SOMETIMES I GET ASKED STUFF… PART 24 (SUPER-SIZED)

"DAMN IT!"And we’re back for a 24th installment of Sometimes I Get Asked Stuff… WOW. 24. I feel like I should toss out a Jack Bauer-like "DAMMIT!" to celebrate. I know I’ve said it before, but thank you for the continued questions. I love answering them. Please, keep ‘em coming.

You can check out all of the past installments of Sometimes I Get Asked Stuff... here.

Q: You are very prolific! How long does it take for you to complete one novel, and about how many words are they on average (if you don't mind me asking)?

Thanks, man. Not at all. Ask me anything. Well, almost anything.

Time varies because I'm often juggling multiple projects so I start, stop, and start back. The books are also of different sizes depending on the publisher's needs. Novels like Evil Ways , Deadly Games! , and Earthstrike Agenda average near 100,000 words. Snow Falls and Fight Card: Barefoot Bones between 25,000 & 30,000. Domino Lady and Ghost Gal: The Wild Hunt are around 40,000. Stories in the anthologies generally run from 5,000 - 15,000 words each. It all depends on what size stories the publisher is looking for per project.

My first novel, Evil Ways took 6 months to hammer out the first draft, but then I
spent the next 5 years polishing it as I tried to find a publisher for it. These days, I also do a lot of work for hire writing so publishers come to me with assignments, which is nice. I write my personal novels around that schedule. I still shoot for the 100,000 range on them.

Q: I am writing a short story, but the publisher wants a pitch first. I've never done a pitch, so I'm not sure about it. Is it like a blurb, or a summary? Any advice would be great.

I dislike pitching. I find it difficult because I learn plot details and things like that as I go along in the writing process. So, yeah, I dislike pitching, however, it’s part of the
job so I had to teach myself how to do it. I used to think of writing a pitch as stanching the ability to follow those creative threads that pop up when writing, but I realized that the pitch is basically the main points of the story, which I usually know before I start.

Pitches are usually short, maybe two to three hundred words or so. Basically, you tell the main points of your story, getting the major plot points across, including the ending. The pitch is not a blurb or solicitation copy. Don’t end a pitch with Will lassie reach Timmy in time? The publisher actually wants/needs to know if Timmy will be rescued or not.

A pitch should also be straight to the point. You don’t need flowery prose in a pitch. The publisher just wants to know what the story will contain. As an example, you’re telling a friend about a TV show episode or movie you just saw. How do you tell that? You generally hit the high points. A pitch is very similar, except you don’t hide spoilers in the pitch. A pitch is essentially, quick, tell me about your story.

I hope that helps.

Good luck with your pitch and your story. I’d love to hear how it turns out.

Q: What scares you the most about being a writer?

Failure. There’s always that fear that this will be the story where “they” realize I don’t know what I’m doing.

Q: What is the most important thing you might want to tell an aspiring writer about the life of an author?

If you want to write as a career then you have to treat it like a job. It’s sometimes easier said than done, but that will help you in the long run. It can be equal parts the greatest job in the world and also the most frustrating so do it because you love it.

Q: Do you have an MFA in writing or any kind of writing degree?

No. No writing degree. No publisher I’ve ever worked for or talked to about the possibility of working with has ever asked me about a degree either.

Q: Are you a visually driven writer? Do you print off maps and PostIt note your walls, and hand write timelines on a white board?

Sometimes, but usually it’s all organized in my head. I really should get it down on paper more often though.

Q: Do you prefer to write a murder mystery on a plane, train or ship?

Of these three, I’d probably go with the train. Trains are fun and interesting and you have to get creative on how your characters do things because of the limited space that makes it harder to avoid people. I did write a train story in Secret Agent X Vol. 4 for Airship 27 Productions called “Mountain Men of The Lost Valley” and I had fun dealing with a group who hijacked the train.

Q: What is you favorite form of research? Travel? Books and libraries? Interviews? Internet?

I love hands on research. One of my favorite days was visiting with the FBI and talking with some agents, taking a tour, that sort of thing. Being thee really helps. I
love traveling as well, although I don’t get to do it as much as I’d like. Obviously, the internet is a fantastic research tool as well.

Q: In your current project, where does your protagonist live?

In Snow Storm, Abraham Snow lives in the guest house of his grandfather’s estate, a place they affectionately refer to as The Farm. Snow has been staying there as he recovers from the events that happened to him at the beginning of Snow Falls , which is still on sale here (shameless plug).

Q: I use a set of tarot cards for daily writing inspiration. Do you do something Crime Doesn't Pay... much.a little different from the norm to start the juices moving?

Not really. Deadlines do the trick for me pretty well most of the time.

Q: What is your favorite genre to write in, and why?

Demonslayer 1I love writing crime fiction. I like the struggle between good and bad and there’s usually some thrills and action there too. Plus, crime fiction can play across many other genres including thrillers, pulp, noir, and even sci fi.

Q: Where do you get your ideas for your stories from? Every day life experiences. 

The simple answer is that story ideas come from anywhere and everywhere. Sometimes it can be something as simple as hearing a bit of a conversation that sparks an idea or reading a news story. Some of the best villains come from reading a news story and thinking, "I hate that guy" and then wondering what makes a character like that tick. Other times they sort of pop up out of thin air.

Demonslayer 2Q; How did you get into writing and get your break? 

I started out writing comic books, primarily so I could draw them. I had high hopes of becoming a comic book artist, but it turns out I'm not that good an artist, but I was a passable writer. I focused on writing and kept at it. I did a script here and there for some small publishers and in 2000 I was asked to try out for scripting duties on a comic book called Demonslayer for Avatar Press. The scripter (plot was handled by the artist who also owned the character) was leaving and my samples landed me the scripting gig, which I did for a few years. The Demonslayer pages posted here are plotted and scripted by me, art by Marat Mychaels, and inks by Cory Hamscher.

Demonslayer 3During that time, I tried my hand at a novel and Evil Ways was born. It took a few years to find a publisher willing to give my first novel a shot, but Evil Ways premiered in August 2005. Once I had a novel in hand, I used that to find other writing work, which then led to more work and on and on. Each book/story published becomes a sample to help land the next publishing gig. Even though Evil Ways was a publishing nightmare experience, I was able to use the book to help put my work in front of other publishers. That led to my working on Lance Star: Sky Ranger, which led to Domino Lady, and on and on...

Q: Do you prefer writing for different genres or the same genres?

I love to bounce around from genre to genre when I have the chance. Even with
Demonslayer 4writing, I find that variety is the spice of life. I often write short stories for anthologies, which is a great way to dip my toe into genres that are not ones I normally get to write. Doing that has allowed me to write a western, fantasy, genres I don't work in regularly. I also enjoy mixing genres. That’s fun too.

Q: How do you write your first draft?

I just sit down and start writing until I get it all down. Then I start working on it to get it into shape.

Q: I've always wondered how writers chose character names and how important do you think it is to get the right names?

Names are tricky. One of the rules I’ve adopted is to discard any names that come to me too easily because I’ve probably heard it somewhere before. A quick Google search usually confirms that. Finding the right name for a character can be quite time consuming. Finding the right name for a character, especially a main character, is very important. If the character goes on to appear in more than one book you will be stuck with that name forever so you want it to be the right one.

In my Snow Falls e-novel, the main character’s name is Abraham Snow. Snow is one of those weird cases where the character went through several different names before I settled on the one that worked best for the characters. Before he
was Abraham Snow he was Jonathan Hunt, then Abraham Hunt, then Archer Snow, the Jack Archer, then Archer Hunt, then finally Abraham Snow. He’s probably the most difficult character I’ve named.

He certainly went through more changes than most of my characters.

In my first published novel, Evil Ways , I created FBI Agent Harold Palmer. I’m not sure why I decided to have him Harold and not Harry, but I’m glad I did. After the book was released, I realized that Harry Palmer is the name of a character in a series of novels by Len Deighton. Although, I’ve not read them, I was probably familiar with the movies based on the books starring Michael Caine. Thankfully, Calling him Harold helped me, but it reminded me of the importance of fully vetting character names.

Q: Do all your characters speak English? Do you ever have to make up a language for a character or two?

I have, on occasion, had characters speak in other languages, although I usually say it’s translated into English. When writing science fiction or fantasy, there have been times when I’ve created words, phrases, or languages for new cultures created for those stories. It’s something I do when the story needs it.

Q: Who originally inspired you to want to make comics?

Marv Wolfman and Keith Pollard. They were the team on the first comics I read and I wanted to be able to do books like them. Later, John Byrne, Walt Simonson, and George Perez.

Q: What is your favorite genre in general?

I love writing crime fiction. I love having a good guy and a bad guy and trying to figure out how it was done. The beauty of crime fiction is that it easily fits in with other genres. Sci Fi Crime, Crime Western, Crime Urban Fantasy, you name it.

Q: What was your life like BEFORE you became a writer?

I started writing when I was a teenager so before that my life was pretty simple. I’ve been writing for so long now that it’s hard to remember a time before. Man, that makes me sound old, huh?

Q: What do you envision on the cover for your current project? What elements do you see included?

Good question. I’m working on Snow Storm, which is book #2 featuring Abraham Snow. I suspect that the publisher will continue the design aesthetic from the cover to book #1, Snow Falls by Dennis Calero. I hope so. I love the cover he did for Book #1.

Q: What’s your Favorite Alan Rickman Movie?

Die Hard.

Followed by Galaxy Quest, the Quigley Down Under, then Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.

Q: How do you deal with writer’s block?

Writer’s what? In all seriousness, I don’t believe in writer’s block. I don’t have time for it. I have days I don’t feel like writing, but that’s not writer’s block. As a working writer I have deadlines to hit. I can’t wait until inspiration strikes. I have to sit down and do the work.

Q: What’s the best thing about being a writer?

I love being a writer. I love telling and creating stories and characters. One of the best things about being a writer is that it has allowed me opportunities to meet interesting people I might not have been able to meet otherwise. It has also allowed me travel opportunities as well. Plus, I have learned many new things because of research.


Q: What’s your advice for aspiring writers?

Decide what you want to accomplish with your writing and work toward that goal. Not all writers have the same goal nor, do I think, they should. If your goal is to be a professional working writer, that's great. However, if you want to write for family and friends, that's okay too. Write toward your plans and have fun with it.

Q: What are you currently working on?

I am currently juggling two projects. I’m working on SNOW STORM, the second book featuring the character of Abraham Snow who was introduced in SNOW Premieres September '14FALLS.

I’m also working on some comic book scripts featuring The DOMINO LADY, a character I’ve written before. I’m having fun working on these with author Nancy Holder, who I’ve worked with before. We are having fun with Domino Lady’s new adventures.

After that, I’m diving into the EVIL INTENT novel, the sequel to my novel, EVIL WAYS.

Q: How do you get inspired to write?

Deadlines are very inspiring. At the moment I am a fulltime writer and I work for a few different publishers, some handling work for hire gigs and other with my own creations. Each of those projects comes with a deadline so I try to schedule the work out so it all gets done on time. That means that my daily schedule is planned out so I have to do some work each day. So far, that system has worked for me.

Q: Is Deadly Games the sequel to Evil Ways?

Yes and no.

Deadly Games! is a sequel in that it happens after Evil Ways and some of the same supporting characters are in it ala Sheriff Tom Myers and his deputies. Both stories take place in the same town, but the main characters are different though. I have recently started referring to these two novels as the Parts 1 and 2 of The Sommersville Saga. Evil Intent will be part 3 with the Sheriff Tom Myers Casefiles (working title) to follow in 2015.

Q: Where did you get the idea for your most recent book?

My most recent release was Alexandra Holzer’s Ghost Gal: The Wild Hunt for Raven’s Head Press. This novel is fiction, but the main characters are based on real life people, Alexandra Holzer and her family, including her famous father, Hans Holzer. This was a work for hire gig and the publisher invited me to come on board as writer. We then took the characters and premise and fleshed them out. Once we had that, I came up with a plot that I pitched to Alexandra and my editor, Michael Hudson. Once that was done and approved, I wrote the novel then turned it in for edits. I came up with the premise for The Wild Hunt while researching various legends and when I ran across the Wild Hunt, they just clicked as the bad guys for this story.

You can learn more about Alexandra Holzer’s Ghost Gal: The Wild Hunt here, which has information on the book, the plot, links to where the book is available, and a link to my appearance on The Book Cave podcast where I talked about Ghost Gal.

I'd like to take a moment to congratulate The Book Cave's Ric and Art on reaching their 300th episode, which will sadly mark the end of The Book Cave podcast. I always had a great time visiting the podcast and will miss it. Here's hoping they don't stay "retired" too long. :)

Q: What do you imagine your favorite author does in their free time?

If they’re anything like me, they’re wondering how they ended up with free time and probably assuming it means they forgot to do something important.

Not Actual CoverQ: Have you ever had a character that was suppose to only appear in one or two scenes suddenly start speaking and you realize he now has a more important part to play later in the story?

Happens to me more often than I like to admit. One case in point is Sheriff Tom Myers in Evil Ways . His roll grew as the story grew and even moved into Deadly Games! , even though he was not originally intended to be part of that story. I’ve also developed some stand alone story ideas for the character. He just keeps talking to me. Oh, yeah, he also appears in the upcoming Evil Intent as well.

Will we see Sheriff Tom Myers again? Definitely. I just have to clear my schedule and get that first story written.

Barney Bishop is another character that does that as well. I created him as a rookie detective in my first Domino Lady story for Moonstone’s Domino Lady: Sex As A Weapon anthology with no real intention of him being anything more than a character in that one story. Author Ron Fortier liked the character so much he asked if he could use him in his story for the anthology and I said sure.

Cut to later, when I was writing “Homefront” for Lance Star: Sky Ranger Vol. 2 and I needed a detective. Because the Lance Star story took place about 6 or 7 years after the Domino Lady story (gotta love writing period pieces) I was able to use an older Barney Bishop as the investigating detective. He was no longer a rookie and had returned to New York a year earlier, which allowed me to start
filling in back story for the character. There’s also an Ellen (Domino Lady) Patrick cameo in the story, which allows the two characters to reunite as a nice Easter Egg for those readers who read both stories. I love these writing these kinds of crossovers. In fact, this story was recently featured on Sean Levin's The Crossover Universe blog. You can read more about it here.

Last year, when I was working on my Domino Lady novel, “Money Shot” (now available for pre-order, in stores this September) it was still set in the timeframe before Barney Bishop’s return to New York so he became part of the story as one of the detectives assigned to investigate a murder.

There were two other instances where the character almost showed up again. In “The Case of the Wayward Brother” from The Ruby Files Vol. 1 I was going to have Detective Bishop appear, having recently arrived in New York after transferring from California. Sadly, the timeline didn’t quite line up so I scrapped that plan. The other time I was asked to write a pulpy story that takes place on a train for a proposed train stories anthology. My pitch started with “Barney Bishop takes a train to…” Sadly, the book never happened.

Will we see Barney Bishop again?

Maybe.

Now available for pre-order.Q: WHEN did you know that you were hardwired to be writer and it was what you simply HAD to do?

Good question. I don’t have a specific date or anything, but there came a point in the early 90’s when I started to focus solely on writing and pushed aside the desire to be a comic book artist. Once that happened, I knew writing was something I wanted and needed to do. The stories keep coming. If I don’t write them down they just bounce around in my head anyway.

Q: Who are your favorite male and female mystery man/woman and why? Does the answer change for having to write them.

As a writer, I have fallen in love with a couple of the classic pulp mystery men/women characters and I get a bit of a charge each time I get to write their adventures. Domino Lady is an obvious one, considering how often I return to write her adventures (there’s a novel now available for pre-order and more comic books coming with her too). I wasn’t familiar with the character before I was brought on to write her. I read the original stories and I was hooked. She’s a great character. Another character I connected with the same way, although I don’t get to write as often, is Secret Agent X. Both of them are fun characters I enjoy writing and reading.

I also got a big thrill out of writing The Spider.

Secret Agent XQ: Which shows have been the most worthwhile for selling your books? Some writers tell me they do better at local fairs and events than larger book festivals.

It depends on the event and the books. If you write children’s books, for example, then you will probably do better at a library show or kid-centric event than a convention. Most of the time it’s a crapshoot on what kind of sales you’ll do at any given show. Sometimes you just have to try a show/con/event to see if it’s a good fit.

Q: How do you handle negative reviews?

Me at Free Comic Book Day signingNegative reviews happen. The absolute worst thing an author can do is argue with, or try to change the mind of, the reviewer. All you can do is grin, bear it, and keep doing what you're doing. Negative reviews can actually help you too. If all you have are 5 star reviews, some readers will assume they are made by only people you know. Having a 2 or 3 star review might not hurt. All readers are different and what one reader likes another may not like. Regardless of the review, I try to thank reviewers for taking the time to leave feedback.

Q: What cartoon character best describes you as an author?

An insane Daffy Duck. Or maybe Yosmite Sam. HA! HA! HA!

Q: When was the last time your plot jumped the tracks on you? Did you rein it in or let it lead?

I wrote a story called “The One That Got Away” for the Nightbeat: Night Stories audiobook/ebook anthology for Radio Archives. I let it go and it led me to a fantastic place that made the story so much better. You can learn more about Nightbeat: Night Stories here.

Q: How much of your next project comes to mind while you are editing the current one?

I’m always juggling multiple projects at once so my brain is always working through multiple plots at once so this is kind of my default setting. HA! HA!

Q: What’s your favorite Marvel Studios movie to date?

Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Followed closely by Avengers, Iron Man, Thor, then Captain America: The First Avenger.

Q: Are you a Morning Person (Early Bird), or a Nocturnal (Nite Owl)?

Definitely a Nite Owl.

Q: What was the best syndicated series of the 80's/90's/00's?

I assume this means first run syndication. My favorites-- Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Babylon 5 were incredible. I would also add Highlander: The Series to the list as well. Those three were can’t miss shows for me and I own them all on DVD now.

Q: What do you love most about being a writer?

I love the feeling of accomplishment when I see something I poured my soul into available to the masses and to know that people are reading, and hopefully enjoying, my work. I also love creating stories and character.

Q: When do you know the title for your book? At the very beginning of the idea? Somewhere in the middle? Not until you've finished the book?

It varies from project to project. Sometimes the story is there from the beginning. My e-novel SNOW FALLS was like that. I knew the title before I wrote the first word. Others are work in progress.

My novel, EVIL WAYS had several title ideas, but none that truly seemed to work so I wrote without a title firmly in place. In one scene, one of the characters, a musician, sits in with the local bar’s cover band and performs 3 classic rock songs. My purely scientific method was to turn on the radio and use the next 3
songs that played. One of them was Evil Ways and I thought that was a good title so I added it to the list of placeholder titles with the intention to change it again, but the name stuck and I used it. When I started thinking of titles for a second book featuring FBI Agent Harold Palmer, EVIL INTENT came pretty quickly.

On my DEADLY GAMES! novel, the title was GAMES! until well after it was finished. In shopping it around to publishers, I was told that the title might be too generic so I added the “Deadly” and, even though that publisher did not end up publishing the novel, I liked the new name and kept it. I was also told more than once that having the exclamation point (!) in the title didn't work. As you can see, I disagreed.

Q: What childhood memory or nightmare still shows up in some form within your writing?

I used to have Night Terrors as a kid. It’s not the main plot, but I worked that into an upcoming novel where the main protagonist’s young daughter suffers from them as well and used some personal experience and memory for that part of the story.

Q: Which character you have featured in your stories has the most "you" in them? I don't mean which character you like best or most admire. Which one have you put most of yourself into?

The Nash Boys (a couple years ago)There’s a little bit of me in all of them, I think, but for the most like me, that’s probably Harold Palmer from my novel, Evil Ways and the upcoming Evil Intent . When I was writing Evil Ways, my beta readers gave notes that my main protagonists, two brothers named Harold and Franklin Ray Palmer did not “feel” like brothers in their interactions. Without the omniscient narration telling the reader that these guys were brothers, the notes told me they wouldn’t have known they were related.

Sommersville: Show us your Evil WaysI thought long and hard about that and thought of how my brother, Wes, and I talk to one another. I gave Franklin Ray Palmer my brother’s personality and gave Harold Palmer mine. This way they had our voices and when I rewrote those scenes the notes from the beta readers came back that there was no denying that these two guys were brothers.

So, Harold Palmer has my basic personality, which he still retains as we go into Evil Intent.

Q: Do you listen to music as you write?

I do indeed. Sometimes it's the radio, other times I put the music on my laptop on shuffle and let it play. I don't have specific playlists. I've heard other writers talk about their playlists. I might have to try that some day.

Q: Have you ever written a screenplay? Please share a bit about the experience.

I have written three screenplays. One of them has been produced (Starship Farragut “ Conspiracy of Innocence ” which will hit the ‘net any day now), one
is being produced (“The Spark” a short film for a DVD anthology - details as soon as I have some to share), and one that was rejected (it happens). I enjoyed writing the screenplays and would love to try another. Screenplay writing is, I discovered, very similar to writing comic book scripts, at least in form and layout. I usually start with the dialogue and then work in the actions as I go along.

Q: What's a major lesson you've learned in working on your current story?

Don’t try to write fight scenes with several characters freestyle. Have a plan and choreograph the fight.

Not Final CoverQ: We all kill characters, whether it's a fantasy dragon or a human antagonist. What is the most interesting way you ever killed off a character?

I apparently love to kill characters, considering the literary body count I’ve left in my wake. The most interesting kill is not out yet. I’m working on a novel called Blood Shot in which I have someone killed with a weed-whacker. That was fun to write. If all goes as planned, you'll see Blood Shot in 2015.

And I think that is a good place to finish this round of Sometimes I Get Asked Stuff… Do you have any questions you’d like me to answer? Post them here as a comment or send them along to bobby@bobbynash.com and I’ll answer them in a future installment of Sometimes I Get Asked Stuff...

Keep those questions coming.Also, please sign up for my mailing list. Drop me an email at bobby@bobbynash.com and I'll happily add you to the list.

If you’d like to check out my work, you can find my books at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Goodreads, Smashwords, and more. Reviews and "Likes" are always appreciated.

Thanks for listening to me ramble.
Let’s do this again soon.

Happy Reading.

Bobby