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Taylor Pannell is an artist, designer, storyteller, and baker. She is the author of several collections including My Bible, Notes to Self, and The Traveller. Paired with her own vivid art, her writing captivates the imagination, revives your sense of wonder, and dares to ask out loud the questions on everybody's mind.  Philosophically, how differently is your approach to visual art from your poetry? When I'm drawing for myself, it's actually quite similar; I think of an image or memory, then abstract it with symbolism. But if I am drawing for a specific prompt, or want a certain story to come across, I have to approach my visual art with the goal of clarity, and finding fun loopholes where people still can understand my image. When writing poetry, I rarely aim specifically to be understood. It's more emotionally than intellectually driven. Will you ever interpret the New Testament through your writings and drawings? Yes, in fact it was a project that I originally planned to finish last summer, but things got in the way. I'll return to it after I finish a project I'm undertaking currently. What would be the most memorable meal to you? If I could have attended The Last Supper probably. What is your favorite Joanna Newsom song? Either Emily or Cosmia. Once I had Emily stuck in my head for a week or so, though it is a very complex and long song. You write, do design work, apparel, drawings. Is there any medium you would like to work with but have yet to? Right now I'm really in love with music, and have been playing ukulele for a year now; I'm trying to write a little assortment of songs to record. But, I am also trying to focus on my current media, as I am desiring a more specific profession. How did you develop your drawing style? Has it changed since you started? When I was younger, I read and reread this book on drawing and the author had a very quirky, simple style, and I think that influenced me a lot. While at RISD I definitely loosened up a bit. I've also realized I've become increasingly interested in pattern, which I've always been attracted to, but doing textile work definitely encouraged that. Also, my interest in graphic symbolism has increased, since doing more design work. How do you begin a poem? With an idea, image, or rhythm? I'd say idea and image most often. Typically, it stems from an emotion associated with a visual memory, and then includes any sort of imagery / sensations that were there or I feel resemble that emotion. Sometimes, it's more so words that I find myself repeating, like in a rhythm.  As an artist, how do you determine which medium you would like to work in for a particular piece? How does this choice help execute your ideas for the piece?
With probably too much testing. I enjoy trying out different media until I find one that I think suits it best, and sometimes along the way the idea adjusts or becomes more developed, but often I have my plan solidified beforehand. Outside of art and poetry, how do you fuel your imagination? I read fiction; lately I'm in love with Murakami and J.D. Salinger. I obsess over music: Mitski and Car Seat Headrest are constantly on my playlists right now. Or I go on walks around my neighborhood. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? Exploring your interests is fun and necessary, but it is not wrong to decide upon a specific profession. You don't have to be a Da Vinci; I think this is an idea that can be harbored at art school, and that I've come to realize is an unhelpful misconception. Find Taylor's work here and follow her on Instagram. Check out her Atomic Flyswatter Online poems. Stop by her blog. Photo Credit: Taylor Pannell
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The first book, practically completed, is composed of traditional narrative alternating with news clippings, letters, and diaries and—my favorite epistolary gimmick—the exhibit signs in the Beacon Light Museum which shamelessly present bogus facts about everything on display. You could also describe the book as a hybridization of a travelogue or tour guide and a cheesy exposé. As always in my writing, caustic humor abounds. Every dire situation has an unexpected, often hilarious, outcome—there’s no shortage of over-the-top “comeuppance” on offer. And while I have some doubts about the effectiveness or plausibility of certain sections here and there, I’m unequivocally enthralled with the concluding chapter, which, I predict will come as a very pleasant surprise to the reader who remains on the bus for the entire tour. The second book, Beacon City Concordia, will concern itself with the many love affairs amongst the various residents—including the springtime liaisons and matings of animals in the Beacon Zoo. It will also delve into the attempts made by municipal authorities to coordinate the lighthouse beam with a laser on the Concord Space Station as a publicity stunt. Everyone’s favorite character, the Devil, will make a guest appearance. The final part of the triptych, Beacon City Centennial, is about the 2020 World’s Fair in Beacon City, coinciding with its 100th Year Centennial celebration, advertised as Beacon 20/20 Vision. In that final volume, I am going to attempt something very daunting: my intention is to script a resolution for every situation, every character—human and otherwise—and every object mentioned previously. No stone will be unturned, and every narrative thread will be undangled. The reader will finally find out what happened to the unopened fortune cookie that Provost Blank, star reporter for The Beacon City Beam, dropped from the top of the PharosWheel in Confidential. Readers praise Sayville Tales for its attention to detail, wit, seamless transitions from one story to the next, among other things. What has been your experience developing your style? Any advice for writers still finding their voice? My advice might not work for everyone, because I write what I dream about. I think that makes me a nocturnal panster cannibalizing my own dreams for material, someone who should be banned from giving advice because they haven’t a clue during daylight hours. I’d have to think about what it means to have a voice. Perhaps it’s one that you hear, rather than speak with, and by that I mean—this is a bit convoluted—maybe you’ve found your own voice when your writing speaks back to you. If it sings, that’s even better. In the world of practicalities, I believe the best method for finding your true voice is through the crafting of short stories. Never mind that Shirley Jackson wrote The Lottery in two hours at her kitchen table—writing short stories is very difficult, much harder than the public realizes. It’s said by some writers that a great short story is harder to write than a good novel. I won’t weigh in, because to me it’s bananas and apples, but it’s something to be taken into account when embarking on a project and you don’t know what direction to go in. After you’ve written a dozen different types of shorties, you will have a good idea of what works for your readers and what feels like a satisfying accomplishment to you. That last part is the most important because if what you’re doing is marvelous only in the eyes of others, you will not enjoy a lifetime of authorship. It will be no different than a job with a horrible boss. Most unfulfilling and not what fortune put you here for. Try to find your voice in the middle of this muddle, something that pleases some of the audience and all of you. My blog is featuring a series of articles about the ins-and-outs of the shortie universe. You might look there over the next few months and see if you find something helpful. And the blog enables you to ask me questions, which I welcome.  Audiences also comment that Sayville Tales features a brilliant personification of the Devil. Were there any must-have qualities you had in mind when creating his character in your book? Like The Canterbury Tales (which Sayville Tales takes as its point of departure), Sayville Tales is about travelers who agree to pass the time telling stories—let’s say “just for the Hell of it.” The Devil is not a participant in Chaucer’s version, but in mine, he poses as a Professor of Folklore and prods the other passengers into joining his game of tale-trading. It’s an elaborate scheme to steal their souls, which are exposed and made vulnerable by self-revelation—think of a high-stakes poker game played with tarot cards, every card holding the secrets of one’s past and future. In this context, while he can’t stand out too much, he isn’t able to get a complete grip on his percolating braggadocio. Nor can he keep his cynical remarks fully in check. The key issue was—in answer to the question more directly—a certain degree of subtlety had to be observed by the Devil and by me. I may have taken the subtlety a bit too far—I know of a few readers who had no idea the Professor was the Devil de-horned! And, here, to amuse you, I will state for the first time publicly that my original plan was to have a twist at the end of the book that revealed that the Professor was just a loudmouth, and the real Devil was the Conductor. In an alternative universe, I guess that was a spoiler. The “Professor” tells two stories in Sayville Tales. Here comes another confession—I admit that the first story he tells, while perhaps being the best in the book, is a complete blunder on my part (pace, dear readers) because the Devil would never, never, never tell that story—there’s just too much tenderness on display. His second tale, however, hits the nail squarely. It’s very clearly the Devil being the Devil in the second tale. So, yes, he’s hiding in plain sight, and he has his agenda, and he says some hilarious things, but even at the end of the book—his entire soul-sucking plan up-ended into a complete fiasco—he still doesn’t tip his hat and show his horns to the others. Are there any versions of the Devil in fiction you think were exceptionally done? Not so much? Any version of the Devil endorsed by organized religion is on my banned list, although I’ll confess that I do love the paintings of Bosch—I qualify that by saying that what I actually love about Bosch is the unrestrained mayhem he unleashes with his paintbrush. Religion-generated Devils are strictly for the Gong Show and Saturday Night Live. That variety of Devil has gotten exceeding tiresome after hundreds of years—it’s like seeing the same horror movie over and over again and pretending to be scared. I gravitate to the French-style Mephistopheles, like the one in Gounod’s Faust. Dapper, likes the ladies, knows how to charm and flirt, can convince people down is up. Who’s more interesting to most writers and more entertaining to most readers? The serpent in the Garden of Eden or Keyser Söze? Did any of the situations in Sayville Tales actually occur in real life? Oh, yes! The first one that comes to mind is the story about the twins because it was a jawdropping, once-in-a-lifetime, can-this-really-be-happening? occurrence. Twin sisters run a talent agency for identical twins. One gets married and 95 percent of the guests at the wedding are their clients—identical twins. Mayhem on an epic scale ensues. Another is the story about the Kennedy assassination. Yes, Kennedy was assassinated. Yes, despite what some fools say, there was someone who fired a gun behind the fence on the Grassy Knoll. Yes, there was a completely disgraceful Warren Commission Report, the greatest work of fiction America has produced since Moby Dick. But, no, Beaver Cleaver wasn’t there and he didn’t see what actually happened, and the commissioners did not give him a baseball mitt signed by Yogi Berra to keep his mouth shut. Last is the story about the radio tower in Sayville. Kaiser Wilhelm did have an enormous radio transmitter erected in Sayville using Amerian labor. It was part of the largest communication network on the planet, the precursor of today’s internet. Espionage that occurred there, detailed in the story, directly led to the sinking of the Lusitania, and the outbreak of WWI. The story is real, most of the characters are real people, the news clippings are real. Only the dialog is invented. In your work, do you prefer to build up to an ironic or humorous moment or lay subtle hints of it throughout your prose—or somewhere in between?
Most of the humor comes from subtle manipulations of language; well-crafted verbiage can expose the ridiculous nature of an ongoing situation—the joke is the 800-pound gorilla in the sentence that only you can see. These situations come about organically and unpredictably, sometimes in the editing phase. On a really lucky day, your writer’s pick-ax can strike an unexpected vein of gold or unearth a precious diamond. Most of the time, wearing your editor’s hat, you’re standing in muck and rummaging through lumps of coal. It’s all in day’s work. Three things I’ve always been amused by in life that elbow their way into my writing are cluelessness, out-of-control behavior, and chain reactions. The second two require a certain amount of scaffolding to be fully effective. In particular, I love the completely outrageous conclusion to The Wife of Bathbaum’s Tale in Sayville Tales where a doting mother is forced by constant nagging into creating a snack out of… well, best not to give it away, but it’s not what you’re thinking. In Beacon City Confidential, there is a simple payback scheme that goes awry and becomes a runaway train of revenge with a gruesome and hilarious conclusion. That type of outcome has to be built up slowly and the moving parts need to be as meticulously laid out as they would be in a Rube Goldberg contraption. If not, you’ve got, at best, a comedy sketch. On the other hand, you can’t stir the stew too much without running the risk that it might end up tasting like a spoon. Follow Lawrence on Twitter and Instagram. Check out his website here. Photo credit: Lawrence Jay Switzer Matthew Duggan is a poet from Bristol UK, and composer of several collections including The Modern Orpheus, Avalon, Scenes From the Big Society, and Woodworm. His work has also been featured magazines such as The Dawntreader, Seventh Quarry, Chimera, Outlaw, Neon Highways, First Time, Cutting Teeth, Roundyhouse, and many others. His work is praised for its unique voice that evokes bold, vivid imagery while delivering the much-needed truths of contemporary society. He is also praised for giving great interviews. Like this one.  Congrats on the release of your poetry collection Woodworm. How have things been going since then?Thank you, yes it's been going really well I must admit. I’ve been taking a little break from writing and reading at various invitations from my new collection, and the response has been epic so far, I’m really pleased how this year has panned out. I also found out that I was one of the winners of the Naji Naaman Literary Prize (Honours for Complete Works) with a new collection “Flesh & Bones” and will be attending the award ceremony early next year.
Maria Castro Dominguez praises Woodworm for “revealing a space of truth behind the frontispiece of lies we live in.” What do you find are critical components of authentic writing? In my writing I balance understanding of a poem to challenge the reader by using imagery that an eye can see and behold and I like to experiment with various forms and stay well away from strict and childish rhymes, though some of my work does rhyme and I prefer the cadence within a line to tackle the mind’s eye and unsettle the reader into another dimension. When writing poems, how do you balance challenging the reader's understanding with meeting their needs? I do think that sometimes a beautiful sound and sometimes the sheer decay within the human condition so the reader can decide on its own interpretation, which means they will read a poem again and again you don’t want to hear someone read and simply forget everything they’ve read. A poem shouldn’t be a puzzle, a poem should stimulate the imagination with the eye, and be memorable to the listener/reader. A poem becomes a painting with words that you’ll always remember, for me these are the critical components for authentic writing. How would you describe your performance style? What has the road to refining that style been like? I believe the reading of a poem should be different with each poem, the voice needs to deepen and engage an audience, but not in an actors voice and sometimes it should be quick and snappy and sometimes slow and direct, yet making sure the audience can hear every word and every image, eye contact is a must when reading to an audience, I’ve heard some poets who are brilliant at delivery and others that have made me cringe with embarrassment especially those that walk a treadmill of the same voice where every voice sounds the same and every delivery sounds exactly the same and when delivery is taught in a classroom it certainly will show, 9/10 I tend to switch off. Let me put it this way imagine you heard a new song by a new and upcoming pop/rock band and you loved one song, you would go and buy their latest C.D. and then you are horrified that every song sounds exactly the same, every lyric is similar, would you go and buy another C.D. from them? No… you wouldn’t would you, you might not listen to the one song you like, and then move on to the next new band. Poetry is not a commodity and we are certainly not pop stars, even though some might think they are. Is there anything you do before a performance that helps you get in the zone? It all depends on the event and the audience for me, I’ve been known to get in the zone by listening to music and breathing exercises, again, it depends on the poems I’m going to perform. I’ve listened to opera and jazz to calm my nerves and then again, I’ve listened to AC/DC and The Prodigy before events, that also helps me to be calm before I start my set. When you're working on a standalone piece or a project, do you show your work in progress to anyone? No, but then I do send poems out for consideration to journals so people can read samples from an upcoming new collection. I prefer not to plaster FB or TWITTER with poems only when they’ve been published in online journals as certain editors wouldn’t take them because they class them as being already published. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? My second full collection Woodworm came out in July 2019 and the feedback and reviews so far has been fantastic. The new book has sixty new poems and a 3D cover (3D glasses come free with each order). The book is available through bookshops and amazon but I would prefer that people buy direct from me which they can via http://www.paypal.me/MattDuggan0 or via my website http://www.woodwormpoetrycollection.com where you can read reviews and find out more about the book and projects and collections. I have a few new projects that I’m working on, and have a new collection “The Kingdom” (Maytree Press) due out in April 2020 which will coincide with a third reading tour in Boston and New York. I’m also working on a third full collection and am in the middle of organizing a collaboration with another poet for a small collection of ten poems on the theme of TRUTH. Follow Matthew on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. Photo Credit: Matthew Duggan Janine Caroline is a contemporary romance and women's fiction writer with a background in film. She is the author of novel I Look at You and Smile released in 2018. She also gives great interviews, like the one below.  You've got your second novel Don't Forget Me in the works. Can you share any details with us? Yes, I’ve been working hard on this novel and I’m excited about publishing it next year. Don’t Forget Me is about two people drawn together by a tragic incident and their search for answers. It’s a raw, emotional story about love, hope and truth with themes of mental health, childhood abandonment and loss. The book blends together romance, mystery, suspense and psychological thriller, but it didn’t start out that way. This story pushes me as a writer, leads me where it wants to go and I’m enjoying the journey it’s taking me on. What got you into writing? Any advice to folks wanting to pursue the dream? At eight years old I won a school writing competition and remember thinking “Yeah, this making stuff up and writing it down is cool!” I was always writing short stories, poems and song lyrics after that, but it was more of a hobby. During my film and media degree I got into writing screenplays which sparked the desire to write a book. It took me quite a few years to pursue the dream but I’m so glad that I did. My advice for anyone who wants to pursue writing is to just go for it. As much as I love writing it takes hard work and discipline, and self-doubt can stop a lot of writers from finishing a book. Push through it, write for yourself and if it helps pretend no one is going to read it. This allows you to open yourself up, lose any inhibitions, listen to your characters and remain true to the story you’re writing. Readers applaud I Look at You and Smile for its suspense and emotional impact. Many elude to a twist they didn't see coming. How did you go about building up to this twist? What helps you keep readers guessing? I built suspense around the main characters (Jess and Ethan) from the beginning so readers would anticipate something bad was going to happen. Jess has recurring dreams in which she sees herself in danger and Ethan is troubled by something in his past, which is slowly revealed throughout the story. A good twist guides you into thinking one way and then flips on you. I didn’t intend I Look at You and Smile to be all about the twist though; it’s a love story with friendships, family bonds and loss. People who guessed the twist have commented on how they fell for the characters and enjoyed Jess and Ethan’s journey to love, and I can’t ask for more than that. In a genre where chemistry is critical in more ways than one, the relationship between Jess and Ethan is praised for hitting all the right notes. What are your must haves in creating that bond between characters? The characters must be relatable with traits and predicaments that make readers want to root for them. There has to be an initial spark even if it’s subtle. I like my characters to gradually learn more about each other, to laugh and cry together, feel empathy and show raw emotions. Of course, sexual attraction and intimacy is vital. I’m also a sucker for a good HEA. In the summary of your first novel, the line "Especially when the past isn't ready to let you go" has been buzzing in my mind since I read it. Are there any lines/quotes you've come across lately that have stuck with you? “Have enough courage to trust love one more time and always one more time.” Maya Angelou As someone who writes romance this quote has stuck with me. I like the idea of never giving up on love no matter what you’ve been through in the past, of being open to finding love, and trusting in love again.  With your experience and knowledge of film, are there any skills you've picked up that help you with novel writing? Do you come across any big differences between writing for the screen vs print?
Screenplays taught me about plot development and dialogue which has helped me with novel writing. I often visualize what I’m writing as if it’s a film scene, which also helps if I’m having trouble getting the atmosphere right. With a screenplay you don’t have the luxury of getting into a character’s head and the time to explore things in the same detail as you do with a novel. If I Look at You and Smile was being adapted for the silver screen, who'd be your dream cast? Director? This question isn’t as easy to answer as I first thought. I’d be honoured if even one of the following actors were in the movie version of I Look at You and Smile. Some are on the list because I think they are cool but I’m not sure what character they would play: Naomie Harris, Lititia Wright, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Idris Elba, Jason Momoa, Zac Efron and Amma Asante as director. As a film buff, what are some of your favorite movies? My taste in film is so varied, anything from The Godfather to It’s a Wonderful Life. Some random goodies are: Set it Off, Pulp Fiction, Love Actually and Muriel’s Wedding. I have a thing for old movies; I like a good Hitchcock film and anything with Audrey Hepburn in it. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? I really appreciate everyone who takes the time to read/review my books and I love receiving feedback. I’m looking forward to releasing Don’t Forget Me in 2020 and if you’d like to keep up to date with my work you can follow me on social media. Website: https://www.janinecaroline.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/janinecarolineauthor/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/JCarolineAuthor I Look at You and Smile is available from Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07FKX8SYZ Photo Credit: Janine Caroline Tyler Nichols is a fiction writer, screenwriter, and Spider-Man super fan. He also runs YouTube channel Zombievictim, which you should check out after reading this interview: What are you working on right now? I’m about halfway through the sequel to The Crimson Summer titled, Crimson High. While the first book was essentially my own version of “Friday the 13th,” this second one is more my version of “Scream.” So, while it’s been a lot of fun to write, I also feel like it needs to be smart and logical, which can be tough since it’s set in an active town, not some camp in the middle of nowhere. Cellphones are currently the bane of my existence. When writing a slasher-style book like The Crimson Summer where no one is safe, were there any characters you still found yourself becoming attached to/rooting for? Going into any slasher, there’s a certain expectation that most of the characters are going to die, so I didn’t have much of a problem offing campers in the first one. Although, I will say that I called an audible on the death of one of the counselors, mainly because I felt it would affect the overall story too much. Plus I really liked her. And in Crimson High, there’s a character death that was really tough for me to write because I like the character so much, and had grown so attached to them. But, their death helps propel the story forward, so it felt essential. Because once you start killing off characters just to do it, you lose any impact.  What makes or breaks dialogue for you? What do you love about writing it? As long as it sounds natural, then I’m all for it. Sometimes people can get too robotic with their dialogue and it may be moving the story along, but it’s not presenting the characters in any sort of realistic light. It’s probably why I have a decent amount of swearing in my writing, just because that’s what the people in my life (and even myself) sound like. Dialogue has always stuck out to me and affects all my writing. My prose is very conversational, which can be a bit of a detriment to Grammar sometimes, but I’d rather something come off naturally, than technically correct. I love it because it’s the easiest aspect to write and often feels like it’s just flowing out of me. As long as I know the characters backwards and forwards, I pretty much just have to introduce the scene and then I just transcribe whatever plays out, almost like watching a movie and taking notes. You've got a lot of really cool stuff going on with your YouTube channel including Franchise Chat, Insomnia Theatre, a few short films, reviews, gaming videos—plus you've got more projects coming up. What's involved in creating one of these videos (ex. equipment, storyboards, scheduling)? A lot more work than you’d think. Equipment-wise, I have a DSLR, audio recorder, a boom mic, as well as a crapload of lights. It’s fairly professional for something I film in my bedroom. I don’t storyboard or even really script anything, because I want it to come off as naturally as possible. At most, there’s bullet points set up on my iPad that I can glance at occasionally. I think I’m more charismatic when I can just hit the red button and go. But it also means a lot more editing. That’s where 90% my time goes to. The videos usually take between 5-10 hours to finish, sometimes twice that depending on the length and how many cuts/ancillary footage I have. But mostly I just do videos that interest me, because I think that makes the videos more entertaining, which is the main goal. You’ve hinted at doing something different on your channel for Halloween this year—if you’re able to share any more details? My plan is actually to do horror recommendations for every day of October. That way people can get ideas for stuff to watch, play, or even read to get in the spirit of the holiday. I always love Halloween so doing something special for October is always on my mind. How would you say your experience working in film influences your writing? It’s made me realize that you have to write to your own experience, not what you think will be popular. Hollywood is constantly chasing what’s “in” and I’d rather be the one to start those trends than to follow them. Which is why I do my own thing. The whole reason I wrote my first book is because I always wanted to read a slasher book, but those don’t really exist. It also taught me that reality TV is the devil (though I think I already knew that). Are there any horror tropes you love to hate? Hate that you love? I’m actually a really big fan of tropes in horror because I feel like following them can help you establish the rules, and then show your creativity by subverting them. Because if you train your audience’s expectations, you can really shock them when the change happens. I genuinely love the trope of “The Final Girl” simply because so many of my favorite films feature them: Halloween, A Nightmare On Elm Street, Alien. I will say though, I hate the “sad ending just because its horror” kind of finale. If the story is building to evil being defeated, and the heroes succeeding, then do that. Don’t bring the bad guy back just because you want to shock audiences. It’s a big reason why I love the film “Lights Out” because they avoid doing that, despite it seeming like that’s the direction they’re heading in.  With the remakes and reboots of movies like Child's Play and Halloween, what impact do you think these new installments have on their respective franchises? On the horror genre?
I think they’re great because they bring more people into the franchise that wouldn’t have otherwise. As much as I love some older horror films, I understand younger people not understanding them because they don’t understand the context for the era they were made in. The original Halloween may not illicit anything from a teen, but the new one just might because it’s more relatable to them. And honestly, I’ve never been someone against reboots/remakes. As long as it’s good, then I’m all for it. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? It’s been three years since Crimson Summer and I’m always being asked about a sequel so I guess I should touch on that. I’ve written half of the book and hope to have the rest of it done by the Spring. I’m shooting for a Fall 2020 release. It follows our survivors from the first book, Chase and Liz, as they enter their Senior Year of High School, one year after the events at Camp Watanka. And my Youtube channel “Zombievictim” has a new video every Friday so if you love horror content, be sure to check it out. Pick up a copy of The Crimson Summer here. Follow Tyler on Instagram and Twitter and check out his site. Photo Credit: Tyler Nichols Jesse Lee Hockman, is an artist and illustrator based out of Raleigh, North Carolina. The best way to find his art work is either www.facebook.com/jessdrawingthings or www.instagram.com/jessdrawingthings. In a Facebook post you mention that for the month of September you're challenging yourself to do a drawing a day. How has this been going so far? Yes! It is going great! Well, minus one day. This past weekend I got a little sick and wasn't able to complete a piece on Saturday night. Not for the lack of trying though, I spent 3 hours trying to flesh out ideas but I couldn't make anything work. Otherwise though it has been fantastic. I've themed these drawings around the idea of children interacting with imaginary creatures. The creatures are constantly departing words of encouragement or advice to the child. These phrases that I use as titles are things that I constantly remind myself all the time or motto's I try to keep in my daily life. I hope that if I can keep this central idea through out the month i may be able to turn it into some sort of book and maybe kickstart it. How did you learn your craft? Drawing was something I have technically done since I was a child. At the age of nineteen I decided to take it more seriously and eventually enrolled in a liberal arts college. I graduated with a degree in art studio with a concentration in drawing and a minor in art history. Ultimately though, my greatest amount of learning came after college. I've devoured every tutorial art video on youtube that I felt could teach me something, it didn't matter if it was a technical tutorial, about the psychology of art or the business side. I really believe that greatest thing I learned about making art is that you have to slow down and enjoy the process more than the end product. When did you realize you wanted to be an artist? At the age of nineteen. It was a rough moment in my life. I had been going to school for computer engineering at a state school and struggled to enjoy the subject matter. During my second year, my father passed away from an experimental treatment that was suppose to aid in fighting the brain tumor he had. The treatment was known to increase chances of blood clots and we believe one ended up in his lungs. With his passing I stepped back and asked myself "What do I really enjoy in life?". This question wasn't answered easily. It took me dropping out of school and moving back home for a while to figure out that art was the answer. Your about section notes that you mostly work in graphite. What attracts you to this medium? How does it help you execute your ideas? The thing that attracts me to graphite is it's simplicity. It is one of the simplest ways to make art but can lead to the most complicated pieces. I do enjoy other mediums but all my pieces start as a pencil drawing, when I sit down to make a piece all I have to do is grab a pencil and paper. There is no setting up paints and water and finding the right brush or prepping a canvas. It's just a piece of paper and pencil. It's also a very forgiving medium if you have a delicate hand. I can work though ten to twenty ideas on a piece of paper without having to worry about getting a new piece of paper because I can always either erase or incorporate any stray marks. This all culminates to the the idea that drawing is the most basic form of representational art and graphite is the easiest way to execute an idea quickly but maintain the energy of a gesture and the tightness of precision. Do you face any challenges in translating your ideas to the page? If any, what helps you overcome them? Any artist that tells you they don't is lying. Their reaction to those challenges is really what matters and probably determines their answer to this question. Personally, I struggle often and it is usually due to my state of mind or my environment. I've come to learn that having anything that will pull my mind away from the work at hand will cause frustration. To counter this I listen to music with only instrumentation and no lyrics and I don't leave the TV on or listen to podcasts during this part. The rendering portion of art making is much easier and I can listen to podcasts or watch television during this portion. Now on the subject of what people would typically call "artist block" or the inability to find inspiration. I'll be cliche and quote Picasso, “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” In other words, if I can't get a concept to work I will pick an object and just draw it. This just gets the creative process moving and allows me to mindlessly draw while my brain can flutter between ideas to find a way to make it work. I also have 5 or more projects going at once typically and will just work on one of them if another is giving me problems. At what point do you say “I'm done!” when working on a piece? This is probably the biggest struggle with my artistic process. I'm a perfectionist at heart and have trouble leaving things a lone that bother me. I actually have a painting right now that has already been sold but I am struggling to find what bothers me about the piece in order to finish it. Often I ask "Does this effectively express the idea and emotions I want it to?" and "Is the highest level of quality and skill I'm capable of reached?". If I answer yes to both or just one of these questions I am usually willing to call a piece done. Are you experimenting with any techniques, materials, or concepts right now?
I've recently took a dive back into oil painting. It's been a few years since I had really worked in this medium. I'm kinda bumbling my way through right now. I do have a plan to adjust my work flow to speed things up and come out with a better end product. I jumped right into painting quite a bit lately without fully fleshing out the ideas. This has lead to some frustration. My plan for future works is to fully flush out a drawing at the size of the intended final product and mount a copy to a board. This will allow me to paint directly over my drawing and not have find the proportions or have to render everything completely over again. Outside of drawing, how do you fuel your imagination? The easiest way to fuel the imagination is to experience life and what others have to offer. I step away from the art. Travel, hiking, rock climbing(my other love in life) or experiencing new things is the only way I know to inform my art better. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? I'd just like to reiterate that if you spend all of your time working and not experiencing what life has to offer then your art will suffer for it. As an artists we are typically the more introverted types and would rather sit at home or in the studio and just work. But getting out and meeting people that have similar interests or very different ones can help a lot. Art is a form of communicating our experiences and emotions for the world to interpret in a visual way. If you don't have those experiences you can't communicate effectively. Photo credit to the artist. Arly Carmack is a fiction writer and author of novel Nineteen. She's an author to keep an eye on with more books to come.  Your site hints that you have a follow-up to Nineteen in the works called Twenty-One set to be released this December. How has this been going?
Thanks for asking! Twenty-One is complete and I’ve edited it twice. Now I’m working on a final edit and sending it off to a beta reader. Editing is an odd thing for me. I will procrastinate for a while, then I’ll get a huge chunk done. When you are so close to something, especially something that has taken five years to make, it’s hard to look at it objectively and slice out things that don’t bring any value to the characters or the story. But with Nineteen, I found that process to be satisfying when I got the end result, so I need to keep that in mind while I’m editing Twenty-One. As you've been working on this project, has the current version changed much since you've first started? Has anything surprised you about it as you've been writing it? In the original version of Nineteen, there were a few dumped storylines that delved more into Cameron’s connection to music and being a musician. The main purpose for my final edit of Twenty-One is to make sure I didn’t miss any references to things I ended up cutting. I also added a new character who was meant to be miserable, annoying, and a bit of an antagonist, but it took a turn and I ended up enjoying him tremendously. I’m hoping the readers will embrace him, too. He’s going to be a major player when the series wraps up. In addition to Twenty-One, you have several other projects in the works—including a novel, novella, and an untitled project. What helps you keep your momentum? Do you find yourself balancing several projects at once, or do you prefer to complete one before starting another? Being able to choose what you work on is the lovely thing about being an independent author. I can put something to bed for a while and work on whatever I’m feeling passionate about at that moment, or start something new. If I get bored with my writing, I just open another project and see if I’m feeling it. If I were a traditionally-published writer, I’d probably adopt a process of making outlines, creating timelines, and setting goals. I would have to be more efficient and methodical because I'd be answering to a publisher. For now, writing is my escape, so I don’t want to turn it into another thing to check off my to-do list. My violin teacher always tells me, “It’s a marathon, not a sprint,” so that’s going to be my motto for writing as well. It’s a journey and I don’t know exactly where I will end up. What is your experience writing first drafts like? Do you have any advice for fellow writers working through round one? I try to write the first draft like it’s going to be the final draft. The less I have to change later, the better. My first drafts seem to be about twenty to thirty thousand words heavier than they need to be, so most of the editing I do is eliminating redundancy, dropping dead plots, and making sure the voice of the project stays consistent. I think writing is like almost anything else. Do it your way, do what works for you, and if something doesn’t work for you don’t be afraid to change the process. Writing is an art and there is no right or wrong in art. When you have a story idea, at what point do you know what form it will take on? I’ll admit it – I’m a pantser! I don’t outline anything. For me, a story is like a little plant in my head. I water it, wait to see if it grows. Some ideas take a much longer time to grow than others. The story itself isn’t my main focus. Once I have a solid character, I can usually take off from there. My stories aren’t plot-driven, rather character and dialogue-driven, so it flows fairly well because I know what my characters are going to say and do. I just have to put them in situations. Then the characters and dialogue are driven by the situation, and it all works together. I start every project by getting to know the main character. For everything else, I fly by the seat of my pants. What appeals to you most about writing fiction? Satisfying my inherent need to understand people. I have an obsession with wanting to know what motivates people, and most of what I write is born from that. When you aren't writing, what are you up to? We have a great park system where I live, and I enjoy walking around and taking pictures with my vintage cameras. I like to develop some of my own film. I’ve been slowly purchasing darkroom equipment and am hoping to get that going soon. Aside from that, I like to go to thrift shops. That’s always fun. I’ve also been studying the violin for a little over a year. I have a wonderful teacher. Is there anything else you'd like readers to know? I appreciate their support and that they’ve taken the time to read my book. It means the world to me when I hear that someone has enjoyed it. There will definitely be more to come and I welcome their feedback. Pick up a copy of Nineteen here. Find Arly on Instagram and check out her website. Photo Credit: Arly Carmack  R. J. Wade is a fiction writer and author of YA dystopian action adventure novel Aura. She also gives great interviews. Like this one.
First of all, congrats on the recent release of your novel, Aura. How have things been going? Thank you! It has been going well. It’s such a strange feeling when you’ve been working away on something for so long to finally put it out into the world - I felt sick with nerves the day before publication, knowing that my book would be landing on the Kindles of my friends and family the next morning! The response has been great though and I’ve had some wonderful reviews. Making time for marketing the book as well as writing the next one is taking some getting used to. I’m really having to battle with the social media time suck and trying to resist the urge to check my notifications every five minutes! Readers are already praising Aura for its "heart-stopping twists" and comment that they couldn't put it down. What devices do you like to employ/what helps you keep us guessing until the end? I’m a massive fan of Shawn Coyne and the Story Grid so I'd like to think that studying that methodology has helped. It's a really useful tool for plotting out scenes and making sure that each scene has a value shift to keep the story moving forward. I also like to keep my chapters quite short to keep readers wanting to read a little more... and a little more! Who are your influences? My favourite author is Max Barry. I love his take on things, his ideas and his sense of humour. I also love Michael Crichton, Suzanne Collins, Malorie Blackman, S.J. Watson, Scott Westerfeld and Blake Crouch. I’m a fan of thrillers, YA and sci-fi and I tend to read in those genres. What are your thoughts on the ebook revolution? How do you think going digital is changing the game for readers? Writers? I think for readers and writers, digital has made the route to entry so much easier. Writers can get their words out into the world with the push of a button and readers can discover more books and authors than ever before. Books aren’t cheap and it's much easier to take a punt on a new author with a free book or a book that costs a couple of dollars to download. On the flip side, it means there are so many more books out there and it is harder to make your book visible. I was in a band before being a writer so I know the blessings and curses of digital all too well! I think curation is going to become more and more important in the coming years. What's your process like? I’m a plotter! I started out writing into the dark or ‘pantsing’ as they say but I quickly ended up writing myself into a corner and getting really stuck. I discovered K. Weiland's books on outlining and structure and became a plotter from that point on. I have a pin board and index cards and I use those to put the skeleton of the story together. Once I have the outline it doesn't mean that it is set in stone though, and I do deviate and re-plot as new ideas emerge. I write with Scrivener and I like to write first thing on a morning so that no matter what happens during the rest of the day, I know my writing is done. I try to get at least an hour of writing done before I go to work. Do you begin a project with a theme in mind, or does it emerge for you as you go? The theme emerged as I went along. I definitely needed to get to the end of the first draft to work out what it was I was getting at! What do you think attracts readers to stories about Big Brother-type societies? On some level I think the constrictions and rules in these kind of societies mirror how we often feel in real life - especially when we're younger. We feel we're not in control, we're powerless, we're unable to express ourselves... When the downtrodden hero takes a stand and tears down the evil dystopian regime, it gives us hope that we can take control and have agency in our own lives. I also think people are just generally really interested in where all of this technology and surveillance is going as it encroaches ever more into our lives. Is there anything else you would like readers to know? I would like them to know that I am very grateful to them for reading this far and they can sign up for my mailing list and get a FREE Aura Extras PDF featuring juicy exclusive content right here: www.RJWadeBooks.com/extras Buy Aura here. Follow R. J. Wade on Instagram , Facebook, and Twitter. Patrick Canning is the author of two novels: The Colonel and the Bee and Cryptofauna. If you're looking for an adventure on every page with a cast of interesting characters--look no further!  Readers praise Cryptofauna for its humor. To you, what’s the most important thing to keep in mind when writing humor? Do you prefer to build up to the joke or let the hilarity arise on its own?
Ideally, it would seem like the hilarity has arisen on its own, but hopefully it’s been crafted, and so a skill you can repeat. Forced humor (which, hopefully I’m not too guilty of) is definitely one of my least favorite things to come across in a book. It’s even somewhat mentioned in Cryptofauna: “Jim smiled politely. As was the case with many people, he’d always found the effort Oz employed to try and be funny was inversely related to how funny he was at any given moment. Humor was a cow on the railroad tracks or a catheter tube two sizes too big: trying to force it didn’t do anyone any favors.” Has publishing affected your writing process? Any advice/insights you could give to fellow writers? At the moment, I’m only self-published and indie-published, so I haven’t gone through the whole traditional publishing experience yet. I recently read some great advice from Henry Miller, so I’ll just pass that along in place of any ramblings I might have: “Cement a little every day, rather than add new fertilizers. Don’t be nervous. Work calmly, joyously, recklessly on whatever is in hand. Forget the books you want to write. Think only of the book you are writing.” All great stuff. In an interview you mention you came to novel writing through screenwriting. Are there any skills you picked up while screenwriting that have helped you in writing novels? A good carryover from screenwriting is the demand that every scene (and really every word) have a purpose. Since screenplays are only around 120 pages, every space on the page is precious real estate, which encourages writing that does a lot with a little. Novels can certainly be more atmospheric and take their time to some degree, but unless the style is challenging the rule intentionally, I think a general attitude of brevity, or at least efficiency, is always good advice, especially for newer writers. As a lover of movies, what are your top three favorite and why? Ooh, favorites are probably Rear Window, O Brother Where Art Thou?, and Heat. Those are three I can watch over and over again and only love more. Now I’m going to cheat and add more. Three empirically perfect movies: Silence of the Lambs, Spirited Away, Chinatown, and three that are too funny to leave out: Shaun of the Dead, Bad Santa, Wayne’s World. Lynda Berry once said, “We don’t create a fantasy world to escape reality, we create it to be able to stay.” What are your thoughts? Yes! Agree a billion percent (assuming I understand the quote anyway). The ability to escape reality is 100% essential for human life on Earth. People do it in a million different ways, and I think reading is one of the healthier and more rewarding options available. As a storyteller yourself, do you believe the art of telling a story is a gift or is it a skill that can be learned? This is a tough one. I think some people are more likely to be successful in certain fields, just based on innate talent. Will alone is probably enough to overcome any debt in natural ability, but would have to come with one hell of a focused goal and immaculate discipline. People seem to find success at the intersection of things they’re good at and things they enjoy. Plus hard work. So I guess it’s one of those confusing, triple intersections where there are lots of car accidents. Having said all that, I think practicing craft can improve absolutely anyone’s storytelling, no matter their starting point. So here it comes—what’s next for you? I have a domestic suspense novel that takes place in a Chicago suburb in the late 80’s, somewhat based on my own childhood. I’ve just started querying with that so I don’t know when it will be available, but hopefully months not years. Then I have three new books in various stages and a few shorts to finish up as well. I also have an upcoming dentist appointment so I’m off to floss, a.k.a. massacre my gums, so I can pretend I've been doing it all along. Is there anything you would like readers to know? I’m going to try and learn to cross-stitch so I can sew pictures of all the planets. If anyone has any tips, please let me know! Check him out on Instagram and find his site here! Photo Credit: Patrick Canning DK Marie's a voracious reader. Her number one love is romance and devours any and all of its genres, but also enjoys thrillers, horror, and non-fiction. Basically, if there are words on a page and a spectacular story, she's diving in, heart and soul. However, there's one thing she loves even more, and that's writing her own steamy contemporary romances. They're a mixture of heart, heat, and humor. Brimming with confident heroines and kind heroes, all living, loving, and lusting in and around her hometown of Detroit, Michigan. When not falling in love with her characters, DK Marie is laughing, relaxing, and planning her next adventure with her family. Okay, and also drinking boatloads of coffee, chatting on social media, and dreaming about her next travel destination.  What was your first thought when you saw the cover for Fairy Tale Lies? First thought: Holy crap! This is real! I’m going to be a published author (and I may have done a little happy dance). Then I was filled with extreme satisfaction. My publisher, Champagne Book Group, asked for detailed information on what I like and dislike in a book cover. Also, the descriptions of the main characters. They took it all into account, right down to Jacob’s blue eyes. Needless to say, I was smitten with the cover. You've received a ton of praise on Goodreads and Amazon. Are you the kind of author to read about yourself online? How do you deal with criticism? I have read the reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. They are so important to an author, not only do they help with the algorithms within those sites, but they also assist readers in deciding if they're going to pick it up or not. So, I will check periodically to see my numbers. I will also use the reviews when posting on my social media accounts. You know, have a picture of my book along with a sentence from a review. Again, it shows possible readers that others, besides me, think Fairy Tale Lies is great. Depends on the criticism. Say, someone bashes my book because they don’t like how a character acted or the storyline, I brush it aside. Writing is art. We don’t all like the same painting or photos, so I don’t expect everyone to enjoy my style of writing. If it is from my editor or beta readers, I consider it very seriously and decide if changes need to be made. Do you ever feel vulnerable releasing steamy content to the public? I did more so at the start of my writing career. I had to push aside the whole “What would X think?” thoughts. If I didn’t, I would freeze up and not write as I wished, create the stories I wanted to read. Many people love steamy romances, me included, and I am writing for them. I remember this and push the rest aside. Now, since releasing my book and sharing my sensual poetry online, I’ve gained more confidence, and have the whole attitude: You don’t like it, don’t read it.  Does your family read your writing? Some of them do, and some don’t, but all of them support my career. You said in your interview with Sam Hendricks (link below) that "love is found in the most unlikely places and doesn’t follow the pre-conceived notion that women were taught as little girls reading and watching Disney fairy tales." What would you say truly separates real life love from the Disney stories? http://sjhendricks.com/indie-author-series/an-interview-with-author-d-k-marie Real life is way more difficult. Lol. In all seriousness, I was referring to the older Disney fairy tales, where the women were passive, always waiting for a prince to save them. Even as a kid, I scoffed at this. I wanted to save myself. To be independent. I wanted to love a man for him and not what he could give me. Most girls and women today don’t want their power and happiness to be provided or obtained by a man. The woman I write for are the ones that want to find all this on their own, and fall in love with a man that enriches their life but doesn’t rule it. Anyway, recent Disney fairy tales are getting better. They have stronger female leads and more ethnicity, and the guy is part of the team. The man and woman are in charge of their Happily-Ever-Afters. What is your favorite part of the creative process? I love it when the first draft is done. I no longer have to worry if I’ll finish the story or how long it will take. Instead, I get to read through it all, find what works and doesn’t, along with adding in the details that layer and enrich the story. My favorite part writing each story is writing the dialogue and chemistry growing and igniting between the main characters.  Do you prefer writing poetry or prose? Depends. On Twitter and Instagram, I prefer poetry over prose. I have friends that are fantastic with prose and flash-fiction, I struggle with it. Whereas, the words flow easier with poetry. This always surprises me because I’ve only been writing it for about a year. Plus, I find poetry has improved me as a writer, has helped me insert more emotion in my stories. What was the greater challenge? Establishing your story with Fairy Tale Lies or continuing it with the sequel? Definitely establishing Fairy Tale Lies. As I write each story, secondary characters begin shouting at me to have their story told, so I tell them. When it is their turn, I'm not starting from scratch, as I did with Jacob and Greta. In the books that follow, I already know a little bit about them, including a few of their wounds and flaws (which are both so important when writing character-driven stories). I am scheduled to write four books for this series, but two more characters are whispering for me to tell their story. We shall see if I tell them. Your about me mentions an appreciation of theater. What are some of the best shows you've seen? I am fortunate and have been ushering at a theater in Detroit for the last three years, so I’ve seen a lot of shows. My top five would be: Phantom of the Opera (this is the first show I ever saw, back when I was a teenager, and it began my love affair with the theaters) Hamilton The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Kinky Boots Book of Mormon  dThanks again to DK Marie for the awesome answers! Do yourself a favor and visit the following links below:
Her Official Website: https://dkmarie.com/ Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Fairy-Tale-Lies-Opposites-Attract-ebook/dp/B07RGKLCQQ Twitter: https://twitter.com/dkmarie2216s?lang=en Her Publisher, Champagne Book Group: http://champagnebooks.com/store/content/category/1-home Check out our page on Fairy Tale Lies for the Juniper Grove Book Tour! https://www.longshotbooks.com/juniper-grove-book-tour/fairy-tale-lies-by-dk-marie-blitz |
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