10 Questions with Tim Marquitz
1. How has your life changed since you became a full time writer?
TM: I’ve gotten fatter. Outside of that, it’s been great. I’ve been able to sit down and so what needs to be done without all the stress of squeezing in the writing between the day job and everything else. With it being the day job, I’m able to write to my heart’s content and work on more projects.
2. What Epic Fantasy series is most like your Blood Wars Trilogy?
TM: Good question. I’m not really certain. The Blood War Trilogy has a bit of Abercrombie in its bleakness and a more traditional voice than my Demon Squad stuff, but I don’t think I’m well enough read in the genre to make any substantive comparisons. I also haven’t seen any made in the reviews of the books. Might have to hunt more epics down to see where BW falls.
3. Who has been your biggest influence as a writer?
TM: While I regularly claim Clive Barker as the man whose work pushed me to write, I have to say Jim Butcher is a more direct influence on me stylistically. If I hadn’t read the Dresden Files, I think I’d still be splashing around trying to find my voice. His books really hammered home the point that I could write more naturally, using my own personality as a template, rather than having to slip into a role for a story.
4. Do you outline prior to writing your story, or do you work out the plot as you write?
TM: I definitely plot everything, at least loosely. I’ve found that I falter and stray off course when I don’t have an outline to follow. I’ll make adjustments as I go along, sharpen certain plot points and shift others, but it’s always best for me to outline the plot direction.
On the other side of that, I tend to leave almost all of the creative decisions to my brain as I write. Things like descriptions and voice and character interaction is often imagined on the fly. As long as I have the plot to follow, I feel more capable of being creative without screwing up the story.
5. Do you prefer series or stand-alone novels?
TM: As a writer, I prefer series, but standalones are often palette cleansers of a sort. Sometimes the need to write story after story in the same world becomes a drain. I love writing the Demon Squad series because it’s got so many twists and turns and I love the voice of the main character, but books like the Blood War felt better being completed after a few books. It’s all a strange, love-hate kind of thing that comes along with the creative aspect. I always want to move on to something different except in the case of the DS books, because that’s like coming home after a long time away.
6. Do you consider yourself a fantasy or a horror writer?
TM: Most definitely fantasy. I love the horror attributes I add to my writing, but at the end of the day I prefer the freedom of the fantasy genre and audience. I’ll never completely give up my horror roots, but I’m always more satisfied writing the more fantastical stories.
7. What advice do you have for beginning writers?
TM: If you want to write, do it. I know so many people who tell me they want to write a story/memoir/whatever yet they never sit down to actually do it. You can’t get anywhere with that mentality. If you truly want to write, make time for it. Get up early, go to bed late, skip a movie or TV show. Whatever it takes to put a few words on paper.
Writing is about determination and dedication. Move forward with every word, every action, and chase your dreams. Publishing is difficult, but the more you work, the better you’ll do.
8. What type of scenes do you most enjoy writing?
TM: I’m not sure I have a real preference, but it’s mostly predicated on my mood. Some days I find myself walking away from a story when there’s an action scene to write because I’m just not in the mood for it. Other days it’s more about the angsty scenes or internal dialogue. I like all aspects of writing but there are times when a literary passage thrills me more than a fight scene, or vice versa.
9. How do you use social media to promote your writing?
TM: I use it to promote me and my friends. On top of the writing stuff I put out there, I try to create a dialogue with folks on the various platforms, make friends. It isn’t just about a sales pitch. It’s about meeting likeminded people and forming a relationship.
10. If you could invite five people to a dinner party (alive or dead, real or fictional) who would you invite?
TM: This is a toughie. I’m so anti-social that I think I’d want to invite folks who would overwhelm the room so I could just sit back and soak in the atmosphere. Let’s say Clive Barker, King Diamond, Freddy Mercury, and I’d really have to think beyond that, to be honest.
TM: I’ve gotten fatter. Outside of that, it’s been great. I’ve been able to sit down and so what needs to be done without all the stress of squeezing in the writing between the day job and everything else. With it being the day job, I’m able to write to my heart’s content and work on more projects.
2. What Epic Fantasy series is most like your Blood Wars Trilogy?
TM: Good question. I’m not really certain. The Blood War Trilogy has a bit of Abercrombie in its bleakness and a more traditional voice than my Demon Squad stuff, but I don’t think I’m well enough read in the genre to make any substantive comparisons. I also haven’t seen any made in the reviews of the books. Might have to hunt more epics down to see where BW falls.
3. Who has been your biggest influence as a writer?
TM: While I regularly claim Clive Barker as the man whose work pushed me to write, I have to say Jim Butcher is a more direct influence on me stylistically. If I hadn’t read the Dresden Files, I think I’d still be splashing around trying to find my voice. His books really hammered home the point that I could write more naturally, using my own personality as a template, rather than having to slip into a role for a story.
4. Do you outline prior to writing your story, or do you work out the plot as you write?
TM: I definitely plot everything, at least loosely. I’ve found that I falter and stray off course when I don’t have an outline to follow. I’ll make adjustments as I go along, sharpen certain plot points and shift others, but it’s always best for me to outline the plot direction.
On the other side of that, I tend to leave almost all of the creative decisions to my brain as I write. Things like descriptions and voice and character interaction is often imagined on the fly. As long as I have the plot to follow, I feel more capable of being creative without screwing up the story.
5. Do you prefer series or stand-alone novels?
TM: As a writer, I prefer series, but standalones are often palette cleansers of a sort. Sometimes the need to write story after story in the same world becomes a drain. I love writing the Demon Squad series because it’s got so many twists and turns and I love the voice of the main character, but books like the Blood War felt better being completed after a few books. It’s all a strange, love-hate kind of thing that comes along with the creative aspect. I always want to move on to something different except in the case of the DS books, because that’s like coming home after a long time away.
6. Do you consider yourself a fantasy or a horror writer?
TM: Most definitely fantasy. I love the horror attributes I add to my writing, but at the end of the day I prefer the freedom of the fantasy genre and audience. I’ll never completely give up my horror roots, but I’m always more satisfied writing the more fantastical stories.
7. What advice do you have for beginning writers?
TM: If you want to write, do it. I know so many people who tell me they want to write a story/memoir/whatever yet they never sit down to actually do it. You can’t get anywhere with that mentality. If you truly want to write, make time for it. Get up early, go to bed late, skip a movie or TV show. Whatever it takes to put a few words on paper.
Writing is about determination and dedication. Move forward with every word, every action, and chase your dreams. Publishing is difficult, but the more you work, the better you’ll do.
8. What type of scenes do you most enjoy writing?
TM: I’m not sure I have a real preference, but it’s mostly predicated on my mood. Some days I find myself walking away from a story when there’s an action scene to write because I’m just not in the mood for it. Other days it’s more about the angsty scenes or internal dialogue. I like all aspects of writing but there are times when a literary passage thrills me more than a fight scene, or vice versa.
9. How do you use social media to promote your writing?
TM: I use it to promote me and my friends. On top of the writing stuff I put out there, I try to create a dialogue with folks on the various platforms, make friends. It isn’t just about a sales pitch. It’s about meeting likeminded people and forming a relationship.
10. If you could invite five people to a dinner party (alive or dead, real or fictional) who would you invite?
TM: This is a toughie. I’m so anti-social that I think I’d want to invite folks who would overwhelm the room so I could just sit back and soak in the atmosphere. Let’s say Clive Barker, King Diamond, Freddy Mercury, and I’d really have to think beyond that, to be honest.
No comments have been added yet.
