Where did you spend most of your childhood? Did you always want to be an author?
I grew up in Quincy, Illinois on the North side and just a few blocks from the river. I was introduced to the public library by my grandmother and spent many hours reading and checking out books. I think I might have been in second grade and was hooked on Alfred Hitchcock and Edgar Allen Poe. I didn’t discover writing until my junior year at the Fine Arts School. Our high school was very progressive and I excelled in art, music and writing.
Why is writing horror novels important to you? Why did you choose this genre?
While attending this same high school, I was busted for reading a Playboy in the hallway during my free time. The teacher asked what I was reading and I showed them a short story by Stephen King. They chuckled and told me to put the magazine inside of another book to avoid trouble in the future. From that first short story, I have read nearly everything this man has published. Yes, he is my favorite author. I grew up watching The Twilight Zone, Night Gallery and every scary book I could get my hands on. Shirley Jackson was the first book from the horror genre that lead to the movie of House on Haunted Hill for me. I was hooked at a very early age.
Where did you go to college and what was your major? What interested you in it?
I first attended drafting school at John Woods college since I was an art student before during high school. Took a job with an engineering firm in Kansas City for a year or two before wandering back into music full time again. I did take some time off from the road back in the eighties to attend Valley City University. I wandered into the music department while waiting for my girl friend to get out of school. I sat down to a piano and started playing and was soon interrupted by a professor who asked what I was doing there. I explained myself and he came back with the head of the music department as well as another professor and they asked to hear me play and sing for them in the hallway. I was then offered a free ride to school to study music and in exchange, I was play drums for the swing band and choir. I only stayed a semester before hearing the call of the road and the voice of my insane girl friend that drove me far away. While I was there, I studied Comp 101 and really hit it off with my English professor. She encouraged me to write after a few papers I’d turned in and I think I found my love for writing really began to blossom.
How did you develop the plot for your book, "The House of Painted Souls?" What comes first, the plot or characters?
I found myself alone and sad after my band replaced me and my hot girl friend dumped me for a coke dealer. I sat up all night in my tiny apartment with nothing to do
And pulled out a notebook and put a plot together about a house on my block back in Quincy, Illinois. I came up with dates in history and a staircase in the attic that had all the risers painted in scenes of horror that would predict the death and events to come. The spiral staircase would survive fires and destruction over the years and was carved from African dark wood that was prepared by a tribesman with mystical powers. I gave the characters names and then I started writing at chapter one.
How do you ensure that all the readers, from young to old, enjoy reading your books?
I have characters from age six to eighty-six that play important parts in the story. I don’t really encourage the younger kids to read this as there are a few steamy parts.
How did you begin writing the "13 Steps series?
In the middle of the dark night back in 1987 with my pen and notebook.
Which was your first book ever to be published and how have you grown as a writer ever since?
I continued this book last spring after only writing 45 pages. I carried these pages with me through a lot of years and hard times. It was only after the encouragement of my wife who loves to write and some spare time on the weekends. This is my first book and I have two more already started.
How hard is it to establish and maintain a career in fiction writing? Why did you choose this route?
I wouldn’t call this a career, but a calling that won’t let me alone. I found that I was able to set down in the bed and start writing a few hours on the weekend. I hammered out 5000 words and just kept at it ever weekend. I have made a wee bit of money and found that promoting the book is the trick to making any money at all.
How important do you think is the cover of a book?
The cover must be inviting and force the reader to open the cover to find more delights
Inside. My cover was taken from a photo of the actual house I write about. My wife did the rest of the graphics as she is a talented artist
How do you make sure that readers feel a connection while reading your horror novels? Do you believe in what you write?
I write from the moving playing in my head. Many of my readers say that my book reads just like a movie and they enjoy it.
How do you feel about the rise in digital books in recent years?
It’s pretty tough to burn a digital book, eh?
What is the toughest criticism you've ever received as an author and how did you take it? What about the best compliment you've ever received?
I had one person jump on my Amazon account who tore me to pieces. She had not even read the book or the cover and had an axe to grind. My best compliment was comparing me to Stephen King. I guess the influence is bound to creep through as I studied his books before I wrote my own. The guy was an English teacher at one time and I double checked my grammar and punctuation against his.
What are your top five writing and marketing tips that you would share with the young writers out there?
Sit down and start writing. There is no time like the present and let those fingers connect with your brain. Tunnel vision is an awesome gift sometimes. Make friends in the writing world as they are happy to share knowledge with young writers. Do your research as everyone has access to the internet and they are happy to educate you. Lol
What are you currently working on? When can we expect the release of your next book?
I am working on the next book in the series after many years have gone by. It’s been great fun to bring the old characters back to life and their off spring as well. My other book is about a dead man come back from the dead and his home is his moving van. Mr. Mayflower is already great fun and I’m 12,000 words into it. I’m also 12,000 words into part two of Painted Souls which has some wicked twists and turns.
How has been your experience to work with AllAuthor? What are some of the things you like and dislike about the site?
AllAuthor has been great so far and sadly I’ve had to back away from my writing for a few months due to personal issues in my life. Trust me, I hear the call of the books and I miss them so. I must first relocate my living situation and after I’m moved in, I can then fire up the mighty Mac Tower and unleash the monsters in my head.
