Today, I have co-authors Janice Gable Bashman and New York Times and Bram Stoker Award-winning Jonathan Maberry here for an interview. Their book Wanted Undead or Alive: Vampire Hunters and Other Kick-Ass Enemies of Evil was recently released by Citadel Press on August 31st 2010.
Wanted Undead or Alive deals with the struggle of good vs. evil in film, comics, pop culture, world myth, literature, and the real world. Everything from ghosts to vampire slayers to paranormal investigators to FBI serial-killer profilers. It includes interviews with folks like Stan Lee, Mike Mignola, Jason Aaron, Fred Van Lente, Peter Straub, Charlaine Harris and many more; and the book is fully illustrated by top horror, comics & fantasy artists.
What was your favorite part about writing Wanted Undead or Alive?
JANICE GABLE BASHMAN: It was definitely a lot of fun writing this book; and I learned so much during the process, including the many ways to kill a vampire, how to fight various mythic monsters, and what FBI profilers do in addition to profiling serial killers. I really enjoyed talking with the many people we interviewed to get their take on the subjects. It’s so interesting to hear what they had to say about the struggle between good and evil. It doesn’t seem to matter if the fight occurs in fiction, on film, in comics, or in real life—it’s definitely a hard fight, and one in which both the good and bad guys are determined to win. These monsters are really evil—they’re demons and vampires, werewolves and nasty ghosts, villains and serial killers; and it takes a strong hero to kick evil’s butt.
JONATHAN MABERRY: Hey, I got to interview Stan Lee, so I’m happy as a clam.
Seriously, writing this book—and the others I’ve done in the past—is a rich and wonderful learning experience. Like most writers I’m a knowledge junkie, and having real experts share their insights, insider information, and wisdom is amazing. No matter how much I know about a subject I always learn more.
That’s why I believe that people are really going to dig WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE. No matter how much they know about vampires, ghost hunting, serial killers, werewolves or the other things that hunt us in the dark, there’s always more to know. Some of it’s fun, some of it’s scary as hell, but all of it’s fascinating.
How did the two of you decide you wanted to collaborate on a project?
MABERRY: This was the fifth book in a series I was doing for Citadel Press. I’d used a collaborator on two of the previous books (fellow Bram Stoker Award-winner David F. Kramer) but he wasn’t available for this project. However Janice Gable Bashman, a former writing student of mine who has become a fierce new talent, was available. Janice is a superb researcher and writer who has been selling articles, short stories and interviews all over the place. I asked her if she’d be interested and she jumped at it.
As it turns out, our collaborative rhythm was harmonious from the jump; and even though we have markedly different writing styles, we were quickly able to find a ‘voice’ that worked for the entire book.
In writing Wanted Undead or Alive, who did what?
MABERRY We worked separately for most of the project. We divided the topics and generally conducted the research on our own until we had a draft of a chapter. Then we swapped drafts so that the other person could review it, make any changes, additions or deletions. Then we each did a pass on the full book so that it had a uniform ‘voice’.
For interviews, we reached out to a very diverse group of experts. For example, we talked with actor Doug Jones who played Abe Sapien in HELLBOY and the various monsters in PAN’S LABYRINTH and who will play the creature in the 2012 version of FRANKENSTEIN; and we asked him about good and evil from the perspective of someone who portrays and embodies those qualities in film.
BASHMAN: Over the course of the book we spoke with Stan Lee, Mike Mignola (creator of HELLBOY), horror actresses Amber Benson, Amy Lynn Best, Christa Cambpell and Monique DuPree; authors Charlaine Harris (True Blood), Rachel Caine, Shiloh Walker, Russell Atwood, James Moore, Charles Ardai; filmmakers John Carpenter, Lloyd Kaufman, Mike Watt; and so many others.
How much research went into writing this book?
MABERRY: That’s actually a tricky question. I’ve been researching this topic in one way or another for many years. My grandmother introduced me to a great deal of folklore, and almost all of folklore is tied to some aspect of the struggle of good vs evil. Over the last ten years I’ve written several books on the subject of the supernatural and paranormal, including VAMPIRE UNIVERSE, THE CRYPTOPEDIA, and THEY BITE.
BASHMAN: The actual research process was quite intensive and took a lot of time. WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE is full of facts yet they’re presented in a fun way which makes for an easy read. It took us about a year to research, conduct interviews, and write the book.
What was the most challenging aspect of writing Wanted Undead or Alive and how did you overcome that challenge?
BASHMAN: We each came into this project with our own strengths and that made it easy to decide who should tackle what part of the book. The most difficult aspect was finding one voice that worked for both writers so that the book read like one person wrote it. We accomplished this fairly easily, with some trial and error, since we had worked together on a number of articles in the past.
MABERRY: It was a real challenge trying to keep the book to a certain length. There are so many interesting monsters, so many great anecdotes, and so many interviews that we could have written a volume fifty times as long.
Halloween is fast approaching. What are your plans this year? Any Halloween traditions?
BASHMAN: I love to dress up and go trick-or-treating, but, sadly, those days are long gone for me. Now, I’m the one handing out the candy. I do enjoy seeing all of the costumes the kids cook up each year; it’s amazing how creative they are.
MABERRY: This year I’m doing a big book signing at the Willow Grove Barnes and Noble in Pennsylvania. I’ll be sharing the event with paranormal thriller writer L. A. Banks and a number of other superb authors. Then I’ll be kicking back the rest of the day handing out candy at a friend’s house who lives in a small town with a ton of kids. We do it every year, and every year the costumes get better, weirder and more creative.
What is your favorite other worldly creature featured in your book?
BASHMAN: I like the Curupira, a defender of evil and protector of the jungle. The Curupira appears as a redheaded boy riding a hedgehog, but the feet are backwards to confuse those it encounters. The Curupira eats anyone who attempts to harm the environment, unless the resources are necessary for survival and the person asks the Curupira’s permission prior to using them.
MABERRY: For me it’s always been the Benandanti. They’re ancient families from Western Europe who claim to turn into werewolves at night to fight monsters and all manner of evil. The name means ‘good walker’ and there are legends of them going back to ancient Rome. In the middle ages they were given the nickname ‘The Hounds of God’.
What are 5 things most people don’t know about you?
BASHMAN:
- I love to travel—favorite place so far is the Galapagos Islands.
- I was a great softball and basketball player in my youth.
- I worked in television and film production out of college for several years and again more recently on the corporate end of the industry.
- I love M*A*S*H and collect M*A*S*H memorabilia.
- My favorite gifts to receive are books or a gift certificate to buy books.
MABERRY:
- I used to do musical comedy in regional theaters. I was in Camelot, Fiddler on the Roof, Godspell, and many others.
- In 2004 I was inducted into the Martial Arts Hall of Fame.
- I used to skydive, and once did a drop over a part of the Grand Canyon.
- I collect action figures of every character I include in one of the comics I write for Marvel.
- Some of the things on the shelves around my writing desk include: a bottle of Holy Water, the skull of a housecat, a statue of Shaun of the Desk, a dozen statues of Ganesh (Hindu god of writers and remover of obstacles); a bust of ‘zombie Elvis’, and a bobble head of Edgar Allen Poe.
Thank you Janice and Jonathan for stopping by!
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Jonathan Maberry is a NY Times bestseller, multiple Bram Stoker Award-winner and a writer for Marvel Comics. He has written a number of award-winning nonfiction books and novels on the paranormal and supernatural, including THE CRYPTOPEDIA, VAMPIRE UNIVERSE, THEY BITE, ZOMBIE CSU and PATIENT ZERO. His latest novel is ROT & RUIN. Visit Jonathan’s website at http://www.jonathanmaberry.com/.
Janice Gable Bashman has written for THE BIG THRILL, NOVEL & SHORT STORY WRITER’S MARKET, THE WRITER, WILD RIVER REVIEW, and many others. Visit Janice’s website at www.janicegablebashman.com.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Discover the nature of Evil and how to kick its butt!These days you can’t swing an undead lycanthrope without hitting a Minion of Evil. They’re everywhere -TV, film, the basement-right behind you! It’s never been more important to know what you can do to keep them at bay. Garlic? silver bullets? holy water? torch-wielding mob?
From today’s foremost experts on nightmares-come-to-life, this indispensible guide identifies and describes mankind’s enemies-supernatural beasts, ghosts, vampires, serial killers, etc. - and unearths effective time-proven responses to each horrific threat.
Separate fact from fiction, the deadly from the merely creepy. Learn when to stand your ground and when to run screaming for your life. Determine which monster-specific heroes to call and their likelihood of success. Consider your own potential as a Champion for Good, Conqueror of the Damned.
Whether we’re talking ancient vampire hunters or modern-day FBI profilers, it’s good to know someone’s got your back in the eternal struggle between Good and Evil. And this book, with over fifty illustrations, as well as commentary from luminaries like filmmaker John Carpenter, author Peter Straub, and the legendary Stan Lee, provides all the information and reassurance you need to sleep soundly at night.
Just not too soundly.
Nice interview
ReplyDeleteAnd the curupira sounds like such a cool character
This sounds like a book that would appeal to both me and my husband! Interesting interview :)
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