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One Book Interview #35 – Kevin Kennedy (Author)

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Interview #35 holds the record for the quickest turn around to date.

Within 12 hours of the author kindly agreeing to be featured on the One Book Interview, I had the answers back. I thought it only right to put out the interview within another 12 hours.

You should read it, it’s a good one.

Good people of the Internet, writing out of Scotland in the UK (well, it is at the moment…) – Kevin Kennedy.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

Warrior Wolf Women of the Wasteland by Carlton Mellick III. I have probably read thirty or more books by Mellick. This was one of the first and the main reason I started to appreciate the Bizarro sub genre. There are so many great ideas in this book and Mellick’s style is a pleasure to read. It’s almost like having a bedtime story read to you when you were little, except the stories are absolutely mental, and often look at real issues in a very interesting way. I really enjoyed this one and while I could spend all day listing books like Swan Song and other fan faves, I feel this book deserves more credit than it gets.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

Okay, so I said in the last post I wasn’t going to mention books like Swan Song. I lied. If you only had one book, which if we are honest, isn’t a plausible way to exist, it would need to be a pretty big book. Especially if you were going to re-read it, which is something I very rarely do. I think Swan Song and The Stand uncut version are the two longest books I’ve read. Although a lot of people may disagree, for me Swan Song was a far superior story and had a lot more going on in it. Post-apocalyptic fiction is one of my favourite sub-genres so there is a good chance I’d go with this one. It is definitely one of the best books I have ever read. It could be an idea to take something I haven’t read but if it turned out to be crap or written in a style I didn’t enjoy I’d be raging lol.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

City Infernal by Edward Lee. I started reading adult horror books when I was fifteen. I fell in love with Richard Laymons work and I read my way through everything he had written. When I finished all his books I tried another few authors and wasn’t impressed and just stopped reading. A few years later I found the old Richard Laymon message board and was recommended another few books and authors. The first four I bought were City Infernal by Ed Lee, Offseason by Jack Ketchum, Live Girls by Ray Garton and The Rising by Brian Keene. The suggestions were excellent. I loved them all but the world that Ed Lee builds in City Infernal was something else. It was entirely different from the type of horror Laymon wrote, and while I loved his style I also enjoyed Ed Lee’s style. I think it’s a book everyone should read. A lot of people talk about Edward Lee’s extreme horror and I love that too but this book is a tremendous story and not as hardcore as a lot of his other stuff.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

You Only Get One Shot: A Horror Novella that I co-wrote with J.C. Michael. It’s the longest piece I’ve written by quite a bit and it’s also the most time I’ve invested in the one piece of work. We changed things several times along the way and it’s good to have someone to bounce ideas off of. I think we both found it pretty easy to work together which helped and by the end up I think we have a pretty great story. The feedback has been excellent from readers and authors alike. J.C. also wrote a short prequel to the novella in Collected Halloween Horror Shorts.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

Darkness Tell Us by Richard Laymon. It’s the book that started me reading adult fiction. I read Point Horror books when I was young and then fell away from it. I hadn’t read in years, then we got told we had to write an essay for English class when I was fifteen. I left it to last minute and then grabbed this book for 10p at a jumble-sale just because it had a Ouija board on the cover. I then realized the book was about six hundred pages and I think I had three days to read it and write the paper. It should have been an almost impossible task but I think I read about three hundred pages the first night. It was absolutely riveting. The story totally sucked me in and I only put the book down because I needed to get a few hours sleep. After this I read Island and continued on from there.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Probably Funland by Laymon. I don’t want to make it all about Laymon but sometimes when I’m thinking of new ideas and I think about the type of story that I enjoy reading, I think of Funland, as I really like stuff involving carnivals, boardwalks or piers with rides and stalls and circus stuff. Something about the whole carnie vibe works well with horror. Funland was among my favourite Laymon books, and ever since reading it, I’ve always looked for stories in that vein. The most recent story I have written, Halloweenland, featured in my new Halloween antho, is about a special kind of traveling carnival that sets up on a pier, funnily enough. It is completely different from Funland in every way but I think it definitely influenced my taste in horror and that translates into the stories I write.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

You Only Get One Shot: A Horror Novella, is the only work I have out that isn’t part of an anthology but I do put together the Collected Horror Shorts series, which has received some amazing praise. I have stories in each of the anthos and we have a fantastic mix of upcoming indie authors and some of horror genres top sellers. You can now pick up Christmas, Easter and Halloween editions.

 

You can find Kevin at: www.kevinjkennedy.co.uk

Kevin J Kennedy is the co-author of You Only Get One Shot, and the man behind the best-selling Collected Christmas Horror Shorts & Collected Easter Horror Shorts anthologies. His short stories have featured in many other notable anthologies in the horror genre.

Kevin lives in a small town in Scotland with his wife, step daughter and two strange little cats.

Keep up to date with new releases or contact Kevin through his website: www.kevinjkennedy.co.uk

 

 

Please note I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon sites.

 

One Book Interview #33 – Jenifer Ruff (Author)

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As you might expect from a library director’s daughter, this week’s author grew up surrounded by books. She now writes surrounded by greyhounds – Ed, Myrtle & Lillian.

I’m not sure what the connection between the two is, but it works – author #33 is a bestseller of psychological suspense.

(Maybe the dogs provide editing and proofreading services? )

Good people of the Internet, writing out of Charlotte, North Carolina – Jenifer Ruff.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

Night by Elie Wiesel. The horrific first-person account of survival stuck with me long after the last page. I learned something profoundly important about dignity, suffering, and the human race. It’s not about the writing, but the story being told.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

I don’t usually reread books, so I’d pick the longest book I haven’t yet read—Game of Thrones. I just finished binge-watching the television series. I should have read the books first. Most of George Martin’s characters are living a nightmare. They might put my marooned-on-Mars situation in perspective.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Creatures of Appetite by Todd Travis. I downloaded his independently published book for free from a promo email. I love dark thrillers and mysteries with intricate plotting and I thought his was pretty near perfect. It’s hard to believe publishers aren’t begging for his next books, and I know they’re not because at the end of the book he asks for donations so he can keep writing.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

Only Wrong Once, a bio-terror suspense novel available Sept. 28th, 2017. It was inspired by my DHS agent brother. He can’t tell me anything about his job, but I know he’s privy to intelligence that would make me shudder. Only Wrong Once benefits from what I’ve learned from my previous three published novels. My hope is that I’ll never stop learning and improving the craft of writing, so my most recent book will always be my favorite, until the next one comes along.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

This is the hardest question! I know which books I enjoyed the most, but did they influence my character or personality? Probably not. But a terrible, bestselling, traditionally-published book did. I won’t mention the title because it doesn’t matter and it’s only my opinion, but the book got me thinking, “If he can do this, then I sure can.” Sort of reverse inspiration. And now I’m a writer, so I should thank the book’s author and publisher for providing a bit of motivational influence.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott is one of my favorite books on writing. It’s clever, insightful. self-deprecating, hilarious, and inspirational all at once. Anyone might enjoy it, but no writer should miss it.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

Only Wrong Once. It will be discounted through most of October. I started writing it two years ago, but recent terrorist attacks and national policies have made it even more relevant, which really escalates the fear factor. All my books have a dark edge, but this one is frightening because it’s realistic.

You can find Jenifer at: www.jenruff.com

 

Jenifer Ruff is the author of psychological suspense books and an avid fitness enthusiast and hiker. She lives in Charlotte, NC with her family and a pack of greyhounds.

 

 

 

 

Please note I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon sites.

One Book Interview #31 – Duncan Bradshaw (Author)

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We’re up to Interview #31 and I have absolutely no idea how to introduce this week’s author.

Go read his bio at the bottom of this page or on his website.

Go on.

I’ll wait.

Back already?

See what I mean?

How do you introduce someone who can’t even introduce himself? (Hi, Dunk, you’re not really reading this are you?)

If, however, you’ve been too lazy to click on a few links, I’ll leave you with this, from the self-professed ‘loon’ himself.

“It’s taken me a long time in my life to pull my finger out and do something that I enjoy, to most people, myself included, work is a chore. Writing helps me get through that by giving me a shining beacon to keep me going. Whatever that beacon is in your life, follow it, embrace it and make the most of it. Life is too fucking short, don’t have regrets, just do it.”

That’s not crazy. That’s utter sanity.

Good people of the Internet, writing out of Chippenham, Wiltshire (UK)  – Duncan Bradshaw

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

There are a number of books that lay to the claim of ‘stone cold classics’, and I agree with a number of them. Personally, I’d say that everyone has to read 1984 by George Orwell, without a shadow of a doubt. Yes, there are parts in the final third which feel a bit superfluous to the modern reader, but as a work of fiction, it is near peerless. With recent events, this, and a number of other dystopian books have been pimped out again, whilst they (Fahrenheit 451, Animal Farm, Handmaid’s Tale, A Brave New World etc) are excellent reads, 1984 surpasses them all.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

I’d take House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski with me. This would be a bit of a bold move on one main fundamental issue. I haven’t actually read it. I bought it a few years back following a recommendation by a friend. It has sat, nestled within my TBR pile since that fateful day. As other books have been picked up and devoured before it, still it looks out at me, hoping for the day when its turn will come. Being marooned on a distant planet, where time and the sheer size of this weighty tome are no longer considerations, I’d finally be able to read it. I just hope that I enjoy it, else it’s going to be a loooonnngggg time on the red planet.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Got to go with Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline. You know those books where you hear people go on about, even those who you don’t know that well, and you feel inclined to pick it up, just so you know what they’re banging on about? That was Ready Player One. I snagged it in Southcart Books, in Walsall, when I was doing a reading, with the intention of slinging it on the TBR pile, and getting to it at some point, (a la House of Leaves). I ended up starting it a few days later and was completely and utterly hooked. Not quite knowing what to expect, as I got more into it, I realised that this book is aimed squarely at me and my generation. So many references in there, so many favourite games and popular culture references, I loved it. I passed it to my brother who approached it with similar expectations, and he loved it too. It’s a winner.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

My personal favourite is, heXagram. It’s six stories, set across five hundred years of human history, charting the dissemination of an ancient Inca ritual. It is fundamentally an action/horror book, based on the adage ‘we are all made of stars’. What if it could be harvested? How can knowledge, partial or complete, be twisted to fit different people’s views or hopes? It tracks this information as different people come into contact with it, and seek to use it to their own ends, visiting the American Civil War, the Whitechapel murders, a suicide cult in the eighties, up until the modern day. For me, it was the most serious thing I’d written, using different styles to create a patchwork quilt of a narrative, all wrapped up in an epic overarching story. Sounds pretentious huh? It certainly isn’t and has definitely been my ‘marmite’ book, but to me, it is my absolute stonewall favourite.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

When I was halfway through college, we moved 40 odd miles down the road, which meant that I had to get the train to study. This gave me vast parts of the day with time to kill. There is only so much bowling and arcade games that you could play, so I decided to work my way through my mum’s bookshelf. I ignored the Stephen King, and headed straight for the Russian literature, mainly Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn. One Day In The Life Of Ivan Denisovich stood out a mile. The struggles of getting through one day, alive, and somehow surviving, knowing that the next day would be the exact same situation all over again, gripped me. History has always interested me, but learning about things which governments tried to bury and suppress, trying to silence the victims and the survivors, left a profound effect on me. Though I later read the likes of Primo Levi, it was always One Day In The Life…that left an indelible mark.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

I’ve never been a fan of authors giving tips on writing, it just seems a bit silly. What works for me, is anathema to someone else, and downright crazy for the next person. I think the book that gave me the confidence to write what I wanted was Vinyl Destination, by Adam Millard. If you’re not familiar with his work, you really are missing out. Vinyl Destination is a simple premise, but pushes the silliness envelope into overdrive. I was on holiday when I read it, and the amount of times I laughed out loud and got odd looks from people was high. When I finished it, I thought if he can do it, why can’t I? Not in the same way, that’s impossible, but it showed me that I shouldn’t be limited in my ambition. Most of my ideas are a little odd, and as I don’t plan what I write, even mundane scenes end up veering off into weird territory. This book took off my mental shackles, and allowed me to be the writer that I want to be, not what I think I should be, and that’s a helluva big deal.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

I’m mostly known for two things, zombies and silliness. This is encapsulated perfectly in my zombie short story collection, CHUMP. Nine stories on the undead, each one is very different from the others. There is one set in the Wild West, another gives an alternative reason as to why the Eastern Bloc boycotted the 1984 Olympics. There is even a story featuring zombie fish! In the midst of it all, is a novella length story, and a serious one at that, which follows a courier living in the apocalyptic wilds. It’s passe, but there really is something for everyone in it, even if you’re not that fond of zombies. It is a true mix of styles, and was even nominated for a Saboteur Award at the beginning of 2017. Which was nice.

You can find Duncan at: www.duncanpbradshaw.co.uk

Give me a D! D. Give me a U! U. Give me an N! N. Okay, so this wasn’t the best idea was it? If you hadn’t guessed already, Duncan P. Bradshaw (spell out the letters in your head if you want), was a cheerleader in a previous life. Many was the day spent practicing his moves on windswept playing fields, and nursing twisted ankles after nasty spills on wooden gym floors. When he was murdered brutally by renowned serial killer, Ed Turpin, aka The Broom-handle Basher, he was reincarnated and, sometime later, the memories of his hideous demise came flooding back. Day and night he was wracked with visions of his final moments, and other things, other lives, other futures. GASP! So, to try and make sense of it all, he began to write them all down, hoping that he can bring enough words into existence that he might be able to form them into a broom-handle of his own, find Ed Turpin, and HAVE HIS REVENGE! Please help him, by reading his books, or by leaving out snacks on your porch. He mostly likes tea (milk, one sugar) and biscuits.

 

 

Please note I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon sites.

 

One Book Interview #20 – Mark Cassell (Author)

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One of the great things about running this interview series is that I get to interview people whose books I’ve enjoyed. This is one such interview.

This week’s author is a best seller, a man constantly expanding the ‘mythos’ his stories live in. And, never mind the books, he has an inexhaustible supply of memes, GIFS, and cartoons that range from dark to downright hysterical. (Seriously, if you’re not friends with this guy on FB or Twitter, find him and befriend him now. He’s not overly fussy, I believe.)

Good people of the Internet – the Scribe of the Witchblade, the Stitcher-in-Chief, the Meme-Master himself – Mark Cassell.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

My shout here goes to any reader who likes the idea of Russian and British secret services using psychic investigators and spies. Written over 30 years ago, Brian Lumley’s Necroscope still tops my list of all-time favourites, and it’s still a book I’m happy to read again and again.

At just over 500 pages, the novel can be a heavy going at first but sets us up for a thrilling ride through Romanian history and ancient lore. The lovable protagonist, Harry Keogh, has some remarkable talents and is dragged through a story that combines time travel and secret agents with some truly vicious undead creatures.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

Clive Barker’s Imajica, without doubt. At over 1,100 pages long, I reckon it would keep me occupied long enough to survive until Schwarzenegger finds a way to pump oxygen onto the planet.

I believe this is Barker’s finest novel. The epic story follows three vastly different people in search of a universal mystery, travelling through worlds both close to us and far into fantasy-realms. It weaves an intricate story, superbly balancing love and death, horror and fantasies, and makes us question divinity as well as our own obsessions.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Yann Martel’s Life of Pi, and it equally surprises me to discover this book was released back in 2001. Yet to this day, it remains one of my favourites and it’s not even in my typical go-to genre. Expertly written, the story took me on a journey that lasted a day or two while poor Pi himself stayed on that lifeboat for 227 days…with a Bengal tiger named Richard Parker.

Oh, and as clever as I thought the screen adaptation was, it was nowhere near as remarkable.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

May I suggest the one I’ve just released? It’s called Hell Cat of the Holt, a novella in the Shadow Fabric mythos. I can honestly say I’m having a whole stack of fun linking – indeed stitching – much of the already-written mythos with this new story.

The tale follows a shy accountant named Anne, who returns to the village of Mabley Holt to piece together her life after a family tragedy. When her cat vanishes, and a neighbour claims to speak with his dead wife, she soon learns there’s more to the village than any resident dares admit. In search of her beloved pet, she discovers not only family secrets but also revelations of a local legend. As she treads an unsteady path between folklore and fact, her confidence in where she grew up begins to crumble. Into hell.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

As far as books go, I can’t really answer that. However, how about a short story? And again, here I am mentioning Brian Lumley. His “The Thief Immortal” tells the life story of a man named Klaus August Scharme who has the unusual gift of stealing the years from any living thing and adding them to his own. I read it something like 20 years ago, and it remains with me to this day.

It made me realise how insignificant the human race is compared to all the other living creatures on this planet.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

I suspect this is going to be such a typical answer: Stephen King’s On Writing. Throughout my journey as a writer, I’ve read many how-to books yet this one is incredibly relatable. I found it almost conversational while informative, whereas many others are simply regurgitated bullet-points.

No matter how you feel about that guy’s writing, you can’t deny he’s up there with the literary Masters throughout history.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

My debut, The Shadow Fabric, a novel of demons, devices, and deceit.

We follow Leo, a man who remembers little of his past. Desperate for a new life, he snatches up the first job to come along. On his second day he witnesses a murder, and the Shadow Fabric – a malevolent force that controls the darkness – takes the body and vanishes with it. Uncovering secrets long hidden from humankind, Leo’s memory unravels. Not only haunted by the past, a sinister presence within the darkness threatens his existence and he soon doubts everything and everyone… including himself.

At the time, the story was going to be a standalone novel, but leftover scribbles became published stories in anthologies and ezines. And now, as I’ve already mentioned, I’ve just released a novella.

I’ve recently sold three more mythos stories to anthologies set for release in the coming months. Atop that, I’m in talks with a company about creating a Shadow Fabric card game, and also with a Nottingham-based metal band about possible lyrics. I can’t say much more on either of those, but we’ll see.

What I can say is how truly stunned I am at how it seems to be unravelling. I’m humbled, in fact. And there’s still a much larger story to tell in the Shadow Fabric mythos.

You can find Mark at: www.beneath.co.uk

Mark Cassell lives in a rural part of the UK and often dreams of dystopian futures, peculiar creatures, and flitting shadows. Primarily a horror writer, his steampunk, dark fantasy, and SF stories have featured in numerous anthologies and ezines. His best-selling debut novel, The Shadow Fabric, is closely followed by the popular short story collection, Sinister Stitches, and are both only a fraction of an expanding mythos.

 

 

One Book Interview #19 – Jason Parent (Author)

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Hot on the heels of last week’s 18th birthday celebration, the One Book Interview is back to business as usual. Today, I’m very happy to be taking part in a book tour for an exciting author by the name of Jason Parent. His new book  A Life Removed is out now. I had the pleasure of reading an advance copy not so long ago. You can find out what I thought of it tomorrow, but for now, here is a taste of what Jason likes to read when he’s not writing. (Interestingly, three of his choices made the top twelve list in last week’s 18th birthday book summary.)

Good people of the Internet – Jason Parent.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

The Stand, by Stephen King – It is a genre-defining tale of good versus evil that should be required reading.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

The Martian, by Andy Weir – I’d need some chance of being able to grow potatoes. Of course, I’d probably also need potatoes.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Robert McCammon’s Matthew Corbett series. Historical fiction, not quite horror or my usual cup of tea, but altogether perfect.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

My books vary so much in genre and tone that my answer to this question changes daily. But so as not to cop out, I think Wrathbone and Other Stories is one of my best works.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

Tucker Max’s I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell. The book never answers the question whether beer is, in fact, served in Hell, so I have made it a life-long ambition to drink as much beer as possible before I get there. I’m guessing it’s all mimosas and umbrella drinks down under the earth.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

Not Tucker Max’s books. Stephen King’s On Writing has made me re-examine my craft.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

That depends on how dark they want to go. I have a couple of novellas priced at $0.99 to allow potential readers to give me a try. But my novels are all stand-alones, so my latest, A Life Removed is as good a start as any (and happens to be set earliest chronologically).

You can find Jason at: www.authorjasonparent.com

In his head, Jason Parent lives in many places, but in the real world, he calls New England his home. The region offers an abundance of settings for his writing and many wonderful places in which to write them. He currently resides in Southeastern Massachusetts with his cuddly corgi named Calypso.

In a prior life, Jason spent most of his time in front of a judge . . . as a civil litigator. When he finally tired of Latin phrases no one knew how to pronounce and explaining to people that real lawsuits are not started, tried and finalized within the 60-minute timeframe they see on TV (it’s harassing the witness; no one throws vicious woodland creatures at them), he traded in his cheap suits for flip flops and designer stubble. The flops got repossessed the next day, and he’s back in the legal field . . . sorta. But that’s another story.

When he’s not working, Jason likes to kayak, catch a movie, travel any place that will let him enter, and play just about any sport (except that ball tied to the pole thing where you basically just whack the ball until it twists in a knot or takes somebody’s head off – he misses the appeal). And read and write, of course. He does that too sometimes.

 

 

Please note I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon sites.

One Book Interview #12 – Garry Rodgers (Author)

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For interview #10 we had a crime writer, for #11 we had a best-selling author, this week we have both in one person: a bestselling crime writer and blogger (they’re great posts!) who has worked as a sniper, forensic coroner, and homicide detective. His books are based on his own experiences of true crime, and have been ranked up alongside Stephen King and Dean Koontz in the bestseller charts.

Good people of the Internet – Garry Rodgers.

Name one book:

1 – everyone should read

Think And Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill. Of all the self-help and motivational books, T&GR is by far the best work ever done on the science of personal achievement. The history of T&GR starts with Andrew Carnegie of US Steel/Carnegie Hall fame commissioning a young reporter named Napoleon Hill to research and write a book on the principles of success, no matter what your occupation or intention. This was in the early 1900s and Carnegie was in his later stage of life. He’d turned into a true philanthropist and wanted to leave the world with a formula on how people can better themselves – not just for richness in money but rich in spirit and accomplishment. Through Carnegie’s influence, Hill had access to the greats of the day – Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, Presidents, Kings and entertainment stars. It took Hill over 20 years to produce the work – unpaid – but he produced a masterpiece that’s stood the test of time. Once you’ve absorbed the 17 principles of achievement laid out in T&GR, you live your life by them. It’s just that powerful a book.

2 – you would take with you if you were going to be marooned on Mars

Hmm… let me think. Besides T&GR that’d motivate me to try finding a way off, I’d say The Art Of Happiness by the Dalai Lama. In my opinion, the Dalai Lama is the most switched-on, in-tune spiritual leader alive today. Everything the guy says makes sense to me. I guess if I were marooned on Mars, I better decide to be happy about it and his guidance would sure help a situation that’d truly suck.

3 – you took a chance on and were pleasantly surprised by

Wired For Story by Lisa Cron comes to mind. I stumbled on it in a book store and it entirely changed my writing mind. Lisa takes a scientific approach on how human brains are designed to respond to stories and how to write in the way that engage your readers’ interest. It’s not a technical book – it’s so easy to read and understand. I think every writer MUST read this book.

4 – you’ve written that is your favourite

No Witnesses To Nothing was my first novel. I still think it’s my best work. It’s not a book for most people as it’s long, drawn out and gets quite heady towards the end. It’s based on three true stories and is a ghost story disguised as a murder mystery. Deep down, it’s a search for the science and spirituality of the human soul.

5 – that has influenced you most as a person

Think And Grow Rich, by far. Otherwise, I’d say The Magic Of Thinking Big by David Schwartz, Psycho-Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz and The Psychology Of Winning by Denis Waitley.

6 – that has influenced you most as a professional

The Elements Of Style by Strunk & White is mandatory reading for all writers. You need to know the rules of writing and this little book captures them all – composition and grammar that is. Once you know the rules, then it’s fair game to break every one of them in creative storytelling.

7 – of yours that prospective readers should start with if they want to get to know your work and where they can get it.

I’d recommend reading In The Attic first if you want to get to know me and hear my voice. It’s a true story about a horrific double homicide I investigated. It’s told in first-person and takes the killer’s psychotic point of view as well. Warning, though, it’s extremely graphic.

You can find Garry at: http://www.dyingwords.net

Garry Rodgers is a retired homicide detective and forensic coroner who also served as a sniper on British SAS trained Emergency Response Teams. Now he’s an Amazon bestselling crime writer. Garry lives on Vancouver Island at Canada’s west coast and hosts the popular blogsite www.dyingwords.net.