I’m waiting on a few kick-ass interviews (Joelle Charbonneau! JC Hutchins! Pat Kelleher!), but in the meantime I figured I’d flip it and switch it and post a short interview I did with SFX Magazine regarding DOUBLE DEAD, which comes out in November. A small version of the image is below, but if you click it, you’ll embiggenate that sonofabitch. You’ll embiggen it reaaaal goood.
This is also the second time I’ve been mentioned in SFX in just a few short months. The first thanks to Aaron Dembski-Bowden, who was kind enough to pimp my writing books.
This interview is truncated, unfortunately — not that I blame them for doing so, but I wrote a whole lot more than what’s in there. If I find out I can post the whole thing, I shall.
Also: yesterday I received a first look at the BLACKBIRDS cover, which is — well, I can’t share it with you. I can’t even share who’s doing it. All I can say is, it is a fucking whopper of a cover. Embodies the book so elegantly, it’s insane. It’s a real stunner and were it sitting on a shelf near to my face, I’d instantly look at it. And then I’d probably masturbate. I mean, I might do that anyway? I should stop talking.
So, here goes:
Interview.
Boom.
Oh, you should feel free to go buy a copy of SFX (#214) if you want. And then rub it on yourself.
IT RUBS THE INTERVIEW ON THE PRIVATES OR IT GETS THE HOSE AGAIN
(Thanks to Adam Christopher for making me aware of the interview!)
Tom says:
Well done Mr. Wendig.
September 29, 2011 — 1:37 AM
Jaye says:
I am stunned there are people brave enough to interview you. Were they holding stun guns and wearing Thundershirts?
Good interview, though. Looking forward to reading that book.
September 29, 2011 — 9:34 AM
terribleminds says:
I do not know what a Thundershirt is, but now I want one.
September 29, 2011 — 9:44 AM
Elizabeth Poole says:
OMG I am sooooo excited for this book. November can’t get here fast enough. I pre-ordered myself a copy and plan to buy another one for a friend’s birthday. He’s hardcore into cult horror films, and this is right up his alley. Vampire? In a Zombie apocalypse? Genius.
Speaking of awesome horror stuff, the movie adaptation of JOHN DIES AT THE END looks like they actually managed to capture the essence of the book. But then, Don Coscarelli is directing it so that’s not as shocking.
Yep, it’s going to be a good year for horror.
September 29, 2011 — 10:17 AM
Ali says:
Very exciting! I’m looking forward to the book. Of course, I’m also looking forward to BLACKBIRDS, which consequently always makes me want to sing “Blackbird” by the Beatles. *shakes head*
Anyway, congrats on the article.
September 29, 2011 — 10:49 AM
Sonia G Medeiros says:
Awesome. Congrats!
September 29, 2011 — 1:35 PM
Jaye says:
Thunder THUNDER Thunder Shirt (sung to the tune of Thundercats)
http://www.thundershirt.com/?gclid=COqO4qjWw6sCFSOAgwodkEFR1A
September 29, 2011 — 8:07 PM
L.Harrison says:
Awesome!
September 29, 2011 — 10:41 PM
J.A. Konrath says:
You do realize that some trad-pub authors are actually… happy, right?
I knows hundreds of professional authors. I can’t come up with a single one that I’d say is happy. Some are, at first, when they’re fresh and naive and full of hope.
Then, later, not so much.
I’ll bet Amanda Hocking is happy with her legacy deal. Maybe she’ll continue to be happy once the books are released, but I wouldn’t bet a lot of money on that.
Bob Mayer is right. A lot of us are always on the defensive. But it’s more than that.
The message needs to be reiterated, because not everyone has heard it yet. I’ve lost count of the number of authors who have thanked me for all the stuff I blog about, but it is in the thousands. I get thanked daily. That means new authors are discovering that self-pubbing is a viable option on a daily basis, through my blog.
Self pubbing is NOT a guaranteed path to success. I’ve never said it was. But I’ve been in both camps. So have many others. I can show you scores of examples of legacy published authors who are much happier, and richer, self-publishing.
Show me an example of a legacy published author who tried self publishing for a few years, then went back to the Big 6.
Are there any?
Hmmm. Why aren’t there any, do you think? Wouldn’t that be big news?
The self-pubbed authors who have signed Big 6 deals were all newbies. No legacy experience. All fresh and naive and full of hope.
We’ll see how long they stay happy.
Now, I’m not out to endear myself to anyone. I could give a shit what people think of me.
But my blog helps authors. It wasn’t a job I wanted, and it isn’t one I particularly enjoy. But someone’s gotta do it. Even though I get criticized constantly by pinheads.
Good books are good books no matter how they got to market. You make your choice, so why not let others do the same? Further: don’t be a sanctimonious dick about it.
Duh, that’s the reason I blog. To show writers there is a choice–a much smarter choice–than the legacy route.
BTW, from one sanctimonious dick to another: You talked a lot about elevating the discussion. But you didn’t. You did the same thing you’re accusing others of doing, showing a lot of attitude without solving anything. Saying we should all be helping each other tell great stories and then gather round the campfire and circle jerk means zip.
As writers, we already know we need to tell great stories.
What we need to learn is how to get those stories in front of readers and make some money. Which is why I write a blog called A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing, not A Newbie’s Guide to Writing Craft.
I wish you huge success when Double Dead comes out, and look forward to reading it, as I liked Irregular Creatures. I hope you have a great experience with Simon & Schuster. Hopefully they’ll make the ebook version available for preorder sometime soon, as you’re only a month away from publication and losing potential sales.
We can revisit this discussion in 18 months, when you get your first accurate royalty statement, and you can truly assess how S&S has treated you. Maybe you’ll be the first author I’ve encountered who is truly happy with their publisher.
But I wouldn’t bet a lot of money on that. 😉
October 5, 2011 — 7:23 PM