In the mailbox

Once again here are my latest arrivals in my mailbox. A few of them are from different genres, but they are interesting and are appealing to me nonetheless.

- "The Strain" by Chuck Hogan & Guillermo del Toro (through the courtesy of Haper Collins UK);

A plane lands at JFK and mysteriously ‘goes dark’, stopping in the middle of the runway for no apparent reason, all lights off, all doors sealed. The pilots cannot be raised. When the hatch above the wing finally clicks open, it soon becomes clear that everyone on board is dead – although there is no sign of any trauma or struggle. Ephraim Goodweather and his team from the Center for Disease Control must work quickly to establish the cause of this strange ocurrence before panic spreads. The first thing they discover is that four of the victims are actually still alive. But that’s the only good news. And when all two hundred corpses disappear from various morgues around the city on the same night, things very rapidly get worse. Soon Eph and a small band of helpers will find themselves battling to protect not only their own loved ones, but the whole city, against an ancient threat to humanity.

- "Claudius" by Douglas Jackson (through the courtesy of Transworld Books);

The year is 43AD . . .

In Southern England, Caratacus, war chief of the Britons, watches from a hilltop as the scarlet cloaks of the Roman legions spread across his lands like blood.

In Rome, Emperor Claudius, newly risen to the imperial throne, dreams of taking his place in history alongside his illustrious forebears Caesar and Augustus.

Among the legions marches Rufus, keeper of the Emperor’s elephant. War is coming and the united tribes of Britain will make a desperate stand against the might of Rome. The Emperor has a very special place for Rufus and his elephant in the midst of the battle – as a secret weapon to cow the Britons with the visible manifestation of Rome’s power.

- "The Victoria Vanishes" by Christopher Fowler (through the courtesy of Transworld Books);

One night, Arthur Bryant witnesses a drunk middle-aged lady coming out of a pub in a London backstreet. The next morning, she is found dead at the exact spot where their paths crossed. Even more disturbing, the pub has vanished. Bryant is convinced that he saw them as they were over a century before, but the elderly detective has already lost the funeral urn of an old friend. Could he be losing his mind as well?

Then it becomes clear that a number of women have met their ends in London pubs. It seems a silent, secret killer is at work, striking in full view...and yet nobody has a clue how, or why - or where he’ll attack next. The likeliest suspect seems to be a mental patient with a reason for killing. But knowing who the killer is and catching him are two very different propositions.

As their new team at the Peculiar Crimes Unit goes in search of a madman, the octogenarian detectives ready themselves for the pub crawl of a lifetime, and come face to face with their own mortality…

- "Echoes from the Dead" by Johan Theorin (through the courtesy of Transworld Books);

Can you ever come to terms with a missing child? Julia Davidsson has not. Her five-year-old son disappeared twenty years previously on the Swedish island of Oland. No trace of him has ever been found.

Until his shoe arrives in the post. It has been sent to Julia's father, a retired sea-captain still living on the island. Soon he and Julia are piecing together fragments of the past: fragments that point inexorably to a local man called Nils Kant, known to delight in the pain of others. But Nils Kant died during the 1960s. So who is the stranger seen wandering across the fields as darkness falls?

It soon becomes clear that someone wants to stop Julia’s search for the truth. And that he’s much, much closer than she thinks . . .

- "Primal" by Robin Baker (through the courtesy of Virgin Books).

Presumed dead, a group of undergraduate students who go missing on a deserted Pacific island emerge one year later in two groups of ragged (and naked) survivors. All but one of the surviving women are pregnant, and two students, plus their professor, are said to have died. More disturbingly, a child that was born on the island to one of the girls has perished too. In the glare of the world’s media, every survivor sticks to the same unconvincing version of events.

Piece-by-piece the narrator examines the evidence and conducts interviews with the survivors, to work out exactly what happened on the island during that year. Slowly, a terrifying picture emerges of feral human beings stripped of dignity and resorting to the behaviour of warring primates. Rivalry and sexual tension leads to division, tribalism, perversion, rape, baby-snatching, and eventually murder ... a Lord of the Flies scenario for adults, proving the dead professor’s theory that human beings are no different from chimpanzees in the wild.

Thank you all very much.

Cover art - "The Windup Girl" by Paolo Bacigalupi

Yet another great cover illustration and one which I found through the Paolo Bacigalupi’s website. The cover illustrations is done by Raphael Lacoste for the Paolo Bacigalupi’s debut novel, “The Windup Girl”, due to be released by Night Shade Books in September, as it is stated on their website. And after the cover illustrations for the Glen Cook’s editions Night Shade Books comes with another amazing cover art, one that hooked me the instant I saw it. I also have to be honest and say that I didn’t read the published collection of Paolo Bacigalupi, “Pump Six and Other Stories”, but here it is a very good reason to pick his new book up (and the previous too).

And here is the synopsis from the publisher website:

Anderson Lake is a company man, AgriGen's Calorie Man in Thailand. Under cover as a factory manager, Anderson combs Bangkok's street markets in search of foodstuffs thought to be extinct, hoping to reap the bounty of history's lost calories. There, he encounters Emiko...

Emiko is the Windup Girl, a strange and beautiful creature. One of the New People, Emiko is not human; instead, she is an engineered being, creche-grown and programmed to satisfy the decadent whims of a Kyoto businessman, but now abandoned to the streets of Bangkok. Regarded as soulless beings by some, devils by others, New People are slaves, soldiers, and toys of the rich in a chilling near future in which calorie companies rule the world, the oil age has passed, and the side effects of bio-engineered plagues run rampant across the globe.

What Happens when calories become currency? What happens when bio-terrorism becomes a tool for corporate profits, when said bio-terrorism's genetic drift forces mankind to the cusp of post-human evolution? In The Windup Girl, award-winning author Paolo Bacigalupi returns to the world of "The Calorie Man" ( Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award-winner, Hugo Award nominee, 2006) and "Yellow Card Man" (Hugo Award nominee, 2007) in order to address these poignant questions.

Personal top 10

Larry, the editor of the excellent OF Blog of the Fallen, came once again with a very interesting challenge: What are 10 speculative fiction (the definition of which is left up to you, of course) would you say are among the best ever?

Well, I would not attempt to find a proper definition for the speculative fiction. During my readings I found myself attracted more or less by different types of fiction. And although I settled for fantasy and horror as genres that provide most of my readings I like stepping beyond these boundaries. Speaking of boundaries, I believe that it is difficult to find a definition for speculative fiction since many new works I’ve read tend to step the borders set by a genre or other and tend to mix elements of fiction. And that is something I really like. Maybe when it comes to these boundaries a non-conformist approach can produce a better work of fiction.

Anyway, I would not attempt to make a top, since I found myself in difficulty when it comes to such tops, but I’ll list (in author alphabetic order) 10 readings that made the greatest impact on me, as a reader and why not, as a person. I stepped over boundaries myself and you’ll see a few different genres in my list. I tried to bring as many authors I love as I could in the top therefore I’ve limited myself to one title from their works, the one I loved the most. So, without further ado here are my 10 best readings:

- Philip K. Dick – “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?”

- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle – “The Lost World”

- Alexandre Dumas – “The Count of Monte Cristo”

- Stephen King & Peter Straub – “The Talisman”

- Ursula K. Le Guin – “The Left Hand of Darkness”

- George R.R. Martin – “A Game of Thrones”

- Henryk Sienkiewicz – “With Fire and Sword”

- J.R.R. Tolkien – “The Lord of the Rings”

- Jules Verne – “A Journey to the Center of the Earth”

- Carlos Ruiz Zafón – “The Shadow of the Wind”

Interview - David Moody

David Moody is the author of one of the novels I enjoyed a lot this year, “Hater” (reviewed here), but also an author with a very interesting story. He published his first novel, “Straight to You”, in 1996, but the novel failed to make an impact. Because of this fact David changed his strategy and published his next novel, “Autumn”, on-line. The novel became a phenomenon and lead to the creation of Infected Books, David Moody’s own publishing house. Here he published another stand-alone novel, “Trust”, and three other novels in the “Autumn” series, “The City”, “The Human Condition” and “Purification”. In 2006 David publishes a new novel, “Hater”, and in just a few months this novel captures the attention of a US movie production company. The film rights were sold and now the movie is in production with Guillermo del Toro and Mark Johnson as producer and Juan Antonio Bayona directing. David Moody also sold the publishing rights of “Hater” and its two scheduled sequels and the novel was published in 2009 by Thomas Dunne Books in US and by Orion Books in UK. The novel is scheduled to be released in other countries too, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Italy, Russia among others.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): David, thank you very much for the opportunity of this interview.

You proved to be an ambitious and perseverant writer so far, but will get to this a bit later. First I want to know how did it all start? How did David Moody become interested in writing?

David Moody: It sounds like a cliché, but I always wanted to tell stories. For as long as I can remember I’ve constantly had story ideas running around my head but, like a lot of people I guess, it took a while for me to do anything about it. Originally I wanted to make films, but a lack of cash and relevant experience prevented that from happening. Instead I started to write again, and the screenplays I’d planned somehow became novels! Creative writing was always something I’d had a flair for and enjoyed, so it just took a little planning, self-discipline and effort to start producing books.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): Like I said you proved to be ambitious and perseverant. Did you get many refusals while trying to publish your first novel? Were you disappointed by the initial impact made by “Straight to You”?

David Moody: Actually, looking back, I think I was quite fortunate in that I found a publisher for ‘Straight to You’ very quickly. As it turned out though, they produced a great book but it didn’t sell in the numbers I’d hoped (in fact, it hardly sold at all!) which was incredibly disappointing at the time. But, if I hadn’t worked with that particular publisher, I probably wouldn’t have turned to self-publishing my work on-line and I wouldn’t be in the position I am now. Every cloud has a silver lining!

Mihai (Dark Wolf): How did you come up with the idea of releasing your novels on-line? Would you recommend other authors to follow your path?

David Moody: After the experience I’d had with ‘Straight to You’, I was determined to take a different approach. I was resigned to not making a huge amount of money from my second book ‘Autumn’, so I sat down and reassessed my priorities. I realized that building up a readership and getting my name known was far more important than making a few quid, so I decided to give ‘Autumn’ away as a free download from my website. It proved to be such a success that it gave me a platform from which I’ve built everything else. As a result of the half a million or so downloads of the book, I launched my own publishing house (Infected Books) and produced a series of sequels and other novels. That lead to two movie deals and a deal with a major US publisher. I’d certainly recommend that other people try this route, but don’t expect overnight success. Giving away books was a fairly new idea when I did it back in 2001, but the Internet is swamped with free stories now. To stand out from the crowd you’ve got to be good and present yourself well, but that’s also the case when you’re trying to get exposure for your material in any market, traditional or on-line. ‘Autumn’ was available on-line for almost 7 years before the deal with Thomas Dunne Books was made.

M(DW): Did the fact that you built an on-line readership and your novels were well-received on the Internet help you later to publish your works with an established publishing house?

DM: Indirectly, yes. I was approached by my current publisher who’d found out about ‘Hater’ after I’d sold the film rights. Again, the production company came to me, not the other way around. So that says to me that someone, somewhere at some point got hold of a copy of the Infected Books edition of ‘Hater’ and it was good enough for Mark Johnson and Guillermo del Toro to want to buy the rights. Likewise with the ‘Autumn’ movie. What I’m trying to say is the books sold themselves, and that was completely down to the on-line readership I’d built up. I’ve had the support of many great people from very early on and I’m full of appreciation for them. To put things into perspective, in total since 2001 I’ve spent less than $500 on publicity. Everything I’ve achieved has, at some point, been as a result of word of mouth publicity.

M(DW): Did you feel that your novel, “Hater”, was perceived in a different way after its release from the well known publishers (Orion Books in UK and Thomas Dunne Books in US)? Do you hope to reach a different and new readership after this publication?

DM: The perception of the story itself hasn’t really changed – I still get the same comments today, but I get lots more of them now than I used to! What has changed dramatically is the size of the audience I’ve been able to reach. More physical copies (I’m not including ebooks and free downloads here) of ‘Hater’ have been printed than all the Infected Books copies of all my other books combined! The book’s also been sold to publishers in around 14 other countries worldwide whereas before I was largely limited to an English speaking audience. And also, whilst Infected Books was almost exclusively an on-line business, working with large publishers such as Orion and Thomas Dunne Books has allowed me to get my books into thousands of bookstores worldwide.

M(DW): With “Hater” already published and with the future release of the “Autumn” series will the other two of your novels, “Straight to You” and “Trust”, be available for a wider audience?

DM: Eventually yes. Those two books are, I feel, great stories. But I also see a lot of unfulfilled potential within them. They’re both flawed. ‘Straight to You’ in particular is quite naively written and structured and it’s also dated somewhat. It is my plan to rewrite and hopefully republish the book one day. ‘Trust’ is similar and I’m actually hoping to start work on a new version very soon. Since I walked away from that story in 2005, I’ve found several new levels to open up and develop the action and themes of the book. I hope to have more news on ‘Trust’ by the end of the year.

M(DW): If I am not mistaken you also planned to write a novel called “Mark Thane”. Do you plan to continue writing it someday? Can you reveal a little about the subject of this novel?

DM: ‘Mark Thane’ was an abandoned project which I hope to be able to go back to one day. It was being published as a free, on-line serialization. Unfortunately I just wasn’t able to commit enough time to it to do it justice. In essence, the book was about a fairly ordinary guy who suddenly discovers that in 34 days there’s a 70% chance he’ll die. Doesn’t sound very nice, I know! It’s about the changes we would all make to our lives if we knew there was a definite ‘end-date’ approaching. I won’t say any more for now but yes, it’ll be finished one day!

M(DW): Speaking of on-line publishing and moving just a bit aside the line of questions may I ask if as a reader do you prefer to read a book in an electronic format or in a physical one? Why?

DM: Personally, I still prefer physical books just because of the portability of a paperback. I don’t mind reading off a screen, but it’s less convenient. I’ve tried reading books on my iPod touch but the display is just a little too small for my liking. I get sent a lot of pdfs and I read through a lot of my own drafts on screen so I’m looking forward to trying Amazon’s Kindle or one of the other ebook readers which have recently been released. I think that would be a happy compromise – the convenience of the computer along with the portability of a physical book.

M(DW): All your novels written so far are focused on apocalyptic scenarios. What attracts you towards this subject? Do you believe that our world is heading to such future and such a violent end?

DM: You’re right, my books are all about the end of the world in one way or another, but it’s not really Armageddon itself that I’m interested in. My stories focus on the people involved, and how they cope with what’s happening to them. I do think that as a race we’re inevitably doomed to destroy ourselves, and I don’t think it’ll be pretty when it happens. I’m actually a really happy and positive person, believe it or not! I think we’re naïve though if we just coast along from day to day thinking that everything’s always going to be okay. It doesn’t hurt to peer over the edge and look down into the abyss from time to time…!

M(DW): I’ve noticed while reading “Hater” and the information of your other novels that many aspects of your works are an assessment of our society. Are these meant as a critique towards our society? Also your heroes seem trapped in a system so, do you think that we live in a frustrating society?

DM: Sometimes I think it’s hard to believe we live in a society at all. To me, a society of people is one which works together for the common good, and that’s certainly not the case in many places today. As a recent example, just look at the recent MPs expenses scandal in the UK. Our elected representatives have been stealing from us and lining their own pockets for years! And that, I think, is a good illustration of the problem – people are too self-obsessed and are concerned with self-preservation at the expense of everyone and everything else. We live in a world where many people (not all, I accept) want the very best for themselves and will strive to get that at the expense of anyone who gets in their way. That’s the frustration, and that’s why many people (like Danny McCoyne in ‘Hater’) get trapped.

M(DW): Would you try in the future to write on a different subject and in a different genre? Which one would you like to try?

DM: Yes! I have plenty of ideas – I just don’t have enough time to write them all! I can’t give you a specific genre that I’d like to try. I’ll write about anything that interests me, and that’s the key. If I’m not excited by the story, I won’t write the book!

M(DW): “Hater” feels a bit like the movie “28 Days Later”. Is this movie one of the sources of inspiration for your novel? What inspired “Hater” beside your passion for apocalyptic scenarios?

DM: I can honestly say that neither ’28 Days Later’ or ’28 Weeks Later’ influenced ‘Hater’ or any of my other books. They’ve been compared to each other for as long as I can remember though! The first film came out around the same time ‘Autumn’ was beginning to get noticed and I was asked a lot at the time if there had been any influence. I think people hear certain keywords – rage, violence, zombies, UK – and decide to make comparisons. ‘Hater’ also often gets mentioned in the same breath as ‘Cell’ by Stephen King and films like ‘The Signal’. Again, they’ve got nothing in common except the basic premise of people turning on each other for no immediately apparent reason.

The actual inspiration for ‘Hater’ came from two things. Firstly, I wanted to write a book examining what would happen when all the differences we use to divide ourselves into groups (age, sex, beliefs, political views, position in society, race etc.) no longer applied; where some new division had come along to redefine the boundaries. I was struggling to find what that division might be until July 2005 when London was attacked by suicide bombers. One of the bombers worked as a classroom assistant in a primary school and videotape of him working with small kids was shown on the TV news shortly after the attacks. That was my second major influence for the book. I was stunned that someone could spend their time helping kids one week, then, days later, walk onto a packed tube train and explode a bomb with the sole intention of killing as many people as possible. The thought that people could act that way was the inspiration for ‘the Hate’ which tears society apart in ‘Hater’.

M(DW): Reading your bio and your novel “Hater” I can’t help notice that there is a certain resemblance between you and Danny McCoyne, the character of your novel. Is there an autobiographical side in the character of Danny McCoyne? Did you encompass some of your experiences in other characters from your novels?

DM: There are some similarities between Danny McCoyne and I, I won’t deny it! Between writing ‘Straight to You’ and ‘Autumn’ I suddenly and unexpectedly found myself with a family when I met my wife and her three daughters! My position at the time was similar to that which Danny finds himself in at the beginning of ‘Hater’ in that we were bringing up lots of kids (we’ve since had two more – all girls – now you understand why I write about the end of the world!) in a house which was too small. At the time I was working for a bank in a series of faceless departments like the PFP which Danny is trapped in. But that’s where the similarity ends! I did something about my situation, whereas Danny does nothing but complain about how hard his life is!

I think every writer writes about their own experiences and the people they know – it’s hard not to. I always make sure that characters are well disguised so that I don’t get any complaints or lawsuits! Whilst writing the five books in the ‘Autumn’ series, I frequently needed to describe different dead bodies and how the survivors got rid of them. If anyone had wound me up at work, I often used them as the basis for the zombies and gave them a particularly nasty demise! It was very therapeutic!

M(DW): “Hater” is the first novel in a trilogy. Is this trilogy already finished or are you still working on the novels? The second novel of the series is named “Dog Blood”. Do you have a name in mind for the third one as well?

DM: The second book is almost finished with just the final edits to be done. I’m just beginning to work on the third book and, as yet, it’s untitled. There have been some negative comments about the fact that ‘Hater’ is a trilogy, and hopefully the reasons for that will become clear when the other books are released (in 2010 and 2011). Danny McCoyne’s story is too big for one book! Each part of the trilogy shifts the focus of the story and the action to a different level. Book one is very personal – looking at the effects of the crisis on Danny and his family – whereas the second book looks more at what happens to society on a larger scale. As for book three… let’s just say I’m not giving anything away yet!

M(DW): The movie rights of “Hater” were acquired for a future production. Is this a dream come true considering that you wanted to make horror films after graduation? How did this happened, did you try to sell the rights or did the movie company come to you?

DM: As I mentioned earlier, a copy of the original Infected Books edition of ‘Hater’ somehow ended up on the desk of a major film producer. His people got in touch with me and I agreed to sell them the film rights. It certainly is a dream come true to know that my stories are being adapted for film. ‘Autumn’ was recently filmed by an independent company in Canada (the movie stars Dexter Fletcher and David Carradine and will hopefully be released later this year), and that was exciting enough! But what’s so special about the ‘Hater’ project for me is the caliber of the people who are involved. Guillermo del Toro will produce the film, along with Mark Johnson who produced ‘Rainman’ and the ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ movies. J A Bayona is to direct which is also incredibly exciting as I’m a big fan of ‘The Orphanage’.

M(DW): Are you still dreaming of working in the movie industry? If your dream would come true would you still be writing?

DM: I would still like to make my own films one day but for now I’m content just to write. Movies are a very corporate and profit orientated business these days, and that concerns me. I wouldn’t want to make a film and then risk having it compromised because studio execs thought we’d make more money if character ‘A’ didn’t die, if situation ‘B’ didn’t happen or if we had a happy ending. I want to wait until I’ve got (hopefully) sufficient financial backing and a strong enough reputation /audience to be able to make movies independently. I guess what I’m saying is I want the same level of control as I had over ‘Infected Books’.

M(DW): The movie will be produced by Guillermo del Toro and directed by Juan Antonio Bayona, who both impressed with movies like “Pan’s Labyrinth” and “The Orphanage”. But who do you see in the leading roles? I’ll be honest with you and say that I personally would like to see Christian Bale in the role of Danny McCoyne. Would you like to be a part of this project?

DM: I’d love to be a part of the ‘Hater’ movie project! Who wouldn’t jump at the chance to work with people like del Toro and Bayona? I’ve been asked several times who I’d like to play Danny McCoyne. My stock answer is I don’t know, but I know I wouldn’t want them to be a major star. Danny’s character is so pivotal to the story, and I think it would work best if he was played by an unknown so the audience went into the cinema with no preconceptions.

M(DW): “Autumn” was acquired for movie as well and it is already produced with a special showing done on 30th of May. Did you see the final result? Are you satisfied with it?

DM: I got to see an early version of the film late last year. It’s hard to pass any judgment on the movie because I wrote the novel and, when I write, I focus so much on the story that I can visualize every detail and every scene. It’s surprisingly hard watching someone else’s interpretation of your work. That said, I did enjoy the film.

I had several approaches for the film rights to ‘Autumn’ and I settled on Renegade Motion Pictures because they were the people who wanted to stay truest to the independent spirit of the book. I even had them add a clause to the contract which said they couldn’t turn the movie into a typical blood, guts and flesh-eating zombie film! As with many small productions, however, they were limited by their budget and they weren’t able to fully show the scale of the devastation caused by the events of the book. That said, Dexter Fletcher, Dickon Tolson and David Carradine give wonderful performances.

Unfortunately, the film’s had quite a lot of bad press since the recent death of David Carradine. His sudden passing resulted in huge amounts of interest in the film and, at the same time, someone somewhere leaked an unfinished workprint of the movie on-line. Also, a lot of people who watched the leaked version weren’t familiar with the book and were less than pleased when they didn’t get a typical zombie story full of loads of blood and guns and violence. So the Internet’s now full of bad reviews from people who’ve effectively stolen an incomplete copy of the film and who were expecting something like ‘Zombie Flesheaters’ or ‘Resident Evil’. But hey, there’s no such thing as bad publicity! Hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people are now aware of ‘Autumn’!

M(DW): Like the events in your novels, your works spread out through the entire world, with the help of the Internet and with the publishing of them in worldwide countries. How does this make you feel? Do you consider your books to be “a powerful virus”?

DM: Yes! That’s why my publishing house was called ‘Infected Books’! For years I promoted my work with catchphrases like ‘Spread the Infection’ and ‘Get Infected’! This is, after all, ‘viral marketing’ – one person tells two, they tell four, they tell eight who then tell sixteen etc. etc. etc. The global reach of my books is truly humbling. It’s incredible speaking to people from a huge number of countries who know me through my work.

M(DW): What future projects do you have?

DM: I think I’ve mentioned everything already! Right now I’m focused on finishing the ‘Hater’ trilogy and on reworking the ‘Autumn’ series and ‘Trust’. I do have some other projects also, but it’s far too early to talk about them!

Thank you very much for your time and answers, it has been a pleasure.

Thank you for the questions. I really enjoyed answering them. I’m really pleased that you enjoyed ‘Hater’ so much!

Fantasy Art - Julie Dillon

© The artwork presented on this post is used with the permission of its author. All the artwork is copyrighted. Please do not use the images without the permission of the artist or owner.

Julie Dillon is an American artist, born in 1982, and currently as a freelance illustrator. She graduated with a Bachelor in Fine Arts from the CSUS and continued her studies at the Academy of Art University and various workshops. Among the clients she worked for are Wizards of the Coast, Paizo Publishing, Fantasy Flight Games and many others.

Interview - Julie Dillon

Mihai (Dark Wolf): Julie, thank you for this interview.

What has attracted you toward art and when did you become aware of your talent?

Julie Dillon: I've enjoyed creating things since as long as I can remember, whether it was artwork, stories, or music. There were points in my life where I focused more on writing or theater (or my "backup plan" of computer science), but my love of drawing and art always ran underneath all other interests, and ended up becoming my main focus. I still love music and literature and theater, but I always end up coming back to art in terms of my career.

I tended to do reasonably well in my art classes throughout school, but I didn't really consider myself particularly talented, especially not enough to make a career out of it. Art was just what I did in my free time when I wasn't busy with school. It wasn't until I was in my early twenties that I started thinking I might be able to become a good enough artist to earn a living from my work.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): By which artists are you inspired? Who do you consider to have mostly influenced your work so far?

Julie Dillon: There are too many to count! There are so many amazing artists that have inspired me over the years, so I'll just highlight a few. Alphonse Mucha was an early favorite of mine, more for his rich colorful compositions rather than just his decorative work. Jon Foster is a newer favorite; I love his amazing storytelling abilities and dynamic compositions, how he twists the perspective and proportions of a piece to heighten the drama and narrative while still making the scene feel solid and believable. I'm very fond of John William Waterhouse's approach to mythology and the figure, and his ability to make both mythological figures seem grounded in reality and everyday people seem otherwordly and fantastic. More recently, I've been learning a lot from Andrew Jones, mostly that there is no shame in working digitally rather than with traditional media, and that it's okay to fully embrace digital art and make the most use out various art programs.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): Did you set yourself a goal as an artist? What would you like to achieve in your artist career?

Julie Dillon: Art was something I slowly tiptoed into. I never had the confidence to set big goals for myself early on, so I had a much slower start than my peers who went straight to art school and began training early on. Rather, I just tried to do the best I could do, taking local art classes when I could, and vageuly hoped it might eventually lead somewhere. Finally, a few years ago I started taking my work more seriously. I realized that a career in illustration was actually viable, started taking some classes at an actual art school and began looking for real work. But even now, my main goal is just to continue to improve upon my weaknesses so that I can continue to support myself with my art. I have a vague ambition of eventually publishing my own illustrated storybooks and being known for my personal work rather than my commissioned work, but for now I'm happy just taking each project as it comes and doing the best I can.

M(DW): A man learns new things every day. Is it the same for an artist? Do you feel that your art improves with every new piece?

JD: Oh, I definitely think artists are constantly learning and improving. I'm always trying to improve with each piece I do (even if I don't always meet that goal). I try to attend workshops and classes when I get the chance, and I'm always looking at and studying other artists' work. I wish I had the time to do more academic studies and take life drawing courses on a more regular basis, because I know there is still so much for me to learn, but with my freelance schedule, it's hard to find the time. Although, even when I think I'm in a rut and don't feel like I'm improving, I can still look back on work I did a few years ago and see that I have made some improvements, even if I still have a long way to go.

M(DW): Which techniques do you prefer to use, the traditional ones (oil, acrylics, pencil) or the digital ones? Which one gives you the more freedom of action?

JD: As much as I enjoy getting to work with oils when I have the chance, I definitely prefer working digitally, no question about it. It's clean, fast, portable and flexible. There is no mess, no time spent setting things up and cleaning up afterwards, no waiting for things to dry. I can flip the canvas, resize things, and I never have to buy new paint or brushes (although my graphics tablets tend to only last a year or so). There are downsides to digital media, of course. You can make prints of your work, but you don't have an actual physical original copy of your painting. You don't have that same physical connection with your work that you get with actual paints, and I know that's a major concern for a lot of artists.

M(DW): Your works seem centered on Fantasy themes. Does this theme interest you besides your art works?

JD: Oh, definitely. I love fantasy, scifi, mythology... Basically anything that takes a step beyond the mundane. I read pretty much nothing but fantasy and scifi, and I try to work more mythological or astrological elements into my artwork when it's fitting. Fantasy and scifi have been a big part of my life since I was young, and I'm so happy that I get to do fantasy art for a living.

M(DW): Do you have other sources of inspiration? Do you like to work in other genres as well?

JD: This always comes out sounding goofy when I say it, but I try to draw inspiration from everything. I'm inspired by art and fiction, naturally, but I've found if I make a painting that reflects something I've directly felt or experienced, it always end up stronger than paintings that I do that are just inspired by other artists' or writers' work. Even if it doesn't end up in an actual painting, I try to pull what I can from my surroundings and experiences and file away details and impressions, such as the way the sunlight looks at a certain time of day, or how certain landscapes and surroundings evoke different emotional states. I think a lot of artists do the same thing, using their work to distill these ideas and impressions of the world around them down into something tangible that can be shared with others. That said, I try to find a balance so my work doesn't get either too personal and sappy or too emotionally detached.

I definitely love working in other genres; I'll do something light and fluffy for one client, something dark and violent for another; a traditional high fantasy scene for one person, and a more abstracted esoteric piece for another. The only thing I rarely do is a straight, everyday realistic scene (except for studies and still life paintings). I'd need to add some hint of fantasy or surrealism to it in order for it to really appeal to me.

M(DW): I know that you have a series of illustrations featuring the same two characters. Who inspired those characters? Do you feel attached to these characters or other characters you draw and try to paint them as often as you can?

JD: I know other artists have considerably more developed characters, but the ones that I draw are rather loosely developed (almost embarassingly so). They have their own stories in my head and I love painting them, but I like to keep the narratives in my personal work more broad and archetypal rather than too overly specific, so people can think up their own stories and enjoy the work even though the specifics aren't spelled out. This is just another way to say I haven't been able to nail down an actual decent story for my characters yet. That's another thing I like about illustration: you can tell a story even if you're not a very good writer.

M(DW): Speaking of characters I’ve seen that you draw characters from Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett’s “Good Omens” for a facial anatomy and expressions class. What made you use the characters from that novel and not a real human model for example?

JD: I happened to be reading Good Omens at the time and was really wanting to draw the main characters, so I figured I could use my anatomy class project as an excuse. It seemed like a fun way to explore different facial types. Luckily the assignment was flexible enough to allow me to basically turn in a bunch of fan art. I rushed them a little bit, but they still ended up being popular with other fans online, and now I kind of wish I had spent more time on them.

M(DW): Do you enjoy drawing the characters that you like in your readings? What other characters received a face from you?

JD: Definitely. Aside from it being fun, I enjoy the challenge of trying to draw a characters as close as I can to the way I picture them in my head, and try to make them reflect the authors' descriptions as much as I can. A lot of times I'll really get into a book (or film, tv show, etc), and feel compelled to sketch the characters out. Most of the time I just do quick sketches, I don't usually make them complete finished pieces. But for whatever reason, I often have a hard time focusing properly on my actual work until I've got the fan sketches out of my system.

M(DW): Do you prefer to draw characters than, let’s say, perspectives, landscapes or scenes?

JD: I definitely find it a lot more fun drawing faces and figures. However, I know the environment and surroundings can say a lot about the character and help to tell their story more than a simple portrait would. I love drawing faces, but I don’t often do finished pieces with just a character and no background, because I feel like the character needs some kind of context in order for a piece to feel finished. That said, I'm more likely to draw a character with no background than a background with no character. For me, I have a hard time drawing just scenery without at least some hint of a character to anchor the scene and provide a little narrative of some sort.

M(DW): You’ve made a few cover illustrations for books and magazines. How did you feel when you were commissioned for these projects? Would you like to work further on the cover illustrations?

JD: It’s exciting, but also a little intimidating. The cover art is the first thing buyers will see, and I have to try to make an illustration that captures the essence of the writers' work as best as I can. A lot of times, distilling all that information down into a single image can be challenging for me. I want to make sure I put the best possible face on the work, not only to make the authors happy, but to make sure the work is eye-catching and sells well. I would definitely like to do more cover illustrations in the future, it's exactly the sort of thing I love to do.

M(DW): Is there a particular book you would like to illustrate the cover? Do you dream working with an author in particular?

JD: Watership Down by Richard Adams has always strongly resonated with me, and I would love to do illustrations for the Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander. I know it would never happen, but I would love to illustrate anything by Terry Pratchett in some official capacity. Aside from that, I'm generally just delighted and flattered to work with any author. :)

M(DW): What immediate and future projects do you have?

JD: Actually, right now, the projects I'm most excited about involve doing work for various metal bands. This past year I've really been getting into metal, and I am very excited to be doing t-shirt designs and album covers for a few local and international bands. None of it is published or available just yet, but keep an eye out in particular for the release of the Bay Area band Cormorant's ( http://www.myspace.com/cormorantmusic ) new album "Metazoa" later this year. It's an amazing album that I would highly recommend even if I wasn't providing the album art. ;) Fantasy art is definitely my bread and butter, but I'm hoping to get more work doing art for other bands, because it offers different artistic challenges and lets me try out different approaches, and has been very rewarding thus far. Plus, it's always good to broaden your horizons and have a variety of clients. :)

Thank you very much for your answers, it has been a pleasure.

For more of Julie Dillon's works and for a complete portfolio please visit her website, jdillon.net, or her Deviantart page.

© The artwork presented on this post is used with the permission of its author. All the artwork is copyrighted. Please do not use the images without the permission of the artist or owner.

"Testamentul de ciocolată" (The Chocolate Testament) by Marian Coman

"Testamentul de ciocolată" (The Chocolate Testament)

by Marian Coman

Format: Paperback, 120 pages

Publisher: Tritonic

Imagine a book. A big book, of chocolate. A book with pages which smell of almonds, cocoa and peanut butter and which quiver when they are touched. A live book suspended at the border between reality and fantasy, between life and death, between love and hate. A book like a miraculous gate between here and there. You can bite from its pages and you’ll travel in another world.

Imagine a woman. No, not a woman. Imagine the most beautiful woman in the world. A woman so beautiful that, if He could, God himself would sell his soul for a night with her. Only that, what a mess, what a big mess, the woman is in love. With the devil.

Imagine a little girl. A white kid in a gypsy camp. A beautiful girl with a chocolate book, hurried to fulfill her destiny.

Marian Coman took the Romanian speculative fiction by storm, being awarded with the Kult Award for the Best Debut Volume, “Nopți albe, zile negre” (White Nights, Black Days), in 2005 and with an Encouragement Award from the European Science-Fiction Convention, Eurocon, in 2006.

“The Chocolate Testament” is the Marian Coman’s second published volume. It is a short novel, consisting in four parts. The novel is centered on one character, Cala, a very beautiful woman born in mysterious conditions and who was adopted and raised in a gypsy camp. Each part of the story relates one period from Cala’s life, from childhood until old age and each one of them can be taken as a short story. The stories are told from the first person perspective and have a different storyteller, each time a man. And although Cala is the main character of the book she is never in the front line, but the storyteller takes the leading role. And like the novel not being a typical one, feeling more like a short story collection, so it is not a typical fantasy novel, but a novel of life with fantastic elements.

I like each story that compose the novel, but with a plus for the third part, named as the book, “The Chocolate Testament”. Each story is an interesting one and Marian Coman offers a few surprises along the way. I loved every twist of the book and every turn of the tale shifts the reader across the thin border of reality and imagination. I loved how the author captures the society in his story, as a distant background, but very realistic, with elements from each period and with a behavior of sideways characters which is brutally true. As I said, the story is told from the first person perspective, from four different characters. I was captivated by each voice and although I couldn’t become too attached to any of them, there is not much space to do so, also they aren’t annoying either.

There are a few downturns in the story, not very annoying, but present. For instance, although the book is called “The Chocolate Testament” and the synopsis talks of such a book its presence is rare through the story. With the exception of the third part in which plays an important role it is scarcely mentioned. Also, besides its offer of escape from a tragic situation and condition its part in the life of the main character, Cala, is rather vague. I would certainly have liked to learn more about it. Between the four parts of the story there is quoted an interview with Cala, but I have to be honest, I failed to find their usage in the general line of the story.

I don’t know how long it is since I enjoyed a Romanian author so much, I don’t know if there is a live one. But the way Marian Coman plays with words and the story resulted from this play made me enjoy him a lot. True, I find “Testamentul de Ciocolată” (The Chocolate Testament) to be a bit short and I would have liked to see more of it, but it is also true that it is a good piece of fiction and one that gives hope to the Romanian speculative fiction.

Interview - Gary McMahon

Gary McMahon is an English horror writer. He has published numerous short stories in various magazines and publications, short stories collections such as “Dirty Prayers” and “How to Make Monsters” (which I reviewed here), edited two others, “Brutal Spirits” and “We Fade the Grey”, novellas and a novel, “Rain Dogs”. This year Gary McMahon is nominated for the 2009 British Fantasy Awards in 4 categories: "Rain Dogs" (Best Novel), "How to Make Monsters" (Best Collection), "We Fade the Grey" (Best Anthology) and "Heads" from "We Fade the Grey" (Best Novella).

Mihai (Dark Wolf): Gary, thank you for the opportunity of this interview.

What determined you to start writing? Why in the horror genre?

Gary McMahon: As far as I can remember I’ve always written in some capacity or other – even as a child I would scribble stuff down on bits of paper. To me, in my strange messed-up logic, nothing is real unless it’s written down – which means that I’m a lunatic for lists. God, I love lists: I surround myself with little yellow Post-its. I didn’t actually start composing narratives until I was about 12 or 13, and they were always dark. As for the second part of the question, everyone asks that and the only reason I can give is that I can’t write anything else. Horror is everywhere – just look in the newspapers and on the TV news. The world is horror; people are horror… and I write about people. I write about the world I live in.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): You said, and I quote: “It has always been my belief that horror fiction has the potential to be the most serious type of literature of all…” Do you believe that this type of literature is underappreciated? What can be achieved through the horror genre?

Gary McMahon: I think horror literature is certainly underappreciated by the mainstream literary crowd, and I also think that a large part of genre readership undervalues the potential of horror literature by clamouring for the same old tropes over and over again. The range of metaphors and imagery available to horror writers makes the genre the ideal place to examine…well, the messiness of life. The stuff that’s so terrible it can only be touched in terms of the techniques of weird fiction: the truth behind the lies. It’s taken me a long time to accept the fact that true originality goes unnoticed while mediocrity takes all the headlines. But, hey, that’s life. The trick is to keep digging and hopefully you might unearth something of value.

Mihai (Dark Wolf): What are the writers that inspired you as an author? Do you have a work that made you say: I should write like this?

Gary McMahon: The writers who inspire me are an eclectic bunch (quite a few being non-genre): Ramsey Campbell, Dennis Etchison, Charles Bukowski, Robert Aickman, Harlan Ellison, William Burroughs, John Steinbeck, George Orwell, Jim Thompson, Joel Lane, Shane Meadows’ screenplays, and more recently the novels of Cormac McCarthy and David Peace. A novel that changed the way I look at fiction, and made me think “I wish I wrote like that” was “Jesus’ Son” by Denis Johnson. I used to carry a copy about with me, in my back pocket, and read passages whenever I had a moment to spare. The economy of language, the insight, the poetry of sadness, the beauty, the ache of human existence: It’s all there, in those pages.

M(DW): Your works so far consist mainly in short story. Why the focus on the shorter fiction? Do you consider yourself unprepared for the longer fiction?

GM: Well, I’ve now written two novels and am almost finished my third, so I think I’ve officially graduated to the longer form. I always found short stories easy and novels unbelievably daunting. I’m not sure why, but the sheer word count of a novel would scare the crap out of me – how could I sustain the passion, the rage, the voice for so many words? I think I’ve left that fear behind me now, and have learned to just let the novel come alive as you write it, then trust in the rewrite.

M(DW): From all your short stories with which one are you satisfied by the final result? Do you think that one of your works isn’t as accomplished as the others?

GM: I have a story scheduled to appear in an anthology called Strange Tales III, from Tartarus Press, and I think it’s the best I’ve ever written. It’s called “The Good Light People” and does everything I wanted it to do. I guess that’s the one I’d like to be remembered for, if I am even remembered at all by anyone other than my debtors. As for a story that is less accomplished… you can take your pick from most of my early short fiction. I learned how to write by writing and I’ve always been very prolific. Unfortunately some of that stuff got published. Thankfully, most of it has now sunk without a trace.

M(DW): One of your short stories that I liked is “Constance Craving” and there the main character is Thomas Usher. I know that you plan to publish a collection of stories featuring Thomas Usher, “To Usher the Dead”. Do you plan to write a novel or novels featuring your character Thomas Usher? Would you like to turn Thomas Usher in a hero in the style of Harry Dresden, Felix Castor, Joe Pitt or other such characters?

GM: Thank you – that’s a cheeky little story, I think. The previously mentioned “The Good Light People” is actually an Usher story, and the novel I’m almost finished is about that very character – it’s called “Pretty Little Dead Things” and I’m hoping that a certain mass market publisher will pick it up for publication (fingers crossed!) I love Thomas Usher. He’s a typical McMahon protagonist: passionate, misguided, filled with fear and rage and lost in a world he doesn’t quite understand. I have plans for at least one more Usher novel, and I’m sure the short tales will keep on coming until Usher decides to stop talking to me.

M(DW): Your first novel, “Rain Dogs” was published last year by Humdrumming in a limited edition of 200 signed copies, but since then the publishers ceased its existence. Would you like to see your novel available to a wider audience?

GM: Watch this space. A mass market publisher currently has Rain Dogs under consideration, and I’m hopeful (always, always hopeful) that something will happen soon. I still have a couple of boxes of the rather beautiful Humdrumming limited edition, and am hoping they might be worth something when I’m old and trying to live of a rubbish state pension…

M(DW): This year you will publish a new novel, “Hungry Hearts”, in the Abaddon Books series, “Tomes of the Dead”. Can you reveal a bit about your novel, please? Being an established series did you have to work in specific terms or did you have room for improvisation as well?

GM: “Hungry Hearts” is part of Abaddon’s Tomes of the Dead series, and my only brief from the publisher was to write a zombie novel. The editor, Jon Oliver, actually told me that he wanted me to write a proper, gritty horror novel, that I should just let rip and go for it, so that’s exactly what I did: zombies, McMahon style. A zombie love story! Expect rage, love, beauty, revulsion, and hopefully some pathos. I’m really pleased with what I managed to do with the novel, and despite the fact that it’s basically a work-for-hire assignment, the story is as personal as something I’d write on spec and I sweated blood on the thing. I was lucky that Abaddon gave me that kind of freedom – they’re a great company to work for, and I hope to work for them again.

M(DW): Many of your works benefit from the illustrations of Vincent Chong on the cover and I’ve seen you are very satisfied with the cover artwork. How important do you consider to be the cover for a novel? Would you like to work with another artist in the future?

GM: I’ve been a fan of Vinny’s work for a long time, and to have him create covers for me has been a dream. He’s a wonderful man and a talented artist. I’d happily work with him for the rest of my life. I’ve been very lucky with the covers for all of my books, and I do believe that covers are important – particularly in the independent press. There are so many books out there that a great cover can make yours stand out from the pack.

M(DW): One of the moments of recognition of your writings so far is the presence in “The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror 19 & 20”. How did you feel when your short stories were selected for these anthologies? Did it bring more confidence in your talent?

GM: Again, this was something of a dream come true. I’ve always read The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, and to have a story in there was unbelievable. To be selected twice was breathtaking – and it made me think that perhaps the first time wasn’t just a fluke. I’ve always doubted my own abilities (despite possessing a bit of a cocky demeanour, which is of course a mask), so something like this really gives you a boost.

M(DW): Also as recognition you have been nominated for the British Fantasy Awards on different categories. Is this a turning point in your career? How did these nominations change your career?

GM: I’m not sure about a turning point – every book I’ve had published has been nominated for a BFS award, but I’m yet to win. It’s just nice to be nominated, really, nice to know that people are reading and enjoying your work. Four nominations in one year are very gratifying, of course, but I’m not expecting to win any of the categories.

M(DW): Is the winning of awards a goal for a writer? Do you dream someday to win a certain literary award?

GM: I know of a lot of writers who are desperate to win awards, but personally I’m torn on the subject of awards. I know that’s easy to say when you haven’t won one, but I’ll say it even if I do. For me, it’s all about the work, and what an award really means to me is that a writer reached some kind of audience – and that, of course, is the goal of any writer: to be read. So, basically, all winning an award would mean to me is that people have read my work and been moved enough by it to vote. That in itself is far better than any actual award.

M(DW): The horror genre has a massive movie industry as well. Would you like to see your works turned into a movie in the future?

GM: Jesus, I’d love someone to film something of mine – I’m not going to pretend otherwise. I’m a huge film buff, so that would be the pinnacle for me. I have silly dreams about my favourite directors filming my stuff: Martin Scorcese, David Lynch, Werner Herzog, Michael Haneke, Shane Meadows. I’d die happy, I really would, if anything of mine made it to the screen – even if it was a crap film!

M(DW): What will you publish next and what are your future plans?

GM: The next thing – apart from a few anthologies I have stories in – is “Pieces of Midnight”, a collection of supernatural stories from Ash Tree Press. A double-novella collection called “Different Skins” is also due out sometime from Screaming Dreams. Then it’s probably “To Usher the Dead”, from Pendragon Press in 2010. Hopefully after that it could be “Pretty Little Dead Things”, if the publisher who wants to see the manuscript likes what I send them.

Thank you very much for your time and answers. It has been a pleasure.

Thank you. It’s been fun!