Name: Kit Power

Age: 35

Where are you from: London, England. I don’t live there right now, but it’s definitely where I’m from.

A little about your self `ie your education Family life etc

I’m very happily married to a amazing woman who either doesn’t realise quite what a doofus I am, or more likely knows exactly what a doofus I am (because she is, amongst other things, wicked smart) but allows me to stick around for reasons of her own, which I can only express gratitude for. I have two wonderful teenage step-children who rock are ‘peng’, apparently, and a 4 year old daughter who knows exactly how cute she is, which will in the long term prove to be disaster for humanity, I suspect.

Fiona: Tell us your latest news?

I’ve been published twice! In January 2014, my debut e-novella ‘The Loving Husband and the Faithful Wife’ (plus short story ‘The Debt’) was published by Black Beacon Books and is now available via Amazon. On the same day, my short science fiction story ‘Reverse Engineering’ was included in an anthology called ‘Do Monkeys Dream of Electric Kettles?’ , published by MonkeyKettle Books. And I’ve just been informed that a short horror story ‘Cold Shock’ is about to be published as part of the debut anthology ‘’Till Death Do Us Part’ by Burnt Offering Books – that last is an exclusive bit of news for you, by the way. Exciting times!

Fiona: When and why did you begin writing?

August 2012. Because I finally couldn’t not write anymore.

Fiona: When did you first consider yourself a writer?

I’ve always known that I can write – that I can put one word in front of another, string sentences together, that I can project the contents of my mind onto a page with reasonable accuracy, on a good day. By the same token, it’s not something you perfect, it’s a journey of discovery and continuous improvement, and I never want to stop proving I can write, and that I can write better. Which means doing it every day, sending out stories for publication (or, far more often, rejection), editing with an ever more ruthless eye. So I’m a writer only to the extent that I continue to write.

Fiona: What inspired you to write your first book?

The inspiration for ‘The Loving Husband’ came from a collision of ideas – one of which was ‘could I write a first person tale that utilized the conceit behind Nabocov’s ‘Pale Fire’ which collided with ‘what if Doctor Watson was an unreliable narrator?’ Without wanting to give spoilers, the game was definitely afoot from there… ‘The Debt’ was more straightforward,  in that what came first was the closing image of the story, and all I had to do was figure out who the protagonist was and how he’d gotten there. It wrote itself, for the most part. ‘Reverse Engineering’ is fueled by a sci-fi concept that I hope to explore in novel format one day. Sorry, I’m incredibly spoiler-phobic so don’t wish to say more at the moment.

‘Cold Shock’ was inspired by a line from the TV series The Killing.

Fiona: Do you have a specific writing style?

I actively try not to. One of the great things, maybe the best thing about being only very recently published is that I don’t have any audience expectations to live up to right now. What that means is that I’m free to pursue any style or idea that I want to and see where it goes. I find that freedom exhilarating, and am using it to push myself as hard as I can in all directions – breaking my comfort zone, experimenting with tense, with narrative form, with voice, with genre. I’ll often set myself challenges along with a story – recent examples include ‘no commas’, ‘dialogue only’, and ‘internal dialogue only’. It doesn’t always work out (and often in D2 I will relax the rules as needed to make the story work) but I always learn something from the process, and it definitely gives each piece a distinctive voice and style. I really strive to be a stylistic chameleon, because ultimately I am a slave to the story, and the style should be in service of the story. Which sounds like a contradiction to what I just said, but it doesn’t feel like one, somehow.

Fiona: How did you come up with the title?

The working title for ‘The Loving Husband…’ was ‘The End of the Affair’, but apparently that was taken or something. The title came to me as I wrote the last line of the story.

Fiona: Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?

Ooooh, no, I don’t think so. I distrust messages, generally. If my reader is left feeling something as a result of my writing, if I’ve captivated their attention for the length of time it took them to read, than that’s a job well done. If it makes them think too, that’s a bonus.

Fiona: How much of the book is realistic?

100%, I hope, in that neither tale contains anything remotely ‘supernatural’. I find the world we live in to be full enough of horrors without making up new ones, for the most part.

Fiona: Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?

I worked in a pub very much like that featured in ‘The Debt’ when I lived in London. Actually, now I think about it, I lived near a scrap yard for a while too… Other than that, no.

Fiona: What books have most influenced your life most?

Stephen King’s IT (I’m going to be doing a guest post about that on the ‘Ginger Nuts Of Horror’ blog soon). James Ellroy’s ‘The Big Nowhere’. Sleepers. The Death and Life Of Bobby Z by Don Winslow. I could go on and on and on…

Fiona: If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?

Stephen King, for ‘On Writing’, which gave me permission to take writing seriously. I will be forever grateful for that.

Fiona: What book are you reading now?

‘Casting Shadows Everywhere’ by L.T. Vargus. So far, it reads like a crime fiction meets coming of age thing, in a diary format, and it’s exceptionally good. One of the interesting things about being a newly minted indie author is sudden exposure to a vast amount of indie talent I didn’t even know existed. My Kindle is bulging with books! After this is done, I’m going on a ‘women in horror month’ jag based on recommendations I’ve been given. Can’t wait!

Fiona: Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?

See above. Also, Marty Young, my Black Beacon Books stable-mate’s debut novella ‘809 Jacob Street’ is the best ghost story I’ve read in years.

Fiona: What are your current projects?

Writing, writing, writing. I’ve just submitted a western to an anthology. As noted above, ‘Cold Shock’ has just been accepted for an anthology, and lurking on my hard drive is The Beast – AKA D1 of my first novel. I have to get to that, soon…

Fiona: Name one entity that you feel supported you outside of family members.

Have to put a shout out here to Cameron Trost, my amazing editor at BBB, for his sterling work on ‘The Loving Husband…’ e-book, and Greg Chapman, the frankly unfairly talented cover artist. I’m also blessed with a small group of dedicated, tough and super bright critical readers, without whom, etc. The online writing workshop Critters/org has also been an invaluable resource.

Fiona: Do you see writing as a career?

For sure. Should the cards fall in my favor.

Fiona: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?

Funnily enough, I read it through on release day on my Kindle, just to try and get a sense of what people would be feeling if they’d picked it up, and I was really happy with how both tales turned out – I feel like I got what I came for with both of them. Which was nice.

Fiona: Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

A hugely over active imagination and a love of Doctor Who. I was writing Doctor Who fan fic when I was 8 or 9 – long before the internet (which is probably just as well). I’ve  always loved stories.

Fiona: Can you share a little of your current work with us?

The novel was going to be called ‘Revival’ until some upstart called Stephen King announced he was brining out a book with the same title! So that’s the next big project. I also have eleven short stories out at market, with another ten or so at various draft stages. I really don’t like to talk about new ideas – I find it diminishes my desire to write them. Sorry!

Fiona: Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

Getting time to write. I have a full time job that pays the rent, an amazing family, I sing in a band… life is pretty full on. It’s a challenge.

Fiona: Who is your favorite author and what is it that really strikes you about their work?

*laughs* Guess. It’s above all, the unflinching honesty. He finds these people and he lets them loose, follows them, observes them as faithfully and as fully as he can, then tells us all about it.  I know his career has had ups and downs, but at his peak, Stephen King is still an unmatched talent, for me.

Fiona: Do you have to travel much concerning your book(s)?

Nope. I use recall or imagination as appropriate.

Fiona: Who designed the covers?

Greg Chapman is the cover artist. He did an amazing job of realizing the central image of ‘The Loving Husband…’ The first time I saw the art, I got goosebumps.

Fiona: What was the hardest part of writing your book?

The writing wasn’t hard (apart from the time issue noted above). Finding a publisher for a novella… that was tougher. I really lucked out.

Fiona: Did you learn anything from writing your book and what was it?

Oh, huge amounts. These were the second and third tales I wrote after deciding to write, so the whole exercise was an exploration of what was possible. I learned a lot about writing with different voices, and also about building suspense – starting from a familiar place, then taking the reader down the dark elevator shaft.

Fiona: Do you have any advice for other writers?

Read a lot, write a lot. *smiles* Also, good critical readers are gold dust.

Fiona: Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?

Thank you. So, so much.

Fiona: Do you remember the first book you read?

It would have been one of the Peter and Jane learn to read series (“Jane has a pink dress. Peter has a blue dress”, that kind of thing), but I don’t recall which one.

Fiona: Other than writing do you have any hobbies ?

I write lyrics, sings and occasionally even perform live as one fifth of (semi)popular beat combo and alleged death cut The Disciples Of Gonzo. About once a month I make it down to the local casino for a poker tournament. It rarely goes well. I also think about playing on my PS3, though that’s usually as close as I get…

Fiona: What TV shows/films do you enjoy watching?

The Walking Dead and The Killing at the moment. I’m woefully behind. I love Game of Thrones but my wife does not, so I’m yet to see season 3 of that. All-time list includes Sopranos, Deadwood, and of course the greatest television show of all time, Doctor Who.

Fiona: Favorite foods / Colors/ Music

Chips/Green/Loud guitars and angry/sad vocals.

Fiona: If you were not a writer what else would you like to have done?

 Rock star. Poker pro. Full time dreamer.

Fiona: Do you have a blog/website? If so what is it?

www.facebook.com/kitpowerwriter and the blog is at http://kitpowerwriter.blogspot.co.uk/ which includes my thoughts on ‘Women in Horror Month’. Enjoy, and thanks for the interview!