Kevin Wimer's Blog
October 14, 2019
Werewolves and Vampires
I'm working on a new book that has werewolves and vampires in it. It's supposed to be a paranormal romance book but I can't bring myself to Twilight this one. It will have tones of romance to it, but more of a bite than a cheesy love sick teen (I loved the Twilight books and the movies) who wants nothing more than to be a vampire.
I'm just rolling with the characters right now. Seeing where this goes. I'm enjoying the journey. I'm enjoying the main character and the storyline that is building. I can't wait to see where this one goes and where the characters take me.
Time to get back to it.
I'm just rolling with the characters right now. Seeing where this goes. I'm enjoying the journey. I'm enjoying the main character and the storyline that is building. I can't wait to see where this one goes and where the characters take me.
Time to get back to it.
September 5, 2019
Writer's Block
Writer's block . . . I hate you! I have been working on book two of The Dead and The Living and chapter three has had me stumped. It has taken me nearly two, two and half weeks to get it to where it needs to be. I tried editing it, rewriting it, deleting it and writing it twice before I found the voice of that chapter. I will have to tweak chapter one but, chapter three is done!
So, if you have writers block, I suggest you just keep writing. Keep going. It will all work itself out. It is scary to have writer's block. It hits from time to time and I worry that one day it will not leave me and I will no longer be able to write anything. Writing is my escape and creative outlet from this world.
I'm excited to see where this book goes and what happens over the next few chapters. Stay tuned, I will blog about it later. I have a feeling the zombies are going to make themselves known rather quickly from here on out.
So, if you have writers block, I suggest you just keep writing. Keep going. It will all work itself out. It is scary to have writer's block. It hits from time to time and I worry that one day it will not leave me and I will no longer be able to write anything. Writing is my escape and creative outlet from this world.
I'm excited to see where this book goes and what happens over the next few chapters. Stay tuned, I will blog about it later. I have a feeling the zombies are going to make themselves known rather quickly from here on out.
August 22, 2019
What Makes A Zombie Book Great?
I started this journey back to the world of zombies after writing more traditional style horror stories.
The Dead and The Living allowed me to write not only action but a storyline that helps keep the story moving forward. Action can drive a book, but so can't a great storyline.
So, that brings me to, what makes a zombie book great? Is it the action? Or the storyline? Can it be both? The answer to those questions is, yes. All the above.
I think you can have a book purely action driven. It can be a fast paced read that is fun but with no real substance. I think those books will also leave you wanting something more. Depending on the characters. Characters make or break a book.
I think finding the right balance is hard. We think of zombies and we think, action. The storyline of each character is usually the backstory to what is going on when the outbreak happens. I like books that are pure action. I also like books that have great characters and a storyline to go with it. I really love getting lost in a storyline, but there are times that I want nothing but action and a quick read . . . I think finding balance in reading is just like finding balance in writing. Tough to do.
The Walking Dead brought us something that I think we can all follow when writing about the zombie post apocalypse. We need a good mix of action with a great characters and a great storyline.
My book The Dead and The Living, I feel has done that. I honed my writing skills while writing horror novels and short stories. Short stories taught me to bring the characters and storyline into the mix quickly. Short stories taught me a lot about writing characters too. If you are an author and you only write novels, stop, take the time to write some short stories. It will help you develop a skill set that you can take to your novels.
One thing that I will admit about my writing, I never use an outline. Never. I let the story take shape as I introduce characters. I let the characters tell me what they want to do and where they want to. I am just along for the ride as I follow them as I write each sentence and each paragraph.
I think the recipe for a great story (zombie or otherwise) is to have a great mix of characters and action and a storyline that will drive it when the action isn't there. It's all about finding balance.
The Dead and The Living allowed me to write not only action but a storyline that helps keep the story moving forward. Action can drive a book, but so can't a great storyline.
So, that brings me to, what makes a zombie book great? Is it the action? Or the storyline? Can it be both? The answer to those questions is, yes. All the above.
I think you can have a book purely action driven. It can be a fast paced read that is fun but with no real substance. I think those books will also leave you wanting something more. Depending on the characters. Characters make or break a book.
I think finding the right balance is hard. We think of zombies and we think, action. The storyline of each character is usually the backstory to what is going on when the outbreak happens. I like books that are pure action. I also like books that have great characters and a storyline to go with it. I really love getting lost in a storyline, but there are times that I want nothing but action and a quick read . . . I think finding balance in reading is just like finding balance in writing. Tough to do.
The Walking Dead brought us something that I think we can all follow when writing about the zombie post apocalypse. We need a good mix of action with a great characters and a great storyline.
My book The Dead and The Living, I feel has done that. I honed my writing skills while writing horror novels and short stories. Short stories taught me to bring the characters and storyline into the mix quickly. Short stories taught me a lot about writing characters too. If you are an author and you only write novels, stop, take the time to write some short stories. It will help you develop a skill set that you can take to your novels.
One thing that I will admit about my writing, I never use an outline. Never. I let the story take shape as I introduce characters. I let the characters tell me what they want to do and where they want to. I am just along for the ride as I follow them as I write each sentence and each paragraph.
I think the recipe for a great story (zombie or otherwise) is to have a great mix of characters and action and a storyline that will drive it when the action isn't there. It's all about finding balance.
August 20, 2019
The Dead and The Living
Hi everyone, it has been two years since I have published a book. I have published a lot of short stories in the meantime. I found myself wanting to write something different than that of my usual horror stories.
The Dead and The Living took shape rather quickly once I sat down and began writing it. I found my main character who I thought would be the hero of the story. It seems there are more than one hero in this story.
The villain of this story is vile. Actually, his group of survivors are more than just vile. I'm not sure there is a word to describe who they are. Monsters. Evil. It just doesn't fit.
While writing this book I found something in myself that I thought I had lost. The joy of writing. I love creating but for a two year period I felt as if I had lost that joy. My aunt passed away. My grandmother was in an out of the hospital until she passed. The two years of not publishing or writing a novel were filled with gut wrenching heartache. I lost myself and the joy of escaping the world around me while being creative.
The Dead and The Living allowed me to find that joy. It allowed me to find a bit of myself again. Something I feared would forever be lost. It was just hidden behind the pain and grief of losing those that I loved.
As I sit here writing this and working on book two in the series I can't help but think of them. I can hear my aunt laughing and talking to me and my family. I can hear my grandmother saying the last few words that any of us would ever hear. I cherish those moments and memories more than anything in this world.
I think The Dead and The Living was a perfect story to write at the perfect time. It allowed to me let some of my own personal pain come out in this story with the main character Chris, who also has the pain of loss in his own life.
This book allowed me to work through my pain and write something that I feel will connect with a lot of readers. Not just zombie fans but fans of a good storyline. I hope to continue this with book two. I want to keep the characters real with no super hero's in this story.
I hope that you as a reader will also take this journey into the future with me and with this series.
Thank you.
The Dead and The Living: A Zombie Apocalypse Thriller ( The Dead and The Living Book 1): The Dead and The Living: A Post Apocalypse Thriller
The Dead and The Living took shape rather quickly once I sat down and began writing it. I found my main character who I thought would be the hero of the story. It seems there are more than one hero in this story.
The villain of this story is vile. Actually, his group of survivors are more than just vile. I'm not sure there is a word to describe who they are. Monsters. Evil. It just doesn't fit.
While writing this book I found something in myself that I thought I had lost. The joy of writing. I love creating but for a two year period I felt as if I had lost that joy. My aunt passed away. My grandmother was in an out of the hospital until she passed. The two years of not publishing or writing a novel were filled with gut wrenching heartache. I lost myself and the joy of escaping the world around me while being creative.
The Dead and The Living allowed me to find that joy. It allowed me to find a bit of myself again. Something I feared would forever be lost. It was just hidden behind the pain and grief of losing those that I loved.
As I sit here writing this and working on book two in the series I can't help but think of them. I can hear my aunt laughing and talking to me and my family. I can hear my grandmother saying the last few words that any of us would ever hear. I cherish those moments and memories more than anything in this world.
I think The Dead and The Living was a perfect story to write at the perfect time. It allowed to me let some of my own personal pain come out in this story with the main character Chris, who also has the pain of loss in his own life.
This book allowed me to work through my pain and write something that I feel will connect with a lot of readers. Not just zombie fans but fans of a good storyline. I hope to continue this with book two. I want to keep the characters real with no super hero's in this story.
I hope that you as a reader will also take this journey into the future with me and with this series.
Thank you.
The Dead and The Living: A Zombie Apocalypse Thriller ( The Dead and The Living Book 1): The Dead and The Living: A Post Apocalypse Thriller
