In the first of what I hope to be many interviews, I’m delighted
to introduce the award-winning thriller author Simon Wood. An Englishman living in California, Simon
also writes horror stories under the pen name Simon Janus.
What were you
like at school?
Quiet. Not very outgoing. Not particularly good at
school. I am dyslexic and that made me very self-conscious. I was
more than happy to leave and never look back.
What made you
decide to become a writer?
It's kind of hazy to be honest. I'd moved to the US and I
had a lot of time on my hands after working seven days a week at my previous
job. I just indulged myself for once. And, oh yeah, I couldn’t get
a job in America to save my life.
Do you work to an
outline or plot or do you prefer just see where an idea takes you?
I'm an outliner. I don’t outline heavily. I just make
bullet points for each scene and it goes into a color coded spreadsheet.
I'm not married to the outline but what it does do is make me think my story
through.
How do you think
your writing has evolved over the years?
I don’t know really. I think my attitude and focus has
changed. I think I'm very aware of the kind of stories I write and I zero
in on them.
Do you ever get
writer’s Block? If you do, how do you battle through it?
Yes, it happens from time to time. I have two ways of
dealing with it. Write utter crap until the good stuff starts flowing
again or go and do something completely different. It's surprising that
after a week or so, I get itchy about getting back to the keyboard.
Do you write
full-time or part-time, and what is a typical day at the keyboard?
I write full time. I usually
start around nine on my main book project. I work through to about three
or four in the afternoon. In the evening, I'll spend a couple of hours
working on a side project. At the weekends, I work on a pet project for a
little bit.
Give us an
insight into the main character in your latest book. What makes them special?
My current book is THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY and it features Zoë
Sutton. She's survived an abduction and now she's dealing with survivor
guilt. Essentially, this makes her impulsive, self-destructive, and a
risk taker. She left a friend behind to die. She needs to find her
soul again and a direction for her life, and she gets that when she tracks down
the man who abducted her. She's a prickly character but you want to see
her change her life around.
For your own
reading, do you prefer ebooks or traditional paper/hard back books?
I'm dyslexic so I'm all about the audio books.
Which
actor/actress would you like to see playing the lead character from your latest
book?
Oh, that’s tough. I don’t have a clue but some readers have
said they'd like to see Jennifer Lawrence play Zoë. Brie Larson is
another name mentioned. I think that would work.
You find yourself
in a perilous situation. Which fictional character would you like to have
come to your aid?
Crime boss, Mike Ballou, from Lawrence Block's Matthew Scudder
novels. I always think of him as a guardian Irishman…which everyone
should have.
Where can we find
your books?
My website http://www.simonwood.net is a good place to start. It
has descriptions, excerpts, audio clips and links to all the bookstores.
Thanks for having me by, Alan.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! Thank you for sharing. I have Paying the Piper on my Kindle right now :)
ReplyDeleteThanks. I hope you're enjoying PiP. :)
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