10 Questions with Blake M. Petit
1. As a teacher, are you ever concerned about the content of your writing being too explicit, and do you ever purposely tone it down?
I was a writer before I was a teacher, so that wasn’t really a concern when I started out. Even so, the stuff I write isn’t particularly explicit to begin with. My work falls pretty much into the PG-13 territory. I don’t write graphic sex, the violence in my books isn’t particularly gory or reproducible, and the language is relatively mild. I AM careful to make sure my online persona isn’t anything that my students, their parents, or my school would be upset about, but with my standard sensibilities, it’s not really that difficult.
2. Who has been your biggest influence as a writer?
It’s hard to nail down any one specific influence. Obviously, as anyone who has read any of my Siegel City stories knows, I’ve been a comic book fan my whole life. I think the biggest thing I take away from that, though, isn’t even the superhero thing, but the shared universe thing. I like when different stories connect in a larger tapestry, which is something I got from Marvel and DC Comics I suppose, as well as (to a lesser extent) writers like Stephen King, Isaac Asimov, or William Faulkner.
3. When you developed your cadre of superheroes for Other People’s Heroes, did you purposely shy away from ones that would be similar to those found in the DC and Marvel Universes?
Quite the opposite, actually. The point of view character in Other People’s Heroes is someone who has grown up around superheroes his entire life, and it was a lot more effective for me to use the superhero archetypes that DC and Marvel established instead of having to explain every tidbit about them. So instead, I’ve got the character who’s kind of LIKE Superman, the one who’s kind of LIKE Iron Man, the team that’s kind of LIKE the Fantastic Four, so that the reader immediately knows everything that’s important. That way, it’s a lot more fun later on when I pull the rug out from under them and show them that, in truth, these characters aren’t really like the heroes they’re familiar with after all.
4. Who is your favorite writer?
I’ve always had trouble ranking a number one, because a lot of it depends on the mood I’m in. At any given moment, my favorites would include the likes of Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Mark Twain, and Dave Barry.
5. Name me your favorite superhero that you created and one that previously existed and why?
I didn’t expect it, but I really got to be a big fan of my character Animan – the one whose powers allow him to take on the identities of dozens of different animal-themed superheroes. It’s such a versatile concept that I got to use him in a lot of unexpected ways. Other people’s heroes? (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) I’m old school, I love Superman and I think the Thing from the Fantastic Four remains Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s greatest creation.
6. What current writing projects are you working on?
At the moment I’m working on a few different things. Most importantly, I’m finally taking another crack at a the sequel to Other People’s Heroes -- I’ve done a few short stories and another novel, The Pyrite War, all set in the Siegel City universe, but this will hopefully be a true novel-length second adventure for Josh Corwood and company. I’ve also just started work on another book (as of yet untitled) that is intended to unify the characters from my other “shared universe,” the world of The Curtain, which is inspired by fantasy and monster movies much the same way the Siegel City tales are inspired by superheroes.
7. How was your experience in podcasting Other People’s Heroes?
Not what I expected. I’ve co-hosted a comic book and pop culture podcast (the All New Showcase) for years, so I thought tackling an audiobook would be easy. Nope. The editing, the voice acting, the concentration level required are all drastically different from a conventional podcast. I enjoyed doing it, I got a great response, and I very much would like to do it again with my more recent books, but it’s such a time-consuming process that I haven’t been able to carve out the opportunity to do it in quite a while.
8. What made you start writing?
I’m going to blame that one on having a good teacher. (Hello, Mrs. Meliff, wherever you are!) Back in fifth grade my class was given a creative writing project and I simply fell in love with the process. For the first time in memory, I actually felt like I was good at something. I knew, intellectually, that somebody had to write books and comics, but it had not really occurred to me before that it was a legitimate option for ME. By the time I got to middle school I’d started creating pantheon of characters and stories to go with them. Most of those have been lost to the sands of time. Trust me, the world is better off for it.
9. What is your best quality as a writer?
I think it would have to be my ability to see patterns. I very much enjoy the process of where stories come from and how one story can influence another – I’ve written whole studies on the evolution of horror movies or the different versions of the same character over the years. Seeing those patterns makes me think about storytelling in a specific way, and once you know what those patterns are and how they work, you can start to look for ways to subvert them and surprise people, even if you’re using elements as familiar as time itself.
10. If you could pick one other author to collaborate with on a novel or story, living or dead, who would it be?
Isaac Asimov, because the man was one of the great Renaissance writers of the 20th century. He dipped his toes in virtually every kind of storytelling, which is a quality I admire greatly. Also, he was incredibly prolific, and I would hope working with him would force me to stop procrastinating so much and get a little work done.
I was a writer before I was a teacher, so that wasn’t really a concern when I started out. Even so, the stuff I write isn’t particularly explicit to begin with. My work falls pretty much into the PG-13 territory. I don’t write graphic sex, the violence in my books isn’t particularly gory or reproducible, and the language is relatively mild. I AM careful to make sure my online persona isn’t anything that my students, their parents, or my school would be upset about, but with my standard sensibilities, it’s not really that difficult.
2. Who has been your biggest influence as a writer?
It’s hard to nail down any one specific influence. Obviously, as anyone who has read any of my Siegel City stories knows, I’ve been a comic book fan my whole life. I think the biggest thing I take away from that, though, isn’t even the superhero thing, but the shared universe thing. I like when different stories connect in a larger tapestry, which is something I got from Marvel and DC Comics I suppose, as well as (to a lesser extent) writers like Stephen King, Isaac Asimov, or William Faulkner.
3. When you developed your cadre of superheroes for Other People’s Heroes, did you purposely shy away from ones that would be similar to those found in the DC and Marvel Universes?
Quite the opposite, actually. The point of view character in Other People’s Heroes is someone who has grown up around superheroes his entire life, and it was a lot more effective for me to use the superhero archetypes that DC and Marvel established instead of having to explain every tidbit about them. So instead, I’ve got the character who’s kind of LIKE Superman, the one who’s kind of LIKE Iron Man, the team that’s kind of LIKE the Fantastic Four, so that the reader immediately knows everything that’s important. That way, it’s a lot more fun later on when I pull the rug out from under them and show them that, in truth, these characters aren’t really like the heroes they’re familiar with after all.
4. Who is your favorite writer?
I’ve always had trouble ranking a number one, because a lot of it depends on the mood I’m in. At any given moment, my favorites would include the likes of Stephen King, Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman, Mark Twain, and Dave Barry.
5. Name me your favorite superhero that you created and one that previously existed and why?
I didn’t expect it, but I really got to be a big fan of my character Animan – the one whose powers allow him to take on the identities of dozens of different animal-themed superheroes. It’s such a versatile concept that I got to use him in a lot of unexpected ways. Other people’s heroes? (Sorry, couldn’t resist.) I’m old school, I love Superman and I think the Thing from the Fantastic Four remains Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s greatest creation.
6. What current writing projects are you working on?
At the moment I’m working on a few different things. Most importantly, I’m finally taking another crack at a the sequel to Other People’s Heroes -- I’ve done a few short stories and another novel, The Pyrite War, all set in the Siegel City universe, but this will hopefully be a true novel-length second adventure for Josh Corwood and company. I’ve also just started work on another book (as of yet untitled) that is intended to unify the characters from my other “shared universe,” the world of The Curtain, which is inspired by fantasy and monster movies much the same way the Siegel City tales are inspired by superheroes.
7. How was your experience in podcasting Other People’s Heroes?
Not what I expected. I’ve co-hosted a comic book and pop culture podcast (the All New Showcase) for years, so I thought tackling an audiobook would be easy. Nope. The editing, the voice acting, the concentration level required are all drastically different from a conventional podcast. I enjoyed doing it, I got a great response, and I very much would like to do it again with my more recent books, but it’s such a time-consuming process that I haven’t been able to carve out the opportunity to do it in quite a while.
8. What made you start writing?
I’m going to blame that one on having a good teacher. (Hello, Mrs. Meliff, wherever you are!) Back in fifth grade my class was given a creative writing project and I simply fell in love with the process. For the first time in memory, I actually felt like I was good at something. I knew, intellectually, that somebody had to write books and comics, but it had not really occurred to me before that it was a legitimate option for ME. By the time I got to middle school I’d started creating pantheon of characters and stories to go with them. Most of those have been lost to the sands of time. Trust me, the world is better off for it.
9. What is your best quality as a writer?
I think it would have to be my ability to see patterns. I very much enjoy the process of where stories come from and how one story can influence another – I’ve written whole studies on the evolution of horror movies or the different versions of the same character over the years. Seeing those patterns makes me think about storytelling in a specific way, and once you know what those patterns are and how they work, you can start to look for ways to subvert them and surprise people, even if you’re using elements as familiar as time itself.
10. If you could pick one other author to collaborate with on a novel or story, living or dead, who would it be?
Isaac Asimov, because the man was one of the great Renaissance writers of the 20th century. He dipped his toes in virtually every kind of storytelling, which is a quality I admire greatly. Also, he was incredibly prolific, and I would hope working with him would force me to stop procrastinating so much and get a little work done.
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