In the Lime Light – #AuthorInterview – Joseph Mulak
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Please allow me to introduce fellow author Joseph Mulak, author of Haunted Whispers, Burnt Ashes, and Little Angels. He has had stories published in Death Be Not Proud, Dangers Untold, and Dark Things II, among other anthologies. He lives in North Bay, Ontario with his wife, Alicia, and five children. He is currently at work on several new writing projects.
Please Introduce us to your Blog. What is it all about? What sorts of posts do you lean towards? My blog is mostly about topics concerning the genres I tend to write in. Mostly horror. Anything relevant to the genre is fair game. One thing I really enjoy doing is promoting other authors’ work. So I post reviews of books I like in the hopes of garnering the authors a few more readers.
What Inspires and stirs your creativity? Just about everything. I get ideas from every aspect of my life whether it be work, family, friends, or even conversations I overhear in public. That and reading good fiction. Reading someone else’s work eggs me on to do better and finish whatever I happen to be working on.
Conversely, what do you find difficult to write about? If there’s something too difficult to write about, I haven’t found it yet. Over the years I’ve had several blogs covering various topics. I’ve written about politics, religion, social issues, anything is fair game. Although I’ve toned down more recently. Now that my work seems to be garnering more of a readership, I tend to stay away from the more controversial topics so as to not alienate my readers. As consumers of art, we often have a tendency to not separate the artist from the art. We can’t support someone that we disagree with. So I’ve put my opinions on religion and politics aside and focus on more general topics.
What Message, if any, do you hope to Share through your blog/posts? I don’t try to put messages in my work. Usually there’s a theme I deal with such as addiction, poverty, family, etc. But I don’t want to be preachy. As a genre writer, my job is to entertain, so I try to keep that in mind whether I’m writing fiction, a blog post, an interview, or a grocery list.
How has your blog helped you as a writer/Indie Author? What things have you learned along the way that you never anticipated? I’m not sure if it’s helped me. I hope some people have found my books through my blog, which is its main purpose. As for what I’ve learned along the way? My job, first and foremost, is to entertain. I always try to keep that in mind, which is why I keep certain opinions to myself.
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Tell us about your book(s): I currently have four books in print. Flushed, which is about love and poker; Haunted Whispers, my short story collection; Burnt Ashes (soon to be renamed to Ashes to Ashes, brand new cover and everything) is a zombie novel; and I just recently put out a 10,000 word novella called Little Angels, which is more or less a ghost story.
What Inspired you to write your book? Depends on which book, I guess. Flushed came out of two failed relationships I’ve had and the fact that I stayed an irresponsible and immature person until my late 20s.
Burnt Ashes started out being about drug addiction and by the end of the first chapter (while keeping the drug addiction theme) turned into a book about my somewhat strained relationship with my older brother.
Haunted Whispers is a collection of short stories and it covers a broad range of themes and styles. It would take a long time to go through all the various influences.
Little Angels was influenced by a family trip to Nova Scotia when I was 12 or 14. My father and I found an old graveyard and everyone buried there was 12 years old or younger. It was also influenced by my lifelong battle with depression.
From what Point of View do you prefer to write? Is there a reason? My favourite depends on which best suits the story. I’ve written in both and there are pros and cons to each one. I tend to write in third person most of the time, because it’s less restrictive, though I do turn to first person every once in a while since I do like the reader only having the same information as the POV character. Makes the story that much more mysterious.
How would you describe your “Voice” or Style of writing? I’m told my voice is relaxed and conversational, which is great. People seem to enjoy it.
What genre do you prefer to write or are you truly eclectic? Horror. I only have one work outside of the genre and I’m pretty sure it was one-time thing. My mind just tends to go in that direction when I’m thinking up stories. But, within the horror genre, I’m all over the place. I’ve written zombie stories, horror-comedies, I’ve had one or two of my stories described as “torture-porn,” I’ve written creepy ghost stories. Readers never really know what they’re getting with my stuff. I love most of the horror sub-genres, so I tend to write in a lot of them.
Do you painstakingly plot out your story; are you a discovery writer or a bit of both? Why? I typically start with an idea, whether it’s a character I find intriguing or an opening scene, and go from there. I don’t usually know where the story is headed until I’m about halfway through. I like to think of it this way: When you get into a situation where your life is in danger, you have no idea what you’re going to do until you learn more about the situation, the antagonist, etc. That’s how I like to write. I like to learn more about the characters and the situation I’ve tossed them in before I figure out how they’re going to respond to it and ultimately win. Or lose, depending. I know a lot of authors recommend not doing this. I just read an article by John Grisham recently where he states that even authors who say they don’t outline really do. This isn’t true and I’m not sure where he gets this idea. But doing it this way seems to be working for me so far.
Do you have a favourite or least favourite character? And Why? Probably Todd Wright, one of the two brothers who are the main protagonists in Burnt Ashes. Todd is a musician, suffers from depression, is a recovering addict, is divorced, has a poor relationship with his brother, feels like a failure most of the time, and has a sarcastic sense of humour. These are traits Todd and I both share, so I relate to him more than most of my other characters.
Share an insight or secret about your book(s). Readers can’t put them down because I lace the covers with superglue.
HA HA HA Thats Great 
