Best known for his character-drive crime fiction, O’Neil De Noux writes in many disciplines – mystery, suspense, fantasy, horror, western, literary, children’s fiction, mainstream fiction, science-fiction, religious, romance, humor and erotica. He has had eight novels published, six short story collections and over three hundred short story sales in thirteen countries.
Can you sum up your book in no more than 25 words?
SLICK TIME – set in New Orleans and the Caribbean where Laurie Ercolani films a sexy movie while her twin, Joseph, pulls off a slick scam.
Who designed your cover and how much difference does a good cover make?
I designed the cover. I was a photographer in the army and my wife has been modelling for years, so she put on a minidress and we went to the New Orleans marina where several men eagerly urged us to ignore the ‘no trespassing’ signs, volunteering their boats as backdrops (primarily to watch her climb up and down the boat ladders). I believe a cover should have one strong image, in this case - legs. SLICK TIME is a sexy mystery, after all. I made sure the title is easily read as well as the author’s name. I don’t list awards, best-selling information, blurbs from all the wonderful reviews of my previous work, pictures of my cats, testimonials that I’m a good fellow on my covers. That goes on the back cover or inside, if I want to bore everyone.
What was your motivation in writing it?
My friend, best-selling author Greg Iles, suggested I broaden my range. Write a book not entirely set in New Orleans. So I had this idea and let my mind wander to the Caribbean. It took some research as I’d only been to the Caribbean once.
If you had to re-read a crime novel right now, what would you choose?
Dashiell Hammett’s THE MALTESE FALCON. I think it’s the best novel of the 20th Century. It is so smooth.
Who’s your favourite living writer?
Harlan Ellison. The man’s writing cannot be pigeon-holed and woe betide anyone who tries. He’s won so many writing awards it’s incredible, from the Edgar Award to the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy Award, Writer’s Guild, British Science Fiction Award, Jupiter Award, Saturn Award and more. He writes scintillating stories with piercing insights into the human condition and writes them so well.
From an artistic rather than financial perspective, what book do you wish you had written?
LONESOME DOVE by Larry McMurtry. This epic is touching, funny and memorable. To my knowledge, it’s the only book that won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction that ends with the word, “whore.”
What are your views on eBook pricing?
It should be inexpensive. As an Indie writer, I set the prices of my eBook short stories at 99¢ and my eBook collections and novels at $1.99 or $2.99. I don’t make a lot of money on each sale, but we are selling by volume and gathering more fans. I’ve been writing professionally since 1988 and have been prolific. Unfortunately, traditional publishers only published part of my inventory, so now as an independently published writer, I have taken control of my career and release stories and books monthly. The internet provides a great opportunity to gather readers who don’t regularly go to bookstores or read reviews. It’s wide open to anyone with an eReader, a computer or smart phone.
Which author should be much better known?
John Edward Ames, who’s had seventy books published, from mysteries to westerns, many of the novels published under pseudonyms (Judd Cole, Dodge Tyler and Jon Sharpe). He’s even ghost-written several best-selling romance novels. John lives quietly in an apartment in New Orleans and was one of the first people back after Hurricane Katrina because he had a book to write. His articles on writing in pro writers magazines are spot on.
Slick Time by O'Neil De Noux
Great interview, Al. I would like to ask O'Neil at what point did he turn to indie publishing, and was there any single event that served as the catalyst?
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