Ask the Author: S.K. Epperson
Answered Questions (14)
S.K. Epperson
Never heard that! That's almost a better title isn't it? Hah! No, it's always been Dumford Blood, tying in with the plotline. Thanks for the heads up, Rosa!
S.K. Epperson
It could be that the mysteries in our own lives are what compel us to create and solve them for others in fiction. Each new day presents its own set of unknowns to navigate doesn't it?
S.K. Epperson
Well, lessee, first I’d break into 221B Baker Street and hide Sherlock’s crack pipe, maybe pet that poor damned dog. In Narnia I’d open a blowtorch stand, and then I might be sweet and buy The Little Prince a gift card for Gardener’s Supply Company. In Salem’s Lot, I’d have Elvira open a competing antique shop, confuse the hell out of everyone. Then I’d spend an entire book plugging up Hannibal Lecter’s nose, because obviously he’d be harmless without it and he might even eat something like a corn dog by mistake. Now who’s the real evil genius, Lecter?
S.K. Epperson
Pam, I've checked it on several devices and those pages show up for me, so I apologize, I'm not sure why you can't read them. You should definitely get a refund from B&N for the purchase and notify them there's a problem, that way they'll contact me and let me know if there's something I should do.
Today, July 7th, another of my pseudonymous titles, BLACK NIGHT by S.J. Strayhorn, is a free download at Amazon, so if you still want something romantic, twisty, that hearkens back to the old west check it out. if you liked Abilene, Kansas Blue or Green Lake, you'll love Black Night.
Thanks for letting me know, Pam. :)
Today, July 7th, another of my pseudonymous titles, BLACK NIGHT by S.J. Strayhorn, is a free download at Amazon, so if you still want something romantic, twisty, that hearkens back to the old west check it out. if you liked Abilene, Kansas Blue or Green Lake, you'll love Black Night.
Thanks for letting me know, Pam. :)
S.K. Epperson
Our dog Fitch brought home something in his mouth today that answered the question of what happened to the pesky five-year-old grandson who went missing from our elderly neighbor's home last Tuesday. In need of further explanation, (and possibly excavation) is why Fitch's muzzle and front paws are covered with bright yellow marigold dust from our neighbor's newly planted backyard garden.
S.K. Epperson
Recently picked up Dennis Lehane's LIVE BY NIGHT as well as a couple by Elmore Leonard, ROAD DOGS and PRONTO (featuring Raylan Givens.)
S.K. Epperson
Sir Brian de Bois-Guilbert and Rebecca of Ivanhoe, by Sir Walter Scott are characters that inspire endless imaginings of the different ways their story might have gone. That's all it takes, really, is a desire to see an ending other than the one written. If you've never read the book or don't intend to, then watch the 1997 film adaptation with Ciaran Hinds. You'll soon know what I mean. Thanks for your question, it's a good one. :)
S.K. Epperson
Hi, David. I'm happy to be mentioned in the same company (who wouldn't be?) and yes, there were attempts by editors and agents to steer my work in view of like comparisons, and by reviewers complaining that this work or that one fell out of identifiable genre. I've never tried to write like anyone. When I write, it's always been like seeing a movie in my head, and if I had to define my style I couldn't do it with any intelligence. Rather, I think, I'm just trying to leave out the boring parts of the film and sticking to what happens so people will stay all the way to the end. :)
S.K. Epperson
Thanks for the question, Sara, and sorry for taking so long to get back to you. Yes, negative reviews are painful (like a grade-schooler being laughed at on show-and-tell day painful) but they are usually meant to wound. When a reader says terrible things I try not to take it personally, have to imagine that the work affected them unkindly and if read in a different light on a different day the results perhaps would have been less offensive. Then again, every work ever written will offend someone, which says more about us than about the work. :)
S.K. Epperson
Eris is a composite drawn from several years of attending pow wows and frequenting Native American celebrations. I had a few more characters to explore after Eris and wrote ABILENE with Tasunka Sapa and BLACK NIGHT with Rafael as well. I thrill at the unexpected love interest. :)
S.K. Epperson
Wow, it comes in from every direction, people, places, events, and it all finds its convoluted way into a story. I used to compare the process to a sponge that spends months attracting and collecting information until it's ready to be 'wrung' into a story. It looks silly now that I see it in writing, hah.
S.K. Epperson
If you're not dying to see what happens next, start over. :)
S.K. Epperson
Reliving the story and the characters each time you know someone is reading your book for the first time. :)
S.K. Epperson
Aaargh. I am sadly unable to 'force' creativity. I can sometimes employ tactics of distraction and direct focus elsewhere until some nudge happens and the stirrings to continue the tale pull me back in. Sometimes it never happens, and when It doesn't, I usually see the reason later and thank the fates for intervening. Writer's block is like the one box you left unchecked (on purpose) on the cosmic test for writers. Picture a finger wagging deity that sounds very much like George Carlin: "Yes, you must complete X amount of completely pointless, utterly agonizing hours of paralyzing self-doubt before you may proceed with any plans for that erotic, suspenseful romantic thriller mystery western epic..."
I'll say it again. Aaargh.
I'll say it again. Aaargh.
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