January 2021 Group Read with Guest Authors, Chad Lutzke & Tim Meyer

[Kenneth]

This is the thread for the January 2021 Group Read with Guest Authors, Chad Lutzke and Tim Meyer joining us as we read their psychotic collaboration,Wormwood.

You can grab a copy here:

https://www.amazon.com/Wormwood-Chad-...

Please help me welcome to HA, Chad Lutzke and Tim Meyer!

[Rebeka]

Welcome! I'm looking forward to making Wormwood one of my first reads of the new year :)

[Chris]

Sounds like two great reads! Can’t wait to get started

[Latasha]

Welcome Chad and Tim. Thank you for joining us.

[Scott]

I read this book the week it came out, didn't know what to expect because i went in blind not wanting to be spoiled and was pleasantly surprised. A really good examination of teen coming of age and just an all around good book.

[Kimberly]

I'm so excited to read this one! Welcome Chad and Tim.

[Chad]

Hey, everyone! Thanks for reading WORMWOOD. I'm here for any questions, should they arise.

[Tim]

Hey, everyone! I'm excited to hang out and answer questions about WORMWOOD. Feel free to ask us anything. :-)

[Elke]

What a great choice to start into the year with, just added this book to my pile. Welcome Chad & Tim and hello to all fellow readers!

[Marc]

Just finished it in three sittings. Very intense and a great beginning for 2021. I'll hold off any questions for now. Looking forward to the discussion.

[Kimberly]

Started last night, and got almost a third of the way through.

[Elke]

About half way through, and reluctant to continue for fear it will be over too soon ;) Love it so far.

[Joey]

I finished this in just 24hrs - I loved it! Great choice. Is it OK to start discussing?

[Kimberly]

Joey wrote: "I finished this in just 24hrs - I loved it! Great choice. Is it OK to start discussing?"

Just say what percentage you're at, and then use spoiler tags if necessary for those that aren't that far.

[Elke]

Finished! This was one of those books were after the first couple pages I just knew I would love the whole thing (like with Boy's Life).

One thing I immediately noticed was the naming of the chapters, I liked the 'xx days ago' approach which builds a great amount of suspense and curiosity for the oncoming 'now'. Though it's mostly normal for a story to build tension towards the end, this was like a constant visible reminder, a clock counting down (I hope you get what I'm trying to say...).

Some questions to the authors:
1. How do you write a story with two authors involved? Did you alternate writing chapters? Or did one of you specialize e.g. on the 'action' parts while the other was responsible for dialogue?

2. How did you brainstorm for the storyline?

3. Was it easy to accept the other's choices? Were there parts you disagreed upon and how did you solve the conflict?

4. (view spoiler)[Please don't tell me (one of) you really dissected a pig fetus when you were in school?! That would be so gross! In my youth it was a fish and the goal was to keep the swim bladder intact. (hide spoiler)]

[Elke]

And here is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Edward]

Wormwood was one of my favorites of 2020. Here is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Tim]

Elke wrote: "Finished! This was one of those books were after the first couple pages I just knew I would love the whole thing (like with Boy's Life).

One thing I immediately noticed was the naming of the chapt..."

Thanks for reading, Elke!

(Chad's answers might differ.)

1.) For starters, we spent months planning out the story. I actually wrote the "first draft", writing about three chapters at a time before handing it off to Chad. He'd rewrite or polish the three chapters and then hand it back to me. We used that system until we were finished and had a pretty solid rough draft.

2.) We had several Zoom sessions where we traded ideas back and forth, until we had a solid idea and outline of where we wanted the story to go. There were *some* surprises along the way, but mostly everything was outlined going into the first draft.

3.) Haha, we were pretty much on the same page about everything. That said, Chad's more of the control freak and I'm more laid back, so our personalities kinda meshed. I think if we were too much alike, it wouldn't have worked as well as it did. Or... at all. Haha.

4.) (view spoiler)[So, in the first draft, I actually wrote it as a frog because that was what I'd dissected when I was in high school. But Chad remembered (I think) dissecting a pig, and that made more sense for what came later, so he changed it. And I'm glad he did so, because the whole "pig" aspect becomes such an integral part of the story, especially in the 3rd act. (hide spoiler)]

Thanks for the questions! :-)

[Tim]

Edward wrote: "Wormwood was one of my favorites of 2020. Here is my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."

Thanks for reading and reviewing, Edward!!! :-)

[Elke]

Tim wrote: "Thanks for reading, Elke!
(Chad's answers might differ.)"

Tim, thanks for the answers! Impressive how much work it takes to create the perfect story, but the outcome was totally worth it!

3. With that answer, I am curious for Chad's answers! ;)

Re. 4. (view spoiler)[The pig indeed was the better choice, otherwise you would have had him to swallow the whole frog to make any impact ;) I'm still amazed that they really had pigs in school, I was almost sure that part was made up... (hide spoiler)]

More questions:
5. Are there any parts or characters based on reality, e.g. bullies from school, an abandoned house in your neighborhood etc.?

6. (view spoiler)[At first, it seemed strange to have an older girl mess around with younger guys, but of course it works perfectly, her influencing and impressing the 'innocent' boys. I guess if it was just a gang of boys, it would have been easier for Baker to turn his back on them. Where did that idea come from? (hide spoiler)]

7. (view spoiler)[On the cover (Nightworms edition) the guy wears a pig mask. Was that part of the story at some point? I definitely looks more impressive that way! (hide spoiler)]

8. And at last: what comes next?!

[Kimberly]

Just finished last night! What an original take on a coming-of-age horror story!

[Chad]

Elke wrote: "Finished! This was one of those books were after the first couple pages I just knew I would love the whole thing (like with Boy's Life).

One thing I immediately noticed was the naming of the chapt..."

Thanks for the questions, Elke. Tim pretty much nailed it with his answers.

*I never got a chance to dissect a pig, but they were doing that in my high school. I did dissect an oyster once, though, and found a pearl inside of mine ;)

Thanks for reading and for the kind words.

[Chad]

Elke wrote: "Tim wrote: "Thanks for reading, Elke!
(Chad's answers might differ.)"

Tim, thanks for the answers! Impressive how much work it takes to create the perfect story, but the outcome was totally worth ..."

*5(view spoiler)[The story was loosely based on some things I did as a kid, though nothing directly, more the idea of breaking into homes, lots of drinking, and hanging out with toxic people. None of the characters (as far as I know) are based on anyone in real life. (hide spoiler)]

*6(view spoiler)[I believe I came up with the idea of using Cass's sexuality to escalate things and make the peer pressure more believable. While most of my bad influence growing up had to do with boys older than me, I imagined how much more powerful it would have been if you threw in infatuation/love. (hide spoiler)]

*7(view spoiler)[ The pig head on the cover is just to represent a fusion of things inside: The dissection scene, the Corny humiliation scene, and Gerald being an adulterous groomer, as well as Cass's view of men being pigs. We thought it'd make for a striking and ominous cover. (hide spoiler)]
*8. I'm currently working on 3 different books, including another one with author John Boden. At least two of those will be out this year.

Thanks again for your great questions and for reading Wormwood.

[Tim]

Elke wrote: "Tim wrote: "Thanks for reading, Elke!
(Chad's answers might differ.)"

Tim, thanks for the answers! Impressive how much work it takes to create the perfect story, but the outcome was totally worth ..."

Chad answered 5,6, and 7 quite perfectly!

8. I have a novel coming out in February from Grindhouse Press called PARADISE CLUB. In June, I have my big coming-of-age novel coming out through Silver Shamrock. It's called MALIGNANT SUMMER and it's the longest thing I've ever written (5x the length of WORMWOOD!!!). I'm super excited for both, but MS has a special place in my heart because it's a very personal novel.

[Elke]

Thank you both for the answers!

6.(view spoiler)[You are right, adding the infatuation/love factor makes Cass's influence much stronger. And I like the idea of a girl being the bad influence. (hide spoiler)]

7.(view spoiler)[That's what I came to think, too. And it works perfectly, adds a very sinister touch and makes immediately clear that this is more than just a mean prank (hide spoiler)]

8. Great, a lot to watch out for!

@Chad: do you have a special interest in coming-of-age horror (which is my favorite subgenre)? It seems a lot of your stories are about teenagers or kids.

@Tim: I'll especially look out for Malignant Summer then :)

Thank you both for this great book and for participating in this group read! And as always thanks to the HA mods for organizing it!

[Chad]

Elke wrote:
@Chad: do you have a special interest in coming-of-age horror (which is my favorite s..."

It seems I do. Initially I thought I only had one COA story in me, but they just keep coming. I had an interesting childhood with plenty of adventure (good and bad), so I guess I just like to draw from it.

[Elke]

Chad wrote: "Elke wrote:
@Chad: do you have a special interest in coming-of-age horror (which is my favorite s..."

It seems I do. Initially I thought I only had one COA story in me, but they just keep coming...."

Keep them coming, we are eager to read them! ;)

[Kenneth]

I think the thing that struck me the most with this story is how the intoxicating/infatuating feeling of high school “love” is portrayed here and the blinders it puts on Baker and Seb. Chad and Tim, did you pull from your high school days to create their characters and/or experiences?

[Tim]

Kenneth wrote: "I think the thing that struck me the most with this story is how the intoxicating/infatuating feeling of high school “love” is portrayed here and the blinders it puts on Baker and Seb. Chad and Tim..."

Great question, Ken! I didn't pull from any specific person or experience, but love is a weird thing that can make people act so uncharacteristically, especially at an age when that feeling is new. Also, when I think back to a certain dumb thing I did when I was a kid, it was always attributed to "hey, how can I impress this person?"

[Marc]

Chad and Tim - I really enjoyed this book. I especially liked how sex and violence is interweaved throughout the text -

(view spoiler)["The way she laughed as the string of intestines danced along her fingers echoes through his thoughts. It never happened, but he imagines her licking the juices off her fingertips, sucking the unsavory secretions out from under her nails. She smiles as she does so, and there’s a tingle in Baker’s groin—" (hide spoiler)]

And the ending - (view spoiler)[it could have been so much more horrible, but to me it was the right amount (hide spoiler)] - were there alternate endings in mind, depending on how the story progressed? Or did you have the ending first and then figured how the story would weave its way to it?

[Chad]

Kenneth wrote: "I think the thing that struck me the most with this story is how the intoxicating/infatuating feeling of high school “love” is portrayed here and the blinders it puts on Baker and Seb. Chad and Tim..."

Not anything specific other than recalling just how powerful that first love is. It's exciting, scary, and even a little bit lonely because it's something so unfamiliar that you suddenly can relate to no one else. It's you and your love against the world.

[Chad]

Marc wrote: "Chad and Tim - I really enjoyed this book. I especially liked how sex and violence is interweaved throughout the text -

[spoilers removed]

And the ending - [spoilers removed] - were there altern..."

Thanks for reading it, Marc. And for the kind Words (view spoiler)[ The ending was one of the first scenes written, but it was completely different at the time and far more brutal and was trashed early on. Then we were initially going to have someone die at the end who ends up living. I wouldn't call them "alternate" endings, as much as just figuring it out as we go and making appropriate changes. (hide spoiler)]

[Kimberly]

Chad wrote: "Marc wrote: "Chad and Tim - I really enjoyed this book. I especially liked how sex and violence is interweaved throughout the text -

[spoilers removed]

And the ending - [spoilers removed] - were..."
I still need to write out an actual review to post to Amazon (and here, of course), but this was a great choice to start the new year out with!!