A better question would be: Were there any parts of the book where you did NOT struggle?
Anonymous-9 – 26 October 2014
The Back Flap
Some say he’s a serial killer. Others, a vigilante doing what police can’t or won’t do. What’s certain is that Dean Drayhart, a paraplegic, will soon sit on death row for killing hit-and-run drivers in Los Angeles. But not if the Mexican Mafia gets hold of him first. Somewhere, Dean’s trained companion monkey Sid and girlfriend Cinda are outrunning the law in a fast ’98 Trans Am. The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department wants Sid, dead or alive. Dean may be broken in body but his fierce spirit is determined to protect Sid and Cinda in the most creative ways imaginable. Hardboiled, funny, relentless, and unexpectedly tender-hearted, Bite Harder delivers riotous action all the way to a bombshell climax that could only have been written by Anonymous-9, the self-declared mad scientist of crime fiction.
About the book
What is the book about?
Fed up with hit and run drivers in Los Angeles, Dean Drayhart becomes a vigilante. The twist is that he’s a paraplegic in a wheelchair and he has a trained service monkey do the dirty work. These little helper monkeys are real and they’re trained (to do good work not dirty work) in Boston and Santa Ana at Monkey College. True!
When did you start writing the book?
This is the second book in the series and I started writing it almost two years ago.
How long did it take you to write it?
Longer than it was supposed to! I wrote a total of 102,000 words and tossed out 52,000 before I was done. It took about a year and a half.
Where did you get the idea from?
I had originally written a short story called Hard Bite and it won Spinetingler’s Best Short Story on the Web, 2009. Everybody said it should be a novel. So the short story became the opening chapter of the book and I carried on from there.
Were there any parts of the book where you struggled?
A better question would be: Were there any parts of the book where you did NOT struggle? I knew nothing about police procedure or helper monkeys. I had to research everything as I went.
What came easily?
Dean Drayhart’s character and “voice” came easily and naturally.
Are your characters entirely fictitious or have you borrowed from real world people you know?
That question comes up time and again. No, I don’t borrow from real world people other than human character flaws that are in lots of people to varying degrees, maybe even me! I have been accused by people I know of writing about them and it’s such an arrogant assumption. I’ll stop there before I get on a rant.
We all know how important it is for writers to read. Are there any particular authors that have influenced how you write and, if so, how have they influenced you?
T. Jefferson Parker for his wonderful story and effervescent, villanous characterization of Suzanne in L.A. Outlaws. Jackie Collins, believe it or not, for her sensationalism and ability to capture a mass market. James M. Cain and Chandler and Jim Thompson for breaking ground in quality crime fiction.
Do you have a target reader?
Yes. People like me, who like to laugh, even when it hurts.
About Writing
Do you have a writing process? If so can you please describe it?
Before I got to a certain level of ability, I snatched time wherever I could and stayed away from writing for long periods of time. My preferred process now is to go to a retreat “cave” in Palm Springs, no phone, no computer (writing on paper in longhand), no outside activities, where I throw myself at the page for 16 hours straight for three days running. I allow myself to go outside once per day to get exercise, usually in the pool where it’s 112 degrees in the shade during the summer. After three days of that I’m so deeply into the “world” and characters, that stuff turns out pretty good.
Do you outline? If so, do you do so extensively or just chapter headings and a couple of sentences?
Yes, at times and for certain spots in the book, I outline. Right now I’m writing a novelette that Uncanny Books hired me to complete. I have nearly twenty pages of an outline for what will end up to be 15,000 words. I also fall asleep by going over plot beats in my head–like counting sheep. I say to myself, “And then this happened, and then this happened…” and I run through all the action in my mind’s eye.
Do you edit as you go or wait until you’ve finished?
I edit and rewrite every scene or every section as I proceed, adding detail etc.
Did you hire a professional editor? (May skip if being published by a small press rather than self-publishing)
Always. My editor is Jenny Jensen, who bills herself as an e-book editor. Jenny has been Rebecca Forster’s editor for twenty years and she accepted me as a client on Rebecca’s recommendation. When Jenny gets done two or more rounds with me, then I submit the ms to my editor at Blasted Heath, the legendary Allan Guthrie. Along with his partner, Kyle MacRae, Allan makes call-outs and we’ll have a detailed 2-hour Skype phone call going over everything he’s found so I’m clear on all of it. I waste very little energy defending any of my writing. I trust my editors implicitly to know who I am and what my writing is about. I love every moment of this process because at each stage my editors are watching my back and saving me from criticism later. Who couldn’t love that?
Do you listen to music while you write? If yes, what gets the fingers tapping?
Nope. Nothing but silence. There’s way too much noise, music, gunshots, screaming and laughing going on in my head for external noise.
About Publishing
Did you submit your work to Agents?
Yes.
What made you decide to go Indie, whether self-publishing or with an indie publisher? Was it a particular event or a gradual process?
I have deals with four indie publishers and I also self-publish. I qualify an indie publisher as “not one of the Big 5.” Hard Bite was turned down by every New York agent. It was too different, too bold, for the cautious times in New York publishing. But I had relationships at a few publishing houses. So I bypassed agents and went straight to the editors who were excited by the ms. Hard Bite immediately got competing offers and I had a lovely, difficult choice to make.
Did you get your book cover professionally done or did you do it yourself?
Rebecca Forster did my first self-published book cover for free and I loved it. I had it printed and framed. JT Lindroos now does all my covers for Blasted Heath and Down & Out Books. He also does the covers for my self-published works.
Do you have a marketing plan for the book or are you just winging it?
I work with my publishers individually to plan advertising, publicity and promotion. I often come to them with new ideas to “try on for size” in our quest to penetrate new markets and grow the readership. I think everybody’s winging it these days. Digital is new ground for everyone.
Any advice that you would like to give to other newbies considering becoming Indie authors?
Everybody has their own path. Don’t judge yourself by looking at what the other guy is doing. Write every day. Short stories submitted to online sites are a great way to know your fellow writers and build a following. Online editors are way to gain a writing education. It’s how I got my start.
About You
What are you working on now?
I’m writing Dreaming Deep for Uncanny Books which is based on a short story I wrote for Horror Factory. When the rights reverted back to me I self-published it in Just So You Know I’m Not, a short story collection. I have a 15,500-word novelette, Crashing Through, about a washed-up musician flirting with an underage sex scandal that I’ll probably self-pub around Christmas. If reaction is good, I’ll expand it into a novelette series or a novel. Book number three of the Hard Bite series is in outline form right now and has to be written. And on that note, I need to get back to my cave. These questions were a pleasure to answer. Thanks for having me.
End of Interview:
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