Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2014: Claire Riley

You're reading Books, Beer and Blogshit! It's the only American blog that says, "Blimey!" I am your blog host, Mr. Frank.

We're going to go 'cross the pond for this stop on the Summer of Zombie Blog Tour. We are going to take a look at the zombie apocalypse through the mind of an authentic English lass. The ever so spunky, always so funky and reported lover of monkeys, Claire Riley.

Claire is part of the new wave of female zombie writers. She brings an edge you may not expect while still maintaining that feminine touch to her writing. The result is a style that has great appeal across the sexes. So let's take a look at how Claire Riley tackles the Books, Beer and Blogshit interview. (If you don't understand any of the words, try dropping a 'u' and it should make more sense.)

Books, Beer and Blogshit:  Are you a survivor or one of the undead?

Claire Riley:  My mouth says survivor, my brain is laughing at me and telling me I’m writing checks that my arse can’t cash.


The Blogshit:  What is your latest piece of zombie fiction we should be concerning ourselves with?

Claire Riley:  Odium II The Dead Saga


The Blogshit:  Do you feel you are a classic or progressive type of zombie fiction writer?
Claire Riley:  Progressively classic


The Blogshit:  What makes your zombies different from all others?

Claire Riley:  They’re dead. Oh no, wait. They eat people. Oh crap. Okay, I guess nothing. I do have some glorious imagery though.

Quote from Odium II: ‘Holy hell, they’re like those little Russian dolls—a body within a body. Or should I say a rotting corpse within a rotting corpse?’

The Blogshit:  What makes your living different from all the others?

Claire Riley:  I like to think that they’re very real characters. You aren’t going to like them all. Even some of the good guys. But isn’t that real life?


The Blogshit:  Do you think it's important, in this climate, to run with the pack or really try to reinvent the wheel in zombie fiction?

Claire Riley:  I think it’s best to remain true to what you want and screw everybody else. Well, don’t actually screw everyone else, not unless you’re charging anyway. Snark!


The Blogshit:  Zombie fiction seems heavily dependent upon working within the construct of a series. Do you feel that is the way that makes it work best for you, or do you think there is still room for stand alone stories?
Claire Riley:  I do think there’s room for standalones, but I think the thing is when you write a zombie book, you create an entire world, and that opens up so many doors and story avenues for the writer. It’s not like writing romance, or a ghost story or whatever. A zombie-ridden world changes everything. The entire landscape is yours for the taking. And we do. We take it and create story after story, and thus creating a series.

The Blogshit:  Are you ever afraid of being pigeon-holed in this zombie fiction genre?

Claire Riley:  Not really. I read a bit of everything, and I write a bit of everything. I have to say that my favorite is zombie fiction, and that’s a lot to do with the zombie fans and other zombie writers that make it so enjoyable. But as for being afraid of being pigeon-holed. No. I aint no pigeon, and I aint going in no daman hole.

The Blogshit:  For your next zombie story, stand alone or series, do you think you will need to go sicker or smarter to keep it going?

Claire Riley:  Neither. I intend to keep it real, keep it interesting, and keep playing to my strengths. I won’t, and don’t, write things to get progressively gorier, or for shock value, so that won’t change. I just write it as it comes, and try and keep things interesting for me. If I’m interested in it, then hopefully the reader will be.

The Blogshit:  On last year's tour, we asked about what to put on your zombie sandwich. This year, we want to know: What special ingredients would you use to pickle the pickles on your zombie sandwich?

Claire Riley:  Like what kind of sandwich I like to eat? Steak and onion sub roll please. Or did you mean a gross zombie sandwich? Cus’ if you meant the latter, I don’t roll that way (get it, roll!)

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Odium. The Dead Saga is a top #100 dystopian selling book on Amazon.com for 2013, Indie book of the day winner December 2013 and Indie Author Land 50 best self-published books worth reading 2013/14

Limerence featured book in the Guardian newspaper for best Indie novel 2013



Claire C Riley’s work is best described as the modernization of classic, old-school horror. She fuses multi-genre elements to develop storylines that pay homage to cult-classics while still feeling fresh and cutting-edge. She writes characters that are realistic and kills them without mercy.

Claire is the author of “Limerence,” “Odium. The Dead Saga,” “Odium Origins. A Dead Saga Novella Part One,” “Odium II The Dead Saga” “Odium Origins A Dead Saga Novella Part Two” a contributor to several zombie apocalypse anthologies, including the charity anthology “Let’s Scare Cancer to Death.”

Claire lives in the UK with her husband, three daughters and one scruffy dog.

Coming up in 2014 are several projects including, “Odium III The Dead Saga,” “Odium Origins A Dead Saga Novella Part Three,” “Nina’s Odium,” “Limerence II: Mia,” plus anthology contributions to several exciting projects including “Fading Hope,” “The Murderous Campbell’s,” and “State of Horror: Illinois.”

She can be stalked at any of the following.

www.clairecriley.com

https://www.facebook.com/ClaireCRileyAuthor

http://bit.ly/clairecrileyamazon/

https://twitter.com/ClaireCRiley

https://www.google.com/+ClaireCRiley

http://www.pinterest.com/clairecriley/

https://www.authorgraph.com/authors/ClaireCRiley

Purchasing links for Odium The Dead Saga

UK Amazon Link

http://bit.ly/OdiumUK

USA Amazon Link

http://bit.ly/OdiumUSA

Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2014: Charles Ingersoll

Your're reading Books, Beer and Blogshit! It's the only blog that dares to be a return venue for the Summer of Zombie Blog Tour. I am your zombie blogging fool, Mr. Frank!

Last year, The BLOGshit hosted an interview series for the Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2013. It was a big sucess for everyone, readers and writers alike. Armand Rosamilia has once again pieced together the blog tour for the third year running and this year is the biggest ever. There are over thirty authors participating in this year's tour!

We may not get a chance to get to every author on the tour but we are going to have a large chunk of them. So stay tuned here in the days and weeks to come as we spotlight new and seasoned zombie storytellers alike.

So, let's start off week two of the tour with Charles Ingersoll! Mr. Ingersoll is new blood. His first book, DAY ZERO is about as fresh as they come. Sit back and enjoy as The BLOGshit tears into Charles Ingersoll to start this tour off.

Books, Beer and Blogshit: Are you a survivor or one of the undead? 

Charles Ingersoll: I am a survivor, at all costs!

The Blogshit: What is your latest piece of zombie fiction we should be concerning ourselves with?

Charles Ingersoll: My debut novel, Day Zero, is the rotting piece of zombie fiction I have been working on for three years and have put to market this March. I am very excited about it.

The Blogshit:  Do you feel you are a classic or progressive type of zombie fiction writer?

Charles Ingersoll:  If I had to put a label on it, I guess I am an amalgam of both. I love Romero’s early films, and anything with undead Nazis or underwater shark fights. But I love what Snyder and Boyle and Kirkman have brought to the mix.

The Blogshit:  What makes your zombies different from all others?

Charles Ingersoll:  My zombies follow the classical formula, but there is something just a little unknown about them. They are flesh obsessed, but are shown to have their own strange code of fight or flight. Even I have been surprised by the things that they sometimes do.

The Blogshit:  What makes your living different from all the others?

Charles Ingersoll:  Since my story deals with the initial outbreak with the bulk of it taking place on an island, the characters still have a semblance of a normalcy in the town that reads a little different than other apocalyptic set pieces. The fact that the narrator and protagonist, John, may be losing his mind definitely could lead into strange destinations.

The Blogshit:  Do you think it's important, in this climate, to run with the pack or really try to reinvent the wheel in zombie fiction?

Charles Intersoll:  I don’t think “running with the pack” is a bad thing at all. There are so many great works of zombie fiction out there competing for the readers’ hearts and minds. But as “The Walking Dead” AMC series has proven, the old formula of good drama and good storytelling will always enhance a series of zombie massacres.

The Blogshit:  Zombie fiction seems heavily dependent upon working within the construct of a series. Do you feel that is the way that makes it work best for you or do you think there is still room for stand alone stories?

Charles Ingersoll:  Zombie fiction seems to work well in series format. That can be said for any genre. Successful science fiction and or genre themes of dystopian futures - even young adult stories – give a reader a glimpse into a world that is really only that… a glimpse. If crafted well, the reader will want to know what will happen after the conclusion of the story. But each novel or story should have a beginning, middle and end, tying up as many threads as possible to satisfy the story and the reader.

The Blogshit:  Are you ever afraid of being pigeon-holed in this zombie fiction genre?

Charles Ingersoll:  I am not afraid of it. I welcome it.

The Blogshit:  For your next zombie story, stand alone or series, do you think you will need to go sicker or smarter to keep it going?

Charles Ingersoll: Not necessarily sicker or smarter, but since I am hoping to develop a series from the original story arc, the stories should be something more. The reader deserves to be given a deeper and more enriched experience, as the world they peek into gets bigger.

The Blogshit:  On last year's tour, we asked about what to put on your zombie sandwich. This year, we want to know: What special ingredients would you use to pickle the pickles on your zombie sandwich?

Charles Ingersoll:  Pickling is a very specific process, using cucumbers of the appropriate size for canning, fresh dill, and distilled boiled water. For the zombie pickle I would add just a drop of congealed and blackened zombie blood to each Mason jar before sealing. Mmm, Mmm, Good.

Charles Ingersoll

Day Zero
@DayZeroZombies
DayZeroBook@hotmail.com
Cingersoll2007@hotmail.com
www.DayZeroBook.com





http://dayzerobook.blogspot.com/p/where-to-buy.html

Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2014: Jay Wilburn

You're reading Books, Beer and Blogshit! It's the only blog crazy enough to take on the zombie apocalypse one writer at a time. I am you're zombielicious blog host, Mr. Frank!

So you're checking back in to The BLOGshit for all things Summer of Zombie Blog Tour 2014? Good, we got all the goods you're ever going to want. Books, Beer and Blogshit strives to be THE premier venue every year on the tour. It's authors like Jay Wilburn, today's victim, that make it so.

So without further adieu, the always creepy and suspiciously nefarious, Jay Wilburn.

Books, Beer and Blogshit:  Are you a survivor or one of the undead?

Jay Wilburn:  Everyone thinks they are the survivor, but secretly fears that they are patient 1 or 2 following a bite from zero. I think I could hold out to patient 5 or 6 easy.

The Blogshit:  What is your latest piece of zombie fiction we should be concerning ourselves with?
Jay Wilburn:  In the midst of the blog tour, my collection of longer zombie pieces will be released – Zombies Believe in You with Hazardous Press.

The Blogshit:  Do you feel you are a classic or progressive type of zombie fiction writer?

Jay Wilburn:  I tend to gravitate toward the Romero universe in my writing. I’ve always felt the great story in zombie fiction is still found in character and development and not just in the craziest new premise.

The Blogshit:  What makes your zombies different from all others?

Jay Wilburn:  My latest zombies are set in more distant times and settings.

The Blogshit:  What makes your living different from all the others?

Jay Wilburn:  I like to think I’ve tapped some real characters. Some of them reach for the level of characters living in the time of legends. Others are just people hiding from zombies, I suppose.

The Blogshit:   Do you think it's important, in this climate, to run with the pack or really try to reinvent the wheel in zombie fiction?

Jay Wilburn:  I think to some degree “different” is the new “same.” What makes your zombies different? This question has replaced “what is your story about?” Flying zombies with three mouths?! Nice! Let’s read this hot, new mess. You still need story and characters.

The Blogshit:  Zombie fiction seems heavily dependent upon working within the construct of a series. Do you feel that is the way that makes it work best for you or do you think there is still room for stand alone stories?

Jay Wilburn:  Even in a series, a story has to stand up. I haven’t found my series yet. I still seek a finality with my short stories and novels. I think the potential for money rests with the series.

The Blogshit:  Are you ever afraid of being pigeon-holed in this zombie fiction genre?

Jay Wilburn:  There is a lot of push and pull. I write a wide range of genre and cross-genre. I think my risk is in being so far afield that I have no identity for readers to latch onto. I may need to find my pigeonhole. Zombies seem to be pulling me back. My most marked successes seem to be with zombies to the point that I need to give them more attention. They get bitey if you don’t give them enough attention.

The Blogshit:  For your next zombie story, stand alone or series, do you think you will need to go sicker or smarter to keep it going?

Jay Wilburn:  I wrote a weird little story called “Dead Song” that keeps getting attention to the point that I feel almost compelled to explore it as a novel. It focuses on music during the zombie apocalypse. The outline for the novel version has a very folk, country feel like the life story of a struggling musician – only his struggles also involve dealing with zombies. So, I guess I’m hoping for smarter.

The Blogshit:  On last year's tour, we asked about what to put on your zombie sandwich. This year, we want to know: What special ingredients would you use to pickle the pickles on your zombie sandwich?

Jay Wilburn:  You have to get the right combination of vinegar, sugar, time, and sorrow.

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Jay Wilburn on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Jay-Wilburn/e/B00BGVWV2M

Jay Wilburn on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AmongTheZombies