Hello and welcome to my blog, Author Interviews. My name is Fiona Mcvie.
Let’s get you introduced to everyone, shall we? Tell us your name. What is your age?
Hello, my name is Matthew Cash, also known as Matty-Bob. I’m thirty – eight years old but sometimes I forget.
Fiona: Where are you from?
I am originally from a little village on the border of Suffolk and Essex. After living there for the first twenty-one years of my life being bored out of my brain I found love through my correspondence with a multitude of penpals and eventually moved and settled in the West Midlands.
Fiona: A little about your self (ie, your education, family life, etc.).
I’m the last of a line of five siblings. Growing up in rural Suffolk meant at least two of them were my parents (joke). They were all quite a bit older than me, six years plus, and I spent most of my free time walking, listening to music and reading. I wasn’t a huge fan of school and left it after my exams to care for my mother and then go to work.
Now I’m my son’s carer and write in my spare time.
Fiona: Tell us your latest news.
I started my own publishing house in 2016, Burdizzo Books, and whilst I do mostly charity anthologies this year I’ll be releasing the debut novel of one of the best new writers around, Jonathan Butcher, my third novel, a poetry collection and as usual at least two charity anthologies.
Fiona: When and why did you begin writing?
I’ve always written, literally from the moment I learned how to string a sentence together on paper. I’ve always loved reading and found writing a natural accompaniment.
Fiona: When did you first consider yourself a writer?
Like I said it’s something I’ve always done, but it wasn’t until three or four years ago that I felt confident enough to show it to anyone else. It took a long time for me to even consider publishing anything I had written. I’d been accepted to numerous anthologies and that eventually made me believe in myself…a bit.
Fiona: What inspired you to write your first book?
I have always had a love/hate relationship with the village I grew up in. As a country mouse I longed for the hustle and bustle of towns and cities, hated how limited everything was. Then when I frequented a small town in the West Midlands I was bewitched by the possibility of a social life and the convenience of everything.
But my family still lived in the village, so like a travelling student I returned now and then and with each visit the place seemed to shrink but still stay exactly the same. The whole world around it was constantly changing but these little pockets of rural life seemed frozen in time; nothing changed, the buildings landscape or people like they were frightened of anything different. It was this basis that inspired my novel Pinprick, and it is set in the village I grew up in.
Fiona: How did you come up with the title?
From a scene in the story, the main character sees a tiny spark of light which plays a very significant part.
Fiona: Do you have a specific writing style? Is there anything about your style or genre that you find particularly challenging?
Not that I’m aware of, sometimes it’s a struggle to find the time to write but aside from that I just go with the flow.
Fiona: How much of the book is realistic and are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
With Pinprick most of the story line is realistic aside from one or two embellishments. A lot of the character’s feelings of unwanted nostalgia and how alien it feels to return to your birthplace are my own. Other than that and the majority of the place being real it’s purely weird fiction.
Fiona: To craft your works, do you have to travel? Before or during the process?
Only in my mind
Fiona: Who designed the covers?
I do a lot of them myself but a few of the Burdizzo Books anthologies have been done by Matt Hill @ http://www.Matthill.co
Fiona: Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
Change is enevitable
Fiona: Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest? Who is your favorite writer, and what is it about their work that really strikes you?
There are numerous new authors that pique my interest, I’m lucky to be friends with a few of them on Facebook. It’s always good to see glimpses into their lives outside of what they write. I could spend pages name-dropping but I won’t. As for favourites I’d class Adam Nevill, Irvine Welsh and Stephen King to be part of that very large and varied group.
Fiona: Outside of family members, name one entity that supported your commitment to become a published author.
No one really supported me prior to being published, most thought it was a laughable, unrealistic dream. So, screw you guys!
Fiona: Do you see writing as a career?
I’d love to but don’t think it’ll ever come to that
Fiona: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?
I haven’t released it yet so there’s still time
Fiona: Did you learn anything during the writing of your recent book?
I am always learning
Fiona: If your book was made into a film, who would you like to play the lead?
I’d like Bill Nighy or Ian McKellen to play Victor
Fiona: Any advice for other writers?
Keep doing it as often as you can. You need to exercise it like a muscle, but at times when it really does seem impossible switch to input, read, listen and watch everything around you.
Fiona: Anything specific you want to tell your readers?
Just a great big huge thank you for taking the time to read my stuff. I have constant bouts of self doubt and it really does help when people tell me they liked my stuff, whether it be a message, review or just a star rating. It’s crucial to know that there’s at least a couple who likes your work. I will always be eternally grateful for all my readers.
Fiona: What book are you reading now?
‘Jerusalem’ by Alan Moore
Fiona: Do you remember the first book you read?
No. But I can remember one of the first children’s books that scared me as a kid, Roald Dahl’s The Witches. The first adult book that did was The Amityville Horror.
Fiona: What makes you laugh/cry?
Black, inappropriate humor as a rule.
Bullying and self-loathing makes me sad.
Fiona: Is there one person, past or present, you would love to meet? Why?
No celebs as such but I’d love to meet up with my mum and give her all my books. She was a major influence in my love for the macabre and a few musical interests. Unfortunately she passed away in 1999 before she had a chance to read anything I’d written.
Fiona: Do you have any hobbies?
When I have time away from looking after my two children my hobbies are mostly the same as they’ve ever been, reading and listening to music, with the occasional film or TV episode. I like to go to events at Walsall’s Southcart bookshop and have a natter, maybe do a reading, have a drink with the awesome, lovely people that frequent the place.
And, also a time thing, I love walking, clears the head.
Fiona: What TV shows/films do you enjoy watching?
The Walking Dead, Stranger Things, Preacher. I’m not a big lover of watching stuff, never have been, I find I’m far more critical than when reading. I like horror films but nowadays that have to be pretty good to impress me, let alone scare me. I’m extremely boring aren’t I?
Fiona: Favorite foods, colors, music?
I’m a fat bastard, there’s very little I won’t eat, aside from the usual junk I really like pasta and Chinese food.
Colours are varied but I’m not all doom and gloom.
My musical taste is a vast spectrum of mostly stuff that came out prior to 2001. I was a brit pop fan, indie kid, quasi-metal head with everything in between. My favourites range from Nick Cave to The Divine Comedy, stopping off at Cyndi Lauper and Rob Zombie on the way.
Fiona: Imagine a future where you no longer write. What would you do?
Read
Fiona: What do you want written on your head stone?
Not here.
Fiona: Do you have a blog or website readers can visit for updates, events and special offers?
www.facebook.com/pinprickbymatthewcash
https://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B010MQTWKK