Welcome to Author Meet & Greet

Here, you will have an opportunity to meet authors,  connect with them through their social media links (if they choose to share them), and purchase their works.

The 4 most current interviews will be posted here. Older ones may be found under the Archive: Author Meet & Greet on the front page.

 

**Jack Ketchum’s Interview from December 2017 is PINNED at the bottom of this page**

 

 

So, without further ado, let’s get to know

Meet & Greet Author:  #118

Pamela Morris

 

Name: Pamela Morris

Pseudonym: Victoria Morris (erotica titles only)

Genre(s) of your work: Horror & Erotica

Titles/Year of Published Work(s):

Virgin of Greenbrier – erotica – 2006

Mistress of Greenbrier – erotica – 2007

Our Lady of Pain – erotica – 2008

Mistress for Sale – erotica – 2009

Bound To Be Bitten – erotic-horror – 2011 (currently out of print)

Secrets of the Scarecrow Moon – horror – 2013

That’s What Shadows Are Made Of – horror – 2015

No Rest For The Wicked – horror – 2016

The Witch’s Backbone: Part 1 – The Curse – horror – 2017

Dark Hollow Road – horror – 2018

The Witch’s Backbone: Part 2 – The Murder – horror – 2019

Because, Spiders (short story) – horror – 2019

The Inheritance – horror – (coming in 2020!)

Bio:

Raised in the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York, but forever longing for the white sands of her birthplace in New Mexico, Pamela has always loved mysteries and the macabre. Combining the two in her own writing, along with her love for historical research and genealogy, came naturally. Hours spent watching ‘Monster Movie Matinee’, ‘Twilight Zone’, ‘Kolchak: The Night Stalker”, and a myriad of Hammer Films helps with her Horror obsession. She loves to read works by traditional 19^th century Gothic Horror writers such as Poe, Stoker, Radcliffe, and Collins. Her modern Horror author favorites include Tanith Lee, Stephen King, Hunter Shea, and Shirley Jackson.

Outside of her work as a novelist, Pamela enjoys drawing & painting, watching bad B-Movies, remaining ever vigilant to the possibility of encountering a UFO or Bigfoot, taking road trips with her husband on the Harley, getting the occasional tattoo, feeding the local murder of crows in her back yard, and being The Final Guys cult leader. Otherwise, she’s perfectly normal.

 

Why do you write in the genre that you do?

Writing erotica was completely accidental and never my intention, but on a dare I wrote up a couple short stories and discovered I was pretty darn good at it – or so I was told. Short stories evolved into the novels and before I knew it, they were accepted by a publisher. As fun as they were to write, erotica were certainly not what I wanted to write most.

What I longed to write most was Horror. I grew up watching and reading Horror, Murder-Mysteries, and Thrillers. The first story along those lines that I wrote when I was eleven, was ‘The Strange Well’. I was no Carolyn Keene back then, but there’s certainly a Nancy Drew feel to the story.  I write Horror because I love to read it. I hope that my work creeps people out and gives them the same thrills and psychological scares that I’ve experienced reading the same kinds of work. I want to pass that Love of Horror baton off to the next generation.

 

How has writing changed/altered your life?

Writing itself hasn’t changed me as I’ve been doing it for as long as I can remember knowing how. What has changed for me is knowing there are other writers out there who feel the same way about their work as I do. Before Facebook and Twitter and all that, I knew maybe two other authors, neither of which wrote Horror. Now, I know dozens of them. We’re able to exchange ideas, give each other advice on all aspects of the business, and even commiserate about how horrible we are as writers. Writers can be very self-deprecating. Despite that, we’re all very passionate about our writing. It’s like breathing. Do it or die. I’d have given up long ago had it not been for the small circle of writing friends I’ve gained over the past ten years or so.

 

 

Who are your favorite authors and why?

Every modern day Horror writer says Stephen King and/or Anne Rice. Yes, they’ve been a big influence and I love their work, but I hesitate to call either one of them my favorite. I don’t have a favorite. I really like the older Gothic-style Horror from the 1800s just as much. Writers like Wilkie Collins, Poe, Stoker, and Ann Radcliffe set the standard for me. More modern influences have been Shirley Jackson and Tanith Lee. Today, I’ve been reading a lot of Hunter Shea’s work and absolutely adored what Andy Davidson did with In The Valley of the Sun. That book simply blew my mind.

 

 

What is your opinion of mainstream/corporate bookstores?

I’m all for anyplace that promotes books and reading. I miss all the smaller bookstores that used to be around, but you can still find them if you try. B&N tends to ignore the little guy because they simply can’t move our titles as well as they can someone like King or Rice. It’s business and I understand that. Most do have a small section for Local Authors, though. Most are also open to the idea of promoting\hosting an Indie writer if you ask. But, you have to ask and you have to be somewhat persistent. I’ve been doing a book signing every year around Halloween for the nearest local bookstore for the past four years now and it’s still on me to reach out to them for that. I also do one for the public library I lurked around in as a kid where the contact me first.

 

How much does personal experience play in your written work?

It all depends on the story really. The Barnesville Chronicles are set in the fictionalized version of my home town. For those, I draw A LOT of material from my personal experiences growing up there. Locals who read them have come up to me just giddy that they recognized a location or saw a glimpse of someone they think they recognize. Even some of the weird events that happen in Barnesville are based around similar events that took place back home.

With No Rest For The Wicked, I drew on the research I did when I was a US Civil War re-enactor along with personal experiences with the paranormal. This book is actually Part 4 of my Greenbrier Trilogy in the erotica genre – sans most of the erotica. There’s still a bit in there, but in order to make the characters work, it had to be. It’s super toned down from the trilogy though.

Shortly after the release of Dark Hollow Road, I was contacted by a reader who was desperate to know if any of it was based on first-hand experiences. The book has some pretty strong taboo scenes involving physical and emotional abuse, rape, and incest. Apparently they were so well-written this reader couldn’t help but wonder how I’d tapped into that whole thing. I assured him that no, none of it was based on personal events. I did research and, sadly, I’ve had a couple friends who were victimized in that way. I knew their stories and worked with those stories to create the dark world of the book’s main character.

 

What motivates you to complete your (writing) work?

Oddly, it’s usually the characters screaming at me to tell their story! To a non-writer that probably doesn’t make sense. But, that’s how it works for a lot of us who do write. I’m an organic writer, meaning I seldom use an outline. I get the idea in a variety of forms – sometimes a character will come to me first, sometimes a title, sometimes just a weird random opening scene – and from there, I just follow the bread crumbs left behind by whoever is telling me the tale. I often don’t know the ending of the book anymore than a future reader will. I have to figure it out and write it down in the best way I know how because I want to know that ending, too!

 

 

Do you believe writing should be censored – that some topics should remain taboo?

No, I don’t. Nothing should be taboo when it comes to writing a story because there are real people with real feelings and real stories behind every taboo. There are lessons to be learned, demons to expose and vanquish, and maybe even some inspiration to give to those struggling with the same kinds of situations to get out of them.

 

Where can people find you and your work?

Links to all my books, my blog, and some free short stories are all on my website https://pamelamorrisbooks.com/ as well as on Amazon author.to/PamelaMorris_AMZAuthor and Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/908656.Pamela_Morris

People can connect with me directly on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/PamelaMorrisBooks/ and on Twitter @pamelamorris65

 

Thanks so much for stopping by, Pamela!

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Florence Osmund

 

 

Name: Florence Osmund

Genre(s) of your work: Literary fiction

Titles/Year of Published Work(s):

Nineteen Hundred Days (2018)

They Called Me Margaret (2018)

Living with Markus (2016)

Regarding Anna (2015)

Red Clover (2014)

Daughters (2013)

The Coach House (2012)

Bio:

After a long career working in the corporate world, I retired to write novels—something I had been thinking and dreaming about for years. I currently live on a small, tranquil lake in northern Illinois where I spend most days doing just that. I strive to write literary fiction and endeavor to craft stories that challenge readers to survey their own beliefs and values. I’ve learned a lot about writing along the way, and in an effort to help new writers avoid some of the mistakes I’ve made, I developed this website www.florenceosmund.com that includes advice on how to begin the project, writing techniques, building an author platform, book promotion, and more.

 

Why do you write in the genre that you do?

I write literary fiction because that’s what I prefer to read. I love character-based stories about protagonists whose internal limits are tested when challenged by external forces. And then I love to see how this changes them. I’ve never been one to be impressed by what someone owns. For me, what someone has done with what they’ve owned is usually more notable. This is what inspires me to write the kind of stories that I do.

How has writing changed/altered your life?

I published my first book at the age of 62 after retiring from a 30+-year working career. Between retirement and now doing what I truly love to do, my life has changed dramatically. And on top of it, I recently moved from decades of living in a downtown Chicago high-rise to living in a lake house in northern Illinois where I enjoy exquisite gardens and lots of visiting critters—among them skunks, opossums, raccoons, deer, coyote, beavers, turtles, frogs, ducks, and geese. I currently have a clutch of snapping turtle eggs in my yard that are about ready to hatch—something I never would have been able to witness on the thirteenth floor of a condo building.

Who are your favorite authors and why?

I like Dennis Lehane for his ability to craft intriguing stories and Margaret Atwood for her outstanding character development.

How much does personal experience play in your written work?

Subconsciously, I have a feeling that my own personal experiences, values, and beliefs play a major role in my writing. You write about what you know, right? And while I have never intentionally crafted a character after someone I know, I believe some of my fictional characters bear some of the same traits as family members and friends. But I’ll never tell which ones—people will have to try to figure that out for themselves.

What motivates you to complete your (writing) work?

My passion for writing is all the motivation I need to keep on writing. It’s what I think about when I get up in the morning and as I go to sleep at night. Well, on most days.

Do you believe writing should be censored – that some topics should remain taboo?

I believe that some writing should be rated so that parents and teachers can make healthy reading choices for children.

Where can people find you and your work?

Here is where people can find me:

Website: http://www.florenceosmund.com

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/FlorenceOsmund

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/FlorenceOsmundBooks

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/8800692-florence-osmund

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/florenceosmunda

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/florenceosmund/

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/florenceosmund

 

Thanks for visiting with us, Florence!

 

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Christopher Smith

 

 

Name: Christopher Smith

Genre(s) of your work: fiction and poetry

Titles/Year of Published Work(s):

Is Choosing a Goat Like Choosing a Dog? 2018

Bio:

Christopher is a writer of poetry and fiction. He’s a graduate of DePaul University with a Master of Writing and Publishing and a graduate of Baker University with a Bachelor of Art in English.

He’s been published in Eclectica Magazine  http://www.eclectica.org/v22n1/poetry_list.html and is currently trying to find an agent for his YA novel about a high school freshman in Kansas who struggles with staying in the closet or coming out.

He loves reading YA, Star Trek comics and Joan Didion.

Why do you write in the genre that you do?

I wanted to explore my childhood and poetry felt less intimidating than a novel.

On the other side of it, I love how much we get to know characters in novels and like being able to explore larger issues in fiction.

How has writing changed/altered your life?

I very much believe in the power of sharing our stories and journaling to understand ourselves and others.

 

Who are your favorite authors and why?

Mark Twain: The Adventures of Tom Sawyer was the first book I read on my own.

Frederick Backman: his characters and stories are so emotional and he writes older people so well.

Kate Mulgrew: I loved both her biographies.

How much does personal experience play in your written work?

I find my life is a springboard for my stories. I like fictionalizing things I find from myself.

 

What motivates you to complete your (writing) work?

My husband.

I have a writers group who is so supportive.

I want others to read my work.

 

 

Do you believe writing should be censored – that some topics should remain taboo?

No.

 

 

Where can people find you and your work?

Www.Chrislorensmith.com

Twitter @csmithwrites

Thank you, Christopher!

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Jason E. Bradstreet

 

 

Your Name: Jason E. Bradstreet
I write under the similar pen name- Jay E. Bradstreet.

Genre(s) of your work: Titles/Year of Published:

Paranormal fiction is my thing, particularly in the darker horror niche. I also love to produce bad poetry.

My fiction titles are “Tales & Things” an anthology from December 2017.
And “The House and He” was published the beginning of 2018.
I have many more that are on the way!

Work(s):
Poetry = ‘Madman’s Flight Plan’, ‘If I Ever Make It Home’, ‘Government Heartburn’.

Fiction = ‘The House and He’, ‘Tales & Things’, and coming very soon is ‘Laughter Upstairs’.

Non-fiction = an upcoming work about my treks to haunted places called ‘Shadow Travels’.

Bio & Why do you write in the genre that you do?

Born and raised in Castle Country, Utah, my life was a snowball of paranormal experiences and information intake that seemed to often revolve around the supernatural. All of my earliest experiences were ghostly, so to speak. Castle Country itself was built on coal mining, which brought about tons of tommyknocker stories and spirits who suffered tragedies related to the mines. All of these influences turned me into a sponge for creepy information and travel to notorious places. It reflects in what I enjoy writing about.

How has writing changed/altered your life?

Writing is an amazing decompression tactic. Not only does it permit you to speak without being interrupted, but it also allows you to get things off your chest in your own words and on your own terms. You can tell your story that has the possibility of living long after your final breath, and that could change a life or help someone through a hard time generations after I am gone. Not all magicians depend on hat tricks 😉

Who are your favorite authors and why?

Oh, man. The hard question arrives.
I love Rod Serling for his magic with words, permission to explore the strange, and his work ethic. Cormac McCarthy has a raw and shocking style that hits with action and suspense. Of course my roots began with Poe and Lovecraft. Keeping it short, I admire anyone who is prolific and dedicated to the craft.

What is your opinion of mainstream/corporate bookstores?

They are incredible places to get lost in varieties of intriguing topics, and they are comfortable places to breathe the sweet scent of paper. Much like libraries, they feel more comfortable to me than churches. I
can only hope that they survive the internet markets.

How much does personal experience play in your written work?

Not only do I find inspiration from happenings in my own life and knowledge, I feel it is hard to convey things to the page if you do not have at least a hint of experience with it yourself. Whether it is
a location, a person reflected in a character, or an emotion you feel in a moment in time. Research can definitely do the trick, but it can only go so far into the hearts of readers who have had the experience.

 

What motivates you to complete your (writing) work?

Honestly, I am motivated by the idea that I must get these stories finished and push them out into the world before somebody else does it their own way. My entire life has felt like there is a ripple in the universe or a thievery of ideas I have planted into the minds of others who ran with it and made something out of it that I had worked hard to piece together. If I wait too long to piece it together, somebody may grab hold of it and make a product that feels lackluster compared to what I would have done, and they get the credit for the idea while I would get accused of ripping off the idea.

 

Do you believe writing should be censored – that some topics should remain taboo?

No!

 

Where can people find you and your work?

A fast Google search for Jay E. Bradstreet and JEB Empires will always get results.
A good way to find most of my social and contacts in one place is on my website http://www.JEBEmpires.com

Check out my Amazon author page. Please hit the FOLLOW button for much more to come and review my books…. https://www.amazon.com/Jay-E.-Bradstreet/e/B078M6RFBX%3Fref=dbs_a_mng_rwt_scns_share

I guest blog for the Angels of Light Paranormal Society. Read some articles, see some pictures, and comment…. https://alpsyubasutter.blogspot.com/

Facebook is a good way to see photos and videos from the Shadow Travels https://www.facebook.com/jebradstreet and seek my JEB Empires page there.

Raw YouTube videos are at this channel link https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCT2R-Ac1VYzJCEIymmR6pQ

And I’m on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/jebstreet/

Hardly use Twitter, but may give it more attention https://twitter.com/EmpiresJeb

You can review my Google business by searching for JEB Empires

Professional profile is on Linked In, just search for Jay E. Bradstreet

 

 

Thanks very much, Jason!

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Jack Ketchum (PINNED – Interviewed in December 2017)

 

Name: Dallas Mayr

Pseudonym (if you use one): Jack Ketchum

Genre(s) of your work: Horror and Suspense (and the occasional Black Comedy.)

Titles/Year of Published Work(s):  Writing professionally since 1970, first fiction 1976, first novel, OFF SEASON, 1981.

Bio: see my website http://www.jackketchum.net/and add to that, Most Recent Novel, THE SECRET LIFE OF SOULS, written with Lucky McKee and Most Recent Collection, GORILLA IN MY ROOM.

Why do you write in the genre that you do?  

I grew up loving fantasy, and horror is the dark side of fantasy.

How has writing changed/altered your life? The usual perks of self-employment — no punching the time clock, no damn bosses hovering over your desk.  But in addition to that, writing mandates continual periods of self-examination.  You don’t easily get away with lying to yourself on the page.  It requires you to scour your history and your present for your deepest faults and pleasures, to reveal and revel in them, to find the strengths in your life and work from there, reaching outward.

Who are your favorite authors and why?

Far too many to list here.  I read all over the place and consequently my favorite writers come from all genres and backgrounds, from Henry Miller to Gabriel Garcia Marquez, from Raymond Chandler, Elmore Leonard and John D. MacDonald to Thomas Hardy, Philip Roth, Michael Chabon, Joyce Carol Oates, Peter Straub and Stephen King.  Why?  Because they’re smart, empathic, courageous.  Because they’re good!

What is your opinion of mainstream/corporate bookstores?

I wish we had a lot more mom-and-pop, brick-and-mortar bookstores.  I seriously miss browsing.

What do you hope your readers will take away from your work?

The need for empathy and tenderness in the world, that the souls of beasts and humans matter.  And a few hours of just plain fun.

How much does personal experience play in your written work?

Depends on the piece.  Some, like THE GIRL NEXT DOOR and RED, are highly personal, others…?  I don’t know where the hell they came from!

How do you find the motivation to complete a book/story?  

Finishing a piece is almost always easy.  It’s getting started that’s hard.  Getting all your ducks in a row and then having the balls and suspension of disbelief  to say to yourself, this is really going to work.

What makes you NOT finish reading a book?

I give books a first paragraph test.  If it passes, then a first chapter test.  If it passes that, I’ll almost always finish the book — I can tell from there that I’m going to want to.   If it fails I scuttle it immediately.  Very occasionally, too much repetition will make me dump it.  I don’t want to waste reading-time.  Too much good stuff out there.

Do you believe writing should be censored – that some topics should remain taboo?

Nothing should ever be censored.  Everything is worth discussing.  How long a discussion is another matter entirely.

Any pet peeves in writing? In reading others’ work?

 Life’s short.  I don’t bother with peeves.  If I’m bored, I just close the book.

Where can people find you and your work?

Website, see above. I have a list of published works there.   Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/jackketchumofficial/ Twitter, https://twitter.com/jackketchum Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jack_Ketchum

 

What can I say?

I am honored to have snagged a bit of Jack Ketchum’s time, for him to share his thoughts and words with me (and my readers), and for his participation in a blog such as this one. Thank you so much – for the interview as well as your writing. It has and continues to be an inspiration.

Readers, I implore you to look into Jack Ketchum’s work, especially if you are a horror/suspense fan. From the mouth of Stephen King – “Who’s the scariest guy in America? Probably Jack Ketchum.”