Loading ...Exclusive Interview and Contest with Justin Gustainis
Exclusive Bitten by Books
Interview with Justin Gustainis
***PLEASE NOTE: This contest ends 7/2/08 at 6:00 PM pdt. Any entries after that time will not be valid. Winner will be announced tomorrow.
A big welcome to our readers today! We have LOTS of fun stuff planned, so hang on to your coffee cups and don’t wander too far away from your computer. Be sure to read to the end of the interview to find out how to WIN one of several great prizes being offered up today, including TWO copies of Black Magic Woman
Interview:
Hi Justin!
Welcome to Bitten by Books, we are excited to have you here today!
I would like to thank you taking the time to join us for the question and answer session with our readers. It has been very interesting to get to know more about Justin Gustainis and what makes him tick as a writer! Readers, if you haven’t done so already please stop by and get your copy of Black Magic Woman
BBB: What do you find the most challenging aspect of writing?
JG: You mean, apart from sitting at the keyboard quietly, while beads of blood form on my forehead? I’d say it was plotting. Coming up with a story that’s entertaining, hasn’t been done a million times, and has some internal logic — that’s the hardest part for me.
BBB: What is the most rewarding aspect of writing for you?
JG: I think it’s the sheer absorption. Once I get into it, time passes virtually without notice. If I don’t have to have to keep track of the time (because of a commitment of some kind), it’s not uncommon for me to look up from the computer and see that two hours have passed. About twelve years ago, a guy with an unpronounceable and unspellable (by me, anyway) name wrote a book called Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience
BBB: What made you decide to start writing or decide you wanted to become an author?
JG: Writing started out as a hobby, of sorts (by day, I’m a mild-mannered college professor). I began writing as a way of dealing with an emotionally difficult time in my life. At first, I had no real thought of publication. But the thing I was fooling around with eventually turned into a novel, and the rest is history. Or tragedy — depending on how you look at it.
BBB: Your book Black Magic Woman
JG: I suppose that I identify with males more closely — being one myself, and all. Consider: all the female urban fantasy protagonists are written by women (and damn well, too): Laurell K. Hamilton, Rachel Caine, Lili Saintcrow, Charlaine Harris, etc. And the male characters in the genre, like Harry Dresden and John Taylor, are written by men (Jim Butcher and Simon R. Green, respectively). By the same token, I like to think I’ve done right by Libby Chastain, who’s sort of a co-protagonist. The comments I’ve received from women readers would seem to say that I have.
BBB: What made you choose the Voodoo type rituals that took place in your books?
JG: Well, rightly or wrongly, voodoo represents something sinister to most Westerners. It’s a cultural trope. So, one way to depict black magic is to manifest it through voodoo. As for the specific rituals (and most of my other research, for that matter), all I can say is, God bless the Internet.
BBB: Are there any other books or series with different paranormal creatures in the works?
JG: Evil Ways
I’m also putting together an anthology of “occult detective” stories, with contributions by some of the best-known authors in urban fantasy: Kim Newman, Simon R. Green, Lilith Saintcrow, Julie Kenner, Rachel Caine, Jim Butcher, P.N. Elrod, and a number of others. The idea is to take characters who are mostly (or exclusively) known in series novels and feature them in short stories. I hear Quincey and Libby will be putting in an appearance, too.
BBB: What genre would you classify Black Magic Woman? Urban Fantasy, Horror, Paranormal a mixture?
JG: I don’t think those categories are mutually exclusive. That said, I suppose “urban fantasy” is closest to the mark, although I wouldn’t be embarrassed to cop to “dark fantasy,” “paranormal,” “occult thriller,” or plain old “horror.”
BBB: What is your favorite time of day to write?
JG: Well given my day job corrupting the minds of America’s youth, I mostly write in the evenings and on weekends. On weekends, I write whenever I can spare the time — sometimes, morning, sometimes afternoon, other times, at night.
BBB: What is your favorite paranormal book of all time?
JG: I’d say it would have to be Anno Dracula
BBB: If you could be any paranormal creature, what would it be and why?
JG: A vampire, but only if I could be the cool kind. Like Frank Langella in Dracula
BBB: Where do you find your inspiration when writing? Do you have somebody who inspires you?
JG: My muse is a guy I call Charlie. Kinda small fella, balding. Smokes Marlboros. He doesn’t always visit just when I want him to.
BBB: When and where is your next scheduled book signing?
JG: I’m done signing for Black Magic Woman
BBB: How true are the rumors that you are an expert in occult sciences and black magic?
JG: I could tell you, but then I’d have to turn you into a frog.
BBB: Who is your favorite secondary character in Black Magic Woman
JG: I suppose the South African cop, Van Dreenan. He carries a lot of sorrow around inside him, and I can kinda relate to that.
BBB: What did you do before you became a writer? Do you write full time?
JG: I was, am, and probably will remain (unless the books start selling REALLY well) a college professor. I teach in a mid-sized university in upstate New York, where my specialty is Social Influence (Persuasion, Argumentation, Propaganda, etc.).
BBB: What is your favorite meal?
JG: Pizza. Double cheese, ham, and mushrooms, if you please.
BBB: If you were stranded on a desert island infested with vampires, what ONE author’s books would you have delivered?
JG: God’s. A case full of Bibles would probably come in REALLY handy.
BBB: Do you have any pearls of wisdom you would like to share with our readers here today?
JG: I’d quote the line that is spoken directly to the audience at the end of the stage play version of DRACULA: “There ARE such things.”
Justin, thank you SO much for taking time out of your busy writing schedule to give us this great interview. It has been great!
Questions and Contest: Now, I am going to open up the internet floor so to speak and let our readers ask some questions. Feel free to post as many questions or comments as you like. Justin will be answering them the rest of the day.
Readers, here’s how to enter the contest. You can do one or all of these things, and each one will give an additional entry. This is to win either a SIGNED copy of Black Magic Woman
1. Ask the author a question (max two questions count towards entries) and, your name will be entered for a chance to win one of the fabulous prizes mentioned above.
2. SUBSCRIBE to our newsletter here on the right hand side of the site.
3. Post links to the interview here today at another blog or website and you will be given additional entries to win. You MUST post those links in one response here in this thread.
4. Purchase a copy of Black Magic Woman
5. Watch the posts today in this thread for additional chances to gain more entries.
Be sure to include an email and name where we can contact you if you are a winner.
We will be awarding the prizes and posting the winners Thursday, July 3rd, 2008. Winners will be contacted via email and posted to the Bitten by Books website.
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Hi. Here I am. Ask me (almost) anything.
[Reply]
Great interview. What voodoo power would you like to have? What’s the difference between juju and mojo? What movie could be greatly improved if the lead character was a vampire?
[Reply]
Hi Justin! I enjoyed reading your interview with BBB. And I have a coupld of questions.
What movie could you watch over and over again?
And do you have any pets that like to reside on your computer when you’re trying to write?
[Reply]
Hi Justin, thanks for being here. As an aspiring writer I have read a lot about how difficult it is to get published today, but as a reader, I often stumble upon books that I think are very poorly written(not yours, naturally). Why do you think that is? If it’s so hard to get published, wouldn’t only the really good ones make it?
[Reply]
Mario:
Voodoo power? Gotta be the dolls, man. Make my pins extra-long,please.
Ju-ju and mojo? Austin Powers never lost his ju-ju (as far as I know)
Lead character a vampoire? THE USUAL SUSPECTS. “Count Keyser Soze” has a nice ring to it, don’t you think?
[Reply]
Virginia:
The movie? THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN (1960). I love that soundtrack, among other things.
Pets on the computer? I put my hamster, Carnacki, up there once — he tried to mate with the mouse. BAD idea!
[Reply]
Rosa:
In the immortal words of, well, somebody, I share your pain. If we leave self-published books alone (as well we should, most of the time), I suppose it comes down to taste. That last book you hated — SOMEBODY liked it, if only the publisher’s mother.
Hell, I understand there are even a couple of people who said they didn’t like BLACK MAGIC WOMAN. I had them turned into toads. They’ve come around.
[Reply]
Hi Justin! Thanks for hanging out with us! I’m currently out running errands, saw the time and popped into the library to post. Questions….hmmm….Ok, what’s with the fascination with toads? LOL
Also, have any of your students read your book and commented on it in class? Or did you put it on the syllabus like any self respecting, self promoting author?
Thanks again for hanging out with us!
[Reply]
Thanks & good point. Sometimes it’s hard to remember that publishers are just people . . . and I have already learned that for some strange reason not all people agree with me (ha!), so the same would be true here.
Keyser Soze was the perfect answer to Mario’s question, BTW.
Thanks again for visiting BBB.
[Reply]
Becky:
Toads? I guess because it’s a cultural trope associated with witchcraft — odd enough to be amusing but not evil enough to disturb people. I mean, if I’d said, “I had their children abducted and used as human sacrifices to the Dark Gods,” would you still have written?
I’ve not assigned any of my fiction in class (hard to justify, since I don’t teach literature), which proves, I suppose, that I still have some shame. Not a lot, maybe, but some.
I try not to make a big deal out my my “second job” on campus, but sometimes, if I get some particularly good news (like an option from Showtime, for example) I might mention it in class.
Some students buy my books and ask me to sign them. I figure they’re just trying to suck up to me, and have them turned into toads.
[Reply]
If the hardest part of writing for you is the plot, what’s your favorite part of the story to write? dialogue, scenes, humor, etc…
btw, where do you learn to turn someone into a toad? it could seriously come in handy the next time my older sib visits
btw, Anno Dracula sounds right up my alley, I just added it to my wishlist. Thanks for highlighting it
[Reply]
Sarai:
I think my favorite part is dialogue. I sound a hell of a lot wittier on paper than I do in real life, sad to say.
I don’t know how to turn someone into a toad –but I know where to have it done. I believe in hiring professionals — whether it’s carpenters, painters, mechanics, or witches. Let the pros do your curses for you, that’s what I always say.
ANNO DRACULA is currently out of print, but it should be easy to get from one of the used book dealers, like ABE.com. I highly recommend it, and its sequels.
[Reply]
Sad to say, I know exactly what you mean about the dialogue, lol
hmm… where do you suppose they’d advertise? The Black Pages, Curses R’ US, or *gasp* Myspace? Dang, I always knew they were evil ;P
I’ve got Anno Dracula on my swap site lists (sometimes I luck out with out of print books), but I’ll probable pick it up next time I give in to my baser book buying urges on Amazon
[Reply]
Hey Justin!
Thanks so much for being here with us today. Say, I need the toad turner’s number…seems a few security “officials” here in the Kansas City International Airport need a little old time schooling.
You made a slight mention of a showtime bid, is that a rumor or has showtime contacted you about making your book into a series?
[Reply]
Sarai:
There’s a website you can go to, but in order to get anything seriously evil done, you have to have a referral from a regular customer. More than that, you don’t want to know….
Rachel:
Sorry to hear about your troubles in KC. Showtime has expressed some polite interest, but nobody had stated signing checks yet, so I don’t get my hopes up.
Maybe if Charlaine Harris’s “Southern Vampire” series, TRUE BLOOD, does well on HBO next season, Showtimes’s interest in Quincey and Libby will get more serious.
[Reply]
Great interview!
What kind of research did you do for Black Magic Woman?
What is your favorite part about writing?
[Reply]
Amy:
I used the Internet extensively, as you might imagine. I researched the Salem witch trials, African muti magic, and the geography of several cities — although I’ve visited all of the cities used as locations in the book (Boston, San Francisco, New Orleans, New York, and Salem), I’m not an expert on any of them.
I also researched the speech patterns and slang of folks in New Orleans.
For the Salem prologue, I made use of Arthur Miller’s play, “The Crucible,” especially for the language, and for some of the visuals, I watched the film made of the play about 10 years ago.
My favorite part about writing? Once it’s done, I get to interact with nice people like you.
[Reply]
wow where have you been hiding?
love the sound of your books!
i would bet you enjoy the research?
i know i love watching documentarys about all that
does the ppl you know understand your reseach and or they think,, wowsa he into some drk items?
tasha t
gypsywitch36@yahoo.com
[Reply]
Hi Justin,
What’s your fave horror movie?
[Reply]
Tasha:
Most people I know well think me (reasonably) sane. But I have noticed people vising my home office (where I write) and checking out the shelf of research books near my computer, then giving me some VERY strange looks.
Bunny:
My fave horror movie is THE EXORCIST. What’s yours?
[Reply]
Oh, by the way, I’ve linked my direct blog post about this interview and contest. Just click on my name. Thanks!
[Reply]
Justin: Right now, it’s The Skeleton Key. Have you seen El Orfanato (The Orphanage)? I love that as well!
[Reply]
Greetings! I thoroughly enjoyed this interview. What an interesting person and wonderful writer! I would enjoy taking his college course. The paranormal has fascinated me for a very long time. I try to watch and read as much as I can about strange occurences, mediums, etc. Do you believe that there are people who truly have the gift of psychic ability. Thank you, Cindi
[Reply]
Rachel:
Although there’s a lot of nonsense surrounding the idea of psychic ability, I think there exists evidence that has not been disproved suggesting that some persons have abilities the rest of us lack. In short: yes.
[Reply]
hey, Mr. Gustainis…….i’m wondering if you have a favorite author, outside of the paranormal genre?…..Dean Koontz, and Steven King are a couple of mine, and i read prolly 7 or 8 different genres –do you? thanks.
[Reply]
Jackie:
Sorry about the delay in responding. I’m in the East, and had to go to bed, eventually.
I read a fair amount in the mystery genre (not whodunits, but crime/suspense). My fave author there is Thomas Perry, but I also regularly read Robert B. Parker, Andrew Vachss, and Robert Crais.
[Reply]
Loved this interview. Btw what do you teach sorry if I missed that I am working and trying to play and work is sometimes hard. And other than this series. Are you working on anything else.
[Reply]
Hi Justin! Thanks for sharing your thoughts in the interview. My questions -
Do you have procrastination and if so, how do you deal with it?
How do you deal with tense in your writing? DO you strictly write in past tense or do you do both? (I struggle with this all the time.)
Thank you! I enjoyed getting to know you today.
[Reply]
what was the first book you read that you really enjoyed?
[Reply]
I need this something awful
[Reply]
Hi Justin. Great interview. Enjoyed your answers to the questions. Black Magic Woman sounds great.
What is your favorite type of music?
[Reply]
What do you think about Anne Rice becoming a Christian?
[Reply]
Hey Justin!
My questions….
Nothing to do now you handed in Evil Ways?
Are you starting the 3rd book yet?
When do you think there will be copies of Evil Ways ready so I can start begging your publisher for copies?
Bitten By Books! I am signed up for your lovely newsletter! Love getting that in my email!
And of course Amberkatze’s Book Blog shared the news - http://amberkatze-amberkatze.blogspot.com/2008/07/contest-fever.html
[Reply]
I like escaping into the dark world and then returing to reality.
[Reply]
Who inspired you the most, if anyone, to start your writing career?
[Reply]
How do you feel about the constant references to Anne Rice’s work?
[Reply]
Okay, two things…I’m interested in becoming a novelist myself, my biggest problem is just getting started!!! Do you start a book from start to finish, or do you start with an idea and just sit down and write out of order? Do you get analytical with it, and kind of brainstorm first and write down your ideas so there is a flow, or just let things go naturally? Thanks for a great contest!
[Reply]
Hi Justin,
I’d like to ask what do you do to get through writer’s block? Assuming you get writer’s block occasionally.
I’ve also subscribed to the newsletter and blogged about this contest here http://sidhevicious.livejournal.com/12512.html
[Reply]
Hi, Pamk.
The answere to both your questions are in the interview. Simply scroll up and read.
[Reply]
Lisa C:
I’m sometimes afflicted by procrastination, but I usually just tell myself “Screw this, I’ll deal with it later.”
I use past tense most of the time. Present tense can come in handy for flashbacks, sometimes.
[Reply]
Hi, Dorothy.
First book I really enjoyed. Hmmm, tough one. I’m assuming you’re asking about my reading as an (alleged) adult and not, say, “See, spot. See spot run” (which was unfairly bashed by the critics, BTW.
I think it must have been one of the “Saint” novels by Leslie Charteris, although I can’t recall which one. I read those a lot when making the transition from the Hardy Boys and such to more grown-up fiction (the transition to “adult” fiction, like “Hot Mother, Hot Daughter” took a little longer).
:).
[Reply]
Hey, Tonya.
I know how you feel, babe — although the last time I said something like that, I wasn’t referring to anything as mundane as a book….
[Reply]
I’m as dumb as dirt…I have no wisdom…LOL
[Reply]
Greetings, CrystalGB.
Music? Depends on the context. When I’m writing, I sometimes listen to music, and it’s usually some soundtrack stuff by Mark (”the X-Files”) Snow. His soundtrack for “Millennium” (which is only available in ITunes, for some reason) is particularly good, given the kind of stuff I write.
For relaxation, I like New Age stuff as well as Irish folk music.
[Reply]
What made you choose to write in the genre that you do?
[Reply]
Hi there, Sarah.
What do I think about Anne Rice becoming a Christian? Well, it’s better then her becoming a cannibal, right?
[Reply]
Amber, sweetie, how are you?
I’m tweaking EVIL WAYS right now. My publisher actually wanted changes — can you believe it? Jeez!
Consequently, I haven’t yet started on the third Quincey and Libby adventure, which will be called SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL — except for Chapter 1, which will be included as a bonus at the end of EVIL WAYS.
I imagine Solaris will have ARCs of EVIL WAYS out around October.
Love ya!
[Reply]
So, Kandi W., you like escaping to the dark world and then returning to reality….
Why do you return? I sure as Hell (so to speak) don’t! Reality is highly over-rated, babe.
[Reply]
I love Danielle Steel Novels.
[Reply]
Thomas,
Who inspired me to start my writing career? I wish I had a good answer for you, man, but I don’t. I wasn’t inspired by any person (although there are many, many writers whom I admire).
I was inspired to write, if that’s the right term, because I was going through a particularly rough patch in my life, and I guess I was using writing as therapy.
It also probably explains why the resulting novel, THE HADES PROJECT (2003 and still in print [hint, hint]) which is about a demon-possessed serial killer, is such a NASTY piece of literary work.
[Reply]
Hi, Gina!
How do I feel about the constant references to Anne Rice’s work?
Who is this “Anne Rice” of which you speak, earthling?
[Reply]
Welcome, Megan B.
The answer to your questions is, in each case, “it depends” (yeah, I know, I know — hate me if you must).
See, the first novel, THE HADES PROJECT started out with a fairly simple idea — what if some scientists accidentally opened, just for a second, the doorway to Hell?
(The answer: “Really bad but-fun-to-read-about stuff”)
I kind of made the rest of it up as I went along. Of course, I had to backtrack a couple of times, once I realized I’d written myself into a corner.
For BLACK MAGIC WOMAN, I had a somewhat more developed idea: what if a feud between witches (one “white,” the other “black”) that started during the Salem with trials of 1690 was carried on, generation after generation, unto the present day? And what if a professinal occult investigator (who just happens to be descended from a character in Stoker’s DRACULA) and his female associate (who is a “white” witch herself) were hired to save a modern family from the curse?
The rest, as they say, is literary history.
But for EVIL WAYS, the sequel to BLACK MAGIC WOMAN, my publisher wanted an outline before issuing a contract. So, for the first time, I came up with an outline — and, more or less, followed it. But I found it very confining, after a while.
Then there’s SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL. What if a crazed zillionaire wanted to conjure up Satan himself, for purposes of … oops — can’t tell you any more, or I’d have to get a friend to turn you into a toad. Sorry.
[Reply]
Judi, hi!
I think your “pen name” of Sidhe Viscious is really clever, although I’m afraid that no one under 30 is likely to get it.
And I think your site is TRES cool.
By the way, did you know that I’m still available for interviews and book giveaways?
It’s been hard for me to distinguish between writer’s block and sheer laziness (what my wife Pat used to call “the fuckits”). I guess I experience more of the latter than the former, though.
Feeling blocked? Write something — anything. Even “How now brown cow” a hundred times –if you’re a creative person, eventually the writing machine will kick in. Sometimes you just have to warm that sucker up a bit.
You know, most of the Sidhe that I’ve met have been REALLY cute….
[Reply]
I love the sound of this book. I read your interview but was so intrigued by “Anno Dracula” that I ran off to research it. LOL! I meant to at least say hello!
Is the Voudoun connection only in New Orleans or does it expand out from there?
[Reply]
Do you always know how the book will end ahead of time or do the characters sometimes become so developed they bring you down another road altogether?
[Reply]
Hey, Mya.
Dumb as dirt, you say? No wisdom, you say?
Then run right out and buy a copy of BLACK MAGIC WOMAN — guarantreed to convey wisdom in 30 days or less, or your money back.
I made up that last part.
[Reply]
Thanks for writing, Amber T.
Why do I write in the genre that I do? I guess it’s because it’s what I read the most –urban fantasy, especially “occult detrective” stories.
I also read crime/suspense, and I’ve written some things in that genre, too — but only stories, nothing novel-length (yet).
And I tried to write pornography, but it’s no good — I keep getting distracted.
[Reply]
So, Roseann, you love Danielle Steel (sic) novels! And you’re telling me this because….
[Reply]
TarotByArwen — hi, there!
The voudoun danger is prettry much restricted to New Orleans. But the information that Quincey and Libby discover in the Big Easy sends them to New York — and something REALLY nasty happens there.
[Reply]
Hello, Laura.
Do characters sometimes take me down paths originally unintended?
When I’m not outlining, yeah, sure. I had that happen in both THE HADES PROJECT and BLACK MAGIC WOMAN. Much less so in EVIL WAYS, since I was working from an outline — although I modified the outline when it seemed indicated.
[Reply]
Hi Justin.
I enjoyed your interview very much.
Sorry to bother you, but I have some questions I’d like to ask you, if that’s okay with you.
Question 1:
Who was your greatest inspiration for becoming an author?
Question 2:
Since I am an extreme film lover, I have to ask, what is your favorite film of all-time, and why?
[Reply]
If you were going to choose a second career, what would it be?
[Reply]
How did you get started?
[Reply]
twice bitten
[Reply]
What do you think of TV shows like MOONLIGHT?
It was cancelled but was very good. Did you see it?
[Reply]
Hi, David.
Your first question is answered above. Just scroll up a little.
As to my fave film of all-time … I’d have to say it was the movie MASH (which had a sharper edge than the TV series, naturally).
[Reply]
Greetings, Beverly.
Second career? Honey, writing IS my second career. Read the interview. I’m a college professor — that’s what pays the bills. I’m a goddam intellectual — ask anybody. Well, okay, not just anybody….
If you mean, if I had to pick a career other than academe… I’d want to be a political campaign manager. Only for Good People, of course.
[Reply]
Howdy, Miss Kathy.
How did I get started? That’s answered above. Just scroll up a little.
[Reply]
Good eeevening, Alicia, and velcome to my home. Enter freely and of your own vill.
I’m not sure what to make of “twice bitten,” my dear. Was that a question, a suggestion, a … proposition?
[Reply]
do you have to have complet quiet when your writing or do you allow your family members around you
[Reply]
Hello, Linda.
I’m not sure I know what you mean by “shows like ‘Moonlight.’” The only other show about a vampire detective I can thnk of is “Forever Knight,” and Nick Knight was a cop, not a PI.
I guess we’re going to have to agree to disagree about “Moonlight.” I watched the first episode, and never watched it again. Maybe I should have given it more of a chance, I don’t know. I thought the acting was okay, but the writing was terrible. I mean, when the hero grabs the heroine by the upper arms, stares into her eyes and says, soulfully, “I care,” I reach for the Pepto Bismol.
But that’s just my opinion; I could be full of shit. It wouldn’t be the first time.
[Reply]
Hey, Linda.
I don;t insist on absolute quiet; sometimes ilisten to music, playing softly. I don;t want anyone in the room with me when i’m writing; good manners would require that i give tem atleast some of my attention, and writing demands all of it, believe me.
I’ve got my own “office” at home that is mostly used for writing. Since I’m a nut for occult detectives, that’s the decorating scheme. I’ve got movie posters from “Hellboy,’ Constantine,” and “The Ninth Gate” (among others) on the wall, mugs with logos from “Twin Peaks,” “Millennium,” “Forever Knight,” and others, Mulder, Scully, Buffy, Angel, and Frank Black action figures, and a prop from “Kolchak: The Night Stalker” (the good one, from 1974-75). There’s more, but you get the idea.
[Reply]
Oh, and Linda….
When the above post hit the screen, I realized that I hadn’t gone back and edited the typos in the first paragraph. I type fast, so there are lots of typos.
I didn’t want anyone to think that I suddenly had a massive attack of illiteracy….
[Reply]
What type of software do you use when you are writing? Is is the standard word processor that came with your computer, a fancy souped up version, or are you more apt to write with a typewriter or even longhand?
[Reply]
Do you believe that every novel needs an outline?
Do you believe writers should network and/or be in a writers’ group?
I tend not to share my writing and don’t feel like discussing it much either. Is that a negative attitude in your opinion?
[Reply]
Hello, Tonya.
Yes, I have a computer (it makes life sooo much easier for the writer), and I just use MS Word to write, edit, format, and store the material. I’ve never felt that I needed anything else
[Reply]
what a great opportunity for us to ask you questions!
First question - If you could interview someone for 2 hours, who would it be and why?
Second question - If you had the opportunity, which book would you like turned into a movie, and what actors would you enjoy being the lead characters.
if we’re allowed to ask more please let me know! i enjoyed the interview and I have more questions if allowed
Thanks for your time tonight.
[Reply]
How ya doin’, Travis.
If you’ll read above, you’ll see that I wrote my first two novels without an outline. I expect that answers your first question.
Your other two questions are, IMHO, just two ways of asking the same thing — should I share my work with other writers, even though I don’t enjoy doing so?
My answer is, it depends on whether your goals as a writer are being met. If you’re writing only for yourself, and you’re happy with what you write, who needs anybody else?
If you’re writing with the goal of professional (i.e., paying) publication in mind, well, that also depends. Is your stuff selling when you work completely alone, from strt to finish? Could be you just have natural talent. Edgar Alan Poe never belonged to any writer’s groups, as far as I know.
On the other hand, if you CAN’T sell your stuff, that means you have to take steps to get better. One way is to read books about writing, of which there are literally hundreds, if not thousands. If that doesn’t work for you, you could take a creative writing class at a local college –IF you can find someone who knows how to do it, not just some recycled lit professor.
Or you could go with a critique group. If your problem is discussing your writing face-to-face, there are several very good online critique groups. You read each others’ stuff and offer comments and suggestions, all online. Will that help you? Depends on how good your critiquers are, and how willing you are to take advice.
I hate to keep saying “It depends,” but, dude, it DOES depend. Really.
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i have quite a few books on witch craft
and there was a neighbor guy who came by notice the books on the table, in the front room, then later he came back to talk to about weedeating, but anyways, he then notice i have a black broom, and he FREAKED
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TashaT,
The next time he comes by, threaten to turn him into a toad.
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Reeva, darling,
Interview somebody? I’d want to talk to God* to ask Him how somebody who is supposedly a Supreme Being let things get fucked up this badly.
*Assuming He exists.
Books into movies? I assume you mean MY books, right?
Short answer: all of them, baby, all of them!
Better answer: I’d love to see BLACK MAGIC WOMAN filmed, with Russell Crowe as Quincey Morris and Catherine Keener as Libby. Maybe the young actress who starred in JUNO as the evil Christine Abernathy.
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I keep hearing great things about this novel. Can’t wait until I get a chance to read it.
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Jackie,
The nice folks at Amazon.com can have one in your eager hands within a few days — sooner, if you pay express shippint.
Just a thought….
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Hi Justin,
I was wondering if events in your life have ever influenced a story.
And
Do you think technology has had a positive or a negative impact on reading?
Thanks!
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Hi, Belinda.
I’m actually kind of relieved to say that nothing that has happened to me has (consciously) been used in my fiction — except to the extent that we are all products (mostly) of our experiences.
I have based some characters (loosely) on people I have actually known. Let’s not tell them, okay?
I think technology has hurt reading by providing so many other alternatives to reading for pleasure. I don’t know for sure whether that includes TV — I grew up with TV (like most of us) and, although I watched it a lot, I read a lot more. But I think videogames, for instance, let you have an adventure without really exercising your mind — just your thumbs.
And I see this more and more with my students in college — they spell most words they way they sound, because they’ve never seen a lot of them written down, because they don’t read more than the absolute minimum. In a sense, technology has brought us full circle — we’re becoming an oral culture again. I don’t think I care for that, much.
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do you have any super powers kidding if you did what would you want them to be
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Morning, David. I’m up kinda early (for me), but you’re up REALLY early.
Who says I don’t have super powers? And I wanna tell you, X-ray vision is a HOOT!
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First, thank you for this giveaway.
I would like to ask you, if you read other Authors books?
If so, who is your favorite Author and what type of books interest you?
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subscribed in just a moment, for the second entry, commenting here about linking to this interview on my blog upon it’s update a little later at http://www.powersweepstaking.com/BrowseSweepstakes/onetimeentry/
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Thanks to everybody for your questions and contributions!! We have extended the contest through the end of today.
***PLEASE NOTE: This contest ends 7/2/08 at 6:00 PM pdt. Any entries after that time will not be valid. Winner will be announced tomorrow.
A BIG thank you to Justin for answering all of the questions we have had!
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Great contest prize. Thanks!
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Great interview. My questions are: What do you think about TV? and What presidential candidate do you think would make the best president? Thanks!!
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Margaret,
Of course I read other authors’ books! Where else am I going to steal ideas?
I’ve listed the mystery/suspense authors I read, up above. Just scroll up a bit.
As for others, I read a lot of urban fantasy, for the same reason I write it: it’s what I like. I suppose my fave author in the genre is Jim Butcher, but I also read a host of others, including (but not limited to) Charlaine Harris, Lilith Saintcrow, Rachel Caine, Julie Kenner, Tanya Huff, Simon R. Green, and a lot more.
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Hey, Alecia!
I don’t have the time to watch a lot of TV, what with writing and the “day job” in academe. Most of what I do watch, apart from “Countdown” on MSNBC, involves series on Showtime or HBO. I particularly like Dexter (surprised?), “Weeds,” and “The Tudors,” and I’m really looking forward to HBO’s series, “True Blood,” based on Charlaine Harris’s “Southern Vampire” novels and due to start in the Fall.
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Oh, Alicia? I forgot to answer your second question. The answer is, the person I believe would make the best president isn’t one of the current candidates.
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Are any of your books geared towards teenage readers? My daughter is into the voodoo, witchcraft, & vampires type reading material but it’s hard to find stuff that is for her age bracket.
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what made you decide to become a writer?
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Hey Jennifer!
There is an entire section here at BBB dedicated to reviews of Young Adult paranormal fiction:
http://bittenbybooks.com/?cat=110
there is also a kids section:
http://bittenbybooks.com/?cat=134
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i want to win
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Jennifer — hi!
I’ve only written three novels so far (just turned in the third one), and, no, none of them is YA. However, I’ve looked at some of the material that is publshed in the YA category these days, and it’s the same kind of stuff that grown-ups were reading when I was growing up!
You definitely don’t want to let your daughter near my first novel, THE HADES PROJECT, until she’s say, 40.
But you might take a look at BLACK MAGIC WOMAN yourself, to see if you regard it as suitable. Different parents have different perspectives, and I know some who don’t mind that their teenagers have read the book.
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Welcome, Trisha.
What made me decide to become a writer?
All the well-paying jobs were already taken.
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Do you think writing well can be taught?
Your most enjoyable/repeatable read?
Enjoy the holiday!
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Greetings, Ed.
I think there are certain aspects of writing that can be taught. That doesn’t mean that just anybody is competent to teach them, or that everyone is capable of learning them. But (as in most things) individual motivation plays a big role.
And a certain amount of it comes from talent –an affinity for words and ability to tell stories. And how do you develop that? Read. a LOT.
Fave/most repeated read? RED DRAGON, by Thomas Harris. One of the scariest novels ever written, and not a vampire or werewolf in sight.
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Thanks, everybody, for comng by. I’ll be in touch with the selected winners, to get snail-mail addresses and to ask how you’d like your book inscribed.
I hope we can all do this again when EVIL WAYS comes out, around Christmas!
Special thanks to you, Rachel!
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What voodoo power would you like to have?
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great contest. thanks
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What was your inspiration for this book?
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My first question to you is what are you most afraid of in life? This is a broad question, but it can be anything, things that go bump in the night, spiders, bad meat, whatever - there must be something that you fear, do tell us!
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Okay, here’s my second question to you…..Did you ever watch Dark Shadows? Were you a fan or what did you think about it?
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Did I miss the posting of the winners? I can’t find it anywhere.
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Hey Judi!
We had a bunch of winners we were waiting to verify and claim prizes. The list of all the winners is up.
http://bittenbybooks.com/?p=480
Thanks for stopping by!
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