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Live Event with Shaun Jeffrey - 25/11/11
Did your early experiences at school inspire you to write?
I keep getting the shivers. Someone must be walking over my grave :o( or else its time I put the heating on
I'm keeping an eye on the questions Shaun, you worry about giving us lovely replies :)
Thank you, just found the refresh thingy.
Philip (sarah) wrote: "Did your early experiences at school inspire you to write?"To be frank, I hated school. They certainly weren't the best times of my life, and that probably manifests in some of my characters, such as Prosper Snow!
Do you ever write in any other genres? If so which ones?
Who was the most supportive about your writing? (:
E A M Harris wrote: "Do you ever write in any other genres? If so which ones?"My main genres are horror and thriller. But if I had an idea that was in a genre that I don't write in then it wouldn't stop me writing it. Ideas are too precious to waste, especially if they are good ones.
Can you tell us how Prosper Snow's name came about. It is most unusual to me
I'm setting up at our film society tonight, so have to dash, but I'll be back to see how it went. All the best Shaun.
Katy wrote: "Who was the most supportive about your writing? (:"My better half, Deb. She is the one who has had to put up with me locking myself away and writing. She also puts up with all the other stuff that comes from the writing, such as me spending time on the computer on message boards etc, promoting. So yes, Deb is my number one fan and my rock.
Have you ever based a character on anyone you know?
Can I ask a question? How mean is too mean and how sweet does a writer have to be to thier readers? How much PR (online vs. real world) is effective for you?
Anita wrote: "Which genre do you prefer?"I used to read primarily horror, but now I lean more towards thriller, so my own fiction is leaning that way more too.
Pat (Scorpio) wrote: "Can you tell us how Prosper Snow's name came about. It is most unusual to me"
To be honest, the name just popped into my head. I never know where my character's names come from. They just are who they are. It's pretty hard to explain really. Strange even!
Do you prefer to write by hand and then transfer to computer, or straight to computer?
As Pat is asking about Prosper Snow's name, Jay-me (Janet) asks:When you started writing about Prosper Snow did you start the story with him already named? or did his name pop into your head later as the book progressed?
Jud (Krisztof) wrote: "Have you ever based a character on anyone you know?"The main person that my characters are based on is me. I only have my own experiences to work from, so many of them probably come out in my writing.
Rocky wrote: "Can I ask a question? How mean is too mean and how sweet does a writer have to be to thier readers? How much PR (online vs. real world) is effective for you?"I respect the thoughts and opinions of all my readers. You have to take the rough with the smooth. Not everyone is going to like what you write, because they don't all have good taste (lol). As for PR, one never knows what's effective and what isn't. I just hope it all has a cumulative effect.
Lorraine SPOILER CODE IN THE FIRST POST wrote: "As Pat is asking about Prosper Snow's name, Jay-me (Janet) asks:When you started writing about Prosper Snow did you start the story with him already named? or did his name pop into your head later..."
His name popped into my head.
Katy wrote: "Do you prefer to write by hand and then transfer to computer, or straight to computer?"
I always write straight to a computer. I'm lazy and it's easier that way.
How you holding on Shaun? Is it going too fast or are you doing okay?
Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?
Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?"Shaun, you should tell him about Dean !
Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?"If I wrote about my real job, the truth is people would never believe it. I couldn't make up some of the characters I work with!
Lorraine SPOILER CODE IN THE FIRST POST wrote: "How you holding on Shaun? Is it going too fast or are you doing okay?"
I'm OK thanks :)
Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?"ahaha! theres a new genre for you Shaun or maybe it fits under thriller I dont know anything about the antics of Railway Engineers, definitely a new series for you anyway
Lorraine SPOILER CODE IN THE FIRST POST wrote: "Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?"Shaun, you should tell him about Dean !"
No. I'd have nightmares.
Jud (Krisztof) wrote: "Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "Do you carry a note book and jot down mad antics of Railway Engineers?"ahaha! theres a new genre for you Shaun or maybe it fits under thriller I dont know anything abou..."
There was a drama on the TV about 10 years ago based on the railway. It doesn't come half way to the truth!
Do you keep notebooks in various rooms so you can jot down ideas as you think of them?
Shaun wrote: "Simon (Highwayman) wrote: "If I wrote about my real job, the truth is people would never believe it. I couldn't make up some of the characters I work with!"Maybe you should, and if people don't believe you just say it's fiction !
Neil, who couldn't make it tonight emailed me some questions, so if I may, I'll post them in here with the answers:
Before the movie based on The Kult was made, did you ever have in mind any actors you would have liked to play Prosper?
Do you base any of your characters on friends,relatives or colleagues and if so do they know?
How long does it take you to write a book on average. how many hours a night do u lock yourself away writing ?
Katy wrote: "Do you keep notebooks in various rooms so you can jot down ideas as you think of them?"I used to, but I don't seem to do that as much now. If an idea strikes I just have to use any medium at hand to make a note of it.
Shaun wrote: "Neil, who couldn't make it tonight emailed me some questions, so if I may, I'll post them in here with the answers:"How Blue Peter of you
"Here's some I prepared earlier"
Neil's questions: Killers: really like the Obituary Man character. So how much of his 'techniques' was based on your research, or was it all your own ideas? It certainly made me have another look at my house on Gooogle Maps
I can’t recall whether I read about people committing crimes in this way or not, but if I did I probably pieced together various angles. Then I imagined what I would do if I wanted to rob somewhere. And in this day and age, many of the things I’d need during the planning stage are at my disposal from the comfort of my own home.
Kult#3: any teasers and when will this be available in 2012?
I’ve made a start, but I don’t like to talk too much about a work in progress because it takes away some of the magic of writing it if I discuss it. It can also make me talk myself out of writing it if people say. ‘that sounds rubbish’.
Deadfall: loved the female lead in this story. At what point did you decide this and will you be writing another strong female character?
I just liked the concept of a female mercenary pitted against both antagonistic men and zombies. I assumed people were used to male leads in a mercenary sort of role, so I thought it might be different to make it a woman. As for writing another female lead, it depends on the story. Some protagonists’ suit being female, while others work best with a male lead.
Fangtooth - any chance this being available as an ebook? Dark Region Press (?) overseas posting charges are a bit £££
I don’t know to be honest. I asked the publisher a while ago, but didn’t get any reply. I do know that Dark Regions have a sale on for today only, with a 33% discount on most books, including Voyeurs of Death and Fangtooth. http://www.darkregions.com/dark-frida...
Writer:
Was Killers self-published and are you looking for another publisher?
I had sold it to a publisher, but I withdrew it. So yes, it was self-published, partly because due to numerous reasons I’m disillusioned with conventional publishing. But it has gone through numerous edits and an editor before being published, so I hope it’s the best that it can be.
Have you written any stories based on your job?
I once wrote a short story based on a factory that I worked in that involved a man being hypnotised by a machine, and then going on a killing spree. Aside from that, I don’t think I’ve written anything else based around my job(s).
Have you finished the 'ink' yet?
No. My second full tattoo sleeve is still in progress. Next appointment in December. More pain to look forwards to.
Jud (Krisztof) wrote: "Shaun wrote: "Neil, who couldn't make it tonight emailed me some questions, so if I may, I'll post them in here with the answers:"How Blue Peter of you
"Here's some I prepared earlier""
See Jud, he had to. The replies to Neil alone would have taken him like 2 hours !
Maureen (Mews) wrote: "Before the movie based on The Kult was made, did you ever have in mind any actors you would have liked to play Prosper?"I hadn't thought about it really. I never imagined the book would ever be filmed. Even when it was optioned (which means the company bought the rights to film it) I still didn't think it would progress beyond that. Then when it was filmed, I didn't think the actor asked to play Prosper looked anything like my character, but having seen him in action he was perfect for the role.
Philip (sarah) wrote: "Do you base any of your characters on friends,relatives or colleagues and if so do they know?"No. I wouldn't want to offend anyone I know. That's my answer and I'm sticking to it ;)
Have you ever felt the need to act out scenes from your books?
Shaun wrote: "Philip (sarah) wrote: "Do you base any of your characters on friends,relatives or colleagues and if so do they know?"No. I wouldn't want to offend anyone I know. That's my answer and I'm sticking..."
so yes is the real answer you just arent telling who
Knitter wrote: "How long does it take you to write a book on average. how many hours a night do u lock yourself away writing ?"On average it takes me about six months to write a first draft. I'm not the fastest writer in the world. But I suppose if I put my nose to the grind stone, aside from having a sore nose, I could write a novel in a couple of months. After the original draft, I revise it over numerous rewrites. So probably a year from start to finish.
Looks like we've kind of moved along in the conversation, so please, if you have any questions about The Kult and Killers, go ahead :)Please do be careful with spoilers pretty please - any info on the spoiler codes in the first thread, thank you ♥ <\b>
As for how much I write a day, it depends. When I'm in the zone, I try for a minimum of 1k words a day, but I can get anywhere up to 5k if I had all day to work on it.
Jud (Krisztof) wrote: "so yes is the real answer you just arent telling who "Jud, you're going to get Shaun in trouble !
Here's one of mine: Shaun, you released Killers last month, and it's had excellent reviews, with lots of readers saying it was better than The Kult. Did you expect the novel to be such a hit among your readers?
Lorraine SPOILER CODE IN THE FIRST POST wrote: "Here's one of mine: Shaun, you released Killers last month, and it's had excellent reviews, with lots of readers saying it was better than The Kult. Did you expect the novel to be such a hit among ..."I was nervous releasing it, mainly because lots of people liked The Kult, so to write another book with the same characters I only hoped that I did them justice. When the reviews started appearing, it seemed that people liked it more than The Kult, which did surprise me, but in a good way.
I find the epitaphs very sad. It makes you wonder about the person interred beneath, but I've never made up any stories about them.