Tobias
Christopher: Well, I born on the wagon of a traveling show, mama had to dance
for the money they stole, papa would- oh, wait. Tobias Christopher is a writer,
movie watcher and some would say slightly not all there. I kid, no one ever
said slightly.
DF: Where do you live and what do
you do to keep yourself in cheese and crackers?
TC: I live
in Greenwood, Indiana and I currently work in the slave mines of Wal-Mart.
DF: What writers have influenced
you?
TC: Mark
Waid and Grant Morrison in terms of comics since they were the writers whose
stories first really got me into the comic scene with the Flash and JLA. In
terms of books, Stephen King and Mark Twain were huge influences, but a really
special shout out goes Pat Frank, the writer of Alas, Babylon, who
inadvertantly inspired my first foray into fanfiction during an English
assignment in high school. We were tasked with writing an alternate ending to
the story. Things got insanely dark (my teacher even commented that I might
have taken things a bit far) and I started to realize where my passion for
storytelling would take me.
DF: Let’s jump right into it: why
Fan Fiction?
TC: Because
whenever I watch a movie or TV show, or read a book, I almost always ask myself
"What if this character did this? Or what kind of adventures would he/she
have after this? Or what's that guy in the background's story?" I just
love making up new adventures for characters I love, so fanfic just seemed like
a natural fit.
DF: How long have you been involved
with Fan Fiction?
TC: Officially,
since around (how long was that RPG Erik, MC and I were part of? 12- 15 years?)
I'm going to say at least 15 years. Unofficially it goes back to high school
when I was taking horror movies characters and making up new adventures for the
likes of Chucky, Gage Creed, Macauly Culkin's character in the Good Son, etc.
DF: Why should we be reading DC
Anthology and Marvel Anthology?
TC: Because
DCA offers a place for the pre-New 52 Universe to continue to grow and prosper,
and without 99% of the darkness that the actual DC Comics were putting out
there even before the New 52.
And MA I
believe gives the characters a chance to grow more since we're not shoehorning
Wolverine and Spider-Man into every title. The lesser known characters are
given a chance to step forward, like Jamie Primas' recently ended Avengers run,
which didn't rely on the big guns of the Marvel Universe.
DF: What is your favorite series
you’re writing for DC Anthology and why?
TC: Of the
two I'm writing for DCA, I'm going to say TEEN
TITANS. I'm not very far into the run, but I am enjoying the interactions
between certain characters. An upcoming issue (#12) made me realize how much I
love having Static as part of the team, and I'm looking forward to telling all
the stories I have planned for this group.
DF: What is your favorite series
you’re writing for Marvel Anthology and why?
TC: While I
love Captain America and Iceman, I'm going to go with ALPHA, the character no one seems to like. In the 10 issues I've
written so far, I've grown to love this character like he was my own. Plus I
have a huge love of Saturday Morning cartoons, which is a massive influence on
how I'm writing this series, so writing Alpha is like writing my own SMC series
DF: Detractors of Fan Fiction claim
that those who write it are wasting their time they could be using to write
original stories. What’s your response to that?
TC: Haters
gonna hate. But seriously, there's nothing saying you can't do both. You can tell stories about your favorite
characters and still make time to build your own universe with your own
original characters. I make time to do both, but of course I have no real life
to speak of.
DF: What’s the best advice you can
give someone wanting to write DC and Marvel Fan Fiction?
TC: Don't
be afraid to take chances with your characters, that's what fanfic is basically
for. And don't just rely on the huge names, use your stories to help give life
to the little guys that barely have any backstory.
DF: Are you more of a DC fan than
Marvel? Or vice versa?
TC: I'm
more of a Marvel fan these days. I've pretty much given up on DC, they've
gotten WAY too dark and serious for my liking.
DF: What’s your opinion of DC and
Marvel these days?
TC: I think
Marvel still likes to have fun with its characters. I mean, Squirrel Girl and
Howard the Duck have their own series now, if that doesn't scream 'fun', I
don't know what does. As for DC, see my answer in the last question. They're
way too dark and serious for me. A universe where guys dress up like bats to
punch killer clowns, amazon women fly around with magic lassos, and an alien
who can put on a pair of glasses and fool EVERYONE into thinking he's a
completely different person shouldn't be steeped in realism in any way
whatsoever. I think DC's missed the point of why people read comics.
DF: Is Fan Fiction a viable
alternative for those readers dissatisfied with DC and Marvel?
TC: It
depends on what you're looking for in fanfic, because there's an insane variety
of stories out there. Not just DCA/DCO/MA/MO, but fanfiction.net and dozens of
others.
DF: Why not just write original
superhero fiction?
I'm
currently writing the 4th season, although I am going back through and
*remastering* the first three seasons to fix continuity errors and such.
DF: Do you yourself have any
aspirations for writing professionally?
TC: I used
to, and sometimes I still do, but for me writing's more of a hobby than
anything. Maybe someday I'd like to get a book or two out. Lord knows I have
plenty of original stories in me for that.
DF: What’s a typical Day In The Life
of Tobias Christopher like?
TC: A lot
more boring than most people would think. Wake up, get ready for work, work for
9 hours, come home, sleep, lather, rinse, repeat. Although there is the
occassional murder attempt, but I just shrug those off and go on with my day like
most people would.
Derrick Ferguson: Anything else we
should know about Tobias Christopher?
Tobias
Christopher: Well, Tobias Christopher is actually just my pen name, taken from
a character from Animorphs (Tobias) and the first name of the actor who played
him in the horrible live action t.v. series (Christopher). Beyond that, I know
my style of writing isn't suited to everyone's taste, but I hope that those who
do read my work do enjoy what they see and hopefully come back for more.
Bex Aaron: That’s
a great question! Bex Aaron is actually something of a chameleon – I’m a little
bit of everything. A long time ago, when forced to describe myself, I came up
with, “I’m a lover, a fighter, a poet, a dreamer, a dork and a smartass…not
necessarily in that order.”
Basics: I’m
a 32-year old divorcee, who’s completely satisfied with that status. I’m an NBA
historian (I seriously know more trivia about NBA/ABA than most guys I know,
and I can quote stats like a pro), a Clippers fan, a Buddhist, a rock star, a
raging smartass, a Mac junkie, an unapologetic smoker, a bullying survivor, a
perfectionist and a master of accents.
If I had my
druthers, I’d be Canadian…and green eyed…and at least three inches taller. But
I must say, I’ve made peace with myself for the most part. It’s taken me some
time to get to this point, so it’s definitely worth heralding.
DF: Where do you live and what do
you tell the IRS you do for a living?
BA: I live
in Texas, deep in the very heart of it (clap, clap, clap). I’m not enthused
about living here. I don’t think I ever have been. I long for colder weather and
more progressive thinking.
As for my
day job, I’m a legal assistant at a personal injury law firm. My job entails
everything from client intakes, setting up insurance claims, gathering
medicals, preparing demand packages, negotiating settlements and finalizing
cases. It’s riveting stuff. Oh, and the phone never stops ringing. It is a very
stimulating environment – there’s never a dull moment, but at times, it can be
very stressful, I won’t lie. The key, at least for me, is to take a moment to
breathe and to remind myself that (in the words of my boss), that never-ending
to-do list is job security!
DF: Tell us a little something about
your background.
BA: I’m the
only child of a single mother. We were kind of like The Gilmore Girls. I had
the cool mom, the mom who not only allowed me to dye my hair pink at 14, she
also did the back because I couldn’t reach it! She is still my most steadfast
supporter and biggest fan. I’m everything I am today because of my mom, and I’m
not ashamed to admit it. My mom was the very epitome of what a mother is
supposed to be – absolutely nothing ever came ahead of me, and that’s the mother
that I someday strive to be.
My life
hasn’t really been that interesting. I dropped out of school in 9th grade, went
back and got a GED at age 19, got married sometime in my twenties, realized
what a profound mistake that was, subsequently divorced and started my life all
over. The past few years have been the most turbulent of my life, but they also
taught me a lot about myself, and I’ve come out much stronger on the other side
of them…which, I guess, is the most anyone can hope for.
DF: What’s your philosophy of
writing?
BA: I find
that writing is a form of therapy. It’s a way to release some of your pent up
tensions, it’s a way to lose yourself in someone else’s misery for a while…it’s
very therapeutic. At the same time, though, it can also be very
heart-wrenching. I am the writer that gets far too attached to their
characters. I talk about them like they’re real people, and I hate the idea of
them suffering…which is really ironic, given that I wrote the most miserable
group of people you can imagine.
DF: Do you write for yourself or for
the readers?
BA: Probably
a little bit of both. I write to be read, absolutely, but I also write because
I love these crazy people and this crazy world I’ve created. I think the
validation trap is so easy to fall into when you are in this position. For me,
personally, I’m far more about feedback than sales. I have given away more
books than I’ve ever sold, in the hopes that it would generate readership and
feedback. I’m a slave to it, which is a double-edged sword. The positive
feedback is a great rush, and a wonderful confidence boost…and the sounds of
silence devastate me.
DF: Are you interested in critics or
criticism?
BA: Yes, as
long as they are actually making a valid point. Those that criticize only to
bring someone else down hold no merit to me. The best critics can balance
positive with negative, and offer suggestions for improvement, rather than a
laundry list of everything that they hate about your books. I immediately
discount anyone that has nothing but negative things to say. There’s just not
room in my life for negativity for the mere sake of it. Not anymore.
DF: What audience are you trying to
reach with your work? Is there an audience for Bex Aaron?
BA: I’d
like to reach fans of small town suspense, gripping human drama and lots of layered
storytelling. Daytime or primetime soap fans. Those that enjoy a book where
there are no easy answers, nor are there any happy endings. Someone who wants
to immerse themselves in the messy, unraveling lives of characters that any of
us could know. That sort of thing.
Is there
any audience for me? Well…I’d sure like to think so. I have found a nice little
core of people, who interact with me through my book’s FB page
(http://facebook.com/havenpark), so I know there are people out there actually
reading these books. I know that audience could always grow, though, and I
certainly hope that it does!
DF: How important is it to follow
your instincts while writing?
BA: Very
important. My best advice to any writer is to know your characters inside and
out. Work on your characterization until they feel like real people. I’ve always
found that if you invest in them, it pays off. They sort of take over after a
while. I’ve learned over time that my characters are much smarter than I am,
and that if I just shut up and let them talk, the end result is much more
satisfying. This is why I’m not really strict with outlines. I never used to do
outlines at all, but I figured if I’m trying to plot a mystery series, it might
be in my best interest to have some idea of how I’m going to go about it.
Still, I always allow for the characters to improvise. It’s more enjoyable that
way and feels more authentic to me…even if it makes the backseat driver in my
own novel at times!
DF: Give us an overview of
INDEPENDENCE DAY.
BA: INDEPENDENCE
DAY is the story of a series of murders taking place in the overheated summer
of 1966. Haven Park, Wyoming (fifteen miles east of Laramie) is the perfect
picture of Americana. Violent crime doesn’t exist there. Everyone knows
everyone else, and there’s a real community atmosphere…but there are also
secrets that come to light one by one as more and more people end up dead.
DF: While reading Book One I
couldn’t help but think that INDEPENDENCE DAY falls into a genre I like to call
The Little Town With Big Secrets Genre. It starts out like “Twin Peaks” what
with a surprising and horrifying murder that shocks the entire town. Then we
move into “Peyton Place” territory. Are you a fan of soap operas?
BA: First
of all, thank you for noticing! I always feel gratified when someone “gets it”,
and you totally nailed it! J
What I
strived to do with this book series was emulate a classic soap opera called “The
Edge of Night.” For those unfamiliar with daytime, this was a series that
premiered in the 1950s, and in the beginning, it was designed to be a daytime
version of Perry Mason. It had the elements of mystery and classic soap drama
mixed together, and that’s what I was hoping for here.
Now, when I
say “classic soap drama”, I do wish to clarify that I do not mean camp,
over-the-top antics like one might expect from today’s soap operas. I mean the
character-driven human drama that used to be a staple of daytime television.
Forbidden love, dark secrets – this sort of thing. I want to make abundantly
clear that once someone dies in Haven Park, they stay that way! And nobody has
an evil twin! J
DF: Is Haven Park entirely in your
imagination or is it a version of someplace you grew up or once lived?
BA: It’s
all my imagination, really. I grew up in a fairly small town, but nowhere near
that small. I have, however, incorporated elements of my own life into the
town. For instance, the church. I grew up in a Baptist church that was not
unlike the one depicted in the book. The congregation largely consisted of
elderly ladies who liked to backbite and talk about everyone else. There wasn’t
much room for progression or change, and unfortunately, they didn’t have a
pastor like Brett, who actually wanted to buck tradition and try something new.
I quit going there years ago, but I suspect that it’s much the same way I left
it. Cycles like that keep repeating themselves, I’ve found.
DF: INDEPENDENCE DAY is a five part
story. Why five parts? Why not write
just one huge Stephen King sized doorstop of a book?
BA: INDEPENDENCE
DAY actually has roots in webfiction – which, for those initiated, is a genre
where one creates a website and serializes their novel, releasing one chapter
at a time. The story was originally divided into arcs, consisting of ten
chapters an interlude (or, as was the case of arc one, one prologue, ten
chapters and two interludes).
I made the
decision to remarket the story as a book series in 2011, after trying the
webfiction route with little success for two years. At that time, I had two
arcs completed and was laboring over the third. I decided to go ahead and
release what I had at the time, and the arcs became the books.
The plan is
once the story has wrapped up, I’m going to release the complete series as one
humongous book, with paperbacks and electronic versions available. I have no
idea how big those damned things will be, though, because this is going to be
one long story.
DF: Once INDEPENDENCE DAY is done do
you plan to do anything else with Haven Park and it’s good citizens?
BA: Absolutely,
because I have one hell of a time letting go. My plan was originally do a
prequel, but I’ve since scrapped that one. I am planning a sequel now, set 30
years later, in the summer of 1996. It would highlight the characters left
standing, and how their lives have changed in the years that have passed. It’s
in the very early planning stages, so I can’t really say too much about it, but
I think it will be an interesting look at the characters we’ve established in a
new, more jaded and even more miserable light…which, of course, is what I’m
known for, so it should be fun!
DF: Anything else you’re working on
that we should know about?
BA: At this
time, no. I tend to be a writer that has a one-track mind. I wish I could work
on multiple projects at one time, but I always feel disloyal to them when I do
that. I just don’t possess that type of focus…perhaps this is why I just want
one child, because I would never want to shaft either of my children because
Mommy isn’t good at multi-tasking!
DF: What are your future plans for
your writing career?
BA: I want
to write as long as the inspiration as there and there are people still willing
to read my stories. I’d love to eventually hit it big and see big screen
adaptations of my novels – don’t we all want that? I try to be realistic,
though. I just want to reach a few people. I want to provide them an escape, a
world they can get lost in, and a way to forget about their own lives for a
little while. If I can accomplish that, I’ve succeeded.
Derrick Ferguson: What’s A Typical
Day In The Life Of Bex Aaron like?
Bex Aaron: Weekdays:
Wake up, have coffee, smoke, get dressed, go to work, lose my mind in small
increments over the course of the day, come home, unwind and settle into bed
with my phone and Netflix. I’m not much of a partier. I’m a very boring old
woman, actually…but I like my life, and that’s what counts.
Weekends:
Wake up, have coffee, smoke, repeat, listen to Mmmbop (seriously, that is what
I’m listening to as I type this), spend time with my mom and labor over my
writing. I used to be able to knock out a chapter a weekend, but not so much
these days. I need to get back into the habit, especially given that I have a
deadline to meet! INDEPENDENCE DAY: Book Four, Dirty Little Secret, is
coming on May 1.
Did you see
how subtly I snuck that plug in there? I’m so awesome at marketing, as you know.
Slick as all hell, I am! J
It’s been a while since the original Kickin’ The Willy Bobo Interview with Tommy Hancock. In that time, the flamboyant and outspoken Mr. Hancock has been hard at work doing what he does best: being the spokesman of Pro Se and the public face of New Pulp. So I thought it about time we caught up with him on the anniversary of that first interview and here he is 12 MONTHS LATER…
Derrick Ferguson: Have there been any major changes in your life personally and professionally since we last talked?
Tommy Hancock: Nothing major, other than dealing with a few health issues that seemed to get in the way of creativity and spreading the word of Pro Se some. But overall things have remained much the same. Still have a great wife, three kids I totally do not deserve, and enjoying every day - and this has been happening daily for a while- hearing from a writer, artist, or fan about their interest in Pro Se and the work that everyone involved is doing.
DF: How do you feel Pro Se has grown in the past 12 months?
TH: Pro Se won’t stop growing. Not only are we adding titles and creators right and left, but our numbers on all levels are on an upswing. More importantly, though, I think Pro Se’s greatest growth has been in its appeal to more readers and different audiences. We spent 2014 laying a lot of groundwork for expanding our readership and, although much of that won’t see fruition until this year, we’re already finding that what we do appeals to an extremely broad base. Being identified both as a Genre Fiction and a New Pulp Publisher has helped open up several titles that have sat dormant for months, even years to readers, that we always knew were there. And now we are finding them or, in a lot of cases, they are following all the bread crumbs Pro Se’s left in various ways and finding us.
DF: How do you feel that you personally as an editor and publisher have grown in the past year?
TH: As a publisher, I have gained a tremendous amount of focus on just what Pro Se Productions is capable of. When I started out, I was like a wide eyed kid at a candy store, not only wanting to taste every little thing I could, but working up ideas on how to make it all even better. I’m still that kid, but I understand what I have the privilege of managing now isn’t candy, but little bits of magic. Not my magic, I’m not the wizard, I’m just the guy who gets to pull them out of his hat. And that’s not only a blast, but it’s a responsibility. One that I feel like I understand better than I ever have before.
It’s also one that all publishers approach in different ways. Some aren’t big fans of how I do what I do, others have said they think it’s the best way to go. Me, it’s what works for me. Pro Se Productions is a publishing company, but we’re a company with intentions, with various plans that all boil down to one mission- getting the best stories out to as many readers as possible.
As an editor, I think I’ve matured as well. And a lot of that I owe not only to having so much wonderful work that I get to help edit, but to one man. Joe Gentile, the mad genius behind Moonstone Books, has taught me more in five or six sentences over the last few years concerning editing than any course, seminar or book ever could.
DF: Is the direction Pro Se heading in now the same as it was a year ago?
TH: Yes, most definitely. I think we’ve discussed before that I sort of had a five-year plan for Pro Se from 2011 forward. It is moving exactly the direction I wanted it to when we started publishing novels and anthologies in 2011. Could things be better? Well, sure, every book could sell thousands and millions of copies. But we are heading in what I consider the right direction for what we want to do long term. And that, simply put, is to be around for many years to come and to be a defining voice in New Pulp and Genre Fiction.
DF: Where do you see Pro Se in five years?
TH: Well into
the next phase of our plan to be around awhile.We are building a catalog now and have done
quite well at that.Five years from now,
I hope to see us still adding to that catalog, but also to have several properties
that readers are just seeing debut now or in the last few years, to have a
collection of flagship titles to rival any company out there.We’ve grown at an amazing speed intentionally
and that may level off beginning in the next two to three years, but growth
won’t stop.We’ve been building the
house from the ground up so to speak, hopefully in five years we’ll be
expanding, adding on bells and whistles to our many rooms.
DF: What’s the best thing about dealing with writers? The worst?
TH: This can be answered with the same answer. Their excitement about their work. It is thrilling and invigorating to bask in and be a part of the fire that burns in a writer, or any creator for that matter. It is one of the major reasons I do this.
And as for that being the worst thing, let me explain. Sometimes writers, and being one myself I have been guilty of this, believe that what they have is the best possible work ever and nothing can make it better and the world has to have it now. And all of those are wonderful emotions and feelings and attachments to have. But when a work comes to a publisher and the writer cannot let go of those feelings, then it becomes somewhat problematic at times. I’m proud to say that issues arising because of this have been few and far between at Pro Se. And also, I believe every writer should commit to that passion should stand up for their works. But there has to be a willingness to compromise when working with a publisher and although most every writer we have understands that, not all do and find their way to self-publishing or other avenues that are just as valid as what we would provide them.
DF: How do you see the New Pulp Community these days? Is it still a community?
TH: I am told on a regular basis that I’m one of the organizers of the New Pulp Movement, and I suppose I am. Not that I invented New Pulp, as I didn’t, or that I was the first to envision the concept, because again I was not. But I did have a hand in organizing several publishers and creators under a unifying ‘New Pulp Movement’ banner of sorts.
So there’s my answer. No, I don’t think New Pulp is a community and I really haven’t ever seen it that way. A community denotes a group of people all existing together and working in concert to better the group as a whole on a consistent, regular basis. And although New Pulp publishers and creators have done that and continue to do that every day – if one of us succeeds, then all of us float a little bit closer to the top is a concept I believe in – I do not see New Pulp as cohesive conceptual village all having the same goal. There’s a reason why I suggested calling it ‘The New Pulp Movement.’
Movements move, and hopefully forward. And not only that, but Movements grow and change and rise and fall…and the people, the movers, they change also. Sometimes the faces change, other times the place the movers have in the Movement shift for better or worse, but everything in a successful movement continues evolving, expanding, becoming something different. And just about the time you think it’s matured into one thing, it pushes even harder and is on its way to being something else. That’s what New Pulp is to me.
DF: Do you think that New Pulp will ever have respectability?
TH: It sort of depends on what you mean by that. I think New Pulp is very highly respected within a particular niche, that being that cadre of fans that identify themselves as New Pulp fans. Now, there’s at least one other niche that hasn’t always had the highest regard for what we do, but even that has changed in the last few years. If you mean do I think we’ll ever have the respectability of being considered ‘proper’ literature and completely mainstream, God, I hope not.
One of the great things about New Pulp, and in a larger sense specific Genre Fiction, is that there’s a roughness to it, a rawness that allows each writer to come at it individually, to put in appropriate elements shared by others, but also to leave a mark on a story, on a genre, on a reader that is uniquely the creator’s own. I would argue that being mainstream and literary, that that sort of respectability requires creators to give up that edge, that individuality to a large degree. So, no, in that sense, I hope New Pulp is never respectable.
DF: Are you working on any writing projects of your own?
TH: I have several things that are due, some a long time now, for Pro Se and others. Thankfully, I have patient publishers and can only hope the readers are as patient. Running a publishing company, especially one as aggressive as Pro Se has become, takes a lot of time. Writing has taken a back seat and will have to for a bit longer, probably through March. But, yes, there’s several things on the burners…and, of course, new ideas brewing as well.
Derrick Ferguson: What is the one thing above all others we should be eagerly looking for from Pro Se in 2015?
Tommy Hancock: The best damn Genre Fiction and New Pulp on the market between the covers of every single book bearing the Pro Se logo.
Raymond Embrack: Escritor independiente de la ficcion
DF: Where do you live and what do
you do to keep the bill collectors away?
RE: Currently
in Los Angeles with years in an unnamed position in an unnamed industry.
DF: Tell us a little something about
your background.
RE: Some
film, some theater, some science fiction. Nothing much. Planning to start a new
background in the future.
DF: How long have you been writing?
RE: Since
1978.
DF: What writers have influenced
you?
RE: Harlan
Ellison. Ernest Tidyman. James Ellroy. Hunter S. Thompson. Iceberg Slim. Andrew
Vachss. Quentin Tarantino. Walter Mosely. Elmore Leonard. Robert B. Parker. Mickey
Spillane.
DF: What’s your philosophy of
writing?
RE: Never
be boring. Leave out the slow parts. Write books that are non-stop pleasure. Write
like books have to compete with video games, blockbuster movies, strippers and cocaine.
DF: How important is it to follow
your instincts while writing?
RE: Always.
But I’m learning the critical instinct to question everything, including my
instincts.
DF: Are you interested in critics or
criticism?
RE: Of my
stuff? Your criticism helped me rewrite my first superhero novel. I don’t think
a writer can improve without criticism. But that opinion is subject to change
too.
DF: Do you crave recognition?
RE: Anything
that hard to get deserves to be craved, hunted down, taken, beheaded then eaten.
It has taken a long time.
DF: What audience are you trying to
reach with your work? Is there an audience for Raymond Embrack?
RE: I write
for outlaw bikers and Japanese strippers. I made the mistake of writing the
work before defining the audience. Maybe I’ll do better next time.
DF: How do you use social media to
promote your writing?
RE: That’s
something I’m still figuring out.
DF: One of the things I love about
your writing is that it so fearlessly non-PC and for me that’s refreshing. Was
that a conscious decision on your part or did your writing just develop that
way over time?
RE: Why
does the best stuff tend to be anti-PC? It just is. For better or worse I have always
gone for that in my writing. To me there’s no point in holding back.
DF: Who is Peter Surf? Where did he
come from and why does he make you want to write about him?
RE: Surf has
been around since the 1990s. He got his name from the music in “Pulp Fiction”. From
there my action hero took shape. Surf is a comedian, a badass, a killer. Surf
is not an anti-hero, he is my version of the most interesting man in the world.
That is a guy who does all things with swagger. Is he a male fantasy? I can’t
pretend he’s a realistic character. The action hero exists to hit that sweet
spot just short of the mask & cape.
DF: I love the concept of Blonde
City. Where did that come from?
RE: For me
there was more escapism value in making up a city than using an existing and
probably over-used setting. It gives me way more to play with. This is
America’s newest city, one made of sudden wealth, gloss and hype. It only hires
policemen who are hot. It gives the homeless lipstick.
DF: Which Peter Surf novel was your
favorite to write?
RE: Has to
beThe
Guns of Tony Franciosa. I took it off the market just so I could keep
rewriting it.
DF: What is the future of Peter
Surf?
RE: He
seems a few books short, so more Surf will happen.
DF: Perhaps my favorite book of
yours I’ve read so far is EL MOROCCO. It’s the swingin’ 60s on crack. What was the
inspiration for that story and the characters?
RE: The
inspiration was John Ridley’s “A
Conversation with the Mann” his comedian/swingin’ 60s novel. Had to write
my own version, plus I’m a fan of the “Mad Men era.”
DF: How much of a superhero fan are
you?
RE: I’m an
unfrozen fan. I have to work my way up to “nerd.” Real nerds read and watch
everything and know all. After years focused on crime fiction, I’m returning to
the thing I started with. I now get that the superhero can be as ambitious a character
to write but one even closer to the brain’s pleasure center.
DF: Marvel or DC?
RE: DC
DF: Who are some of your favorite
comic book writers?
RE: Howard
Chaykin. Alan Moore. Neil Gaiman. Ed Brubaker. Scott Snyder.
DF: Your five favorite superheroes?
RE: Batman.
The Hulk. The Black Panther. Rorschach. Black Canary.
DF: Explain the concept behind the
AXIS Superhero Novels.
RE: Typically
superheroes exist in a world where comic book superheroes never existed. In the
AXIS world they exist in this world
with its same comic book culture. That is only possible when somehow the
reality follows the archetype. I took that premise and fused it with my older
sci-fi concept of an alien that takes the form of an Earth city. That formed the AXIS concept.
I wouldn’t
call it “alternate history” more like “alternate present.” In 1970, from
nowhere the city of Brutalia appeared in one day. It is the only city where
superpowers exist. Outside the city superpowers cease to exist. There, three
major organizations are at war, AXIS, the superheroes who seek to keep
superpowers from reaching the outside world; the OGD (Order of Global
Domination) the supervillains who seek to export superpowers to conquer the
outside world; O.U.T.S.I.D.E., superheroes seeking to export superpowers to
benefit the outside world.
Oddly
enough, I see these characters with the realism I don’t see Peter Surf. These
are not anti-heroes or anti-supervillains, they are multidimensional people
redefined by gestalt myth made reality. Their superpowers are their career.
Both AXIS and the OGD have Washington lobbyists. Like real people, they don’t all
automatically invent new super identities, they become existing fictional
superheroes, as when one of them attempted to become a real Wonder Woman. The
leader of AXIS becomes the (fictional) KM Comics brand superheroes of his teens.
The novels
are themselves a process as, from an amnesiac fog, Brutalia, its people, their
memory, its mysteries, and the culture around it evolves, mutates, take shape.
There is room for years of this to come.
DF: The AXIS Superhero Novels are
quite explicit when it comes to sex and violence. Again, was this a conscious
decision on your part or did the novels just develop that way over time?
RE: That’s
what they are, adult content in comic book terms. The superheroes and
supervillains are adults at play with real weapons. The sex and violence are unleashed
id. I see the art by Howard Chaykin with splattered heads and “Black Kiss” nymphos.
DF: Are there graphic novels or
comic books based on characters from the AXIS Superhero Novels planned for the
future?
RE: In 2015
AXIS will start going visual. The
plan involves art, graphic comix and novels and animated films. And merch. In
the future there will be action figures. Someday, a Taco Bell tie-in.
DF: Have you thought about opening
up the AXIS Universe to other writers in a fashion similar to the “Wild Cards”
series?
RE: That
never occurred to me. I don’t think other writers want a piece of this.
DF: What is the future of the AXIS
Universe?
RE: There
will be more new superheroes and supervillains. The Carousel will change his
name to Spinrax. There will be more like Bag of Green Army Men that take
place in the multiverse of KM Comics. I have a thing for steampunk, so I see an
AXIS steampunk series.
DF: What are your plans for your
writing career? Where is Raymond Embrack going to be five years from now?
RE: Going full
time writer. Five years from now: even more full time with extra full time.
DF: What are you working on now?
RE: Planning
the next Surf novel and the next AXIS novel, both to write in 2015.
DF: What’s a typical Day in the Life
of Raymond Embrack like?
RE: It
begins in the compound known as Embrack Wonderland. Report to the day job,
which is at home, at a desktop. Maybe lunch at Fat Sal’s. Whistle blows. Return
to Wonderland. When an Embrack novel is in production, writing may occur.
DF: Recommend a book, a TV show and
a movie.
BOOK: The
Storm Giants by Pearce Hansen
TV SHOW: The
Pleasure (Playboy TV Latin America)
MOVIE: The
Raid 2
Derrick Ferguson: Anything else we
need to know?
Raymond
Embrack: This has been boss. Thanks for letting me kick it with you, Derrick.
Tracy Angelina Evans: That kid you
saw get picked on at school, but never really paid much attention to, ‘cos she
seemed to strive for invisibility.
DF: Where
do you reside and what do you do to keep yourself in cheese and crackers?
TAE: After “serving time” in South
Carolina for almost 33 years, I am now residing in San Diego. Cheese and
crackers are in abundance, since seven
of her roommates are birds.
DF: Tell us
something about your background.
TAE: I was born in Asheville, NC in
1967, but moved to Duncan, SC at the age
of 13. My entire family were artists of
some sort, but most were in love with writing or music.
DF: How
long have you been writing?
TAE: Between the ages of 4 and
7. I was told by my paternal grandmother
to go draw flies. Taking her literally, I began to draw flies, then flies in
spider webs, and then I had to give a
reason why they ended up in such a horrible position. The writing of such a terrible tragedy was my
first attempt.
DF: What
are your influences?
TAE: Music is my primary influence.As for writers, Clive Barker is at the
top.His work is what eased me into the
idea I’d always wanted to share:The
Monster Is the Beautiful One. Tolkien’s obsession with language is what drew me
to him. Others include Carl Jung, Stephen King, Salvador Dali, Leonard Wolf (in
particular), Russell Hoban, historical mysteries about the Cathars, the Great
Mortality, the Dyatlov Pass, and a variety of “expert” books on Shamanism,
prophecy, divine madness, and alchemy.
DF: What is
your philosophy of writing?
TAE: It’s kind of Quantum theory, I
guess, since I lean toward the science that thought cannot happen without
having happened before or happened in complete reverse. That would certainly explain the similarities
of Vampires from one culture to another.
But, to take it a step further, your mere thought of a thing brings it
into existence. It may seem to be
fantasy to you, but in some spot in the multiverse, someone if fighting a real
fight, and probably losing, against a spectre calling himself Cadmus. Probable?
Don’t know. Possible? Maybe.
I’m not a Physicist. The Vampire
books I’ve written aren’t typical horror fair; rather, I consider recycled
Faery stories, and folklore from around the world, with the added luxuries of
electricity and social media. Trying to
combine the ancient and the modern is why I never give an actual time that
anything in the books happened. Also, I
deliberately moved around the dates of actual events in our reality, so it would be difficult to place the narrative of the
story with a calendar of any sort.
DF: What is
your writing process? Are you a plotter or a pantser?
TAE: Both! No, it really depends on what the story is
wanting. If I can outline it, I try to
remain to true to that, in typical Virgo fashion. But there are many times where I’ve seen the
story go off the rail and refuse to budge.
This can be rather painful, especially when it involves Cadmus Pariah
being needlessly cruel. One of my
editors, Jill Rosenburg, gave me the title of “method writer,” because I tend
to go too deep, feel too much, and leave with wounds that may not heal.
DF: How do
you use social media to promote your writing? What
audience are you trying to reach with your work? Is there an audience for Tracy
Angelina Evans?
TAE: I try to mention it and sample
it as often as possible, everywhere I linger online, and do so in all social
formats all at once, or at least close to it.
Our Internet is no longer a giant web, or an endless sea, it’s grown to
the proportion of universe itself; as a result most everything gets lost in the
miasma. The more a worf, a phrase, or
hashtag comes closer to the surface, the more like it will be to get
noticed.
Anyone who grows weary of
Hemingway’s Iceberg Style of writing may enjoy these. Those interested in Vampires, not so much the
American version, but the earlier European version may appreciate this. George Gordon Lord Byron’s groupies may also
love Thiyennen. Folks who like to read a
book or story, then get to say near the end, “So thisis why that
happened! Well, hootdang!”
So, yeah, I’d like to think I had an
audience. That would be great! But I have no such delusion I will ever be a
subject at the dinner table. That’s
okay. The books were as much for my own
understanding of the Great Ineffable as they are for others’ enjoyment, horror,
or WTF moments.
DF: Two
more questions before we get to discussing your trilogy. First; why the
obsession with Shriekback and where did it begin?
TAE: Oh, where there is a story and
a half for you. I’d heard the name of
the band over the years but growing up on the buckle of the Bible Belt with few
record stores around, and even less money with which to buy them, I remained
tight to my Electric Light Orchestra roots.
It was only until after cable finally made its way to my area that I
finally got to see MTV, before it became the joke it is today. I began collecting music videos, a lot of
which would be more prevalent at night.
Since I was working 1st Shift at BMG, I would ask Aunt Tudi
is she’d put my tape on record before she went to bed. One night, after taping the Cure’s
‘Lullaby,’ which I been dying to have, she decided to leave the tape recording
as she watched the video.
When I got up the next morning, she
told me she got the vid I had wanted, but she also had a video I may be
interested in, because it looked a little like “that Fellini movie you like so
much.” She was referring to Satyricon. So ‘Nemesis’ was the first song I
intentionally heard by the band. It
turned out years later, that I’d been listening to them four years before I saw ‘Nemesis,’ because one of
my first VHS movies was the first Hannibal movie, Manhunter.
It turned out that their music would
have a large part in creating the essence with which I wanted to blanket the
stories. Between European Classical
(mostly Czech in nature), Romani music, South African music, Klezmer, and
Shriekback, I had before me a musical Nirvana I really couldn’t explain. But I can say that the ebb and flow of The Relics are very closely tied to
Shriekback’s songs. That’s the primary
reason a portion of their lyrics are offered as each chapters’ lean-in.
DF: And
what are The Tim Roth Tutorials?
TAE: I started the Tim Roth
Tutorials as a way of dipping my foot in the video-making process, because I
wanted to create lyric videos for Illuminati’s songs, which have so far only
been released once via the Shriekback Digital Conspiracy back in the early
2000s. I didn’t know diddly about WSFTP,
so this was practice for me. Then it got
some attention of some of Tim Roth’s “Hooligans” – his fans – who wanted more
tutorials. I think I have around 200
now? I don’t know. When I switched to Mac, I’ve been trying to
learn iMovie, so I can continue them, ‘cos it’s a fun hobby, and some folk seem
to like them.
DF: Why
write about vampires?
TAE: I write about Vampires because
I was raised on a steady media diet of vampirism, thanks to watching ‘Dark
Shadows’ in my playpen whilst the mother unit toodled about. Then came Shock Theatre on Saturdays,
followed by reruns of the original ‘Star Trek.’
Being an only child, Vampires and space men became my siblings. During college, I decided to study Vampiric
origins and discovered that every culture describes almost the same thing, when
asked about Vampires. The great thing
about 30 Days of Night is that it’s
the most accurate account of Vampires, according to folklore. Even if they are accurate, they still aren’t
my favourite. Neither is the modern,
buddy-buddy attitude so many have to day.
Vampires do not sparkle.
Honestly, though, I think I write
about Vampires for the same reason many others do, if I may make such a bold
assumption: I write them because they
allow me to be something on paper what I can never be in “reality.” Going to that place where philosophy is
uttered whilst a mage-like individual carefully vivisects his victim, because death
would just ruin the moment, frees me to be kinder in real life, whatever that
may be.
And then there’s this whole
legendary vibe, where Vampires come into a story that has nothing to do with
them and, if you read between the lines, you can almost sense how some of theearlier legends
manifested. Some of the greatest moments
of archetypal panic are of the Great Mortality, heavenly events (that we can
now explain), even crib death. I believe
everything is cyclic, and I believe in the ability to create Tulpas, and when
enough energy is focused on one thing or belief, that thing acquires power.
DF: Do you
think that popular culture is oversaturated with vampires?
TAE: More often than not,
considering the Twilight
franchise. But we humans, as a whole,
prefer the presence of thought forms in our lives. They’re familiar, they answer questions,
especially about ourselves. As such,
every generation experiences a saturation of sorts. We need it, to carry on the stories, satiate
the monster with the blood of our imaginations.
It would be a much more depressing world, if we weren’t afforded that tinge
of possibility that the succubus is right around the corner.
DF: What
makes your vampires and your conception of vampires different from those we’ve seen recently in books, movies and television?
TAE: Well, they all owe their
existence to a race that inhabited the planet before humans ever walked the
surface. So the first ten Vampires were
of alien origin. There is a
science-fiction feel to the books, as a result, as well as a mythic/legendary
vibe, especially in the second book, The
Blood Crown. Vampires are mostly just like us, some can
even withstand the sun. Believe it or
not, not all traditional Vampires would perish by sunlight. One, called vrykolokas, from Greek legend, would often go to his job after he’d
died, and go home to his family. There
were just those inconvenient times of drinking so much blood, he’d turn ruddy
and look like a barrel. That gave him
the name “drum-like” – vrykolakas. I haven’t been reading or watching much
Vampire media in years, because I tend to soak things up and I don’t want to
inadvertently steal something from someone else.
DF: Give us
an overview of The Vampire Relics Trilogy.
TAE: The Vampire Relics Trilogy concerns three sacred objects that hold
the entire nation of Vampires (the Great Hive) sway. Each book is named for a relic and, even though
it is the relics that drive the story, it is how the character behaves during
and after the hunt. More about the
origins of the relics, the Vampires, and their maker comes to light with each
book.
DF: Did you
conceive of The Vampire Relics as a trilogy right from the start? And if not,
when did you know it was going to be a trilogy?
TAE: The Chalice was
supposed to be one book, ending with the imprisonment of then-villain
Kelat. At that time, in 1987, it was my
attempt to come to grips with the idea of “soul mates,” how so many people find
a kind of psychic completion when they meet that one, the one who finishes your sentences or shares memories of
things that never happened to either of us.
This was when I started reading A
Dream of Dracula by Leonard Wolf and Holy
Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln. Those books, combined with my life-long
fascination with Arthurian legends, along with learning about “alternative”
religions, where a cup was the most sacred of tools to have on an altar,
because the cup represented the feminine force, life, and immortality. I left it open-ended, not because I was
planning on writing another book, but because I thought I might one day revisit
those characters.
When I wrote a little drabble on my
Live Journal about Cadmus interrupting Kelat as she meditated in what she
thought was a secret temple, that gave rise to the second book of the Relics, The Blood Crown.
DF: Is it
accurate to say that The Vampire Relics began with Cadmus Pariah? Who is Cadmus
Pariah and why does he fascinate you so?
TAE:
The stories that came to light in the three books were, some of them, decades
old. In the first bones of the story,
Kelat was the antagonist, the image of beautiful evil so reviled by her hero
brother Thiyennen, who happened to be a Vampire himself. Character-building and story construction
began in 1987. I knew what I wanted to
tell, but I didn’t know how I could tell it.
Also, I was very uncomfortable making Kelat out to be the antagonist,
based upon all I’d then read about Goddess worship and attempts of the
patristic tribes to wash any shred of history she had from human brains then
and forever. I wanted to mart of
campaign. But I was without a villain
again, so the story and its mythologies lay dormant for almost three years. When I listened to ‘Deeply Lined Up’ by
Shriekback in 1990 that was the last straw.
It was that song that gave birth to the Pariah.
But it’s Rob Dougan’s ‘Clubbed to
Death’ that has consistently aided in defining the character. That piece possesses a quiet menace that is
only magnified by the piano solo. It’s a
song of one-ness and alone-ness, and being perfectly all right with both
states. Almost everyone believes that
Cadmus was born from one inspiration.
True to his nature in the books, he has several parents, and belongs to
none of them.
DF: You’ve taken great pains to create an entire mythology for your trilogy. How difficult
is it to create a universe?
TAE: A lot of the mythology I used
in The Vampire Relics is material I
could never make fit into a proper book, and I perceive that “over” story to
still be telling else. The mythology was
there so the trilogy could be born.
DF: Which
book was the most fun and easiest to write? Which one was the hardest?
TAE: The Blood Crown was the most fun, but the parts about what Cadmus
does to Faust weren’t very fun at all.
Otherwise, it was a joy, because I got to study Orphaeus and Cadmus much
more intimately than before. Their
travels, to me, took on a Hope/Crosby vibe, so that was a great deal of fun.
The Chalice was the first, and it
was the one that hibernated for the coming of the Shrieks into my life. After that, it was written pretty fast. The Augury of Gideon has been most difficult, because “real life”
was taking up not only my time, but challenging the belief system from whence
the books came. There were some days I
struggled with not blurting out what Gideon’s augury really was.
DF: I know
you have a deep interest in conspiracy theories. How much of that went into
and/or influence you while writing The Vampire Relics?
TAE: The back-story of the Apostate
came almost wholly from the arcane legends of ‘The Brotherhood of the Snake’,
the Cathars, and the Knights Templar.
The man, the human, who brought the curse of blood down on the ten
Tarmi, was in the Brotherhood of the Snake, and a student at the Tarmian
college of Khemeth. As you can see from
just that, conspiracy theories and ancient aliens take up a lot of my time.
DF: What
have you got planned next? And where do you see your writing career five years
from now?
TAE: Right now, I’m writing
what I think will be a standalone
book. It will feature Cadmus, of course,
as well as Orphaeus,Rebekah, and Mephistopheles. It’ll introduce Cadmus’ rival, Flint. The working title is TAE: The back-story of the Apostate
came almost wholly from the arcane legends of ‘The Brotherhood of the Snake’,
the Cathars, and the Knights Templar.The man, the human, who brought the curse of blood down on the ten
Tarmi, was in the Brotherhood of the Snake, and a student at the Tarmian
college of Khemeth.As you can see from
just that, conspiracy theories and ancient aliens take up a lot of my time.
DF: What
have you got planned next? And where do you see your writing career five years
from now?
TAE: Right now, I’m writing
what I think will be a standalone
book. It will feature Cadmus, of course,
as well as Orphaeus, Rebekah, and Mephistopheles. It’ll introduce Cadmus’ rival, Flint. The working title is The Harming Tree, which actually exists, and was a musical
instrument of sorts made by Barry Andrews. which actually exists.
DF: What’s
a Typical Day In The Life of Tracy Angelina Evans like?
TAE: Get up, if I ever got
down. Get down, no matter what state
you’re in. Getting down is never a bad
thing. Attempt breakfast. Clean the cat box. Follow cookie crumbs and connect dots ~ kind
of a synchronistic Yoga to help with sanity-management. Research, research, research. Promote, promote, promote (not me). Read the latest news and let the anger flow
through me. Read the latest in space and
physics news, and let the wonder flow through me. Try to respond to all communications. Then write, to music. If there’s no music, there is no writing.
Derrick Ferguson:
Anything else we need to know?
Tracy Angelina Evans: Everything you
ever imagined might be in that scary closet in your is, is. And it’s your fault for
imagining it, in the first place. Rest
well, tonight.
