Q&A

DISCLAIMER: THIS PAGE IS A WORK-IN-PROGRESS. THERE WILL BE MORE Qs AND As COMING.

Q: Who is my favourite author/s?

A: Hands down, the author who I admire most, and who influenced me with his breadth of genre writing, is Robert McCammon. This dude, whilst a legend in the field, and one of the founders of the Horror Writers Association, is in my opinion, still overlooked. His stories are always gripping and action-packed, and filled with memorable characters: from a vampire onslaught taking over L.A. in They Thirst, a small New Mexican town becoming trapped under an energy dome (written long before Stephen King’s Under the Dome) and feasted on by terrifying bio mechanical aliens in Stinger, to a sprawling and epic apocalyptic tale of good versus ultimate evil in Swan Song, these stories had such a monumental impact on me. His prose always created vivid pictures in my impressionable mind, and managed to simultaneously keep me on the edge of my seat and glued to the page. And of course, let’s not forget other genre-hopping gems such as The Wolf’s Hour, Gone South, Mystery Walk, Boy’s Life, and a load of others. In summary, I’ve yet to read a Robert McCammon novel I haven’t enjoyed, and his fusions between the supernatural and action spectacle have yet to be surpassed in my own personal opinion.Stalking quietly up behind Mr McCammon, and in no particular order, are Dan Simmons and F. Paul Wilson, for further exemplary displays of thrills and chills. Both of these authors, and their excellent works always pop into my head when I try to pin-down my influences: from Simmons’ Carrion Comfort, Summer of Night, and Joe Kurtz trilogy; and predominantly Wilson’s awesome Repairman Jack saga. I must also mention Clive Barker, seeing as how his prose flows like poetry, from the most vile evil, to euphoric beauty. Plus, his imagination has devised some of the most hideous and iconic beasts committed to page, canvas and celluloid.

Q:How would I describe my writing style?

I love scene setting. Guilty as charged. I love prose which light up the interior of the reader’s skull like a cinema screen, so naturally, that’s what I strive for in my own writing. I’m also an advocate for big action scenes which jump off the page, which is something I painfully toil over, whether it’s a shoot-out with mobsters, supernatural slaughtering of monsters, or simply a panting and wheezing chase scene, I want the action to come alive. Essentially, my purpose as a writer is to create beautiful and obscene chaos across the overlapping genres of urban fantasy, noir thriller, and horror. Hell, if I ever attempted to write a children’s book or saccharine romance, they would inevitably be leaking blood and reeking of gun smoke.