When did you first know you wanted to write a book?
I’ve been writing since I could hold a flesh-colored crayon. I reconstructed stories with scribbles, plagiarizing Mother Goose. As I grew older I discovered Choose Your Own Adventure books, and created my own series on yellow notebook paper. Mine had cooler death endings…Yeah, that’s disturbing since I was eight at the time. My elementary school teachers thought I had issues. Someday I’ll write about how my second grade teacher insisted I was “possessed by the devil.”
Are you a traditionally published author or indie?
Semi-traditional. My publisher is Lyrical Press, and my books are available in ebook format. I believe in the ebook revolution and that it will soon become the standard. Viva la Kindle!
How many novels have you had published, or is this your debut?
Rogue’s Curse was my debut from Lyrical Press, back in August ’10. It’s a dark comedy set 2000 years after the Rapture. A rogue named Doban discovers the talisman responsible for the Rapture and it embeds itself to his skin. Now the entire kingdom is after him. Doban must turn to the only woman who ever loved him—a woman he once left to die in a tomb—for help. Rogue’s Curse has tons of sex, monsters, palace politics, romance, humor and adventure.
But mainly the focus is on the relationship between Mona and Doban. What has happened in the two years since he left her to die in the tomb? How did she survive and escape? And most importantly, can they set aside their differences long enough to stop a second Rapture? At its heart, Rogue’s Curse is about second chances, and whether or not we repeat past mistakes when presented the opportunity.
2000 years after the Rapture, the world still sucks.
What genre do your write in?
I mostly enjoy writing Urban Fantasy/Comedy, but the Rogue’s Curse series has been a blast. I like adding comedy to the fantasy genre and satirizing it.
Tell us a little bit about your latest novel?
Nether is an Urban Fantasy about a guy named Burklin. Burklin had it all: a spacious two-story house, a shapeshifting wife, a wide open future. That is, until his father ripped out his soul and trapped it inside an opinionated dachshund. Now he’s lost everything, leaving him a slave on mop-up duty for a homicidal teenage demon. His father is sleeping with his ex, the possessed dachshund won’t stop talking, and the cleanup jobs keep getting messier. Burklin would give anything to have his life back–even if it means turning against his manipulative father and destroying their chance of winning the Nether’s Demon Lord Sweepstakes.
Opportunity knocks with a dead woman’s hand. When the demon’s latest victim won’t stay dead, the rules of life and death change. Freedom lies within Burklin’s reach, but to get it he’ll have to defy his father, the ex-wife he still loves, and the Nether itself.
Just how far is he willing to go?
Which of your characters do you most relate with?
Sadly, I most relate to Burklin from Nether. We’re both equally paranoid. And like him, I have an opinionated dachshund that won’t shut up. It wasn’t difficult to climb into Burklin’s neurotic head and know how he would react to every situation.
Where did the inspiration for this book come from?
My dog inspired Nether. I have a 12-year old miniature dachshund named Poe. I wanted a way to remember her after she’s gone, beyond photographs and videos. In Nether, the character’s name is Pearl. The only difference between the two dachshunds is that Pearl can talk. Oh, and she eats people.
Did you know the title before you started writing, or did it come to you later?
Titles are tough. It’s so hard to find one or two words that encompass a feeling, mood or an entire world you’ve created as an author. Rogue’s Curse had a million false starts: A Rogue of Good Intentions and My Kingdom for a Rogue, to name a few. Nether had even more: The Devil’s Janitors, Witless Demons, Of the Nether, etc.
If you could use only FIVE words to persuade us to read your book, what would they be?
Rogue’s Curse: Sex, monsters and–ooh, shiny!
Nether: 24 hours of demonic goodness.
What do you find are the biggest obstacles to overcome when writing a novel?
Distractions. The internet is the biggest culprit (damn you Twitter stream!). TV is a close second. You convince yourself that you’re just turning on the TV for background noise, then you click on the latest Animal Hoarders episode and it’s bye-bye creativity. Videogames are a close second. For this I blame Blizzard and BioWare. I’ve semi-kicked the WoW habit, but not Mass Effect and Dragon Age.
For those writers who have not yet completed their first novel, what advice would you give them?
The word “complete” is subjective. The first thing to do is finish a draft. It will be a mess that only you can clean up. But get at least 60k words on paper (I use multiple text documents). Then, chapter by chapter, put each one into a Word doc until you have something resembling a coherent story. In my eyes, that’s a solid “complete” to work from, because the next stage is all about editing.
What famous writer would you most compare yourself to and why?
I’d like to think I’m a cross between Chuck Palahniuk, Bill Simmons and Stephen King. But I’ll leave that question up to my readers.
What is one book (besides one of your own) that you think everyone should read?
Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. It’s not just the message that’s awesome, but the prose. The sentences feel raw and purposeful, especially the scene on the subway where the protagonist is trying to retain what he’s read. This is a book everyone should read at least once.
What book are your currently reading?
I’m reading Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. So far it’s scaring the hell out of me.
Have any new and upcoming authors caught your eye?
Shopping at Barnes and Noble last weekend, I made a wet mess in the A-D fiction aisle. I was raised on Choose Your Own Adventure and read every book hundreds of times (Hey kids, this is what we used to do before videogames). Max Brallier wrote a book called Can You Survive the Zombie Apocalypse? It’s an adult version of the book style I loved so well. I highly recommend it.
If you were a superhero what would your name be?
Calgon
Are you a plotter or a pantser?
Definitely a “pantser.” I have an idea, a few key scenes and a vague ending in mind. I take these three elements and dump my characters into the world. They write the first draft by themselves. Once I have this mess in front of me, I become a “plotter.”
Have you ever written a story where the antagonist made a better protagonist than the one you used?
This was almost the case in Rogue’s Curse. Doban is a great protagonist, but the ancient biblical prophet Vikardt could have made an even better one. It all depended on which direction I wanted to take the story, and through whose POV. In the end, I’m glad I chose Doban, but there’s still a lot of untapped story-making with Vikardt. I mean, the old man has lived for over 2000 years. He desperately wants to find the talisman just so he can end his life. That’s the stuff juicy plots are made of.
What kind of routines to you keep when writing ( i.e., exercise, food, chores, etc.)?
I wake up at 5:00 am every morning, shower, dress (that’s the important part), then drive to Starbucks by 5:30 am when it opens. I sit in the comfy red chair, put on my headphones and write until about 7:30 am. You’d be surprised how much writing fodder walks through those doors. Do you need help with a character? How about a selfish, belligerent mommy with three disrespectful sugared-up children? Just look up from your laptop. Then I go home and wake my six-year old, dress her (that’s the important part), feed her, and take her to school. I’m at my most creative in the morning. By noon, my creativity is shot.
What current project are you working on?
The sequel to Rogue’s Curse. I have a solid draft that’s just about ready for a beta-read. I’m excited about it because it takes the series in a cool direction. I can’t wait to start discussing it.
Tell us an unknown fact about yourself.
I like Chex Mix. Way too much.
~~~
A permanent fixture at his local coffeehouse, Jason Beymer hunches over his laptop in a caffeine-induced frenzy, jowls slick with muse. He injects comedy into the urban and traditional fantasy genres like a squeeze of lemon into ice water: tart, yet refreshing. When not pounding on his keyboard, Jason worships at the feet of Ray Bradbury, and engages in an unhealthy obsession with Grace Park and Tricia Helfer.
Nether and Rogue’s Curse are both ebooks, and available through Lyrical Press.
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Hey Jason, great interview…Funny man!
Can relate to your answer about the word “complete” as being subjective.
My definition is when it’s actually available for purchase, so that’s pretty far down the road from first draft. It is important for each author to clearly define it for himself, and know when they’ve achieved the goal.
Thanks LM for another great interview.
eden
Thanks for interviewing me!