7 Questions: Nik Korpon

Interview by David Cranmer.

Tell us about Stay God.

Stay God was my love letter to Baltimore (I wrote it when I was living overseas and homesick.) The book follows Damon and Mary, who've spent their days slinging drugs behind the chipped counter of their junk-shop front and nights watching horror movies, going to bars, and generally wasting time. They're usually joined by Damon's best friend, Christian. Mary begins to tire of the routine and wants to get away from The Life, but Damon, adverse to any sort of change and commitment, isn't so keen. Copious amounts of drugs are snorted, horror movies discussed in existential terms, much blood spilled, Baltimore's neighborhoods sightseen, and many a body drops. It's my mutant flipper baby of a novel, a combination of crime, satire, social commentary, horror and Evil Dead. In it's blackened little heart, though, it's really a frightening love story. It's about a man trying to temper his selfish and self-destructive tendencies for the woman he loves.

What is the writing scene like in Baltimore?

Awesome is always the first word that comes to mind. Baltimore as a whole is a very odd city, especially these days. I grew up south of the city, but have been around for the last fifteen years or so, and the ways in which the city is changing are...marked, I guess would be the best word. Baltimore is a blue-collar town, just people who do their own thing and don't ask for help, and there's been a huge influx of development in the last five-to-seven years, which has created a really interesting, and sometimes unfortunate dynamic. The art scene has followed suit, with galleries where there were hourly motels, performance spaces in abandoned warehouses, organic pizza joints in old shoots galleries. On any given night, you're almost guaranteed to find some type of reading, whether it's poetry, fiction, performance, or show-and-tell. The writers themselves reflect this weird amalgamation, somewhere between raw talent and 'I don't give a fuck, I'll just do it myself.' I think Baltimore was mainly known for the crime fiction, because you see it every day, but a lot of the writers round here have begun to get some real attention. Michael Kimball's latest book Us just made Oprah's reading list. Jen Michalski has a book coming out on Dzanc soon. Adam Robinson's Publishing Genius Press had one of their releases optioned by Spike Jones last year. It's like the rest of the world has finally tuned in to all the talented people around here. I'm sure a lot of cities could say the same thing and this is mainly hometown pride, but fuck it. I'm proud to be a Baltimore writer.

When did your writing journey begin?

I've been writing things forever, though the seriousness with which I took them has varied. I came up playing in punk rock bands and, because I though I was the next coming of Kurt Cobain, always wanted to sing and write pseudo-impressionistic lyrics. Around 20 or so, I discovered the Beats, Bukowski and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. You can imagine what that sounded like. I started thinking seriously about writing and stories when I was 24, riding rails around Europe. I'd find copies of Nick Hornby and Palahniuk and the like at hostels, devour them on a train-ride then trade them out in the next hostel. Shortly after, I found The Velvet and their authors (Will Christopher Baer, Stephen Graham Jones and Craig Clevenger.) Coupled with unearthing Garcia Marquez and James M Cain--like they were this Rosetta Stone of the soul buried just for me to discover when I was ready--that three-month period of maniacal reading pretty much blew my conception of literature from its hinges. It became real, tactile, something I could weld together with the bits clunking around inside my skull.

It's funny, though, to think back on the early stuff. Here it is today, seven years, a couple books, a clutch of stories, degrees and some teaching later, and I'm still trying to write a different version of the same story. I think that's a good thing.

How did you become involved with Dirty Noir?

There should be some super sleazy, Delta crossroads type of account for this, fire and whiskey spewing from the stomachs of virgins or something. Maybe I'll invent one. In the meantime: Doc and I had been in the same writing group for a bit. I sent him an excerpt of my novella, By the Nails of the Warpriest, and he dug it, mentioned that he needed help reading stories, and that's pretty much it. I really should come up with a sexier story.

That aside, we're getting Dollar Dreadful together, our quarterly e-publication, and are really excited by it. There's so much unexposed talent out in the ether, and we're wicked stoked to bring some of those people further into the darkness.

What kind of stories are you looking for at DN?

At the risk of sounding self-aggrandizing, I want to read the same kind stories I want to write. I want dirty, gritty stories where people are unspeakably cruel, but act that way because of a hidden wound. Some subcutaneous tenderness, maybe. People who are easily offended and react at a gut-level rather than intellectually. I really dig writers like Neil Smith, Tom Piccirilli, Matthew Funk, Tom Franklin, the guys who write real people doing really awful things, written really well. This is an old conversation, but the idea that crime/mystery/horror/whatever writing is, or should be, somehow sub-par to Booker Prize prose is offensive and just fucking stupid. Words are all we have to represent ourselves and they should be treated accordingly.

All of this is a long way to say I want to read stories where the knife is wavering beneath the table, unsheathed, rather than covered in blood.

You review books for Spinetingler, NoirJournal and The Nervous Breakdown. Have you ever written a negative review and heard from the author?

Thankfully, no. It's kind of on purpose though: I don't review books I don't like. I figure there's no reason to rail on a piece of work someone put a year or two of their lives into (theoretically, of course) just to tell people not to buy it. All that negativity is counterproductive to the writing community as a whole. If no one talks about it, no one will buy it. Also, karma's a motherfucker and I can't think of many things worse than flipping through the interwebs and stumbling on a two-page missive on how many goat balls my books can suck at once.

What is next on your schedule?

Things are slowing down a bit. My latest novella, By the Nails of the Warpriest, just came out a couple weeks ago, so I'm working on promoting that. Not doing a very good job of it, but working. I'll have stories coming out in Needle, the BEAT to a PULP: Hardboiled Anthology--two places I've long wanted to publish with--and an anthology from Thunderdome Press called In Search of a City: LA in 1000 Words. It's a ton of 1000-word stories alongside their photo prompt. I've only seen preview pages, but those few are stunning. Other than that, I'm taking a welder and belt-sander to two novels, getting them ready to heave them into the ether or submission queues. The both feature Elroy, the Elvis-impersonating cutthroat from That Pale Light in the West (Black Heart Noir Issue,) and I'm pretty proud of them. Not proud enough, yet, but getting there. At some point, I'll be releasing an e-version of Old Ghosts, my other novella. I'm shit at technological stuff, though, so it might take a bit. Oh, and a section in a top-secret novel-in-novellas project I can't talk about but conspicuously mention from time-to-time to create the illusion of interest. But I can't talk about that yet.

7 Questions: Frank Bill

Interview by David Cranmer

What was the transition like going from working with an online editor, Neil Smith or Elaine Ash, to working with a big publishing house editor?

More room to breathe. Meaning I didn’t have to worry about word count. That always bothered me when writing something for an online journal. Granted I can write a tight flat to the point piece, but sometimes you leave out a few of the why’s or what’s. Things were just as tight with my editors at FSG. Only I had more room to hit all of the senses. And that’s what they wanted. They had the groundwork for everything, they just wanted more details. The other thing is I dig input, there is no better feeling than being on the same page with like-minded people. In a sense, your editors are your personal fans, they get what you’re doing and they want to help you make it as powerful as it can be.


How does an online writer go from an agent to a publisher and get into Playboy Magazine? How the hell did that happen?

My editors have said this more than once, it just shows how strong the writing is. On top of that, it’s a little luck, timing and a bit of talent. I wish I knew. Things happened so fast. Last year at this time, it was after the July 4th holiday, I agreed to the two book deal. It was an entire week of waiting and second guessing myself. I was fortunate to sign with my agent, Stacia Decker. What came after has been mind blowing. After the book deal, my editors asked me where I thought we could place an excerpt from the book once the edits were done. I mentioned a few places. Then my editors said, How about Playboy? I wasn’t thinking anything that big. Months and months later I get an email, in the heading it says Naked Ladies. It was the news. The editor at Playboy really liked what she had read. She is just as kick ass my editors at FSG or even Neil Smith or Lady D.


Let’s switch gears. You and I shared space in NEEDLE: A magazine of Noir. Your story, "Cold, Hard, Love," it dealt with an out-of-work husband and waitressing wife struggling to make ends meet and bare knuckles boxing. Where did this idea come from?

That story is actually a prequel to my novel, Donnybrook. Six to eight years ago, my father and I were drinking and talking, telling stories. And somehow we got on the subject of when he and my mother were married. And how she had this temper, which she does. I was a kid. We were living next to my grandparents on their farm. My mother and father had a disagreement about something and she attacked him. Raked her nails down his face or something. My father is very laid back. He got out the house, walked over to my grandparent’s farmhouse. My grandmother saw his face and said, "Good lord son, what happened to you?" He told her about the disagreement and she told him, "That girl always did have a temper on her." That was how I wrote the beginning. My father worked in a tobacco plant when I was growing up. Then it relocated and after ten years of employment he was out of a job. He had to start over. That was the back story. The boxing comes from me and my training in martial arts and eastern and western boxing since the age of 11.


Your stories deal with working class men and women, coon hunters, fishermen, dope runners, fist fighters and even law enforcement. They’re down trodden, vicious and depraved. But they’re also survivalists, getting by the only way they know how. Do you believe the generation behind you could survive in your world?

Most would not. An easy example, my mother and father were taught about the world around them. How to live and survive in it. They grew up hunting and fishing. Skinned and processed what they killed. My father was a marine who served in the Vietnam war. He fought in operation Allenbrook. Watched a lot of good men fall. My mother was raised on a farm. Dealt with an abusive father who beat her mother everyday for six long years. They’re survivalists. They know what it’s like to live with necessity. To do without. In today’s world, you don’t have that. If the world suddenly lost power, was cut off from water, food and transportation, there’d be a lot of dead people. Society now days is too focused on trends. Movie stars, gossip, video games and the internet. Don’t get me wrong, I get online. I network. But I do it in-between working, writing, taking care of my home and spending time with my wife.

When I was growing up, cartoons were on Saturday morning. The rest of the week I was outdoors, in the woods either hunting with my rabbit dog, climbing trees, building fires or fishing. Going to a movie was a rarity. So was eating out. I was entertained by family and friends, comic books and baseball cards. Those are the people I write about in a sense, only they’ve lost their moral compass. And yes, they’re survivalists. Getting by on the leftovers of society.


Your favorite short story? Favorite book? Favorite novella?

I have a lot of these. But as far my influence and flat out badass. Favorite short is a tie, "Samaritan" by Larry Brown and "Wittgenstein’s Lolita" by William Gay. Favorite book, Joe by Larry Brown. Novella, Poachers by Tom Franklin. Those guys raised the bar way high for me.


Music, what do you listen to?

Anything that tells a good story. Frames real people’s lives, where they come from and what they’re dealing with. Hank III, Hank Sr., Johnny Cash, Drive-By Truckers, Hayes Carll, Scott H. Biram, William Elliott Whitmore, Steve Earle, Ray Wylie Hubbard, Ryan Bingham. Chris Knight or Son Volt. Really too many to name. I’m big on Delta Blues like Mississippi Fred McDowell. Americana, old jazz like Miles Davis, and roots music. If I’m working out I slide in some Slayer, Slipknot, Pantera, Rob Zombie or Grinderman.


What’s one of the most valued lessons you’ve learned in life?

Treat your enemies like your friends. That way you’ll always know what they’re up to.

***********************

Crimes in Southern Indiana Stories is available at Amazon.

7 Questions: David Barber

Interview by David Cranmer

How is your new editor job at Flash Fiction Offensive going?

The editor job at FFO is going great. Better than I could have imagined, really. It all came about after a brief email to a great writer, Glenn Gray. I was being nosey and asking if he'd written any new stories, etc, as he doesn't have a blog. A couple of emails later and he tells me he's passed my name to Matt Louis (owner of FFO and Out of the Gutter Magazine) and, if I fancied giving it a try, would I be interested in running the mag. Discussions with my wife ensued and her final response was, "Go for it. What's the worst that could happen?"

So, big thanks go out to Glenn for the initial contact, Matt for giving me the opportunity, and my wife, Lisa, for backing me and having confidence in me.

I've only been doing it for about 3 months now but it seems to be going from strength to strength, so much so I've had to close submissions for a month.

I'm really enjoying it and I've learnt quite a lot in the time I've been running it. I try to be an understanding editor and offer advice where I can and I'm more than willing to discuss stories with contributors. I think communication is an important part of being an editor too, and I regularly give updates to writers as to when their stories are being published, etc.

I'd like to think that I'm in this for the long run, so you can expect me to be around for some time.


What are the chances of a story being featured in the FFO finding its way to the Out of the Gutter print mag?

Ultimately, it's totally up to Matt which of the stories I publish make it into the print magazine. In the submission guidelines it explains that if a story is good enough there is a chance it could make the mag.

At the end of the day, if you send me something that I think is a great story that's well written and has had some love and care shown to it, then I'm going to publish it. If Matt then likes it, then there's a great chance he could use it. I would see that as a double bonus: what a great achievement for the writer and (not taking anything whatsoever away from the writer) by myself in that I'd accepted another great story.


What are the guidelines for submitting?

Guidelines for submitting to us are pretty simple. You write a good story, polish it up well and get the editing sorted. Then there are a couple of ways to send your story in: as a .doc attachment or within the body of an email. The latter is preferable as formatting can get a bit out of control when copying from an attachment. But here’s the thing that could make or break it for you. I find it hard to open a story that doesn’t have a covering letter. Would a writer send the first few chapters of their novel to an agent without a query letter? I don’t think so. Those first few chapters would end up in the shredder. Therefore, writers should show the same respect to online magazines. We are, in essence, the stepping stones to the bigger picture. This issue will be one of the new guidelines, so writers should bear this in mind when submitting stories. I’m not asking for a query letter, but a simple “Hello, would you consider the following…” would be appreciated. Manners, after all, are a free commodity in a world where prices for things are going out of control.


What is David Barber’s day job?

I'm a self-employed tiler during the day, a job that pays pretty well but takes its toll on your knees and back. I've always been in physical employment from the day I left school, and never been out of work since that day.

Before I worked for myself, I was a firefighter for ten years but was finished due to an injury and management politics. Long story for another time.


With all the world-wide catastrophes and wars going on, it does look like this is the end, doesn't it?

No, far from it. In my opinion, wars and natural disasters have been happening for years and years and they always will. I think the media [and becoming an adult] has a lot to answer for when it comes to the way people think. When I was a kid I never knew there were wars going on or thousands of people were killed by freak floods. News programs were only on once a day and they were late on at night, plus our parents never spoke about atrocities and such. We were protected from the news. In those days, paedophiles were never even heard of. The news and media now are glorifying everything to sell their products and the news is on every TV channel as well as being on 24 hours a day on their own stations.


What do you think of American football?

American Football? I do actually watch it now and again but I haven’t got a clue what’s going on. I’m a football [soccer] man myself although I played rugby for a couple of years when I fell out with football. The strong urge to go back to diving at opponent’s feet and flinging myself across frozen goal mouths was too strong though. Yes, I was a goalkeeper, and that may have something to do with my tired and broken joints.


Do you own a kilt?

Do I own a kilt? No, but on my Dad's side there is Scottish blood in the family so I suppose I could if I wanted to. I hired the full works last year which I wore to my friend's wedding, although I wasn't traditional and didn't go "commando". I don't think many do anymore - or I was just a coward! I've wore a dress before but that's a whole other story for another time! Ha!

7 Questions: Ed Lynskey

Interview by David Cranmer

Tell us about your new Appalachian noir, Lake Charles?

Set in the Great Smoky Mountains during the 1970s, Lake Charles is narrated by Brendan Fishback, a pressman in his early 20s. His story is a coming of age one in several ways. He self-detoxes from his pot habit. He is curious to find out about his dad gone since his birth. He scrambles to beat a homicide rap pinned on him for his dead girlfriend Ashleigh. Events turn darker on his bass fishing trip taken up to Lake Charles, a TVA-constructed reservoir. His twin sister Edna and his best pal Cobb accompany Brendan. She and Cobb, their marriage on the rocks, argue before she tears off and vanishes into the boonies. Brendan now has to deal with both Ashleigh's murder and Edna's strange disappearance. Thus the stage is set for the next acts.

At the same time, the introverted Brendan experiences vivid dreams, even during the daytime hours. He's quick to blame them on the symptons to his pot withdrawal. The late Ashleigh speaks to him, striking a deal whereby she'll help him expose her true killer and get him off the hook if he'll do her bidding in the corporeal world. The noirish slant comes in from Ashleigh's spirit manipulating Brendan with her deceit and half-truths. She's a rich girl, and he understands the corrupt, jaded nature of the affluent. He wise to her ways, but he also feels trapped by her until he can win back his good name and get on with his young life.


Is LAKE CHARLES a departure of sorts for you?

Right, LAKE CHARLES is my first standalone novel after the five titles published in the P.I. Frank Johnson mystery series. For some reason. I'm drawn to mountainous settings like the West Virginia ridges in THE BLUE CHEER. Anyway, LAKE CHARLES takes place in the Great Smoky Mountains. Reviewers have said it moves fast and can be read in a single setting. That must be a positive since they rated it five stars. I know it sure went through a long, rigorous process to see print. Eight years and three fried PCs to be exact. The late George W. Scithers, first editor at Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine, was the final editor to suggest changes to LAKE CHARLES. I tossed out the various paper drafts (fire hazard), so I don't know how many rounds of edits I knocked out. I can recall once huddled up at our public library to log in some work after a thunder storm zapped a neighborhood transformer. Libraries can be noisy places. (That's not a bad thing. Readers are our life force.) LAKE CHARLES was a deliberate stab to just spin a gritty, pedal-to-the-metal tale like the stylish, literate Gold Medal PBOs, say, written by Charles Williams, Gil Brewer, or John D. MacDonald. One of Ed Lacy's books suggested the dream sequence thread that I used. The nasty pressman's strike (scabs v. union) was based on a real occurrence. So, all told, LAKE CHARLES was like a breath of fresh air for me.


Will Frank Johnson be returning with your next novel or are you planning another standalone?

One book, THE ZINC ZOO, in the series is slated to appear later this year. I turned in next year's title, AFTER THE BIG NOISE. Beyond those two installments, I'm unsure right now if I'll go on with the series. I still like hanging out with Frank, and I believe there are enough studs to nail up the future stories. Other top-notch private eye series like Sue Grafton's alphabet titles and Bill Pronzini's Nameless Detective books have enjoyed long runs, and still appear to be going strong. I know I'm enjoying the recent titles. To go on will hinge on energy and, of course, if there's any reader interest. As far as the stand alones are concerned, I've completed several books needing various levels of editing to complete for presentation. My hope is that Lake Charles does well enough in this down economy to pave the way for the next books to appear.


What is a typical writing day like for you?

Right now, my days outside of my freelance work are spent pretty much spent plugging and pimping my two current books. Quiet Anchorage, a small town cozy mystery, is out in paper and e-book. That title is slanted to appeal to a different readership than the noirish Lake Charles due out in June (but up for pre-sales at 33% off on Amazon and B&N). Why write the soft-boiled and hard-boiled type of products? Short answer: to sell more books to a wider base of customers. For me, it's also a change of pace to stay fresh. I like to test out different things. For instance, I've done a weblog (63 entries) on Goodreads. We'll see where that goes. Something that puzzles me is why other writers out of the blue pitch me their books, say, on Facebook. I must get a half-dozen of those everyday. While I can appreciate their efforts and try to be supportive as I can, it seems to me you should be promoting your books on cold calls to readers, not writers. I mean are you anymore interested in buying my book than I should be in buying yours? Probably not. On balance, though, I enjoy my day.


What was the spark for writing?

I like being a one-man band. For my novels, the delight of spinning a story, whether dark or light, is to entertain readers whom I don't know and never will. The profound satisfaction stems from the validation by others (the readers, critics, peers) that I've turned out a quality product. I've had the good fortune to work with some great pros. Allan Guthrie and the late George H. Scithers were my editors. The late James Crumley blurbed PELHAM FELL HERE's front cover.


How do family and friends support your career?

My wife is always my beta reader. My mom and sisters, the big readers in my family, read my books. My in-laws do the same thing. My old high school friend helped me out on some of the technical stuff in my writing THE BLUE CHEER. My dad likes to buy my books, and his wife reads them. I guess that's enough support because it's working out okay, at least up to this point.


Away from writing, what preoccupies Ed Lynskey’s time?

Writing (my own and paid freelance) and the attendant activities also known as pimping burn most of my time. I do have a life away from the keyboard. Rain or shine, I force myself to take daily 2-mile walks. Otherwise I'll stack on weight and build up vile things in my veins. We're avid National fans and train downtown to catch a few home games during the summer. Reading is fun. I don't use an e-reader. Staring at a screen again after all day at the laptop doesn't appeal to me.

7 Questions: Fred Zackel

Interview by David Cranmer

What is a typical writing day like for Fred Zackel?

Writing is self-indulgent, and I try never to forget that. After thirty-odd years of writing, I write for myself, not for New York or Hollywood or magazines or anthologies. I have no idea what they want and I cannot write to their expectations. But I write all the time every day. I am OCD about it. I compose by hand, so I am always taking notes. And if the moment allows me, I keep writing until I have to eat lunch or teach or take out the trash. If I wake up at 4 am with an odd but interesting dream, I'll sit in the dim-lit living room and write until the story is done or until I run out of ideas or new ways to develop them. I carry a small notebook around. At the gym, I carry paper and pen ... and later trying to figure out what I wrote with sweaty trembling hands on wrinkled paper. "Molasses and Murder? What the hell is that?" If I get an idea while driving, I'll ask my wife to write it down for me. Later each day I collate what I have garnered and input it into the computer. I usually spend an hour daily at that. But I will stay at the computer until I run out of new developing ideas or a favorite TV show comes on or it's time to go to bed. As they pop out and onto the screen, the various ideas get parceled out into whatever story file they most likely belong. Ninety minutes of every morning is for editing or composing, whichever strikes my fancy, and then an hour around suppertime is set aside for inputting. Since I always have four or five writing projects unfinished at any given time, I write about whichever project grabs my attention. With juggling that many unfinished projects, I never sweat Writers Block. And since I don't give a s--- about my writing career anymore, I just write compulsively about whatever I want. Lots of freedom, once you abandon the concept of a writing career. But what vindicates this self-indulgent behavior of mine, sooner or later everything I write gets accepted somewhere.


Who are your primary influences on writing?

Although I was too young to ever meet her, the science fiction writer Andre Norton was the librarian at my local (the Nottingham) branch of the Cleveland Public Library, so she was a role model in so many ways. Through her books, I fell in love with reading. With genre and Adventure. When she became a full time writer, she moved to Florida, where it's so much warmer than Cleveland. As a teenager, I fell in love with writing first through Lawrence Durrell's Alexandrian Quartet. I must have read the novels a half-dozen times in all. I never wrote like Durrell at all, but geez the poetry and the lyricism and the sensuality are enviable.

In mystery I learned most from Ross Macdonald, first through reading and then by asking specific questions. He was a very generous man. Then, over time and repeated readings, I learned minimalism from Hammett and then I learned attitude from Chandler. James Cain taught me about dirty sex and postmen. Elmore Leonard taught me visual shortcuts in form and structure a writer can take that work wonders in a manuscript. Thanks to teaching lit in college classrooms, I re-discovered as a writer, instead of just a reader, the joys of the classics. Once a year I re-read Shakespeare's Othello just to be awed by a master craftsman. He can turn on a dime from comedy to horror within a sentence. Voltaire's Candide is the most ruefully funny novella ever. Read that at least once every year for the proper attitude toward life and the Big Picture. Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol is the most under-rated novella in English. Of Mice and Men is a perfect thriller. Marcus Aurelius' Meditations is the wisest book ever written; it teaches you how to deal with Daily Assholes. C.F. Cavafy's poems were a huge influence on how I write character. (Both of those last two books are still bedside, close at hand.) Albert Camus' Notebooks gave me a strategy I use daily about how to gather my thoughts in one place. Giovanni Boccaccio, who wrote The Decameron in 1353, a collection of one hundred novellas, still teaches me to write any goddamn genre I want.

I have to include Thomas Pynchon, Jimmy Buffett's early songs, Rod Stewart's early songs, and a lot of Motown, just for How to View Life in General. Novelist Joe Kanon was my editor when I was first published. He knows the forest and the trees, and I am still learning how to look at what to leave in and what to leave out. I am flat-out in awe of Loren Estleman, his drive, his vision and his oeuvre. Compulsively I also read Robert Crais, Michael Connelly, Ken Bruen, Andrea Camilleri, Philip Kerr. I love Megan Abbott's voice, and I think I have read all of Sue Grafton. She cares more about structure than most writers give her credit for. Two new guys, Michael Koryta and Declan Hughes, impress the hell out of me. Koryta, who writes about Cleveland but who is moving towards the supernatural which I think is the future, and Hughes, who writes like an Irish Ross Macdonald and makes me think of each character's family history and psychology. A third, Dave Zeltserman, has influenced me, too, with his skill and his drive. A fine writer of the hard-boiled, yes, but he also works twice as hard as any other writer and is incredibly determined. But then his last name begins with a Z. So he has to try harder. You think I'm joking? Readers go into a bookstore and they rarely get past the C's. Think: Agatha Christie, Joseph Conrad, Bob Crais, James Cain, Ray Chandler, Bill Crider, Al Camus, Harlan Coben, Mike Connelly, Dave Cranmer, John Connolly, Lee Child, Reed Coleman, Leslie Chateris, Peter Corris ... oh, you know I could go on. If you are a Z, forget about readers noticing you. They never get past the C's. But Dave will succeed brilliantly and deservedly. After he changes his name to Dave Celtserman. How do you make a smiley face emoticon?


Aside from the writing, what did you admire about Ross Macdonald?

As soon as I saw this, I knew this question would be the hardest to put into words. Nobody outside of family ever treated me nicer or gave me such hope. First off, he had me call him Ken, which in light of who each of us was still amazes me. You see, he was the Literary Lion of Santa Barbara. There was no one greater in those days. He had two dozen novels under his belt, had that huge feature article about him in Time magazine, he had a PhD from U of Michigan, Eudora Welty praising him the New York Times, two big movie studio feature length movies starring Paul Newman, all that talk about a TV series. Me? I was a kid driving taxicab at night in San Francisco. I worked for a Chinese cab company operating out of a unmarked garage at the edge of Chinatown; my bosses were refugees from Mainland China; they were both the owners and the mechanics. I drove a fifty buck canary yellow ex-taxicab too old and too beat to be a cab anymore. Another thing ... He was always Ken Millar to me. He wrote letters and signed them Ken. He wasn't Ross Macdonald. He was Ken. The first image I remember reading your question was ... how he walked alongside me. And I know how stoopid that sounds. When I was with him, we walked a lot, usually with a handful of dogs trying to run between our feet and topple us. I don't recall him ever using a leash on any of them. He truly loved dogs. His house was geared for the thundering paws of big dogs playing rough. We walked sidewalks and boardwalks and dusty creek beds and ... and ... I knew I didn't deserve that heartfelt warmth and generosity and friendship and patience, but he gave it to me without reservation. Two very public places where I met up with Ross Macdonald was the Santa Barbara Writers Conference two summers in a row back in the mid-1970s. The second time I was there, a woman showed me a photograph from the previous summer, with Ken Millar and I walking together under the palms in Santa Barbara, lost in talking together. We looked like two college math professors debating a math problem. An odd picture in so many ways. And I saw the woman's photograph of the two of us and I clicked on Ken walking alongside of me. He listened to me and talked to me and argued with me and advised me and ... We even swapped gossip about who was sleeping with whom at the conference ... and worse. At every opportunity he was kind and he was generous and nobody outside of my family has ever been that encouraging to me. I still have and read his letters; how he encouraged me, geez. Like nobody else has. There is other stuff, too, from him that my kids will get when I'm gone. Anyway, that woman got my address and said she'd send me the photo. I waited and waited. I asked around about her and the photo, but I never heard again from her. I never saw the picture again. About thirty-five years ago now. I would dearly love to have that photograph.


Did you ever get the sense that Mr. Macdonald recognized his importance alongside Hammett and Chandler as one of the leading architects of the hardboiled school of writing?

I can't answer your question. I know he thought Hammett was the absolute best. Hammett we talked about. He also talked about some writers (at that time) who were writing near or at that level. Writing at that level, to Macdonald, was the greatest goal in our field.


Your poem, "Squish, You Babe," featured at BEAT to a PULP, was disturbingly unique. How long have you been writing poetry?

The poem came easily. On a rainy day I saw pink worms crawling across white concrete. A little later I saw a bunch of little kids in red rubber boots stomping in rain puddles, while their mother despaired. Combined, a nice pair of images, but not noir-y enough for what I wanted to write. But the polar opposite was a huge powerful man stomping on little pink worms in the rain. Why would a huge powerful man act like that? Well, he's feeling powerless and frustrated. Why? Because of a woman, of course. But where would a huge powerful man be so powerless and frustrated? Once I saw the prison, all the rest was detailing work, like using cotton swabs around the dashboard of your car.


What are your thoughts on eBooks?

Today I just happened to notice that in 48 hours it will have been one year exactly since I put my first manuscript up on Kindle. Maybe a celebration is in order. That book MURDER IN WAIKIKI is my biggest seller, and this month my wife and I are both surprised by how briskly (for us) it is selling. I don't market much (and always quit early at it) because I always feel, well, inept at it, like a giraffe pretending to be a ballerina. Nor do I feel I have to sell any writer, either, on the benefits accruing her if she puts her work up on Kindle. Stuff that's out-of-print, stuff your agent couldn't sell in the marketplace because another type of story was selling, stuff your agent had little faith in ... why, that's what Kindle is about. You get to be your own publishing house. New York turned down MURDER IN WAIKIKI three times. That's the reason why my first short story collection TIGHT FIT IN A LONG COLD BOX is freshly available at Kindle, smashwords and the Nook. So fresh, it doesn’t yet have a cover.


What is next for Fred Zackel?

An old Irish saying is that there are more great Irish novels spilled out on the floors of saloons than have ever appear in print. So you will forgive me if I skip over what's not yet completed. (Although I have a half-dozen short stories half-done, and a couple novels I have started, and ...) But there is a new novel, yes, it is completed, and it is in final edit. Soon it goes back to New York. Or Kindle.

7 Questions: Keith Rawson

Interview by David Cranmer

I don’t see as many Rawson original stories out there these days. Is the editor gig slowing down the author?

I'll answer the last part first because I'm asked it quite a bit. The answer's no. I'm pretty lucky in the fact that I have two partners who are just as passionate about Crimefactory as I am, so the weight of the magazine is far from entirely on my shoulders. Working on CF does take up time, but not as much as the author interviews and reviews I do for BSCreview and Spinetingler does (which I've had to back off on lately because of stress at the day job, family and other writing/editing projects) But I have a lot of fun working on Crimefactory.

The other reason you're not seeing a lot of stories from me these days is because just like every other writer out there, I'm working on longer projects. The first is a novel and it's been taking up the bulk of my writing time, the second is an original short story collection that I've been chipping away at since the beginning of the year. (by the way, neither project can be clearly defined as crime fiction) So, I've been doing plenty of writing just not all that much that I've been sending out. I have completed a few new short stories lately so those will be making the rounds and I've been thinking about sending a few of the stories from the collection out to the online zines and college journals.


Why did you choose a print anthology over an e-book.

To be honest with you, we really had no intention of publishing CF as anything other than a PDF to begin with. It was Dave Zeltserman who suggested that we offer the zine in Kindle format (yeah, I owe Dave a keg of beer for all the advice he's dispensed to me over the past few years) in an attempt to monetize. I ran the idea past Cam and we decided what the hell and posted issue 1 to Amazon.

With the anthology, it'll most likely be offered in e-format along with a print edition. But when I came up with the idea of putting together an all original stories anthology under the CF banner, I wanted it to go through a publisher who could distribute it to the indie bookstores and brick and mortar chains (although selling through stores like Barnes and Noble is a pretty shitty deal if you're a small publisher. You're basically giving your product away with all the discounts they expect.) as opposed to putting it out myself. Don't get me wrong, I would have had no problem going the lulu/createspace route if no publisher would touch the anthology. But luckily enough Jon Bassoff over at New Pulp Press was into the idea.


What's the line-up for the anthology?

Since this is for you and Gutter Books, David, I might as well drop the entire line up.

Here we go: Ken Bruen, Adrain Mckinty, Craig Mcdonald, Charlie Stella, Dennis Tafoya, Dave Zeltserman, Roger Smith, Scott Wolven, Patti Abbott, Hilary Davidson, Frank Bill, Dave White, Steve Weddle, Jonathan Woods, Nate Flexer, Kieran Shea, Greg Bardsley, Jedidiah Ayres, Chris F. Holm, Chad Eagleton, Leigh Redhead, Anonymous-9, Jimmy Callaway, Josh Converse, Cameron Ashley and me with a foreword by original Crimefactory founder David Honeybone.


What does David Honeybone think of the new Crimefactory? And is he involved with the zine in any manner?

He's supportive of what we're doing. David has actually had several pieces in the new magazine, including a phenomenal interview with Peter Temple. Originally Cam and I wanted to have David apart of the running of the magazine, but when we started to move forward, David backed off and decide to only participate as a contributor. It was devastating to Cam and it nearly brought the whole project to a screeching halt. Luckily Cam changed his mind and we charged into it full bore and haven't slowed down since.


What is a Rawson guilty pleasure?

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a bit of a Facebook junkie. Don't get me wrong, I'm not the guy who's constantly taking and creating quizzes about his friends or playing Farmville or Mafia wars. But I'll post links to stories and articles that I've run across through out the day (usually the links are crime fiction related) in hopes of creating a dialogue. I like the interaction. The biggest downside of writing is that most of the time you feel like you're living in a black hole and you're completely alone with your thoughts and the words on the page. Sure I have other writers and fans I write back and forth with quite a bit, but sometimes I want a broader range of opinions. The only problem is that social networking is like crack (I swear there are some folks who spend all day doing nothing but post to Facebook and Twitter and I wonder how they get anything done?) and if I don't watch myself I'll spend hours and hours on it and not even notice. So I've been limiting myself to it an hour or so after I get off work and ten or fifteen minutes before I go to bed.


What current writer inspires you and why?

That's a tough question because quite a few writers, both friends or otherwise, inspire me for different reasons. There's folks like Frank Bill, Hilary Davidson, and John Rector who for me are proof if you bust your ass and believe in what you're doing that eventually you'll see a positive end result from all your hard work, I can say the same of Dave Zeltserman, who's been at it for years and is just now starting to get the recognition he deserves. Folks like Kieran Shea, Patti Abbot, Jedidiah Ayres, Steve Weddle, Christopher Grant, and Jimmy Callaway inspire me because they have no issue at being my sounding boards and making me take a look at things from a different angle. Then there are writers like Ken Bruen, Daniel Woodrell, Al Guthrie, and Charlie Stella, whose books make me want to write and be a writer when I read them.

I'm sure there are a dozen other writers I could name who get me revved up, but, damn who has the time?


What can piss you off faster than anything?

Everything pisses me off. Hell, even as I sit here writing this I'm pissed that you asked me about what pisses me off.

Kidding.

I'm actually a pretty laid back guy and it takes a lot to get me really steamed up. Now, I'll be the first to admit that 2010 has been an angry little year for me for a number of reasons, but I don't think there's any one thing in particular that sets me off more than others.

7 Questions: Bill Crider

Interview by David Cranmer


"Texas store sells American Flag with 61 stars," "Texas Rep. warns of baby-making terrorists coming to US," "Man attempts to hold up gas station with caulk gun" et cetera. Bill, what the heck is going on in the Lone Star State?

Bill Crider

Well, maybe there's something in the water. Or maybe life imitates Joe Lansdale's art. But not all the time. Usually Texas is just like anywhere else. Okay, maybe not like Florida. Florida has a lot more nutty happenings than Texas does. And, let's face it, the "flag" wasn't really a flag, according to the store manager. He said it was a "decorative object." It was made in Virginia, too, so I think the Virginians have to share in the blame. As for the caulk gun used in the attempted robbery, who among us hasn't made a silly mistake like that?


Do you miss teaching college English?

Yes, but that's a qualified yes. When I retired, I'd been an English Department chair for 25 years. A lot of that time I'd been a Division Chair of English and a few other departments, so by the end of my career, I was teaching only a couple of classes. The teaching was fun right to the end, and that's what I miss. What I don't miss: departmental meetings, committee meetings, writing reports on departmental meetings and committee meetings, creating the schedules and assigning faculty to the classes, ordering the textbooks, creating a departmental budget, and, well, you get the idea.

The students were always great, and I especially appreciated the ones who provided me with material in their essays, like the one on MEDEA, in which I ran across "hell hath no fury like a woman spermed," or the one on HAMLET, in which I was informed that "Hamlet always put his mother on a pedal stool."


Speaking of teaching, is it true your brother taught Anna Nicole Smith biology?

Yes, but let me clarify that just in case someone reading this is getting the wrong idea. My brother, Bob, is as straight-arrow as they come, and for many years he taught biology and chemistry classes in our hometown of Mexia, Texas. When Anna Nicole Smith was in his class, she wasn't even Anna Nicole Smith. She was Vickie Lynn Hogan in those days, a kid who worked at Jim's Crispy Fried Chicken on the weekends. Bob says that she wasn't anyone you'd notice if you walked into the room, just a mousy student who sat in the back of the room and didn't say much.


Is there any truth to the rumors that The Fabulous G-Strings will get back together?

Sadly, no. The Fab 4 (or occasionally 5 or 6) is no more. One of our stalwarts, Seepy Benton, has moved to Scottsdale, Arizona, where students in the desert are benefiting from his vast knowledge of math and his deeply strange worldview. Rochelle Brunson is shaking her tambourine at Baylor University. Darryl, or maybe it was his other brother Darryl, hardly ever showed up, anyway, and after he was kicked upstairs to the job of assistant to the president, stopped appearing altogether. I've retired, and so has Bill Horine, whose clear tenor was the best voice in the bunch. Only Gilbert Benton remains at the college, and he's likely to retire at any minute. But video is available. Unfortunately.


What's your take on e-books, the state of traditional publishing, and would you consider releasing some of your earlier work in the Kindle format?

Some of my earlier work, from the days when I was famed horror writer Jack MacLane, is now available on Kindle. Buy early and often!

Murder in the Air comes out August 3 from St. Martins.

I think e-books are here to stay, and while they might not replace traditional books, they're going to make serious inroads. Some people are saying there won't be much of a change in the way things are done, but I don't believe it. When the printing press was invented, there were probably people saying, "Those new books are all right, but I'm sticking with my hand-copied manuscripts." We can all see how that worked out. The traditional publishers are going to have to figure out some new approaches.

One thing that worries people, it seems, is that with self-published e-books there are no "gatekeepers." No editors, agents, copyeditors, and such. And with thousands of books being published outside the traditional venues, how will anybody find the "good stuff?" I assume these problems will be addressed. There are already websites springing up that purport to tell you which of the self-published e-books are worth reading. We're in the first stages of a revolution. It'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out.


How did you meet your wife Judy and what's the secret to the success and longevity of your marriage?

One of my best friends was dating Judy's best friend. They decided that Judy and I needed to meet. So they set us up for a blind date. Apparently they were right about us, since things worked out pretty well.

If there's a secret to a long and successful marriage, I don't know it. I've heard a lot of people say that you have to work hard to make a marriage last, but I've never thought that. Maybe Judy has, but it's never seemed like work to me. We've always gotten along pretty well, and while we may have spoken a cross word or two (or more), we've never had a serious disagreement. Could be that we're just lucky. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to vacuum, feed the cats, and take out the trash.


Crider, Gorman, and Reasoner walk into a restaurant. Who picks up the check?

Crider does because of his big heart, his generosity, and his huge bank account. Reasoner would have picked it up, but he was too busy finishing up the novel he'd started writing on the way to the restaurant. Gorman would have picked it up, but he didn't really go to the restaurant. He never leaves the house.

7 Questions: Gary Dobbs aka Jack Martin

Interview by David Cranmer

I picture you hanging out with beautiful actresses all day. True?

Gary Dobbs

Well it's partly true - I've worked with Keira Knightly but she's a little too thin for my tastes and the feeling's mutual because can you believe she didn't fancy me at all. I've also stood within two feet of Cameron Diaz and she's gorgeous but actresses are shallow and would much prefer the hunky leading man, to this skinny Welsh guy with a big nose. Over the years I worked with some of the leading actors and actresses but they don't notice poor old me - I'm just someone walking through the scene as a bystander, builder, milkman, zombie etc but it's all great fun. I do have ambitions to become a sex symbol but I guess that's just a pipe dream. Mind you I have been told that I look a bit like David Bowie so when skinny blond dudes become the fashion I'm gonna break some hearts.


Did Ricky Gervais's EXTRAS accurately sum up that underappreciated profession?

Some of it is spot on and extras are often overlooked or worse ignored. Of course they're not called extras anymore because the term is considered derogatory - these days they are supporting artists, but it's the same old shit. Scenes in Ricky Gervais extras that I thought are very true to life - are the pecking order at dinner time, artists go first, then the crew and then the extras but most of the Gervais stuff is exaggerated. But I think all supporting artists do have secret ambitions to make it as proper actors and why not? I've seen actors who are utter crap and I know that most of the supporting cast could do better. But at the same time there are some superb actors and all we can do is stand in awe and watch them create magic.

Maybe the funniest story I have of being an extra is when we were standing around on the set of Doctor Who and there was a DALEK next to me. All of a sudden the guy in the DALEK lost control of the eye stalk and it whipped me across the face. A voice came from the DALEK - "Sorry Mate." That made me smile despite the pain.


You're also a cabbie. What has been your most unusual or worst experience?

Well there's never a dull moment that's for sure - I've owned my cab for maybe ten years now and during that time I've gone from working every hour in the day to a thirty to forty hour week. The weekends are the crazy times. I work the graveyard shift largely because that's where the money is. It's also when the nuts are out - over the years I've had my nose broken, been robbed (twice), had a guy die in my car and pretty much seen just about everything. There have been many great times too, mind - you pick up some interesting people and have some wild experiences but I don't really want to dwell on all that. These days I only work to supplement my income and thankfully I can pretty much take it or leave it. Still there's something appealing about driving a group of half dressed young ladies about on a weekend.


What did he die from and how did you handle that?

He was a regular customer, an old guy and he had a heart attack. I thought he'd nodded off as he did that from time to time but when I stopped outside his house and tried to wake him I found he'd passed on. How did I handle it? Well it shook me up at first but other than that I was fine.


Why does The Ripper continue to captivate?

From The Illustrated London News, 13 October 1888

The mystery of the whole thing. When researching my novel, A Policeman's Lot I visited what remains of the murder sites and was amazed to find how many people were doing likewise. There are organised Ripper tours and some people have built their entire careers on the case. Somewhere amongst all this we seem to have forgotten that these were brutal and cruel crimes in which young women lost their lives - there are Ripper films, comics, book, even Ripper action figures.

I have always been fascinated by the case - I do not swallow the official line that there were only five killings, nor do I believe there was a Jack the Ripper as such. My meaning here is one man, a maniac, stalking the streets in search of prey. That was largely an invention of the press at the time. These were in a sense the first tabloid killings and the Ripper, over the years, has entered folklore.

In A Policeman's Lot the reader knows early on who the killer is but not the reason why, nor what the connection to the Ripper killings are. I am very excited about this - the book really does have a truly new and unique theory as to what was happening back in 1888 and although this is a work of fiction, I do believe that it brings something new to Ripper lore and could open a new avenue of investigation. I repeat I am very excited about the book's potential and am over the moon with my publisher Solstice who are fully behind the project and are very forward looking. I plan to continue the adventures of Inspector Frank Parade over a series of novels but when he solves the Ripper mystery in the very first book - well, where do you go from there?


You have been a success in westerns and now are taking a stab at crime fiction. What's next?

I've just completed another western, The Ballad of Delta Rose and I'd like to alternate between each genre, but saying that I've ideas for future projects that are in neither genre. Mind you I'll never go too far from westerns as it's my first love and even A Policeman's Lot with the inclusion of Buffalo Bill and his circus has elements of the western. Well, in the words of the song, my heroes have always been cowboys.


USA or UK?

I'm a spiritual American but England's first game in the upcoming World Cup (which is huge over here, football being more important than life) is against the USA. So I'll be shouting - "Come on England." Mind you I love all you guys across the pond too.

7 Questions: Kieran Shea

Interview by David Cranmer

I heard you nearly gave a woman a heart attack with your writing. What was that all about?

Black Irish Blarney on the beach

Oh, that. I was at the Shamus Awards during this past year's Bouchercon, hanging out with Karen Olson and Clair Lamb. Karen has been encouraging, and she was up for a Shamus for her novel SHOT GIRL. Plus I was curious about the whole PWA cult of Randisi. It was a nice time, but I felt really awkward, you know? Like here I was, some fraudulent interloper, packed in with all these wicked-talented crime writers getting their gnosh on. Someone was in line behind me at the buffet and we started talking. I told him about the Ellery Queen story and he said that Janet Hutchings (EQ's Editor) was there and I should introduce myself, so I did. I was expecting a nice how-do-you-do, but what I got was an arm grab-- “So you’re, Kieran!” She proceeded to tell me that my Charlie Byrne short The Lifeguard Method” prompted the angriest letter she’d received in over twenty plus years of editing the magazine. The irate subscriber was so incensed that she canceled her life-long subscription. I apologized, but Janet said I shouldn’t because if I wasn’t pissing people off I wasn’t doing it right. Got a lot of high fives on that one from great guys like Sean Doolittle and Scott Phillips. So, now I guess I’m the old lady boogeyman.


What's next for ace detective Charlie Byrne?

I kind of bounce back and forth with Charlie stories. Last year I wrote a novel with him falling down his deepest hole yet, but I don't know exactly what to do with it. Crimefactory is serializing a longer piece called "The Blues Before and After" and part two will be coming in issue CF#3. It's funny. I also want to know what's next for Charlie because he's become so real for me. I worry about him a lot. He has this buried rage we haven't seen yet, this madness.


For those who don't know, who is Steve McQueen?

Steve McQueen is everything that is cool. To quote the film "The Tao of Steve"..."Steve McQueen. Y'know, he's the guy on his horse, the guy alone. He has his own code of honor, his own code of ethics, his own rules of living, man. He never, ever tries to impress the women but he always gets the girl." For the slow learners let's roll the tape.


Why are so many people down on New Jersey and is it deserved?

Here's a big secret--people from Jersey actually like it when outsiders sling their "what exit?" jokes and misconceptions. It thins the herd, so to speak. Just ask Dave White, he can go on for hours and hours about Garden State pride. Personally, I get a kick out of showing people the cool things about New Jersey. The quirkiness, characters, and great food. They blink with childish wonder that Jersey isn't what you see at the airport. It's a beautiful, complex place...warts and all. Now, turn around and go home.


You recently had a near death experience. How has that changed you?

I think the incident you’re referring to occurred last summer while out sailing on the Chesapeake with friends. It was wicked hot and an old mentor and close friend of mine who’d recently been diagnosed with the glacially slow type of ALS dove off the stern. Now, this is a man who has been powerfully strong his entire life—a former Marine—and immediately I knew something was wrong. Even though it was a pretty calm day the Chesapeake’s switchback currents and treacherous tidal rips are capable of defeating even the strongest of swimmers. I’m trained as a lifeguard, and I flew in after him. Even though my friend was good all day, as soon as he hit the water he couldn’t speak or move his limbs. Even now what I remember distinctly is the terror in his eyes. I stayed with him. Still under way, it took some time for my wife to navigate back for us. No one on board even realized we were in trouble until we struggled to climb aboard. The whole incident shook me to the core. To be perfectly honest, I think I even cried a little. Anyway, it just reaffirmed for me what everybody knows but never likes to dwell on, the fact that every single day, every one of us…we tread the edge of grief and loss. You can't live in fear. Like my friend who I helped rescue always says—life is precious. Go out and get some.

Kieran makes an appearance in the upcoming Thuglit antho

How does a husband and father of two find the time to write.

I gave up on writing years ago. It was only after my wife told someone at a cocktail party that I wrote a little fiction that I picked it up again. I've been fortunate that she grants me the time. Typically I can carve off maybe two or three hours a day in the morning to write because I'm an early riser. Scary early actually. Amish early.


What's your favorite curse or curse word, and why?

Favorite curse word, huh? Getting your James Lipton groove on, are you? There's so many. Right now I like "ass clown" because recently one of my brothers said my Dad referred to me as such. It just cracked me up, mixing the profane with the classic brain-stain image of a clown. I always hear carnival organ music when I say it.

7 Questions: Matthew Mayo

Interview by David Cranmer

What is your favorite genre to write in and why?

My favorite genre to write in at present is the Western genre, largely because I've experienced the most success in it (so far, he says with fingers crossed and eyebrows wagging). I've written and published in several others (horror, noiry crime, mystery, fantasy, sci-fi, balls-out action), and I have a few long-form projects in genres other than Westerns with my agent, so ... wish me luck!

As to why I dig the Western genre, it's a pretty tame response, I'm afraid: I was weaned on TV Westerns, love 'em still, and reading them is a particular thrill. I'm nearly finished reading one now, as a matter of fact, a Ralph Compton by David Robbins called "For the Brand," that's fantastic. I also like rooting around in history, finding out about societal norms, habits, dress, language, etc., and the Old West was so full of diversity in those respects--and others--that to try and write about them and that time is a fun challenge that I think most folks who write Westerns feel. Plus, in my head I'm a cowboy, riding my buckskin, smoking a quirley, and squinting at the damned rustlers skidding down the slope off to my right, knowing I'm going to have to hang 'em high before the hour's up.


Typically, how long does it take you to research one of your books?

Matthew P. Mayo's latest book

For novels, though there are specific periods of research for each that can last for days or weeks, I'd say that most of my research, other than verifying facts, etc., is done every day in reading and listening. For the non-fiction books, it's difficult to answer because though I usually spend a few months researching before writing a book, more research also happens concurrently with the writing of the book. The non-fiction books take from a couple of months to six, eight, or more to research, then write. That was the case with Cowboys, Mountain Men & Grizzly Bears and also for Bootleggers, Lobstermen & Lumberjacks (out in October, 2010!). I'm just now diving into my fourth and fifth non-fiction books, which will overlap in the research and writing process, then a sixth will follow closely on their heels. And I'll shoe-horn novels and short stories into that mix.


Can you give us a sneak peek of these upcoming books?

Upcoming novels--can't say too much, except that one's a Western, the other two aren't.

Non-fiction: The New England version of Cowboys, Mountain Men & Grizzly Bears comes out in October, 2010. It's called Bootleggers, Lobstermen & Lumberjacks: Fifty of the Grittiest Moments in the History of Hardscrabble New England (1620-1950). It's similar in vibe and construction to the previous book, 265 or so pages, plus index, bibliography, etc., and two dozen historic photos and illustrations. Here's a brief blurb about it:

"The story of New England is built on an endless armature of fascinating tales of Yankee ingenuity and hardy, intrepid characters. Bootleggers, Lobstermen, and Lumberjacks takes the top fifty wildest episodes in the region’s bygone days and presents them to the reader in one convenient, narrative-driven package. Including incredible but true tales of hardy Yankee hill folk and crusty seafarers engaged in all manner of amazing activity—from witch-hunting to log rolling, often with tragic results—this book is a perfect stroll through New England’s past for resident and visitor alike. Yankee history is rife with all manner of shipwreck victims surviving any way they knew how; Indian, pirate, and shark attacks, cougar and bear attacks, and, of course, rum runners and bootleggers doing what they do best."

Plus my wife (photographer Jennifer Smith-Mayo), and I just turned in a coffee table book about Maine. The series of books is called Icons, so this one is Maine Icons: Fifty Timeless Symbols of the Pine Tree State. She photographs and I write--it's been good fun working with her on book-length projects. So much so, in fact, that we're signed up to do two more: Vermont and New Hampshire, and are planning them out now. Then I have another book lined up for the "gritty moments" series. This time I'm headed back out West, but with a different theme: Frontier Prospecting. I'm already researching it and can't wait to dive in fully.


How is your new iPad working out for you?

The iPad is actually my wife's. She's a multimedia and photography instructor and likes to keep up on the latest gadgets and whatnots. I love old paperbacks—the smell, the feel, the size, everything—but the ebook revolution seems to be on us, so I'm trying to get savvy with it. The iPad is pretty darned cool. If I owned a Kindle, I'd be peeved right now. Black and white? What were the powerlords at Amazon thinking? Holding out for more money with a later version, I'm sure. Why would I not want to see the color cover of a book I've bought? I've had the opportunity to monkey with both and the iPad is the hands-down winner. It's more comfortable to read, the screen is lovely, the colors pop and comic books look amazing on it. So do magazines, newspapers, and the Web. Imagine the versions we'll get in a few years! Just don't take away my paperbacks.


Who are your influences?

Lovey Howell

Influential people, animals, and circumstances pop in and out all the time and include my parents, my brother, my wife, our dogs, and on and on. As far as writers whose work I enjoy (and so probably influence me), the list is varied. Edgar Rice Burroughs remains a top fave for so many reasons--sheer inventiveness not the least of them. I'm fond of Raymond Carver, Richard Brautigan, Charles Bukowski, and Harry Crews. As far as Western writers go, I really dig Jack Schaefer's writing, ditto for Ernest Haycox and Louis L'Amour. Contemporary Western authors I admire and so probably influence me are Loren D. Estleman, Johnny D. Boggs, Elmer Kelton, Larry D. Sweazy, Peter Brandvold, Joseph A. West, and David L. Robbins (the Wilderness series is a guaranteed fun read). I also have tried to learn from Stephen King, Jim Thompson, Raymond Chandler, Ed McBain, Donald Hamilton, Mickey Spillane, and Robert B. Parker. I'm missing hundreds more, I'm sure. Stop me while there's still time....


What has Matt Mayo done that he is downright ashamed of?

Oh ... lordy.... Perhaps I feel bad when I pick on Kindle people. Nah. Maybe when I failed to claim that winning lottery ticket as income. Nah. Probably when I shoot squirrels with my Red Ryder. But I swear the little bastids taunt me non-stop.


Ginger or Mary-Ann?

Mrs. Howell. No one can work a pantsuit like that. And after all, they don't call her "Lovey" for nothin'.....


Mayo's website.