Oh, To Be the Black Geek: Q&A with Maurice Broaddus

This week’s special guest is horror/fantasy novelist Maurice Broaddus, author of King Maker, a modern version of King Arthur with a distinctive  inner-city feel. He can currently be read on his blog spot Mauricebroaddus.com or you can catch his thoughts (along with Anne Rice and other Christian fiction writers) in Out of the Darkness and Into the Light, available for Kindle on Amazon.com.

I came across Maurice’s name last year when I was trying to see how many African-American horror and science fictions there were. I already had books from Octavia Butler, Samuel Delaney and George Schuyler. But, I quickly delved into the newly discovered authors.

I contacted Maurice for an interview and he politely took time out from his busy schedule as writer, blogger and movie reviewer to answer a few questions.

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[caption id="attachment_2785" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Maurice Broaddus"][/caption]

Steven Barnes, Tananarive Due, L.A. Banks. Though the numbers of black horror and science fiction writers is growing, they still remain painfully low. Why do you think there have been so few science fiction and horror writers of color?

The numbers are painfully low, but we're making progress all the time.  I have to wonder how much of this is a social/spiritual pressure and how much of this is a matter of embracing our "geek culture".  The only group of people I dread explaining that I'm a horror writer to more than church folk is my family.  There is the automatic stigma of writing "that demon stuff" or being in league with the occult.  And that's assuming we get past the discussion that horror isn't just blood and guts for their own sake.

But, oh, to be the black geek in a group.  To revel in the latest iteration of "Star Trek," to proudly announce that my d10 goes up to 11 (and to be able to get that joke), to roll around naked on the latest issues of my comic book collection, these were not things that were nourished or even "safe" to do growing up.  Okay, it's never all right to roll around naked on your comics.

But we also have a proud tradition as story tellers.  From the griots of  ancient  Africa to the modern day hip hop artists.  And embracing genre fiction is but the latest step.

Ah, yes, I am familiar with the "griot." The Dallas/Fort Worth Association of Black Communicators' annual awards are called the Griots.

And speaking of awards and honors, your work (such as "A House Is Not A Home" and Devil’s Marionette) has been praised by the likes of Vince Laguno and Bram Stoker & International Horror Guild Award winner Gary Braunbeck. Hopefully, this hasn't given you a big head. Has it?

Child, please.  The laws of physics haven't been written yet that can measure how big my head is.  Anyway, as a writer, I'm a black hole of neediness and insecurity, so every bit of praise is taken in and never let out.

Regarding your latest book King Maker, what made you want to bring King Arthur into a modern urban setting? And why Indianapolis?

I live in Indianapolis.  I've also spent many years doing volunteer work with the homeless population, so I end up being a part of a different side of Indianapolis than many people see.  The idea started as a joke between me and a few of the kids I was working with and I wrote the book as a lark.  It grew into something a lot more.

You list yourself as a traditionalist when it comes to horror writing. Why is that?

Traditionalists tend to be more character driven, letting the horror arise from or intrude on the mundane. They are often more atmospheric, and explore the eerie or weird with a moral code. Oh yeah, traditionalists lean towards being good vs. evil moralists.  Most times when I wake up, that's the side of the bed I roll out from.

Angry Robot Books mentioned that your family had ties to "obeah," which is akin to Jamaican Voodoo. Whenever I think of voodoo, I think of Zombies. What do you think of what they call zombies today as opposed to traditional zombies?

Well, I managed to include some zombies in King Maker, but they aren't the voodoo brand of zombies.  They are somewhere between the shuffling and "fast" zombies.  I'm fine with zombies either way.  I think the power of zombies lies within their ability to be a metaphor for something else anyway (in the case of King Maker, the life of a drug addict).

You work as an environmental toxicologist. Has your work ever creeped into your stories?

I worked as an environmental toxicologist for twenty years.  I've been professionally writing for ten.  Not one story ever touched upon my work.

On second thought, that's probably a good thing. So, who are some of the authors who inspired you to write horror, fantasy and science fiction?

Oh, let's see.  (Edgar Allan) Poe was an early inspiration.  Then (Stephen) King

[caption id="attachment_2787" align="alignleft" width="100" caption="Octavia Butler (1947-2006)"][/caption]

and (Clive) Barker.  And then (Neil) Gaiman.  So, you know, the usual suspects.  These days I'm moved by Catherynne M. Valente, Octavia Butler, Walter Mosley, and George Pelecanos (I know, he's a crime writer).

You're also a movie critic. I've read your reviews on Blade: Trinity, I Am Legend and Elektra. What got you started as a reviewer?

My church had invited David Bruce, founder of the site HollywoodJesus.com out to talk about Christianity and pop culture.  Afterwards, we ended up hanging out and we got onto the topic of television.  I ranted about various shows and he pretty much drafted me on the spot.  I still write television, comic book, book, and movie reviews for the site.  Mostly though, the reviews serve 1) as my justification for how much time I spend in front of the television and 2) to allow me to write books, comics, and DVDs off my taxes.

If you had to recommend a book that could be made into a TV show to replace Lost or Heroes, which one(s) would it be?

If we're going to go fantasy, let's go high fantasy and go with N.K. Jemisin's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. That would be cool. 

I was going to say The Morgaine Chronicles by C.J. Cherryh, but I'll definitely have to check out Jemisin now.

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I definitely want to thank Maurice again for agreeing to this interview. You can catch some of his stories such as the eerily creepy “Hootchie Cootchie Man,” “A House Is Not A Home,” “Closer Than They Appear” and “Family Business” (Weird Tales #338), at Mauricebroaddus.com.

King Maker is available at Angry Robot Books. Orgy of Souls and Dark Faith are available from Apex Books, while Devil’s Marionette can be found at Shroud Books.

Q & A withKatrina Michaels

Today’s special guest is Katrina Michaels, author of Midnight Reflections. A mystery thriller involving werewolves, vampires, warlocks and…a serial  killer.

Basically, the story revolves around…well, maybe I’d better let you read Katrina’s synopsis:

Midnight Reflections introduces a society where vampires, werewolves, warlocks, and witches freely roam amongst the ordinary humans. One such human, Tara Daston, only wanted a fun night out dancing with her boyfriend. Getting killed was certainly the last thing she ever expected and waking up three days later as a vampire was the last thing she ever wanted. As Tara struggles with her death and new unlife, she also becomes involved in a hunt for a vicious serial killer. During her own investigation into the killings, she meets Tom Duncan, fellow vampire and lead agent of the Preternatural Investigation Agency, who is not at all amused at what he considers to be her interference. However, the serial killer soon takes notice of Tara and is intrigued, forcing her to work together with Tom and the rest of the agency to stop the murders.

Sounds intriguing, in the vein of Vampire Vacation and just about anything from L.A. Banks and Kim Harrison.

Fortunately, I was able to tear Katrina away from her book-supporting duties long enough for an interview. Please ignore the length of the session (that’s the journalist in me). Just read and enjoy.

An Interview with Katrina Michaels

Greg: How did you get interested in werewolves, vampires and other aspects of the supernatural?

Katrina: Well, I can’t actually pinpoint how my interest started. I’ve always been intrigued by fantasy and supernatural stories. When I was a kid, I loved the animated movie The Last Unicorn. I think my first vampire movie was The Lost Boys and I really became interested in the genre when I read the first Laurell K. Hamilton book. And, of course, there was Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV show not the movie). I’m generally a fairly analytical person, so I think I love writing stories of magic and supernatural creatures to even myself out. We can’t be serious and logical all the time after all.

Greg: Will Midnight Reflections be the start of a series? If not, what are you currently working on?

Katrina: Yes, Midnight Reflections is the first in a series of five books. The second book -- Dead Awakening -- is currently with my editor and should be out in print next fall. However, I also have ideas for at least two other books, which might become series, outside of the Preternatural Investigation Agency series.

Greg: Sympathetic vampires seem to be the in-thing (particularly with Generations X & Y), what with Twilight, "Anita Blake," Vampire Academy, Underworld, etc...How do you horn your way into such a crowded market?

Katrina: It is becoming a crowded market so the way to set yourself apart is to try something new. Most of the books that involve vampires also deal primarily with angst and romance. Now I don’t mind either, but I like my books to also have humor, action and mystery and that is what I created. Unlike many of the novels out there, Midnight Reflections does not have any obvious romance. Yes, there are subtle hints of future romance, but nothing overt. And while Tara and Tom do have some angsty moments, they also smile and laugh and remember that life is not completely all about suffering.

My style of writing and storytelling is a bit different from what is already out there in the market, which I hope will appeal to people who are looking for something new or unique. I greatly enjoy criminologist shows (such as CSI and Criminal Minds) and books (James Patterson and Jeffrey Deaver). Which is why Midnight Reflections is more a murder mystery with supernatural characters than anything else.

Greg: How do you think vampires and werewolves fit into modern society? Why have they suddenly become acceptable and do you think we should keep at least a few bogeymen around?

Katrina: People are attracted to the dark and mysterious. In a world where science has explained many of our mysteries, we need a little fantasy. Exploring the world of vampires and werewolves allows us to indulge the dark side that exists in everyone.

To me, vampires have never been as scary as real people. It’s not the movies that involve people turning into monsters that stop me from turning out the light at night. No, it’s the movies about serial killers and stalkers that make me check my closets before going to bed. We still have plenty of bogeymen out there.

Greg: What was the hardest part about writing "Midnight Reflections"? What about the hardest part of getting it published?

Katrina: The hardest part about writing for me is that I don’t write in a linear fashion. I start to write Chapter One, but then I get a very clear idea of something that would happen near the end of the book and have to write that scene before I lose the inspiration. And then I come up with an idea that causes me to rewrite the few chapters that have already been written. Also, when I start writing, I have the general story in mind with some very clear scenes that I know need to happen, but the rest of the story develops only when I start writing. But in the end, it all comes together.

For publishing, it is the waiting. You send off to one of the few publishers that still accept unsolicited manuscripts and then have to wait around 3-6 months before hearing the response. And since you can really only submit to one publisher at a time, if you get rejected then you have to start over with a new publisher and wait some more.

Greg: Who inspires you to write?

Katrina: I don’t know if I can say that one particular person inspired me to write. I’ve always loved creating stories since I was in grade school. But I will say that I’ve been influenced by certain authors.

I’m an avid reader of many different genres. As I said, while I do enjoy books involving the supernatural, I think I have been more influenced by authors like Jeffrey Deaver and James Patterson. They both write fascinating mystery / thrillers that take the reader by surprise with sudden twists and leave you enthralled as the killer stalks his next unsuspecting prey. This is a genre that I love, but I also love creepy supernatural books and movies. When I started writing this book, the first question I asked myself was what if a vampire started hunting a serial killer, and the story progressed from there.

Greg: What was the last really good book about vampires, werewolves or other supernatural elements that you've read?

Katrina: Hmm, that’s a hard one. The book I’m reading now -- A Fistful of Charms by Kim Harrison -- is captivating, but I would say that the best I read recently was Nightlife by Rob Thurman. It’s an excellent urban fantasy with many different supernatural elements mixed together into a fascinating world.

Greg: What was the last book that really wasn't worth your time?

Katrina: That is a question I don’t think I can answer. I may not enjoy every book I’ve read, but I would never consider one not worth my time.

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Again, I want to thank Katrina Michaels for taking time out of her busy schedule to chat with Wicked Writers. I also want to let our faithful fans know that Midnight Reflections is available through Amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, and bookdepository.com.

Good (and not so good) Ideas from the Masses

It was Memorial Day and I still had to work (the Census never stops), so I was a little bummed out. But, I only worked half a day so I decided to pay a little visit to a nice little German town called Helen, north of Atlanta (about 105 minutes).

It was a nice drive (except for the intermittent rain and for the torrential downpour on the way home that turned a two-hour trips into a 4.5-hour trip). Scenic. No traffic jams.

I got plenty of stares and not just because I was a black man so far from Atlanta. I had my Navy hat on and some people remembered the men and

[caption id="attachment_2653" align="alignright" width="150" caption="USS Blue Ridge (GO NAVY!)"][/caption]

women who made tremendous sacrifices so we can read this enchanting little blogs on Wicked Writers.

Anyway, I struck up several conversations with people and got some amazing reactions when I informed them that I was an author. It really is true that everyone is a writer, but most will never be published, though it was nice to hear their dreams.

I decided to write a few of them down (as I had naught but a pen and notepad with me) and share them with you (the names are not full to protect the innocent):

Steven B., Cornelia, GA: My idea for a story came from when I was the star pitcher for my little league team. I was pitching in my fifteenth game without allowing a runner of mine to score. I never thought about what kind of achievement that was until my own son broke my personal mark. Imagine that. All these years later. Like father, like son. I should have written it down for my kid. One of these days, I’ll get around to writing all of this down for my grandkids, I guess.

(Poignant story. And it was true. Except that, according to his wife, Steve was a relief pitcher who the coach brought in to face one or two batters. And, though he didn’t allow any of the guys he put on base to score, he let every inherited run cross the plate. Still, it was his memory, something he could share with his kid and why should a guy like me try to mess it up)

Jolie, Savannah, GA: No, she isn’t French. She was named after Angelina and just moved to Georgia from Oregon. She wants to be a cook like Rachel Ray and Paula Deen. She may have to expand her horizons, though. She was sure that she could make a cookbook of nothing but recipes using peaches. She had the most scrumptious idea for peach cobbler that she was sure would go over well. If only we hadn’t been in GEORGIA, home of the Peach Bowl, I could have imagined her name on Food Network.

Eddie Q: A most intriguing man. He hails from Jamaica and is thoroughly disgusted with how his government  screwed up bringing drug kingpin Christopher Coke. But, he had a recommendation for my library once he heard that I wrote horror and science fiction:

My friend, you should really read Whispers from the Cotton Tree Root: Caribbean Fabulist Fiction. Very funny stories. And many scary stories with ghosts. No, no, I would never write one myself. I get goosebumps just thinking of them. Take care, mon (sic).


Note: Alas, the book (full title: Whispers from the Cotton Tree Root: Caribbean Fabulist Fiction, edited by Nalo Hopkinson ) is currently out of stock on Amazon, but I hope to get a copy soon. The description has me salivating

And finally, we have Cuke (yeah, something about liking cucumbers or something; don’t the nicknames your friends give you really suck sometimes?). I got his stuff recorded on my iPod, so these are really his words:

Cuke: Yeah, buddy. You really a writer? Hey, listen here. I got me a great story, much better’n(sic)  what them sissy boys in Hollywood keep putting out. Jesus, hallelujah, what’n (sic) hell do people see in them “Sex and the City” gals? Ain’t got no bodies. They need to get on down here to Georgia, see ‘em some real women.

(There is actually a point to this whole thing. Bear with me)

Cuke: I got me this idea for a good book. Would make a helluva good movie, too. See, there’s this woman, she’s trying to hold down the farm ‘cuz her man is killed in a farming accident. Some other men come looking for her, trying to take the land for some big corporation, but she won’t sell. So, they try to force her only to realize that she ain’t no ordinary housewife. She is actually a secret agent whose memory was erased, but realizes who she is in time to save her family from the bad guys. She then goes after the evil corporation that wants her farm, only to discover they’re a bunch of terrorists let into the country by their pal Oba…eh, I mean Osama (apparently Cuke just realized I was black). She has to stop them singlehandedly from destroying the whole country.

I done based her on some of the best-looking women in my life. I imagine she’d be like Angelina Jolie, mixed with Cindy Rock and one of them Asian chicks. Y'know, from that movie with all the people getting beat up with karate or something. Think that’d sell in Hollywood?”

[caption id="attachment_2649" align="alignleft" width="140" caption="Angelina Jolie +"][/caption]



(I hated to disappoint Cuke by pointing out that: 1) the housewife sounds like Geena Davis in “Long Kiss Goodnight,” 2) that he probably meant Cynthia Rothrock and [ insert name of Asian "chick" ] and 3) that none of those women comes from Georgia. But, I didn’t because the conversation when the women in his life – his wife and teenage daughters – walked up. It was obviously that none of them

[caption id="attachment_2651" align="aligncenter" width="122" caption="Cynthia Rothrock +"][/caption]

was the basis for his housewife-cum-secret agent, but I didn’t rock the boat.

[caption id="attachment_2652" align="alignright" width="112" caption="Some Asian chicks = bad news for Cuke"][/caption]



Did not want to get hit by the blood when they landed on Cops.)

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All I could really say afterward was that, as writers, we should never run out of ideas. If we do, we can just ask the general public. They’re a goldmine of ideas -- well, most of the time.

Part 2 – Interview with Gaynor Stenson, Publisher

Welcome back to part 2 of my interview with Gaynor Stenson of Vamplit Publishing. Today she's providing advice for writers seeking publication and talking about changes in the publishing industry. Don't forget, we're also giving away two of Vamplit Publishing's eBooks (your choice) next Wednesday. Leave a comment to enter the drawing in today and/or yesterday's post. A comment on both days doubles your chances to win. Only one eBook per winner though. I will randomly draw two winners and announce them in my post next Wednesday. Advice for Writers Why should an author consider a small publisher rather than self-publish? A couple of authors have asked me what I can do for them and my answer has always been that I believe in them as a writer and will be as committed to your novel as you are. Self-pub always seems like a lonely place to me, beside which it’s big bucks you’re giving to savvy business people. If you are going down the self-pub route, I would advise you to do some sums on how many novels you need to sell to recoup your outlay. Look carefully at the fee and be aware that if you give your credit card details and haven’t read the small print, you could find yourself paying for extras. Don’t expect anything but basic proofreading for the set fee, as most editors charge much more because their pace is usually between four and ten pages per hour. I find that I edit between three and fifteen pages an hour.

Part 1 with Gaynor Stenson Website & Submitions www.vamplitpublishing.com Purchase Books www.ebookundead.com & Smashwords Writers' Communities vamplitpublishing.ning.com & vamplit.com Networking @vamplit

What services do you provide your authors as compared to a publishing giant or self-publishing agency?

For new authors, we offer a lot more than a big publisher would. Obviously I can’t offer what the publishing giants offer to their superstars, but I do offer one-on-one collaboration with an editor and we produce all the artwork for covers and any promotional material, we will even set you up a blog. Large publishers seldom offer so much to new authors and expect manuscripts to be presented in a highly polished format, with editing and proofreading already done. Some of our authors have proved to be networking goddesses’ and they have been keen to pass the love around, which is nice.

What are some of the warning signs you're being taken advantage of in the publishing industry?

There are so many. Firstly, if you are paying up front, whatever the company says on its website, you are self-publishing. If you are asked for your credit card details in case of extras or if you go onto the website and there are thousands of books of low quality, your alarm bells should start to ring. Even if you are accepted by a large publisher, ask about claw back. This is where you only get your royalties after all the costs of production are met and is quite common.

What would you suggest to any author looking to publish?

Don’t get your mum or friend to read your novel and think that it is edited, unless said person is an editor, of course. Practice writing a query letter or email. I’m completely turned off if a query is full of grammatical or spelling mistakes. Think of your synopsis as a shop window, one that will get the editor to browse. Writing compelling prose isn’t enough, you need the whole package. I could write pages on this, but most importantly, think carefully before spending your hard earned cash. On her website, Anne Rice puts it quite succinctly: if you have to pay, it’s not publishing, it’s vanity publishing. However, there is a new breed of author for whom self-publishing is a viable option. If you have a disposable income and the savvy to pull it off, then give self-pub a try. If as an author you decide that you don’t want to go through the archaic and often cruel rigmarole of submission, think before you sign up with the big self-publishers. Ask yourself how much of what the self-publishing company is offering you can do yourself and if the answer is some or most of it, spend the money you save on marketing your novel and a holiday.

Since you have started a publishing company, what are some of the things you have realized writers are uninformed or don't understand about publishers and the process of publishing?

Tricky question, writers don’t on the whole seem to realise this is a business. Last year I wrote twenty rejection emails in one day. My point being, that my business is new and I will give a writer a lot of leeway in their style (that can be fixed), but not their content. Don’t just blanket send your manuscript to every publisher you can find in The Writers’ Handbook, do some research. As a writer you should love to fact find, and that should not stop when you’re looking for a publisher. Send the right manuscript to the right editor and make sure your query and synopsis are outstanding.

One of the other things I think some writers don’t understand is that, new or old, big or small, all publishers expect the author to get out and publicise their own novel. What small publishers don’t have is a dedicated sales team to push your novels into stores, so if you find an outlet for your novel then tell your publisher. You need to find a way to build a relationship with readers and the internet has helped writers get out there and work their novel. All writers need a web presence for their novel.

What other advice would you give to writers who are serious about being published?

Don’t give up, but don’t ruin your life waiting to be a superstar. Being an author is a great thing, but enjoying the process of writing is the work of a lifetime. Seeing your novel in print or ebook format is important, but it is the writing which makes you special.

On The Future of Publishing

What are your opinions on the evolution of publishing, especially in regards to ePublishing. Where do you see the industry in the next 5 to 10 years?

It’s times like this I wish I had a crystal ball, but that would take all the fun out of life. I personally think ePublishing is going to be enormous, as reading has become very sexy again and, although the market share is still small, the year on year growth, even through the recession, has been amazing. Kindle ebook sales went through the ceiling this Christmas and the instant fix that ebooks give the reader is addictive, so I believe we will see an exponential growth in the industry over the next 5 years, as the price of readers decrease. The market has always been mostly women, but with the advent of a gadget, who knows, the whole reading demographic could change in the next ten years. I remember reading, about ten years ago, that the horror/fantasy market was dead, but look what’s happened. I think, when things settle down, e-publishing will find its place. Once this generation of readers hit middle age and e-readers are sold on their ability to enlarge text, we will find a whole new market, with a disposable income and the spare time to read. I know I prefer to read from a screen where I can adjust the text size; up to now readers of a certain age have had to settle for large print editions and availability may be limited and the cost prohibitive. Libraries will be able to stock every book ever written and, instead of making the twice-yearly trip to goodwill or charity shops to clear space on our shelves, we will be able to store all of our books on a nice clean e-reader.

How do you feel about some the recent competitive moves between Amazon and Apple in regards to selling ebooks? How will this effect your company? How do you see it effecting authors?

For us it’s all good, we like the idea of competition. We are working with an apps developer and all our titles will be available on Apple – Dance on Fire by James Garcia Jr is already available from the Apple bookstore. This is possible because the apps developer takes a small cut for every ebooks sold and Apple only take a very reasonable 30%. We also use Smashwords for our conversion and our ebooks are now available in Kindle format without us having to pay Amazon the 65% of purchase price they expect. I have nothing against Amazon and if I’m looking for a book, I usually look there first, but I see blogs with affiliate links to Amazon and I keep wanting to recommend Smashword’s affiliate programme which gives authors and publishers the chance to set their own rates. So a blogger who has links to books they’ve recommended can earn up to 80% of the ebook price. As a small, British publisher I think competition between the large stores is a good thing. I hope ebook stores, such as Smashword, who charge the publisher or author a very reasonable 13% of list price to sell your novel, get a larger slice of the sales pie chart. Converting readers to buying from diverse sellers can only be helped by larger companies fighting it out. If you are considering self-pub, we are working on an ebook for authors on how to publish their novels free of fees. It will take the author from typing The End right through to setting up a website and marketing their books again for free.

I’d like to finish on a positive note, which is sometimes hard as the odds are against you, but the fairytale ending is out there for any writer to find. The changing face of publishing is opening up new opportunities and you can only take advantage of them if you’ve a positive attitude and a belief in yourself as a writer.

Part 1 – Interview with Gaynor Stenson, Publisher

Considering this week's topic on our publishing progress, I thought it only fitting our guest be a publisher. So, today and tomorrow we will be talking to Gaynor Stenson of Vamplit Publishing. Here in part one, I asked her questions about her company. In part two, she'll provide valuable information for writers seeking publication, as well as provide her opinions on the future of publishing. I met Gaynor early last year on one of the popular online writer's communities. In the beginning, I only knew her as a talented dark poet. As I got to know her online, I was intrigued when I found out she was venturing into the publishing industry. It was fun hearing about her progress throughout the year and being around for the launch of her business. I also enjoyed getting to know some of her authors and reading a few of the books she's published. I have to say, she has a keen eye for talented writers, one of which, Nicole Hadaway, author of Release, you'll meet next week as a guest blogger. We are also giving away two of Vamplit Publishing's eBooks (your choice) next Wednesday. Leave a comment to enter the drawing in today and/or tomorrow's post. A comment on both days doubles your chances to win. Only one eBook per winner though. I will randomly draw two winner and announce them in my post next Wednesday.

Website & Submitions www.vamplitpublishing.com Purchase Books www.ebookundead.com & Smashwords Writers' Communities vamplitpublishing.ning.com & vamplit.com Networking @vamplit

And now, without further ado...

You are a new publisher, Gaynor, releasing books for less than a year so far, how hard was it for you to start your company?

To start was actually easy. I placed my name and website address on a number of writers’ sites and ran a competition, it was that simple. I began to receive submissions almost immediately. That is really an oversimplification, as I spent the two years before researching and working on a business plan and have been proofreading and editing for years, but starting isn’t that difficult. Our vision for Vamplit Publishing is for quality, rather than quantity which we thought was more important in the beginning. I did start out with a couple of other editors prepared to come on board, but unfortunately they didn’t understand the genre and thought that copy editing was sufficient for our market. I have a passion for vampires and the fantasy genre and this is what drives our company.

How do you feel your publishing company stands up against the competition?

I think we stand up okay, on balance we are so very new that it is hard to make a comparison. We are interested in publishing more literary novels, Nicole Hadaway coined the phrase Literary Paranormal, and I like to think that will make us standout from the competition in the long run.

What is the best thing so far about having your own publishing company?

The writers are the best thing about having a publishing company; reading a manuscript and getting a tingle. Reading and editing it is a big responsibility and one we take very seriously. It doesn’t matter how many novels we have waiting to be edited, the manuscript we are working on at the time is the only thing that matters. I’m editing a novel at the moment and its turning out to be a longer project than anticipated, but at the end of the day we won’t drop our standards just because of time constraints.

What genre(s) do you publish and what made you decide to publish them?

Ours is a broad church as far as genre, we started out listing Gothic, horror, fantasy, vampire, sci-fi and crime. Now, thanks to Nicole who coined the phrase on Marrisa Farrar’s blog, we are going with Literary Paranormal. Really this answers another of your questions as well, because if I like a novel it doesn’t matter too much it doesn’t fit into a box. The best bit about being a publisher is that I can be flexible. Dear Diary, The Daily Thoughts of a Serial Killer by Raven Usher will be published later this year and I can’t say it fits into any particular category. If you imagine Hannibal Lecter and Bridget Jones having a love child, I think you get a fair picture of this novel. I absolutely loved this manuscript and when I read it, it gave me shivers.

Why I publish in this genre has nothing to do with the current boom. I discovered my love of the vampire as a literary icon at University ten years ago, when it was fairly unfashionable to be obsessed with vampire fiction and I can’t seem to let it go. I find it fascinating that we can chart changes in society from Bram Stoker’s Victorian morality to the heady days of 1970’s pre AIDS sexual freedoms and Anne Rice’s beautiful young male vampires. The title of my dissertation was The Vampire as Polymorphic Metaphor: A study of nineteenth-century and twentieth-century vampire fiction. Catchy isn’t it?

What would you say are your greatest challenges and frustrations as a small and new publishing company?

Challenges: working to very tight deadlines and the fact that what I do has a fluidity to it that can catch me unawares. When things change I have to make sure I change with them. Frustrations: well not the writers, they are the high point. I think the fact that I know where we are going and want to be there already may be the hardest thing. The next five years are going to be long and hard, and the vision I have for Vamplit Publishing makes me impatient.

How many books have you published so far and how many more books will you publish in 2010? How many are new authors and how many repeat authors?

Last year we published eight novels and this year we have eight scheduled for the first half of the year. I’d closed our submissions before Christmas when my reading pile went over 50 manuscripts. The only limit we have is on editing and we refuse to drop our standards on that point. Two people work on every single manuscript. I have the final say on which novels we publish and I do all the substantive editing. When I’ve finished and the author has worked through all the edits, another pair of eyes proofreads before publishing. We have decided on quality not quantity. Realistically I think this year we will probably publish ten to fifteen new authors, four sequels and two or three second novels from authors we have or are publishing. I’m personally looking forward to publishing Return by Nicole Hadaway and Timothy C. Hobbs is working on a really great project, but I can’t really say anything about that yet as its still in the planning stage. Jevron Mc Crory is working on a second vampire novel for us and as his style is very gritty and British, I have every expectation it will be as powerful as Swan Song. I’ve read the prologue to the new novel and without giving away too much it is very different to his first vampire novel, much darker, but with more humour.

What has been the proudest moment of your writing or publishing career so far?

When we finished editing The Pumpkin Seed and Tim sent through the dedication and thanked me and my partner for all our hard work. I loved The Pumpkin Seed from my first read through and the fact that Tim had put it away and almost forgotten he’d written it gave me a personal sense achievement. Andy Boylan on Tailsen Meets the Vampire reviewed it and loved it, he saw in the novel exactly what I did, Tim’s writing is amazing.

Tell us about some of your successes and the successes of your authors.

We are starting to get some really great reviews from independent reviewers. Our success has been to actually start this business and we are working hard to make it a smoother process. Finding a print model, that we believe will work, has been the highlight, so far, of 2010. We are at the moment preparing our first manuscript for paperback publication and Release by Nicole Hadaway and Dance on Fire will be available this summer from, ironically, ebookundead.com. Although I am totally committed to ebook publishing, I know many authors want to see their novel in print and also for readers who haven’t made the leap of faith into ebooks yet. To fit with our green ethos, we will be using print on demand. I read an article in which they said that one of the materials used in road making is unsold, shredded paperbacks. The world’s mad really.

Nicole Hadaway, author of Release, had her blog highlighted on Anne Rice’s Facebook page, on February 27, 1010,  and we both got a buzz out of that as we are both fans of Ms.Rice. Sales continue to grow, but as we only started selling in September of last year, we know and so do our authors that we have a long way to go before we all buy villas in Italy or the South of France.

What is the future vision of your publishing company as in where do you see your company in the next 5 to 10 years?

The six million dollar question! I have a dream and it’s probably the same as all publishers. I want to make Vamplit Publishing known for our quality of content. I have a vision where our sales ensure our writers get a fair deal and that we never change how we deal with those writers. I don’t see us growing so large that I can’t be reached by email and I hope that we keep the standards high and aren’t seduced by the darker side of publishing. I want to be able to believe in the novels we publish.

Do you have any advice for anyone thinking of setting up their own publishing company?

Only do it if you like twenty hour working days. Before Christmas last year we worked all night through from the 23rd to the 24th because we knew the writer had Christmas week off from his day job and we wanted to give him as much time with the edits as we could. I think like writers, publishers need to love what they do and if you think this is a way to make a quick buck, forget it.

Thanks to Gaynor for taking the time for today's interview questions. Don't forget to drop by tomorrow for the continuation of the interview and to comment to win a free eBook.