mind, me…?

Interview with SARAH LOTZ

March 21, 2014February 23, 2015 Civilian Reader Interview Army of the Lost, Day 4, Helen Paige, Hodder, Hodderscape, Horror, Lily Herne, SL Grey, Suspense, Thriller, Underground

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Sarah Lotz?

I’m a genre-crossing pulp-fiction writer based in South Africa. I’m addicted to coffee and collaborating, and write horror novels with author Louis Greenberg under the name S.L Grey; a ‘choose-your-own’ erotica series with authors Helen Moffett and Paige Nick (as Helena S. Paige), and a YA series co-written with my daughter under the name Lily Herne.

Your next novel, The Three, is due to be published by Hodder in May. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader?

I’m tempted to say it’s about plane crashes and (possibly) evil children – but I hope there is more to it than that! Here’s a brief description:

Four devastating plane crashes. Three child survivors. A fanatic who insists the survivors are possessed by the harbingers of the apocalypse. What if he’s right?

I’m fascinated by how quickly fear and paranoia can spread throughout society – especially during the aftermath of a devastating event – and the novel attempts to explore how this could potentially influence the political landscape. Continue reading →

Interview with DANIELLE JENSEN

March 20, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview April 2014, Danielle Jensen, Fantasy, Malediction Trilogy, Stolen Songbird, Strange Chemistry, Witches

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Danielle Jensen?

Danielle is an unrepentant daydreamer, which is a highly undesirable attribute for most professions. Life might have gone quite poorly for her if she hadn’t discovered her knack for translating dreams into novels.

Your debut novel, Stolen Songbird, is due to be published by Strange Chemistry in April 2014. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader? Is it part of a series?

Stolen Songbird is Book 1 in The Malediction Trilogy. This is the blurb that will be on the back of the book:

For five centuries, a witch’s curse has bound the trolls to their city beneath the mountain. When Cécile de Troyes is kidnapped and taken beneath the mountain, she realises that the trolls are relying on her to break the curse.

Cécile has only one thing on her mind: escape. But the trolls are clever, fast, and inhumanly strong. She will have to bide her time…

But the more time she spends with the trolls, the more she understands their plight. There is a rebellion brewing. And she just might be the one the trolls were looking for…

What inspired you to write the novel? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

Stolen Songbird was inspired by a dream I had about a city buried by rubble. Inspiration comes from everywhere: people I meet, things I see, movies I watch, books I read, etc., and it all sits in my brain waiting to bubble up as parts of plot.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

My dad got sick of reading kid’s books to me when I was little, so he started reading me fantasy novels when I was in grade 1, mostly Tolkien and Eddings. I’m from a family of readers – it is what we do.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

It can be tough, but I love it. The people in this business are amazing.

What’s it like, being a (soon-to-be-)published author? Is it what you expected? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

It’s exciting, but very stressful. I didn’t expect for there to be so much work required of me that had nothing to do with writing another book. I write or do book related work every day, but I’ve learned to recognize when I’m getting an attack of the crazies and need a break.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I made my first attempts at writing a novel when I was in my mid-twenties, and I look back on my efforts with amusement. I realized I wanted to be an author in 2009, and that was when I decided I was going to throw every ounce of determination I had into getting published. Took a few years, but here I am.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

It feels like epic/alternate world fantasy is in a stronger place than it was five years ago, which is obviously good for me.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

I’m currently working on Book 2 of The Malediction Trilogy, and after that’s done, I’ll immediately start working on Book 3. I do have other fantasy projects waiting for the day I have some spare time on my hands.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

Other than the news, I don’t read much non-fiction. As far as fiction goes, I’m currently reading Defy by Sara B. Larson.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

That I can’t sing or play a musical instrument.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

I’m most looking forward to seeing the cover for the sequel, which I’m guessing will be around November.

***

Be sure to check out Danielle Jensen’s website, Twitter and Facebook for more information on her books and writing. Stolen Songbird is due to be published on April 3rd 2014.

An Interview with DEN PATRICK

March 11, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Boy With the Porcelain Blade, Den Patrick, Erebus Sequence, Fantasy, Gollancz, Orion Books

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Den Patrick?

I’m a thirty-something novelist, originally from Dorset, born to Londoner parents. I’ve been in London for over ten years. I describe myself as all round geek; I like Fantasy, Sci-Fi, table top gaming, RPGs, CCGs and other acronyms that confuse normal folks.

Your debut novel, The Boy With the Porcelain Blade, is due to be published by Gollancz next week (March 20th). How would you introduce the novel to a new reader? Is it the first in a series?

The Boy with the Porcelain Blade is the first book of The Erebus Sequence. It is a Fantasy novel set in a pseudo-Renaissance world full of suspicion, politics and mystery. The novel takes place is the vast sprawling castle of Demesne, in the Kingdom of Landfall. The protagonist, Lucien, is exiled just after he turns eighteen which precipitates a lot of (frequently violent) repercussions. And swearing and sarcasm.

What inspired you to write the series? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

The book was originally called The Boy with the Porcelain Ears. There is a point in the novel where Lucien wears fabricated ears to make up for his own, which he is lacking. It was very much about being self-conscious and different. So much of fiction is based on the outsider. My influences come from anywhere, as much from films as novels, music and television play their part, but also games. There’s also an undercurrent of Horror to Porcelain despite remaining a Fantasy novel.

You’ve also written three War Manuals for classic fantasy races (Dwarves, Elves, and Orcs). How did this project come about? How did writing these differ from writing The Boy With the Porcelain Blade?

I was chatting to Simon Spanton at the Gollancz 50th birthday party a few years back. We got talking about Tolkein, as geeks do after a certain amount of booze. One of us (I can’t remember who) joked that it would be funny if there was a guide to conducting warfare as written by orcs. We met again in a pub not long after and decided we’d try it out. They were a lot of fun to write. The War-Manuals were very much in the vein of an army book, but also provided a chance to poke fun at the pop culture stereotypes of Elves, Dwarves an Orcs. They’re really instructional books, so are very different to a novel and the pacing of a story.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

I wasn’t so hot at school at age seven but I found these books called Tim and the Hidden People by Sheila K. McCullagh. I was reading below my age but they really grabbed by attention. They’re set in the modern world but full of ghosts and talking cats and magic. It was the early ’80s at that point, so I’d read anything to do with Star Wars, comics and annuals. Later I’d voraciously read White Dwarf or army codexes cover-to-cover. Later still came James Herbert, Terry Pratchet and David Eddings.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

I became a full-time writer by accident, laid off from the bookstore I was working at. Irony alert! I spend a lot of time alone, so I always make the effort to get out of the house in the evenings and see people, lest I become completely unhinged. I am so grateful to be able to do the thing I love full time, but it is a job. Some days I get tired, sometimes things go wrong, sometimes I procrastinate, but not often. I know I have people I can reach out to if I get stuck or worried about anything. My agent Juliet Mushens is great, and so is my publisher.

Is being an author what you expected? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

Don’t turn on the internet before noon. Once you log into Twitter or Facebook the day just disappears. I write in 500 word bursts, taking a break to make coffee, shower or eat before trying out another 500 words. A lot of time is spent in my pjs. I scribble myself notes on the bus, which isn’t helpful as I have terrible handwriting. I do a lot of thinking while gazing out of bus windows.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I think I was in my mid-twenties when I started writing this awful superhero future noir nonsense. I just wrote it for myself. It wasn’t until my early thirties that I became more serious. I started two other novels before I actually managed to finish one, but the less said about that the better.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

Genre is huge, both in terms of what has come before and what is occurring right now. I feel a bit overwhelmed trying to keep up to date with all of it. I’d much rather be writing than wrangling. There’s definitely a feeling the old guard are fighting to stay relevant. There’s a huge amount of sexist bullshit going on, but that’s really just a reflection of what is happening in society. I’d like to see genre be more inclusive and less the domain of straight, white males. We have lots of women editors and agents, so why not more authors?

As for my work – I’m not sure it’s up to me to declare or know where it fits, that’s for the readers, I guess.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

I’m working on edits for book two of The Erebus Sequence, then I’ll be straight on to re-drafting book three, which I finished before Christmas. I may take a break from Landfall at that point to write something else (top secret, sorry). I do have two more Landfall stand alones plotted, and I’d love to write them if there is an audience.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

I’m reading Jen Williams’ The Copper Promise. We did an event together at Blackwell’s on 10th March.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

I attended a performing arts school instead of going to sixth form or University. It was pretty much like the kids from Fame. I only danced professionally for a year, then stopped. These days I enjoy lindy hop, which is a style of 1940s swing dancing.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

I should probably say the release of my first novel, but have you seen the Guardians of the Galaxy trailer? Also finishing book two of The Erebus Sequence.

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***

The Boy With the Porcelain Blade is published by Gollancz in the UK on March 20th 2014 (hardcover).

An Interview with JUSTIN GUSTAINIS

March 4, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Angry Robot Books, Hard Spell, Horror, Justin Gustainis, Known Devil, Occult Investigations Series, Supernatural

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Justin Gustainis?

I’m a college professor living in upstate New York. Writing fiction satisfies my soul (most days, anyway), but it’s my career in academe that pays the bills. At other times in my life, I’ve been a busboy, garment worker, soldier, speech writer and professional bodyguard (which wasn’t as glamorous as it sounds – I never got to meet Whitney Houston, or anyone like her).

Your next novel, Known Devil, was published by Angry Robot Books in February 2014. It is the third novel in your Occult Investigations Series. How would you introduce the series to a new reader, and what can fans of the first two books expect here?

The series is set in an “alternate” universe, one where supernatural creatures really exist, and everybody knows it – in other words, there’s no “masquerade.” Supernaturals (or “supes,” as they are often known) are accepted as part of human society, which is not to say there aren’t moments of friction. When the friction involves breaking the law, that’s when folks in Scranton, PA, send for my protagonist – Detective Sergeant Stan Markowski of the Scranton Police Department’s Occult Crimes Unit. As Stan says in the beginning of Hard Spell (the first book in the series), “When a vamp puts the bits on an unwilling victim, or some witch casts the wrong kind of spell. That’s when they call me. My name’s Markowski. I carry a badge.”

In supernatural Scranton, the Occult Crimes Unit is kept pretty busy, what with the torture-murder of a wizard, a serial killer who’s targeting vampires, violence on the part of a “human supremacist” group and the distribution of supernatural “snuff films.” But in Known Devil, the shit has really hit the fan.

Supernatural creatures are generally immune to human recreational drugs (apart from goblins, who have demonstrated an unfortunate fondness for crystal meth), but that’s about to change. A new drug called Slide has hit the streets, and it has the power to addict all species of supes. The first indication Stan has of this development is when a couple of junkie elves try to stick up a diner where Stan and his partner are having their coffee break. Things don’t go too well for the elves on that occasion, but Stan finds this new drug very worrisome.

As a direct result of the Slide trade, a war has broken out in the streets between two gangs of vampires. The “family” that controls crime in Scranton wants to keep the drug out, because it has the potential to harm their own kind. But a branch of a powerful Philadelphia gang is trying to muscle in so they can sell the drug, with resulting carnage throughout the city.

And somebody has just blown up Victor Castle, the head of the city’s supe community. Castle had a history of cooperating with the police in matters involving supes, and someone has decided he doesn’t like that. Castle’s likely replacement is a vampire who frequently refers to humans as “walking bloodbags.”

Then there’s the upcoming municipal election. A well-funded bunch calling itself the Patriot Party has arisen in Scranton, and their platform is dead-set (so to speak) against supes. If the Patriot party wins the election, Stan fears that their anti-supe views will result in a different kind of war in the streets – a war between supes and humans.

What inspired you to write the series? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

More than thirty years ago, I read a novel called The Haunted Earth by a little-known writer (at the time) named Dean R. Koontz. It’s set in a world where the supernatural is known and accepted, and I think the first chapter had an influence on me, though I didn’t realize it at the time. A vampire, Count Whoever, is in the process of seducing a woman into the joys of sanguinary delights. But, according to a Supreme Court decision, there is a procedure for such matters that he has to follow, securing permission for each seductive act. “May I touch your neck?” “Will you gaze deeply into my eyes?” “Are you aware of the potential dangers to yourself if this process continues?” Unknown to the Count and his lady friend, they are being watched by a private eye and his partner, a talking hellhound. When the Count gets excited and starts skipping steps and cautions, the private detective bursts into the room, crucifix in hand, and banishes the Count into celibacy – for that night, anyway. The rest of the novel veers into something more like science fiction, but that chapter stayed with me for some reason. I think it was the seed that eventually led to the creation of Detective Sergeant Stan Markowski of the Scranton PD’s Occult Crimes Unit.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

I read comic books since I was old enough to read (in my case, age four) and followed every superhero there was (of course in those days, there were a lot fewer of them; the first Justice League of America pretty much contained them all). As an adolescent, I moved on to “books for boys.” This included the Hardy Boys, but my friends and I were more into something called the Rick Brant Science Adventures. Then, in eighth grade, I discovered Ian Fleming, Raymond Chandler, and Bram Stoker – all within the same year. The rest, as they say, is history – or at least genre fiction.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry?

I have had to face the hard truth that writing may be an art, but publishing is a business. And in business they have these things called “deadlines.” Me and deadlines, we don’t always get along so well, sad to say. But I keep trying.

What’s it like, being an author? Is it what you expected? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

I was explaining to someone (in another interview) recently that like most things, being a published author looks a lot cooler from the outside than it does from the inside. Or, to put it another way, the charm of anything wears off after a while, and it just becomes what you do. Don’t get me wrong – I remember how hard it was to break in. My first novel took a year and a half to write (I have a day job, remember) and then five years to find a publisher. And I’m mindful that there are probably a great many would-be authors who would kill several family members just to be where I am now, career-wise. All I can say to them is, it looks better from a distance, guys. After a while it’s just… work. Of course, then a new book comes out with my name on the cover, and I remember why I started this gig in the first place.

As for my most common writing practice – procrastination. Definitely.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

In high school, I used to amuse my friends by writing spy “novels” with them as characters. Then, when I was in my mid-twenties, I got it into my head that I could write mystery/crime/suspense stories. I had a few ideas, which I turned into stories that, I realize now, were just awful. I sent them out to the top mystery magazines of the day and waited for the checks to come in the mail. Imagine my surprise to receive nothing but rejection slips. I was an idiot, with no idea about either how to write or how to get published. But I was so disheartened that I didn’t try again for over twenty years. Things worked out a little better, that time.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

If by “the genre” you mean urban fantasy, I’d have to say that it has far too many good writers in it. If some of them would have the good grace to die, I bet my books would sell a lot better. Curse you, Jim Butcher! I don’t really mean that, of course. Jim Butcher is a guy whose immense talent is matched only by his generosity of spirit. He was very kind to me when I was starting out (the second time, I mean). He gave me encouragement, and even a nice blurb for the cover of my first novel. Jim rocks.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

Known Devil is the third novel in a three-book contract, so whether there are any more stories about Stan Markowski depends on the publisher, Angry Robot Books. However, I also write a series for Solaris/Rebellion. It features occult investigator Quincey Morris (descended from the Texan who helped Van Helsing kill Dracula) and his business partner, white witch Libby Chastain. Those guys do operate in a “masquerade,” by the way. They’ve appeared in three novels and two novellas so far, and I’ve got a contract for another novella, which is in progress. There was some Hollywood interest in one of the Morris and Chastain books a while back, but nothing every came of it.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

I don’t have as much time for leisure reading as I’d like, but I’m three-quarters through Kill City Blues, by Richard Kadrey. I love his Sandman Slim novels (of which this is the latest). James Stark is almost as big a badass as Stan Markowski.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

Hmmm. That I once dated a nun? I guess you might say that I wanted to get into the habit.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

The start of summer vacation in May. Oh, and no snow for a while – please, God, no more snow.

***

Be sure to check out Justin Gustainis’s website for more information about the author’s work and novels.

An Interview with ANNA KASHINA

February 25, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Angry Robot Books, Anna Kashina, Assassins, Blades of the Old Empire, Fantasy, Guild of Assassins, Majat Code, Romance

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Anna Kashina?

I am a biomedical scientist and a writer, not necessarily in that order. My day job is being a professor at a major US university. Writing is reserved for the rest of my time. More recently, I am also a mother of two, which taps seriously into all the other occupations.

Your novel, Blades of the Old Empire, is due to be published in February by Angry Robot Books. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader? Is it part of a series?

I hope readers would see it as an adventure fantasy in the best traditions of the genre, which also includes some elements of romance. It does not push the boundaries or create new concepts, it is intended as a fun, fast-paced read. It is book one of the Majat Code series, with book two, Guild of Assassins, coming out this August. I do have plans for other books in the series and hope to see them forthcoming later on.

What inspired you to write the novel? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

As it turns out, these are two separate questions. Generally, my inspiration for writing comes from a desire to get some unresolved emotions out on paper. I can only do it in the form of fantasy, ideally set in a world that does not exist in real life. But a lot of ideas for these stories also come from my dreams. In a big sense, it almost seems as if these worlds do exist somewhere and find their way out into my books.

With Blades of the Old Empire, it was somewhat different. I wanted to write a traditional fantasy. And then, as I sat down to write it, the story just emerged. Once it got going, all I had to do was write it down. So, in this sense, I had an even stronger feeling that not only the world, but this particular story existed somewhere, and just found its way out through me. The feeling was very special, one I still miss.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

I grew up in the former Soviet Union. Back then, reading was pretty much the only form of entertainment available (we had no TV, and people did not go out much). I was reading ever since I can remember; everything I could lay my hands on, but my favorites were always fairy tales and myths, and this probably started my early interest in fantasy. The first true fantasy I read was The Lord of the Rings, and after that I was hooked on the genre.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

Now that I have a publisher, I love it. It means I can focus only on my writing and somebody else will do the rest. Of course, I used to see it differently before I found a publisher and an agent.

I write for enjoyment, and I do have a demanding day job; so, unlike many authors, I don’t have a routine in which I must sit down and write something every day. If I need to write something, I just sit down and write it, whenever I can. But the most rewarding times are when I feel inspired, and then keeping from writing becomes a torture and I literally use every available moment to write. This yields some of my best work.

I usually do research as I write, on an “as-needed” basis. If I feel very inspired, I leave blanks for the parts that need researching, sometimes with a note of what needs to be in there, and then fill these blanks later.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

My first was a self-illustrated “novel” written when I was six years old, which ended with the words “and they sailed to the east, where the sun sets.” When my father politely pointed out to me that the sun actually sets in the west, I was so ashamed that I destroyed that “book”. I am sure it was for the best.

My first novel that I look back fondly on was written when I was in high school, co-authored with my grandfather, Vladimir Keilis-Borok. It is a historical novel about the pirates and Queen Elizabeth of England, written in Russian under pen names. I still think it is very good (probably for young adults) and maybe some day I will translate it into English.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

This is difficult to tell. Personally, I really enjoy traditional fantasy that explores the familiar concepts well. I believe there are not enough such books out there – partly because the professionals in the industry, who have literally seen it all, tend to be attracted to new things they have not seen before. As a reader, I still like the old, and I hope we get more books published in the “good old” style. I hope my book would appeal to readers like myself, those who like to have fun with a book and don’t care about anything else.

My books also tend to have lots of romance (which is even more true about the upcoming Guild of Assassins), and I don’t think there are enough books out there that blend fantasy with elements of romance (usually these two genres are somewhat separate). I hope my books will appeal to the readers who are not straight romance fans, but enjoy good romance elements in their adventure story.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

The Guild of Assassins is the next in the pipeline. It is a sequel to Blades of the Old Empire, even though each of these books can be read as a stand-alone. I am working on book three in the series.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

At the moment I am reading Amy Raby’s Hearts and Thrones series: a great example of traditional adventure fantasy with elements of romance. I am enjoying it very much. I mostly read non-fiction at work, so even though I do have several historical reference books on my shelf, they are on hold for the moment.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

I hope, that English is not my first language…? (Unless, of course, my name already gave it away.)

I grew up in Russia and came to America as an adult, so for the first few years I was really conscious about my limitations in the English language. At that time, I felt that if I could make one wish, it would be to know English as well as I know Russian. I feel that in the past decade I have achieved that state, and possibly switched to English as the dominant one.

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

Well, I am both anticipating and dreading the release of my books. I hope readers will like them, and sitting around and waiting is just so unnerving. I am sure many authors can relate to this feeling, of pouring out your soul, defeating impossible odds, putting your work out there, and waiting for the reaction it would cause… All in all, fingers crossed!

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Blades of the Old Empire is published by Angry Robot Books in the UK on March 6th and in the US and eBook format today.

An Interview with MATTEO STRUKUL

February 17, 2014 Civilian Reader Interview Ballad of Mila, English Language Debut, Exhibit A, Italy, Mafia, Matteo Strukul, Mila Zago Series, Revenge Thriller, Thriller, Vendettas

Italian author Matteo Strukul stops by to talk about his first novel in English, The Ballad of Mila, his broad and varied influences, his inspirational home country, why Chuck Wendig is a “badass wizard”, and much more…

Let’s start with an introduction: Who is Matteo Strukul?

First of all, thank you so much Stefan for this opportunity to talk about my work. Well, about myself… I’m a man who loves life and rock ’n’ roll music (The Black Crowes, Rival Sons, Buckcherry and all the old stuff like Led Zep or Skynyrd). I adore American pulp-crime fiction authors (Jim Thompson, James Crumley, Joe R. Lansdale, among others), but at the same time I read so many European authors and literature (Friedrich Schiller, Wolfgang Goethe, Robert Louis Stevenson, Emilio Salgari), I love Italian red wine like Raboso or Grinton and I love my land that is Veneto in the Northeast of Italy. I’m so lucky to grow up in this area in towns like Padova, Venezia, Verona – so full of arts and beauty, I must confess that it’s an amazing place and for that reason I love to write about my land in my novels.

Your novel, The Ballad of Mila, is due to be published in March by Exhibit A. How would you introduce the novel to a new reader? Is it part of a series?

Yes it is, it’s the first novel in an on-going series, Exhibit A has already bought English rights of the second one, and I’m writing the third exactly NOW. Well, The Ballad of Mila is a kind of “Revenge Movie”: it’s a story about vengeance and blood and you have this amazing woman with long red dreadlocks who is able to face and defeat every kind of man because she was a victim, and now she is a predator and a merciless one. But you have also the Chinese mafia, the Venetian territory, you have non-stop action and torment and rage and hatred and, in the middle of a battle between two different gangs – like in Sergio Leone’s For a Fistful of Dollars – you have Mila, a woman who is also damaged goods and who can’t accept herself for what she became. So Mila is a killer, but at the same time she is broken, in some way she’s a kind of mixture between Luc Besson’s La Femme Nikita and Garth Ennis’s Punisher…

What inspired you to write the novel? And where do you draw your inspiration from in general?

From stories that I read during the years penned by authors like Victor Gischler, Allan Guthrie, Tim Willocks, Jason Starr, Adrian McKinty, Christa Faust, Duane Swierczynski, Massimo Carlotto, Giancarlo De Cataldo, Don Winslow, Anthony Neil Smith, David Peace, Charlie Huston, Dan Simmons, David Wellington, James Ellroy, Derek Raymond, Cathy Unsworth, Stuart O’nan, Kem Nunn, Cormac McCarthy, Henry Crews. Then, of course, I must mention TV shows like Sons of Anarchy, movie directors like Sam Peckimpah, Sergio Leone, Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, Guy Ritchie, Joe Carnahan, among others, and I don’t wanna forget Videogames (Bloodrayne) and Comic books screenwriters like Alan Moore, Warren Ellis, Mark Millar, Garth Ennis, Jason Aaron, and Brian Azzarello.

How were you introduced to reading and genre fiction?

Well, since I was five years old I started reading, and now here we are. I remember that my Mom used to read to me epic poems like Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. I loved those stories, about heroes and battles and fighting, so this was how everything started.

How do you enjoy being a writer and working within the publishing industry? Do you have any specific working, writing, researching practices?

Well I worked for some years as press agent for an Italian independent publisher: Meridiano Zero. I organized press campaigns for authors like David Peace, James Lee Burke, Derek Raymond and I met Victor Gischler in 2008 in Courmayeur at the Noir Festival, I was his press agent because Meridiano Zero published in that year Gun Monkeys in Italy. It was great and we had so much fun. So, of course this fact doesn’t mean that I was an author in those years but means, without any doubt, that I had a strong background.

Then I founded Sugarpulp, a literary movement focused on pulp-crime fiction and was and am line editor for a crime fiction imprint called Revolver that published authors like Allan Guthrie, Ray Banks, Brian McGilloway, Derek Nikitas among others. At the same time I work as author, my new book will be published by Mondadori in Italy next April and will be a Gaslight Mistery set in Padova and Venezia in 1888 AD. It’s a story about an alienist and a serial killer strongly influenced by Caleb Carr, ALan Moore and Dan Simmons stuff. About writing what can I say? I love my life as writer and editor and comic book screenwriter, you know, I’m free and do what I want. Like Jagger said, “Ha, Ha so I’m a lucky guy, probably the luckiest one in the entire world.” For my last book – The Gaslight Mistery that I mentioned before – well I researched so much because I needed to study the Venetian area of the 19th Century. It was a great challenge. For Mila’s novels, I don’t research so much, but I watch so many movies and TV shows, and I mixed all those things and sequences and feelings, and after that I have a new story. I don’t know how it works, but it’s impossible for me to do a synopsis and those kind of stuff, you know, especially because Mila needs to decide everything and I just have to listen to her and write. Ha Ha.

When did you realize you wanted to be an author, and what was your first foray into writing? Do you still look back on it fondly?

I realized that I wanted to be an author when I was a child. I remember that I wanted to be a rockstar or a pulp-crime writer. It was cool, I remember that I formed a rock ’n’ roll band with my brother. We played rock ’n’ roll stuff, gigs in coffee-bars or small clubs. But it was hard to earn money and fame, so I decided to write my own stories. I started with nonfiction and penned two nonfiction books about two Italian songwriters and I wrote for years as a rock ’n’ roll journalist. I interviewed cool guys like Black Crowes guitarist Marc Ford, Jethro Tull’s Ian Anderson, Zucchero, Dave Matthews, Ryan Bingham, Joss Stone, among others. But, if I must be honest the best interview that I ever done was with Willy De Ville. We spoke together for one hour, he was so cool and generous and he was an amazing and great person and a so talented artist and I remember that after some months or something like that he died. It was shocking and brutal, I remember I wrote a six-page article for a very important Italian rock magazine. It was sad and bitter, but at the end I was so happy to have done something for him, nothing so important but a kind of way to testify all my love for his music and art. In my opinion he was probably the most talented and wonderful singer of the last 30 years.

What’s your opinion of the genre today, and where do you see your work fitting into it?

Well, I love crime and pulp fiction and I think that a pulp-crime author would be able to be popular if will be able to offer amusement and amazing but low-cost stories. And literature, in my opinion, is real literature, if it could be popular and mass market distributed. Professors and Academics and Intellectuals are so boring and selfish and in fact they use literature like a weapon to divide and create differences between high culture and low culture, between upper and middle class and common people. Fuck them all! Man, it’s a shame. I want to be a honest pulp writer and create good and strong characters.

For example, recently I read Chuck Wendig’s Miriam Black’s three books series: Blackbirds, Mockingbirds and The Cormorant… well it was a real roller-coaster, I loved that series. Chuck is a wonderful author, and is able to mix pulp, horror, urban fantasy, crime fiction… He is a badass wizard. At the same time, I think that I wanna try to write some historical novel, especially a big story that I have in my mind about The Northern Crusades with kings, knights, witches, female warriors, wild tribes, castles, snow and tortures, I think could be a very interesting setting.

What other projects are you working on, and what do you have currently in the pipeline?

As I said, my new Gaslamp Mistery novel for Mondadori, I’m writing also the third Mila Zago novel and a double book story about Teutonic Knights, and I’m writing a graphic novel, drawn by an amazing Italian artist, Filippo Vanzo. I’m also writing the second ebook novella together with Marco Piva Dittrich for my on-going series about Skuld, a she-werewolf who’s fighting the Nazis during the WWII and I’m editing Tim Willocks’s The Twelve Children of Paris for an Italian publisher. I have many other projects in the pipeline, including comic-books and… movies… but I must keep my mouth closed and, much important, keep my fingers crossed.

What are you reading at the moment (fiction, non-fiction)?

I just finished reading David Wellington’s Frostbite, a werewolf tale: an amazing novel.

What’s something readers might be surprised to learn about you?

Probably that I love Ice Hockey, I’m a big fan of Asiago Hockey 1935, my favorite Italian team. Ice Hockey is quite popular in the North East of Italy. Maybe the reason why I love so much this sport is because when I was a child, I lived for two years in Canada: Vancouver, British Columbia. I remember when I watched Vancouver Canucks on TV with my father, so maybe that’s the reason why I love ice hockey so much. I am also a big Philadelphia Flyers and Montreal Canadiens fan. Ice hockey has an important role in Mila’s novels, ha ha. I’m not kidding…

What are you most looking forward to in the next twelve months?

Well, I’m very curious to see if Mila could break English and American readers’ hearts. I hope they would be so generous and kind to give Mila a chance. So thank you so much, Stefan, for what you have already done for her… and me.

Be sure to follow Matteo Strukul on Twitter, and check out his website for more information on his writing and projects. The Ballad of Mila is published by Exhibit A in March 2014 (UK & US). Here’s the synopsis:

Imagine Elmore Leonard behind the wheel of a car in Grand Theft Auto, as one Italian woman sets out to cut the mafia down to size – one limb at a time…

Two perfectly matched gangs are fighting for control of the north-east Italian region of Venetia. But a formidable young woman with vengeance on her mind has plans to upset the balance. Abandoned by her mother and violated by a gang of criminals just after they slaughtered her father, Mila Zago is a cold-blooded killer, a deadly assassin. Brought up by her grandfather on the Sette Comuni plateau under a rigid martial code, she returns home to seek her revenge, conspiring to create a spectacular showdown reminiscent of A Fistful of Dollars.

The Ballad of Mila is the first novel in an ongoing series focused on the formidable female Italian bounty hunter Mila Zago, a.k.a. Red Dread.