Q: What’s Elsa’s favorite part of the day?
A: As a golden retriever, she loves every hour, everyone she meets, anything you want to do.
Ask me anything. Questions, questions. Do I not have a life? Am I to spend years satisfying your curiosity? Does that seem fair to you?
Great novels for Halloween: ROSEMARY’S BABY by Ira Levin; RED DRAGON by Thomas Harris; THE ROAD by Cormac McCarthy.
Q: A memory from your wedding day?
A: The priest called me Dan. (True) So I called him “sister” instead of “father.” (Untrue, but I wish.)
Q: What is Odd Thomas’s pancake recipe?
A: What’re you——a spy from iHop? You want the best pancake recipe ever for free? Shame on you.
Q: Where on earth did you get the idea for ASHLEY BELL?
A: Not a clue. I don’t think it came from anywhere on Earth. I love that book.
Q: Which of your characters should be a balloon in the Thanksgiving parade?
A: Me. I’m quite a character & full of hot air. It’s perfect.
Q: Should writers use clichés?
A: Not even on a cold day in Hell. I swear on a stack of Bibles that I won’t. Put that in your pipe & smoke it.
Q: Which 2 of your characters would you like to have meet in a crossover novel?
A: Odd Thomas & Jocko from the last four Frankenstein books.
Q: Is pumpkin spiced latte your favorite drink of the season?
A: No. I much prefer the traditional autumn cabernet sauvignon.
Q: What was your favorite Halloween costume as a kid?
A: Whichever one got me the most candy from neighbors.
I’ve written about it in A Big Little Life. The day after the date, Gerda told me that she laughed so hard her stomach ached. That has always troubled me, because I don’t believe I said anything funny.
No. But I’ve long wanted to write a novel entirely from the point of view of a dog. I haven’t done it because I suspect my editor would pull out my hair instead of her own.
Q: Did you take surfing lessons to write Mikani’s character?
A: Heads up, bro. I don’t need no stinkin’ lessons.
Q: How do you select the settings for your stories?
A: I ask a Ouija board. For some reason, the dead have a talent for scene setting.
Q: Was Quinn in Quicksilver inspired by Odd?
A: He’s sort of a brother from another mother, with a less tragic past.
Q: What’s on Elsa’s Black Friday shopping list?
A: A leash to better control me and my submission to obedience lessons.
Q: Should writers read their reviews?
A: Only if you know it’s a critic who reads what he/she reviews. Some don’t.
I can’t cook. I couldn’t make a grilled-cheese sandwich if commanded to do so at gunpoint (which fortunately has not yet happened). I don’t want to learn to cook. I can open a protein drink and even a box of doughnuts, but if I had to peel a carrot, I’d cut a finger off——just to have an excuse not to peel it.
Sometimes the characters’ names have symbolic meaning, like Dr. Ahriman in FALSE MEMORY. Sometimes if it’s a villain, I want a name that sounds sinister——like Vess or Shaddack. Sometimes if it’s someone I want the reader to feel warm and fuzzy about, I want a musical name or something like Holly. “Treadwell” would be a good name for someone who is by nature cautious and/or makes a special effort not to offend people.
Q: Did you ever join a writer’s group?
A: No. I’m not much of a joiner. If I joined, I’d be the guy in the corner muttering to himself.
If I could go back in time, I’d travel to 1970 and tell Wile E. Coyote just to give it up, it’s never going to happen.
Chyna Shepherd. I’m a sucker for characters who find in themselves strength they never knew they had and a willingness to sacrifice for others. They’re also my favorite kind of characters in real life.
The limited edition of my next novel, The Bad Weather Friend is now available at Charnel House.
