Winter of Zombie 2015: Jessica Gomez

The Blogshit: Let’s cut to the chase, what are you promoting for the Winter of Zombie?

Jessica Gomez:  I am promoting INFECTED, released in early 2015. My first zombie book, but definitely not the last.

The Blogshit: It’s rarely ever talked about, but how do you envision the outcome of the zombie world you have created? Is there hope? Will humanity succumb to the new world order? What is the outcome of all this horrible zombie business?

Jessica Gomez:  Wow… this is a heavy question. I haven’t really envisioned where my apocalypse was going. It changes constantly. INFECTED is going to be at least a trilogy with small novellas as fillers. As of now, their future is bleak. Not knowing where the INFECTED are coming from is a wide gap. Leaving them in the dark. I would like my apocalypse to be something like theirs though. They don’t have your traditional zombies walking the earth. They have a relatively nice life living in the cave system, considering some of the other areas they could be living. I do have to say that I creative the pool and hot tub in the book selfishly, because that would be something I’d LOVE to have.

As for the new world order, it began the moment the apocalypse started. Nothing is the same. Survival is your only goal. I would like to believe that humanity would stay intact. I would like to believe I would be the same person too. Deep inside, I believe we all know that may be virtually impossible. There are some decisions you will have to face at one point or another. It won’t be until you handle that decision, will you know where you stand on that spectrum.

The Blogshit: As a writer of zombie fiction, do you feel you can sustain your career writing about zombies only or do you feel you will need to write outside the sub-genre to continue? What avenues will you branch out to if you do feel a need to expand?

Jessica Gomez:  I love zombies, so yes, I think I could sustain my career on just them. There are just too many different ways you can write about zombies to run out of ideas. I love the thrill that consumes me writing action scenes or reading them.

As for branching out, I already do. As much as I love zombies and apocalyptic reads, I enjoy other books as well. My first book is titled, After the Before. A New Adult, Suspense, Romance. Even though this is a romance, it does deal with violence and abuse, taking you on a traumatic ride. The second book in this series is about to release in December titled, Slipped Away. Even though this is the second book, it’s a prequel to the first. Telling the story of their lives before the car accident.

The Blogshit: What is more important to the story: A sympathetic human survivor or a zombie with an interesting storyline?

Jessica Gomez:  I really think it depends on where you are planning to take the story. Most of the time I would go for the sympathetic human survivor. You have somewhere to progress to since they are still living. Their story is always evolving.

With a zombie, their story matters, but it pretty much ceases to be when they become a zombie. However, this is depending on how you write your zombies. Take INFECTED for instance, they are not really dead. They were mutated by a chemical weapon, changing them into feral beasts that resemble zombies. They do not change you by biting you. You change because of the chemical weapon. They only eat you because they’re hungry, not because they are looking to eat your brains. They have reverted to creatures that are slowly dying and going insane, their skin is sagging off their bones, and most of them have large boils all over their bodies. With these types of Zombies you have more of a progression story. They are still living humans, who can feel and are able to speak.

The Blogshit: For you, who are the most important writers in zombie fiction at this moment?

Jessica Gomez:  Sadly, I have not read as many zombie books as I’d like, but I LOVE the movies and series. Of course The Walking Dead is up there. Love me some Darrell. ZNation, traditional movies (old and new), the Resident Evils. Book wise, the few that come to mind are Tracey Ward’s Until the End & In the End. I really enjoyed them. Airicka Phoenix’s, When Night Falls. The the best part about being a part of the Winter of Zombie tour, is that I have had my eyes opened to a world of amazing new authors. More great zombie books to add to my list!

The Blogshit: Is there room for sex in the zombie apocalypse?

Jessica Gomez:  Hands down, YES. Lol, Not because I’m some kind of nympho, but because sex is in human nature. Especially when your adrenaline is high. You are constantly on edge. Things are going to explode at any moment. You will need an outlet. People who believe that because of the apocalypse there will be no time for sex are insane. It may happen a lot less, but people will always make time.

The Blogshit: How much consideration do you give to the seasons in your zombie stories?

Jessica Gomez:  Quite a bit actually. INFECTED started in the summer. The cave system that they are living in are in the mountains of Oregon. Which just happens to be the state I live in. So I know that during the winter the mountains get tons of snow and it’s colder than hell. In the next book, IMMUNE this is going to be one of the obstacles they will have to learn to adapt to. I am excited to see how they deal with it. I have begun writing the second book, but at this point have not made it to that point in the story. So I am waiting as well to see where this will go.

The Blogshit: Our final question always revolves around zombie themed food. This Winter of Zombie, Books, Beer and BLOGshit wants you to consider setting up a food truck to cater to a zombie clientele. What would you name your Zombie Food Truck?

Jessica Gomez:  After thinking about this for a while, I decided against going with ethnic zombie
food. Zombies don’t eat Italian, Mexican, or Chinese, unless their peoples races. I decided to go with just the general, brains, blood, and guts to justify a good Zombie truck name.

I have decided to go with, Lucifer’s Leftovers. Where the brains and guts never run out!

This was the hardest question to answer. I can’t wait to see what everyone else’s truck names are!

Jessica Gomez on Amazon:  http://www.amazon.com/Jessica-Gomez/e/B00N77SU4Q/