Author Q & A: Brad Simkulet

[Renee]

Brad has bravely offered himself up for questioning. So anyone with questions about Brad, or his book or about the time he can't account for in 2007, I can't promise you'll get answers, but it will be interesting.

Take it away Brad.

[Brad]

Time I can't account for in 2007? It's all a big blur. Thanks, Renee, for the chance to take part in your Q&A series. I'm looking forward to the opportunity to talk to anyone about almost anything.

And my book's a quick (albeit dark) read, so don't be afraid to pick it up and give it a go.

[Erma]

So, this is a collection of works set in the future, with short stories, screenplays and fragments of thought. What made you decide to use different genres? - it's not the usual way of going about things.

And what's up with 2007? Why is it a blur? But wasn't Existence Costs publisihed in 2007?

[Renee]

Pssst...Erma, he doesn't like to talk about it.

[Erma]

All right, that's it - now Brad has to tell me about 2007. Did it have something to do with Existence Costs? This is Q&A after all, and that's my Q.

[Brad]

Well, Erma, I'm willing to answer your question, although I fear it will bore you. The time I can't account for was a big chunk in the middle of 2007 when we moved across the country to our new home on PEI. We kind of went into group hibernation and dropped off the face of the Earth just as Existence Costs came out, so it never had a proper release, and its still never received any form of marketing beyond word of mouth on goodreads and other places.

Now to answer your other questions:

Erma wrote: "So, this is a collection of works set in the future, with short stories, screenplays and fragments of thought. What made you decide to use different genres? - it's not the usual way of going about ..."

While I was writing poetry and prose from a very early age, I started my writing career as a dramatist, which led me to screenwriting, and most of my professional life has been spent writing for stage and screen. But that started to change in the early noughties when I decided to return to my roots to regain more control of my work. I grew tired of having plays and, especially, screenplays morphed beyond recognition or get bogged down in production with no end product. So I started writing short stories and fragments again.

When I started to consider putting together a collection, though -- a collection that I wanted to build around a theme -- I realized that some of my screen and stage plays matched the theme as well as anything else could. Moreover, I've always felt that there is an unappreciated (screenplays) or under appreciated (theatre) beauty in the dramatic forms of literature. People tend to stay away these forms when reading literature because they prefer to see the performed versions, but so many works of dramatic literature are beautiful in their own right, without any performance attached, that I feel people miss out on the chance to experience these "performances" in their heads. So I suppose I wanted to challenge readers by giving them an opportunity to engage with these other forms in a way they might never have done before.

[Renee]

Haha. Ironically, I was just kidding. 2007 was a random year. Funny me.

I think you've hit on a good point in terms of screen plays. I'm just getting familiar with them myself, but there is a definite art in writing them. I'm impressed by anyone who can.

My question: You mentioned that you didn't really market at first when your book was released. Do you regret that? And are you marketing now? How much difference has that made in sales and interest?

[Erma]

It's true, reading drama is underrated. Come to think of it, I used to read a lot of drama and for some reason just stopped. Death of a Salesman is still big in schools, though, and of course, so is Shakespeare, but that's about it.

Brad, you say your writing is 'dark'. Would love to read a sample. Could you post a paragraph or a blurb or even a bit of drama?

[Shannon]

I think it is great that you have included some drama in your collection (if I understand the above correctly). One of my more memorable reads was Rosencrantz and Gildenstern are Dead but I too have stopped reading it (drama). I think in part because it doesn't seem quite as available (unless its Ibsen or Shakespeare) as other forms of literature.

I am intrigued by your book and will look it up. And sorry, I have no questions at this point just the above comments. But thanks for answering all these great questions.

[Brad]

You must be a precog, Renee. I was trying to figure out how you knew that something weird had happened in 2007.

Renee asked: "You mentioned that you didn't really market at first when your book was released. Do you regret that? And are you marketing now? How much difference has that made in sales and interest? ..."

I regretted not marketing the book at first, but at this point I'm not. I'm still not marketing the book, so I am very proud of how it has gotten out there. It's not a bestseller (it was never going to be that), and I didn't do it for the money, so it has been really fulfilling to watch it gain a readership all by itself. Moreover, I seem to have some form of contact with at least half of the people who read the book, so I am able to get some very personal feedback, which I love. The most I do are things like this, and that's enough for me and Existence Costs.

I want to mention, though, that the decision not to market was not initially a decision. It was happenstance. The move came as a surprise -- and it came right on the heels of the book -- then by the time we were settled, I was deeply enmeshed in the novel I am still writing, and my focus was back on the writing rather than the selling, so I just let it go. Still, I don't regret it at all.

[Brad]

Erma wrote: "Brad, you say your writing is 'dark'. Would love to read a sample. Could you post a paragraph or a blurb or even a bit of drama? ..."

My writing computer is in the shop until the middle of next week, so I'd have to transcribe something before then, but I promise that I'll post something as soon as my documents are back in my hands, Erma.

I was thinking of Miller and Shakespeare while I was writing my answer too. It's always been sad to me that we stop reading drama after high school, unless we're an actor or director, and that even in high school our possible texts are pretty limited. The reading world needs more drama.

[Brad]

Shannon wrote: "I think it is great that you have included some drama in your collection (if I understand the above correctly). One of my more memorable reads was Rosencrantz and Gildenstern are Dead but I too hav..."

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern is one of my faves, Shannon. What a great play. I do, indeed, have some drama in my book: two screenplays and a stage play. Thanks for peeking in to the interview.

[Renee]

In another group they wear foil hats to keep me from messing with their heads. Just saying...

[Waheed]

Hi Brad;
You said: "... led me to screenwriting, and most of my professional life has been spent writing for stage and screen. But that started to change in the early noughties when I decided to return to my roots to regain more control of my work. I grew tired of having plays and, especially, screenplays morphed beyond recognition or get bogged down in production with no end product. So I started writing short stories and fragments again.."

So, do you think the screenplay 'formula' of one page roughly equalling one minute of screen time is adequate to represent say a 500 page novel being boiled down to 100 pages and a 90 minute movie?

Best,
Wally

[Brad]

Good question, Waheed. My immediate reaction is that the best screenplays are original screenplays, both for turning into movies and just for reading on the page. The one page = one minute conversion is fairly accurate, give or take, but that doesn't matter much when one is simply telling the story they want to tell.

Screen adaptation is a reality of the movie industry, however, and there is no chance it is going away. To my mind the formula can work (there are even rare examples of movies that are better than their source material), though it rarely works well. Usually, the best a screenwriter can hope for is to capture the spirit of a piece being adapted, and that means much of the novel must be cut. Moreover, the advent of the HBO mini-series has offered screenwriters a way to adapt beloved books, like the upcoming Game of Thrones, without adhering to the formula.

[Erma]

Your book is barely 100 pages; actually, only 71. It's very dark and bleak and life is anything but pleasant. Is this all fiction or your outlook on life? Do you ever provide comic relief in your work? Still waiting for that excerpt.

[Brad]

Hi Erma. Unfortunately, I am still waiting for my computer to be fixed, which is driving me a tad crazy at the moment, but I am assured it should be fixed by early next week. If it isn't back at my fingertips by Monday, I'll type an excerpt out from the hardcopy.

Existence Costs is, indeed, a bleak work. My personal outlook on the world, my hope for what we can be, is much more positive, but I look around me and can't help seeing the terrible. Sometimes the terrible is right down the street, sometimes its hidden from view, but its there and I feel the only way to dispel it is to engage with it.

I do, however, have a much happier side. I have written a series of Star Trek spoofs for the stage that have been quiet successful with community theatre groups, and those are comic efforts through and through. And I am currently finishing a cycle of short stories whose thematic link is love. So it's much more approachable.

[Brad]

My own computer is back. Wahoo! So here's the excerpt from Existence Costs that I promised Erma.

[Erma]

Hi Brad,

Thanks so much for your excerpt. First thing in the morning, and a good thing I have a strong cup of coffee! That's some pretty intense and dark writing. But so sad too. It almost reminds me of someone with OCD (or some other mental illness), who just can't get rid of horrific thoughts and/or convince themselves it's not really real. The unreal is so real. I've seen this happen. Can't imagine what it must be like. Pure torture. Will check out the rest of your book. Existence Costs

[Brad]

My pleasure, Erma. Sorry it took so long. Glad you had your strong cup of coffee ;)

[Erma]

I'm sure your piece could have different interpretations. But that's how I got it. And it was chilling.

[Shannon]

I have to agree Erma. The writing is intense and draws you in. Its not my genre but I really respect it.

[Erma]

I'm with you Shannon. I don't have the stomach for it, but the writing is very good and very graphic.

[Brad]

Thanks for taking the time to read Wyrm, Shannon and Erma, and for what you said about the writing itself.

You mentioned, Erma, that you "don't have the stomach for it," and I do get that. That very feeling is ultimately why I decided to publish the work myself. I know that it isn't for many let alone everyone, and I knew that what I wrote, although I was compelled to write it, wasn't going to be widely accessible. I have a stack of rejections for the short stories to attest to the difficulty getting them published the usual way (though I've had much greater success with the dramatic bits of the book), but I believe in what I wrote and am happy to find anyone willing to read the stories in Existence Costs. So thank you both.

[Erma]

Don't get me wrong Brad, but I loved your writing, only I can't take bood and gore. It is a powerful and very vivid piece and like Shannon, I respect it.

About rejection slips - it's all part of the business, no matter what genre you write in.

[Brad]

Oh no, Erma, I totally got that from your comments. And thank you so much for the compliment. I just understand your perspective. That's what I was trying to convey.

I should mention to everyone though, that while all the stories in the book have a similar tone, not all of them are as graphic. Much of the violence in the other stories is present through allusion.

[Erma]

That's good to know about the allusion part, Brad, at least for me. Also, was wondering, given all the violence we're exposed to via tv and movies, do you find that this genre is not as popular as it could be?