Paul D. Brazill interview: Drunk On The Moon

Drunk on the Moon by Paul D. Brazill

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Spinetingler Award nominee Paul D. Brazill was born in England and lives in Poland. His writing has appeared in a number of magazines and anthologies, including the 2011 Mammoth Book Of Best British Crime, and his short story collection '13 Shots Of Noir' will be published sometime in 2011. His blog is You Would Say That, Wouldn't You?

Can you sum up Drunk On The Moon in no more than 25 words?

Each full moon, P I Roman Dalton becomes a werewolf and prowls the dark streets of the city battling creatures of evil.

What was your motivation for writing it?

It’s the title of a Tom Waits song. Tom growls, like a wolf. Tom’s as noir as I don’t know what. So, I thought, let’s see what I can do with this. Dark Valentine Magazine had set up and were looking for cross genre stories, so …

How did the deal with Trestle Press come about?

They sent me an email last week. I replied with a couple of cans in me and suggested the idea of multiple writers. It was one of the few good ideas I've had with drink in me! They got the first book out in a week, which is very impressive!

How many stories have you signed up for?

About ten have agreed so far, but there are more interested. It's got legs, I think.

How did you go about recruiting other writers?

I just asked a few people and Trestle did the same. Want to climb on board?

Always fancied writing about a werewolf PI but never had the story to do it justice. Interesting that it's not something you see more of. The PI in crime fiction is often a "lone wolf", after all. Why do you think so few authors have made the connection to the PI werewolf?

Dunno. Seems obvious!

What's your preference: noir or horror? And is there really that much difference?

 I prefer earthly things, so noir. But I've read some great horror stories recently from Frank Duffy, Spectral Press etc

How much difference does an editor make?

It always helps at least a bit and sometimes a hell of a lot. You don’t always smell your own farts.

Who designed your cover?

Giovanni Gelati from Trestle Press.

How much difference does a good cover make?

Oh, a lot. We eat with our eyes, apparently. As soon as the cover to DOTM was posted on Faceache and Twatter and the like, there was interest,

How important is a good title?

For me, a lot. Elvis wouldn’t have had such a hit with Heartbreak Bungalow.

How important is a book's central character?

For a series, very important. But so is a good supporting cast. Lots of people prefer Joe Pike to Elvis Cole.

What's the best piece of craft advice you've been given?

All writing is editing. And editing is my favourite part of writing.

What's the best piece of business advice you've been given?

‘Don’t buy that Brooklyn Bridge, I’ve got a nice Mona Lisa for you.’

What are your strengths and weaknesses as a writer?

I’m good at daft, slice-of-life scenes but rubbish at plotting.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

It’s all okay, as long as you don’t expect too much from it and make it fun. Like life, really.

As a reader, how would you describe your taste in crime fiction?

I like me Brit Grit most but I’m up for most things apart from stuff which is heavy with forensics. My grade 3 GCE in General Science doesn’t help me there.

As a writer, how would you describe your ideal reader's taste in crime fiction?

Easily pleased.

What was the last good eBook you read?

Josh Stallings’ Out There Bad is pretty magnificent. And Speedloader, too, from Snubnose Press.

What crime book are you most looking forward to reading?

Ian Ayris’ Abide With Me.

What are you reading now?

I’m reading Dave Zeltserman’s Dying Memories at the moment, which is great. And Charlie Williams’ One Dead Hen which is painfully funny and true.

If you had to re-read a crime novel right now, what would you choose?

The whole of Ray Banks’ Call Innes quartet. Back To Back.

From an artistic rather than financial perspective, what book do you wish you had written?

The Bible.

What makes you keep reading a book?

Books, films, people, songs. It’s all down to personality. Personality goes a long way.

Where do you find out about new books?

Why Criminal-E, of course!

What's the best collection of short stories you've read?

I haven’t read it for ages, but Richard Ford’s Rock Springs is still in my mind. The septics are the bollocks when it comes to short stories.

What are your views on eBook pricing?

It’s your book sell it for what you want. If people don’t want it they won’t buy it. You’ll live.

Ever tried your hand at screenwriting?

About 15 years ago I did a screenwriting course near Baker Street in London. The best bit of the course was going to the pub and seeing loads of Japanese tourists dressed like Sherlock Holmes. No, but it was useful and I wrote a screenplay called ‘Rain City Moon.’ How NOIR is that?!

Somehow, I made contact with Scala Films and sent it to this American bloke called Aaron. After a while I rang Scala and they said he’d left the company and they knew nowt about the screenplay!

Of course, that was the only copy I had! Never mind, it was crap!

How do you feel about the ease with which anyone can publish?

Why not? If people buy. Read it. Great. If not, Poundland are always looking for staff. Won’t kill you.

Which author should be much better known?

Josh Stallings,Tony Black, Julie Morrigan, Dec Burke, Nick Quantrill,Dave Zeltserman- should all be bestsellers. They write entertaining, accessible and interesting stuff. And there’s more …

Do you read outside of the crime genre?

I used to. The last few years, not so much. I’ve recently read Les Edgerton’s short story collection, Monday’s Meal, which was brilliant.

What was your favourite book as a child?

I really only read comics as a kid. American ones, of course.

Do you enjoy writing?

When it gets going, yes.

Do you enjoy the editorial process?

Yes, that’s the best bit. That’s when it starts to look real!

How do you feel about reviews?

I only like good reviews. I’m not an objective person.

How do you feel about awards?

Mine’s a pint.

Do you have any other projects on the go?

Oh, aye. I've got a short story collection coming out in the next few weeks called 13 Shots of Noir; a story in Anne Frasier's Deadly Treats anthology; a story in Pulp Ink anthology; a story in Noir Nation - The International Journal of Crime;a story online at Dirty Noir and another online at Pulp Pusher. And maybe a couple of other things.

Drunk on the Moon by Paul D. Brazill

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Alex Metcalf interview: Where The Sun Don't Shine

Where The Sun Don't Shine by Alex Metcalf

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Alex Metcalf has done a lot of things. Washed dishes. Hammered Gold. Run an elementary school and acted on stage. Mainly what he’s done is write and teach.

Can you sum up Where The Sun Don't Shine in no more than 25 words?

Marley’s offered one last chance to get his life back. He tries. And fails. And ends up with something that might save him after all.

What was your motivation for writing it?

I love crime novels. Always have. After years of feeling boxed in with the myriad rules of screenwriting, I knew I had to do something different. This was it.

How long did it take you to write?

About six months.

Who designed your cover?

Jeroen Ten Burge. A Dutchman gone to ground in New Zealand. He rocks.

How much difference does a good cover make?

For an e-book I think it might be the most important selling point you’ve got. You can’t pick the book up, flip it open, weigh it in your hands. There’s no there there. The cover is the single visual hit you’ve got, the moment that forces the reader to click that button to see what the book’s about. Without a great cover, I think you’re dead in the water.

What's the best piece of craft advice you've been given?

Keep writing.

What's the best piece of business advice you've been given?

Keep writing.

What's your favourite part of the writing process?

Finishing the first draft. There’s nothing quite so perfect as typing “The End”. In that moment, your work is perfect. And it remains perfect…until you start to read it again. Then the demons of plot, consistency, cliché and bad dialogue leap from the page and try to rip out your eyes. It’s not pretty.

What aspects of marketing your book do you enjoy?

Honestly, I’m not sure. Since this is my first novel, I’m just dipping my toe into the whole world of e-publishing and self-marketing. I like this interview. After all, no one can interrupt me.

As a reader, how would you describe your taste in crime fiction?

I like soul. Usually dark and damaged. Too often a procedural will whisk you down the rabbit hole of specifics, from blood-spatter to ballistics. What matters to me is the “why” of things rather than the “how”. Early Ellroy, Rankin, Crumley, Hader…damaged characters trying, and usually failing, to make things right.

What are you reading now?

I just finished The Informant, by Thomas Perry. Who is a master. In the Butcher’s Boy trilogy, the Jane Whitefield novels, even one-offs like Island, Perry’s a guy who drops you right into a world and then sets things on fire, sucking you down a rabbit hole of energy, violence and desire. If you haven’t read him, do it now.

If you had to re-read a crime novel right now, what would you choose?

Killer on the Road by James Ellory. Might be the darkest crime novel I’ve ever read. Just thinking about re-reading it makes me feel…complicit. Dirty.

Ever tried your hand at screenwriting?

Having been a screenwriter for over a decade the question should really be: Why did you try your hand at novels? Mainly because screenwriting is a thankless business. You can make a lot of money. And get movies made to acclaim or derision. Or, you can spend months, years, on a project only to discover that no one wants it, that it doesn’t have whatever Hollywood happens to want at the moment. And it’s not a reader’s market. You’re selling to, maybe, a hundred people. So if they don’t like it…you’re out of luck.

And, of course, the singular terror of screenplays is that you sell them outright. At which point they are no longer yours. Whoever bought them can do whatever they’d like to your labor of sweat and love. So yes, money can be good. Money combined with ripping out your baby’s heart and replacing it with corroding clockwork? No so much.

What's the book you've recommended most to friends?

The Unusual Life of Tristan Smith by Peter Carey. It’s phenomenal. An angry dwarf struggles up the ranks in a South Africa-like country where the most popular mass entertainment is the Circus. It’s a comment on everything from the practice of Revolution to the cultural oppression of Disney to the pain of being different. Sadly, no one seems to like it quite as much as I do.

How do you feel about awards?

They’re great…if you win.

Do you have any other projects on the go?

Always. I’m currently working on another Marley novel. Less about Venice and more about the inland cesspools of Beverly Hills and Hollywood. Murder for hire. Necrophilia. The lack of affordable child care. It should be fun.

And, of course, screenplays. The silver screen is still so enticing…

Where The Sun Don't Shine by Alex Metcalf

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Michael R Collings interview: Devil's Plague

Devil's Plague by Michael R. Collings

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Dr. Michael R. Collings is a former professor of English and Creative Writing at Pepperdine University (Malibu CA) who now uses his retirement to write. He is the author of some 120 books, including literary studies and bibliographies, novels, collections of short stories, volumes of poetry and, with his wife Judith, a whole-grain wheat cookbook.

Can you sum up Devil's Plague in no more than 25 words?

When a young woman’s body is found at the base of a nearby waterfall, octogenarian Victoria Sears and her new-found friend follow the evidence to find the killer.

Devil’s Plague: A Mystery Novel was first published as a trade paperback Wildside Double, back-to-back with Gary Lovisi’s remarkable Driving Hell’s Highway: A Crime Novel. It’s a fascinating volume since, given the titles and cover illustrations for the book, there would seem to be connections between the stories. In fact, they will offer readers startlingly different reading experiences.

Both are now available as e-books.

What was your motivation for writing it?

Initially, my wife challenged me to write something other than horror…and to include a strong female lead. Since, after horror, my favourite genre is mystery, it seemed a natural to write a mystery with a female detective. And, since almost everything I had written to that point had been in third person, I decided to try a first-person narrator—so I needed a Watson for my Holmes. Victoria Sears came naturally as protagonist since at the time my own grandmother was much on my mind; and Lynn Hanson, a recent widow grieving for the loss of her husband and child evolved as my narrator. This gave me two opportunities to develop women characters, one canny with age, the other young and vulnerable.

My final challenge was simple—in my horror, death was ever-present. Here, in a murder mystery, I wanted to move as far as possible from graphic descriptions, from “blood and guts,” from overt violence, and make the narrative hinge on more subtle, mental actions.

The result so pleased me that shortly after Devil’s Plague was published, I wrote a sequel, Serpent’s Tooth, following the same guidelines and exploring further the relationship between Victoria and Lynn, between appearance and reality, and between life and death.

How long did it take you to write?

Tricky question. Basically, it took three weeks and twenty years.

The first chapters were completed in a few weeks around twenty years ago, when I was in the middle of a teaching career at Pepperdine University, balancing the demands of a growing family with my teaching responsibilities, and struggling in the midst of it all to write.

With the abrupt onset of severe deafness, compounded by constant tinnitus in both ears with accompanying bouts of truly frightening depression, this story settled into the back of my mind. I wrote literary studies, collated bibliographies, and finally got to where I could concentrate long enough to resume writing poetry in short bursts, but the idea of finishing the novel was too much.

In 2006, I took a disability retirement from Pepperdine because of the hearing problems, moved to Idaho, began recovering from the worst of the depression…and finally found the impetus to return to the story and finish it. The final chapters, plus revisions, were finished in about three weeks.

How important is a good title?

From my work with poetry, where the title is in fact the first ‘line’ of the poem, I realized that titles are crucial. They draw readers in, they give the first indication as to what the story is and how it will unfold, they provide clues as to what the readers should pay close attention to.

Originally—and until it was almost completed—the story was called “Queen Anne’s Lace,” a reference to both a wild flower (that, by the way, blooms profusely along the irrigation canals near my home in Idaho) and a crocheting pattern that my mother and grandmother both used frequently.

As the story neared completion, however, it seemed that that title was too flat, too fussy, perhaps too much of a give-away. And I didn’t want the story to seem too much like a great-aunt’s hand-worked antimacassar.

Fortunately, I discovered that Queen Anne’s Lace has a number of other names, particularly in the farming areas where it proliferates…and one was “Devil’s Plague”! That was more to my liking. It still points to the plant, which plays an important role in the novel, but also points toward other, darker images that the story develops.

The sequel, Serpent’s Tooth, uses its title in the same way. There’s an off-hand reference to Shakespeare’s lines from King Lear, but more critically, it points to snakes—on several levels—throughout.

How important is a book's central character?

I don’t think either Devil’s Plague or Serpent’s Tooth could succeed without Victoria and Lynn. The language is Lynn’s; the perspective from which the evidence is examined is also hers, which allows me room for a bit of misdirection and sleight of hand. But Victoria is the star. She gives the story its tone, its atmosphere. She turns the mountain town of Fox Creek into an American version of a Marplesque English village. She eventually manipulates the revelation that brings meaning to the deaths. In many ways, she is the novel.

What's your favourite part of the writing process?

Getting lost in the story. Becoming so intimate with the characters and their surroundings and their problems that I lose the sense of being “me” and for the duration of a scene or an episode, I become essentially someone else. No matter whether the story is science fiction, horror, or mystery, if it is working, there comes a time when the hour, or two, or several that I spend immersed in that world takes on a depth, a resonance. I know the story is working when I become so much a part of the character’s lives that I don’t even notice the rasping, staticky tinnitus noises…which is a blessing.

Who's your favourite living writer?

Being a bit of a maverick, I hesitate to pin down a single name. So I’ll give you two.

First, Stephen King. I’ve read nearly all of his stories, written multiple books about him and his works, taught classes based on his novels...and I detect more than a little influence from him in my own horror tales. He is, in my estimation, an elegant craftsman at creating the commonplace so believably that when horror intrudes, it becomes paradoxically even more emphatic than if the story were set in a cobwebby old castle perched on an unassailable cliff. He helped form my imagination and—with only a handful of exceptions—I have found value in everything he had written.

Second, Orson Scott Card. I’ve known Card for something over twenty years. He has written in many genres, proving himself adept at each. He demonstrates again and again how central characterization is to storytelling…indeed, how central Storytelling is to human culture and society.

What are the greatest opportunities facing writers these days?

We live in probably the only time in human history when there is virtually NO censorship. Anyone can write anything and find a place—either in print or on the internet—to share it. No matter how few, audiences are out there, willing to read. And authors are no longer tied to local, regional, even national publishers. The internet has made writing an international endeavour. The sense of freedom, of possibility is breath-taking.

Of course, as we know from our favourite super-heroes, with great freedom comes great responsibility. Writers are more closely tied to their words than ever before, even (or perhaps especially) when those words elicit unexpected, unwanted results. There are fewer mediating voices, for example, editors, coming between author and audience, so the author must be even more alert to every level of writing, from the nuts and bolts of grammar and punctuation to the subtleties of theme and meaning.

Ever tried your hand at screenwriting?

Once. And failed dismally. I decided that the closest I would come to writing screenplays might be novel-versions, if asked.

Curiously enough, however, my son Michael Brent is a talented screenwriter, with two scripts in production at the moment and half a dozen more circulating among agents and producers. If any of my novels ever make it ‘big’, I’ll have him write the screenplay for me. Keep it in the family.

Ever tried your hand at poetry?

Yes. About 2500 times. Actually, I consider myself a poet first, a novelist second. I’ve published as many poetry collections as I have novels, ranging from mainstream to autobiographical to science fiction/fantasy/horror, to religious. My masterwork, as it were, in verse is a 6,500 line religious epic modelled on Milton’s “Paradise Lost” and the Renaissance Epics—the focus of my graduate studies years ago. “The Nephiad” has actually even sold some copies, and that to people I don’t even know. For a long, narrative poem in blank verse in the 21^st century, that is a major achievement.

Do you read outside of the crime genre?

I will read almost anything. Crime/mystery, thriller, science fiction, fantasy, horror, supernatural thriller, historical novels, history, biography—I read voraciously and try not to limit myself too narrowly to any particular genre. If it is well written, interesting, and stimulating, I will read it.

Do you have any other projects on the go?

More writing, more novels. Today I received my first copy of Static! A Novel of Horror and the publisher is working on A Pound of Chocolates on St. Valentine’s Day, similarly a horror novel and one of my favorites.

Several manuscripts are being read by a British large-print hardcover publisher. They have already purchased rights to Devil’s Plague and are looking at Serpent’s Tooth and A Pound of Chocolates (which will be re-named Shadow Valley if they accept it).

After that, there is “Fast Foods,” a story about several characters who spend time at the local fast-food joint, the Burger Barn, until several of their number begin dying. The survivors must discover who…or what…is killing them. In their case, it looks as if they are the “fast food.”

Following that, I will probably work on a third Victoria Sears/Lynn Hanson mystery, set in Fox Creek during Christmas time. I’ve got the plot sketched out but haven’t begun writing on it yet. More fun for later on.

Many thanks for the opportunity to talk about writers and writing.

Devil's Plague by Michael R. Collings

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