1.
How did you get
started writing horror?
Ans: When I was
fourteen years old, I came across a tattered copy of Stephen King’s Carrie.
For some reason I was absolutely fascinated by it. Not only was the whole ‘horror’ thing cool,
but it amazed me that someone could create a world with words. It was love at first sight, and I never
turned back.
2.
Tell us about your
story in Holiday Horror. What inspired you?
Ans: I have two
stories featured in Holiday Horror. I recently wrote a Halloween-themed short
story titled, Halloween Night, which
I’ve tagged as, “not your average Halloween story,” because it isn’t what it
seems on the surface. It’s based more on
the ‘real life’ creeps that can confront us.
Then I reworked a story I’d written several months back, Lucky You, which is a psycho-sexual
short story that considers what might happen if someone accidentally kills
another person through an act of exuberant sex, only to find out that the act
of killing—accidental or otherwise—leads the killer to become even more
sexually aroused after having committed the accidental
crime. The rework was to shape it
into a Saint Patrick’s Day-themed story.
3.
You designed the cover
for your anthology, Wrapped in Red. Tell us a little about the book and your
story.
Ans: Wrapped in Red – Thirteen Tales of Vampiric
Horror is not my anthology, but
rather an anthology I have a story in (The
Scarlet Galleon), which is a story set aboard a 17th century
Spanish Galleon. The cover design was
not made by me, but rather was based on a concept I proposed. The anthology title was something I came up
with one day when several of the contributing authors were kicking around
possible titles for the anthology with the publisher. It was later that day that I was told that my
title had been chosen to represent the collection, which of course, was both a
thrill and an honor. This spring,
Sekhmet Press LLC will offer the second volume in this ongoing series: Wrapped in White – Thirteen Tales of Ghosts,
Spirits, and Specters. It’s slated for a March 2014 publication, and
promises to be a ghoulish read.
4.
Plotter or pantster?
Ans: If you’re asking
whether I plot my stories, or fly by
the seat of my pants, I would have to admit to the latter. I generally go into a story with only a
concept in mind. I know that many
writers opt for a more organized approach,
and perhaps they are right in doing so.
For some reason the process, for me, has always been an organic
one. I remember reading an interview
with Stephen King years ago, where he was being asked the same question and
replied, “I generally look for the whole in the page and fall in,” and that’s
very much the same for me. I find myself
saying, “I pull a string and see what unravels,” but they both equate to the
same thing in the end. It is more of a
surprise to me if I don’t know what’s going to happen until it does. The only drawback to this approach is that
the rewrites tend to be a bit more complicated.
I have to make sure all the bits make
sense, which isn’t always a given...especially when a piece I’m writing is
historically set. I am not the greatest
researcher, so I oftentimes have to change things along the way do to the fact
that certain details either didn’t exist yet in the period I’m writing about,
or things happened in a different sequential fashion. Writing in a ‘see what happens’ manner is
causing me to become better at researching, which isn’t a bad thing at all.
5.
Have you done mostly
short fiction or have you also taken a foray into novels/novellas? How are they different for you?
Ans: At the moment all
of the pieces I have published are shorter in length. This hasn’t entirely been intentional,
although there was a bit of method behind my madness, in entering the indie
market as I have. I thought it would be
a cool way for folks to become familiar with my writing, my style, my choice of
subjects to cover, etc. I have several
longer pieces ‘in-process,’ which include several full-length novels. I am working on a suspense thriller titled
HINDSIGHT, and also a novel I’m tagging as a ‘psycho-spiritual thriller’ that
is set against the backdrop of the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of
Boston, where I studied for a time. That
book will be titled PERFECT DARKNESS, and is only in its first draft at
present. It is my hope to follow it up
with a sequel, titled PERFECT LIGHT.
There must be balance…always!
6.
Name three things on
your desk.
Ans: I have a Lucite angel in the corner of my
desk that (for me) represents my mother watching over me. She passed during my senior year of college,
and never got to see me published. In
this way, she ‘sees’ the stories before anyone else does. Only seems fitting. I also have a copy of Stephen King’s Carrie close by, because it was that
story after all that started this whole journey for me. And I also have a photo of my sister. She is generally the first person who reads
anything I’ve written. She is a tough
critic, and is brutally honest in her responses to my stories. If she likes it, I know it’s going to be a
cool read. She isn’t afraid to tell me
if it sucks.
7.
Tell us one thing that
most people don't know about you.
Ans: That I studied
for the Roman Catholic priesthood.
8.
What is your favorite
holiday?
Ans: That’s a
difficult one. On a spiritual level, I
would have to say Christmas. But on a
writing level, I would have to say Halloween.
I have always loved the month of October, and the sights and sounds of
Halloween have always had an enduring effect on me. The chills linger, you know what I mean?
I don’t know why, but orange and black have always been two of my
favorite colors. Purple and fluorescent
green, too. When writing, it’s
admittedly always the chill I go for. No
screaming necessary…
9.
Tell us about your
favorite kind of character to write about.
Ans: I always come to
characters for the enduring impression they leave. For me, it is always about someone’s motivation… what has made them the way
they are or caused them to act in the manner they do. It’s always about the puzzle beneath the
puzzle for me. Causation is everything—the cause that ‘causes’ the cause—if you
will. For it is in the past that the
deepest secrets are buried. I love
characters like Stephen King’s Dolores Claiborne and Annie Wilkes…or even the
devil in his novel, Needful Things, who,
at his core, is such a coward. King got
that character spot on!
10.
What music do you
listen to when you write?
Ans: I am mostly one
of those writers who needs total silence when writing. But if I was to listen to music while
writing, it would have to be something heavy.
I like balls-to-the-walls rock with a sharp edge to it when writing. Takes me to that place of menace, where the truly awful things
happen. (LOL)
Current Projects:
Upcoming projects:
Check out Mark's amazing story in Holiday Horror.
Join us for the Facebook Release Party on December 31st for a chance to win $850 in prizes!
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