TRAPPED by Jack Kilborn (2010, Taylor)

SHAKEN by JA Konrath (2010, Jack Daniels, Mr. K, Luther Kite)

STIRRED by Blake Crouch and JA Konrath (2011, Jack Daniels, Luther Kite)

This may seem like a devious effort by us to get you to buy everything we’ve written. I swear it isn’t. If it was, I would have mentioned Joe’s novels ORIGIN, DISTURB, THE LIST, and ENDURANCE, and my novels ABANDON and SNOWBOUND.

Seriously, though. It really isn’t necessary for you to read any of these previous novels to enjoy STIRRED.

But we’d love you even more if you did. :)

Blake Crouch

February 8, 2011

Durango, Colorado

Read on for an interview with JA Konrath and Blake Crouch and excerpts of Desert Places, Locked Doors, and the 7th Jack Daniels novel, Shaken...

Interview with Blake Crouch and J.A. Konrath

Originally Published in Crimespree Magazine, January 2011

J.A. Konrath has a lot going on right now. Besides the print release of his seventh Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels book, Shaken, he's also penned two sci-fi novels for Ace Berkley under the name Joe Kimball for release in 2011. Timecaster and Timecaster: Supersymmetry take place in Chicago 2064 and feature Jack's grandson as the hero. Konrath is currently working on several collaborations, including a few with Blake Crouch. His blog, “A Newbie's Guide to Publishing,” has become the hot spot for self-publishing information, fueled by Konrath's ebook sales, which have topped over 150,000 since 2009.

Blake Crouch is the author of Desert Places, Locked Doors, Snowbound, and Abandon, which was an IndieBound Notable book last summer. He has frequently collaborated with J.A. Konrath on such projects as the 250,000-download smash-hit Serial which offended masses of people, Draculas (a collaboration with Konrath, F. Paul Wilson, and Jeff Strand), and the upcoming Stirred, conclusion to both Konrath’s Jack Daniels series and Blake’s Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite series. Blake’s short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies, Ellery Queen, and Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, where his novella, “The Pain of Others” has just been published.

Blake: What's been your single, most satisfying moment as a writer?

Joe: It's hard to top my first book deal, with Whiskey Sour. But the most sustainable satisfaction has been self-publishing over the last two years. I've sold over 100,000 ebooks, all on my own. It's been eye-opening, humbling, and has made me a very happy man.

Blake: Do you ever get sick and tired of talking about ebooks? It seems to take a lot of time away from writing.

Joe: I never get sick of talking about something I enjoy so much.

Blake: All time favorite book....don't think, just say it.

Joe:The Judas Goat by Robert B. Parker. Awesome ending.

Blake: What's the best writing experience you've ever had?

Joe: Writing Serial with you remains a high point. That was too much fun, and it's probably why we've continued to collaborate on so many other projects: Draculas (with F. Paul Wilson and Jeff Strand), Serial Uncut, Killers Uncut, Stirred...

Blake: Do you ever think of turning off "A Newbie's Guide to Publishing" so you can write more?

Joe: I've pretty much stopped doing all self-promotion. I once was maniacal about visiting bookstores and libraries, and going to conventions. Now I'm a homebody. Blogging takes up very little time compared to travelling to 40 states and signing books in 1200 stores.

Blake: Do you regret taking Endurance and Trapped back from your former publisher?

Joe: Not at all. They wanted me to cut stuff I didn't want to cut, and integrity won out. Luckily, I've made more money, and will ultimately reach a wider audience, than I would have with Grand Central. It blows my mind, by the way, that a writer can achieve this outside of the traditional publishing world.

Blake: At heart, are you a horror writer, a thriller writer, a sci-fi guy, a crime novelist, or what?

Joe: At heart, I'm a storyteller. My goal is to entertain, and I'm lucky that I have enough diverse tastes that I can hop around in different genres.

Blake: So you’d consider writing romance, erotica, or straight historical? Would you ever write something that didn’t contain suspense?

Joe: I'd try erotica, but I'd need another pen name and I don't know if I'm allowed to have any more. Romance might be fun, if they were zombies or serial killers.

Blake: Is there a book in the back of your mind you've been dying to write but haven't for some reason?

Joe: I have six books in my head right now that I haven't slated time for. Yet. I'll get to them, eventually.

Blake: In all seriousness, you've achieved a helluva lot. Are you satisfied? What's the dream writing scenario for you?

Joe: The secret to success is to never be satisfied. But right now I'm living the dream writing scenario, and I'm pretty happy about it. Luckily, there's still a lot I want to accomplish.

Blake: You've always pushed as hard at marketing yourself, decoding new platforms, etc., as you have at writing, but in a perfect world, wouldn't you love to just write and let corporate machines bring your work to the masses?

Joe: Of course. In a perfect world, corporate machines would run smoothly and make good decisions.

Blake: When I visited you in Chicago last month, we watched The Man From Earth. I think it's the best film of the last five years. Am I wrong?

Joe: You are wrong. The best film of the last five years is Black Dynamite.

Blake: Strange. I feel like we watched that movie, too, and yet I have so little memory of it.

Joe: We'd been drinking. Watch it again clearheaded.

Blake: You have the best innate sense of story and character arc of anyone I know (I'm not blowing smoke, and I'm not the only person who thinks this). You've helped me out of the woods on numerous projects. But having written several books with you, I happen to know you don't outline. So what's your process for working out stories, character arcs, etc.? Is it subconscious? Do stories come fully formed or what? It's uncanny.

Joe: Thanks. You know how there are those weirdo savants who can multiply by fractions or recall what day of the week May 10, 1934 was?

Blake: It was a Tuesday, but go ahead…

Joe: It's kinda the same thing. I see story arcs in my head automatically, because I know what they're supposed to do. It's a lot like filling in the blanks, but in a way that allows for some variation. So the stories don't come fully formed, but they do make themselves obvious and pretty much write themselves. I'll often talk to writers who are stuck on a scene, and I'll explain they aren't actually stuck, all the elements are in place, and all they need to do is tie them together by doing X.

Blake: So are you ever surprised by a story you’re writing, if you already know what’s supposed to happen?

Joe: I always know. It's still fun, like watching a movie unfold in my head.

Blake: Best piece of writing advice you got (and don't say "read a lot" - that's true but lame).

Joe: Learn what works, and why. That applies to life as well. What do you like most about writing?

Blake: I love when you have an idea of how the story plays out, but then characters surprise you and it goes in a completely new direction which was really where you should’ve been going all along. I guess what I’m saying is…I love the thrill of telling yourself a story that’s working and surprising you.