Author Interview: Matthew Norman

Today I am delighted to be joined by author Matthew Norman, who is promoting his new novel We're All Damaged which came out on June 1.

Hi Matthew, thank you for joining me here at the Lad Lit Blog. Could you tell me a bit about yourself and your books?
Good to be here…virtually. I’m an advertising copywriter in Baltimore, Maryland with a wife and two daughters. At night and on weekends, I write novels. First and foremost, my books are comedies. It’s taken me a while to fully admit that to myself. There are serious things in them, of course—even downright depressing things. But humor is always there. I like comedy because it makes the difficult stuff more palatable.

You have a new book coming out now called We're All Damaged. What can you tell me about it and why should readers pick up a copy?
Again, it’s a comedy, which I think makes it fun to read, and it’s filled with pop culture references and contemporary music. But, at its core, We’re All Damaged is about a guy named Andy Carter and his journey back from heartbreak. Man or woman, young or old, gay or straight, we’ve all been hurt. We’ve all been, well…damaged. Consequently, through all of his bad decisions, questionable behavior, and cries for help, I think readers will see a lot of themselves in Andy. 

The main character, Andy Carter, sounds like he is having a bit of a tough time. Why do we find other people's misfortunes so amusing?
In the context of fiction, I think it’s mostly about storytelling, really. Happy people with no problems and easy lives are boring to read about. The flip side of misfortune is redemption, which, ultimately, is something that I think readers are rooting for. If we’re talking about real life, though, I think the answer is more complicated. We’re a tear-down culture, for sure. Maybe other people’s problems help us deal with our own problems. If everyone’s unhappy, maybe it’s OK if I’m unhappy, too.

Your first book, Domestic Violets, was nominated for the Best Humor Category at the 2011 Goodreads. How much do nominations like this help you as an author?
Awards and recognitions can be really valuable, particularly for writers like me who have managed to so skillfully avoid fame. The Goodreads nomination introduced Domestic Violets to tons of readers who never would have seen it otherwise. It amounts to free publicity, essentially. And, you can never get too much of that.

Domestic Violets is about a struggling author trying to make his way in life. Any of your own experiences in there? Not that I'm calling you a struggling author with family problems, it's just, you know... Damn, this is awkward. Maybe just answer the question and help me out here?
It’s far and away the most common question I get: How much of your writing is autobiographical? The answer is complicated, I suppose. If we’re just talking in generalities, than none of my work is autobiographical. That’s because there’s not a single scene or line of dialogue in either of my books that really happened. However, I’d be lying if I said that my real life experiences haven’t informed the books. In my first novel, Tom Violet hates his job and is trying to become a writer. I’ve lived that experience. In my second novel, Andy Carter is recovering from heartbreak and trying desperately to find his way in the world. I’ve lived that experience, too. So, is my writing autobiographical? The short answer: Yes. And no.

You write what I would call lad lit, but how would you describe style of your writing?
We don’t have that term in the U.S. Over here, there’s “chick lit,” obviously, but no one is exactly sure what to call the male version of that. Here’s the simplest description I can come up with: I write very contemporary comedies about relationships and families, and, so far, I’ve done that through a male point of view. I heard someone say “dick lit” once. But…that’s just gross.

Who are your favourite authors writing in the same or similar genre?
My favorite writer is Richard Russo. His novels taught me that serious—sometimes very serious—fiction can also be funny as hell. A close second to him would be Nick Hornby. Anyone who writes the types of books that I do owes Mr. Hornby a huge debt of gratitude. When you read his work, you laugh and then you cry, and all the while you’re nodding your head, because he just gets it. Jonathan Tropper and Tom Perrotta are great, too. I like those guys a lot.

Out of all the characters you have written, who is your favourite and why?
In We’re All Damaged, there’s a group of gay rights activists that call themselves the Glitter Mafia. Their leader is a man named Stephen. Of all the imaginary people I’ve created, he’s my favorite. He was great fun to write because he says whatever the hell he wants, whenever he wants. More importantly, he plays a complicated role in the book. His cause is noble, but his tactics are mean-spirited and often, technically, illegal. I like the idea of forcing the reader, based on his or her political point of view, to cheer for someone who is a criminal.

If you could have dinner with any author, who would it be and what would you ask them?
As much as I’d love to have dinner with Richard Russo, I’d probably just spend the whole time telling him how great he is. Consequently, I’ll say Jonathan Franzen. He’s arguably the most famous literary male novelist working at the moment. It’d be fun to get his perspective on writing. I’d ask him about what it’s like to write and to maintain focus amidst so much scrutiny from readers and critics. Whenever he writes something, it’s a full-on literary event. I feel like fame would be very distracting as a writer.

What can we expect from Matthew Norman next?
Another novel. Book #3 is well on its way. So far it’s coming together much faster and more smoothly than my last book. My wife and I had two kids while I was writing We’re All Damaged. Babies, in my experience, have very little respect for the writing process.

I know exactly what you mean! Thanks for joining me Matthew and good luck with the book!

Be sure to check out Matthew at his blog and on Amazon where you can pick up a copy of his brilliant new novel We're All Damaged for £3.99 on the Kindle.

Author Interview: Rob Radcliffe

Hi Rob, welcome to the lad lit blog. For those who don't know Rob Radcliffe, please tell us a bit about yourself.
Hi Steve, thanks for having me on here. I’m Rob Radcliffe, I live in Manchester, a single dad with two very noisy kids, a full time job and a full time writing career to juggle. Sometimes I even get to sleep. I started writing books about twenty years ago when I was 13 or 14 and pray they have gotten at least a bit better since then.

Fast forward those twenty years and I currently have two lad-lit novels, a sci-fi novella, and a sci-fi novel published. Now that I’ve put it like that it feels like I haven’t been doing very much writing at all in two decades…oh dear.

You've had a pretty awesome start to April with your novel Meat Market topping the Kindle humour charts. Congratulations! Tell us a bit about that book and why you think it has done so well.
Meat Market is about a guy who gets dumped, loses his job and loses his dog in one swing of the axe. Down on his luck Greg doesn’t know where to turn and that is when his friend Stu dives in to get him back out there into the world of singledom. Greg reluctantly follows Stu on this ride into the realm of the single person and in turn Stu delivers his cock-eyed view of the world, eventually signing the reluctant Greg up to be a male escort like him.

I think the book has done so well recently because of the characters. On one side there is Greg, a scared and timid guy who has been in the same relationship since University, his first relationship, and now has to deal with trying to wade through the terrifying waters of having to talk to total strangers who are also the opposite sex. Then there is Stu, Greg’s mentor through these trying times, super confident, unapologetic, a real player whose job is escorting ladies 24/7. It’s really very chalk and cheese with these guys but with some hilarious moments because of this.

Any tips you can share to any aspiring authors reading this interview how to top those Amazon charts?
Publish and pray? No, only joking. I think authors these days really need to wear two hats. First and foremost is the writer, creating the stories and having a great time doing it, but then when you have your story all packaged and ready to go you need to switch hats and think like a publisher/marketer. Get onto social media, find out about advertising your wares, generate a decent author website, collect reader email addresses and talk to your fans about what is coming next from you. This way when readers start buying your books and subscribing to your newsletters, you have that core for your business so that the next time you have a book out, you can email your group, they will buy, you will start inching up the charts where you’ll have more exposure and collect more readers for the next time, growing and growing in popularity.

Meat Market is your second lad lit novel after The Race. We already know a bit about Meat Market so here is your chance to do the sales pitch for The Race. Go...!
The Race is about four friends spending eight days on the Greek Island of Zante. To make their holiday interesting they decide to introduce a scoreboard which will tally up points on each of their themed nights from Snogathon (see how many girls you can kiss), Frolic with a Fogey (points rewarded based on the age of the lady and how far the contestants get with them), then there is, Identity, Deception, the list goes on. Along the way they appoint one of them as the judge who proceeds in making the pointing systems more and more elaborate and confusing. There are laughs, fights, make ups, lads being lads on a lad’s holiday, and then there is the sex because, after all, each one of the guys wants that crowning glory and the title of Sex God.

You have also written thrillers and sci-fi novels. Do you have a favourite genre to write? And do any of the genres ever cross-over - could we see lad lit in space one day?!
Lad lit in space, now there’s a niche I’m guessing wouldn’t be too crowded, although wouldn’t that essentially have been the Red Dwarf spin off novels by Grant Naylor? I think for the ease of writing Lad Lit is my favourite genre to write in. It is also fun because really anything goes in terms of dialog. It is the closest to reality I write and so I try and keep the themes and characters as realistic as possible. Although, and this is a big ‘Although’, I recently finished a novel called The Divine which is a kind of an epic science fiction saga. It is not sci-fi in the traditional sense, there is no space or aliens, this book deals with themes such as immortality, evolution, the next step in man’s evolution and granted it took me a long time to write but at the moment it is the piece of work I am most proud of. The Divine will be a four or five book series but in between each book I will be writing a Lad Lit novel to keep myself entertained.

Out of all of the characters that you have written in your two lad lit novels, who is your favourite character and why?
Stu, without a doubt. Stu is Greg’s best friend in Meat Market, the unapologetic Lothario who leads Greg down the path of singledom and teaches him the way of his world. Such a great character, such fun to write and I think he comes out with the best and funniest one-liners in the novel. Upon reading Meat Market recently for the first time in several years an idea for a possible sequel has begun to form in my mind so watch this space.

Sounds intresting! We'll be watching! What made you decide to write lad lit?
I guess reading some lad lit, although I wasn’t even aware it was a genre at the time. I had spent my teenage years immersed in Jack Higgins, Stephen King, Irving Walsh, and John Grisham novels, but then I picked up a novel called What men think about sex by Mark Mason and loved the conversational style of writing. The Race was conceived on the back of Manson’s What men think about sex, and I gave writing in first person perspective a go…the end product is available for all to try. I went on to read Matt Dunn and Nick Hornby while writing and began to get a feel for the genre, but it wasn’t until I picked up Danny Wallace’s Join Me and then Yes Man that I realized how funny, sarcastic, and silly an author could be in order to make the reader smile. So in answering your question without going around the houses, Mark Mason introduced me to writing lad lit but Danny Wallace got me hooked.

Do you think lad lit will ever reach the heights of its older and much more successful sibling, chick lit?
That’s an interesting question, and I’d love to be the male Cecilia Ahern or Meriam Keyes but I think Chick Lit’s naughty younger brother will not be able to outshine his big sister and that is down to the readers. I have found that 70% of my Lad Lit novel’s readers are die-hard Chick Lit fans, which is great, but it also means there are still a lot of Chick Lit fans who don’t read Lad Lit…yet. As the reader base for this genre of writing is predominantly female it means more girls need to start discovering Lad Lit to even the playing field. That or guys could put down their FHM or Loaded magazines and start reading our stuff, come on guys, you’re letting the side down here, the girls are winning!

What are your top five lad lit novels?
5. Best Man by Matt Dunn
4. The Catch by Mark Mason
3. High Fidelity by Nick Hornby
2. What Men Think About Sex by Mark Mason
1. Yes Man by Danny Wallace

Unless of course I am allowed my own, yes Meat Market is by far my favourite Lad Lit novel. No? Against the rules voting for myself? Oh, alright then, stick with the list.

What's next for Rob Radcliffe the lad lit author?
The novel I am currently writing is called Untitled and is available for free download on amazon, itunes, B&N etc. I should probably explain what I am doing with this project a little more. As a writer you find yourself shut in the dark while you scribble away in the hope your book will connect with your readers once you have finished. For Untitled I have turned that on its head. As I write the chapters I post them on my website and the pages are accessible to people who have signed up to The Novel Experiment reader’s list. I wanted feedback and comments as I wrote this book, I wanted reader engagement as I went through the writing process and so far feedback has been awesome. There have been readers who have made suggestions to me which have helped shape the direction this novel is going and it is great. The title will be voted for by my ever growing email list and it really feel like I am connecting with the people I do this for, my readers.

As of this morning I am 26,000 words into the novel (Lad Lit but a lot darker than anything I have written before) and I am hoping to have the finished product available by June/July.

Once Untitled is done and dusted I will begin outlining for book two of the Divine Chronicles: CHRONOS. Already ideas are littering my head but I need to keep kicking them to the side so I can get Untitled written and ready for my readers.

Sounds very cool! I'll keep my eyes open for that. Good luck with the project and thanks for stopping by.

Find out more about Rob at his website and at his Amazon author page.

Author Interview: Ben Adams

Hi Ben, thanks for taking the time out to chat to me today. I'm guessing you must be very busy promoting your new book Six Lies which came out at the end of last year. Tell me a bit about that book and how it has been doing so far.
Steve, it’s a pleasure to be invited on to your blog. Yes, the last few months have been busy. Six Lies came out in December, the idea being that it could fill a stocking far more effectively than your average socks, ties and cheap aftershave. The book did reach No.1 in some obscure category on Amazon for a while (books written on a Tuesday by a bloke called Ben), but the absolute top of the charts was dominated by a bunch of barely literate sportspeople with bugger all to say.

The story is in some ways classic lad lit. There’s a band stuck in the 1980s, a wife running off with a librarian and a fair bit of drunken banter. But there’s more. Our protagonist, Dave Fazackerley, discovers the day after her funeral that his mother wasn’t his mother after all. Six Lies follows Dave as he tries to make sense of his life. Will he discover the truth about his mother? Will he ever discover that there’s life beyond U2? More importantly, will he win his wife back from the clutches of the book dork?

Six Lies is your second novel following Six Months to Get a Life about a man coming to terms with the break-up of his marriage. You have openly talked about your own divorce inspiring you to write a novel so how much of your own experiences translates on to the pages of your book?
I remember staring into my fridge one lunchtime. It was Good Friday. I was in a pretty low place. My kids were off having fun with my ex, my house was oppressively quiet and all my mates were with their own perfect families. Should I open a can of lager and drift blissfully into a drunken stupor? It certainly wouldn’t have been the first time.

Somehow I found the will to kick myself up the arse, to stop feeling sorry for myself. It was time to get a grip. In a moment of inspiration, I decided to write Six Months to Get a Life.

Although it was a story about a man coming to terms with his divorce, it was never my story. I couldn’t write about my life. Aside from the fact that no one in their right mind would want to read my story, I had no right to write about my kids or my ex. So instead I took great pleasure in inventing a new ex, in inventing more interesting mates and, without giving much away, inventing a new love interest. Six Months to Get a Life is purely a work of fiction but it is certainly true to say that the emotions that Graham Hope, the divorced dad, feels are those that I felt at one time or another whilst going through my own crap time.

You also took part in a BBC documentary which aired in January called The Age of Loneliness. What made you decide to take part and how difficult was it to make the decision to speak in front of the cameras?
The documentary-makers approached me on the back of a blog I published bemoaning the havoc that my marriage break-up had reaped on my social life. ‘Will you speak openly on camera about your loneliness?’ The producer asked me. ‘No.’ I replied, and a year later, there I was, pouring my heart out on BBC1.

To this day I don’t really know why I agreed to take part in the project. Being filmed playing football with my boys, barbecuing sausages, writing my next book and then sitting on the BBC Breakfast sofa talking about the film were certainly a break from the routine. Being on the telly helped my book sales too, but I like to think that the reason I said yes was that I wanted other people who are going through what I went through to know that they aren’t the only ones feeling the way they do.

You've decided to tackle a genre of books dominated by female writers. How difficult is it for a lad lit author to make an impact when the audience you are going for are already committed to chick lit?
Most of my readers are women. I pitched Six Months to Get a Life to a few chick lit websites when it first came out. They gave the book great reviews but that doesn’t mean I am yet rivaling Sophie Kinsella and Helen Fielding for top spot in the bestsellers list. I have got a fair way to go before I can really say that I’ve made an impact.

In your opinion, what are the main differences between lad lit and chick lit?
Beer as opposed to wine? Penis size as opposed to weight loss? Moody strops rather than neurotic hang-ups? And maybe more lust, less love.

Seriously, I’m not sure there is a clear difference. Lad lit doesn’t always follow the same formula, and neither does chick lit. I might try and write a book with a neurotic, weight-conscious, wine-swilling protagonist one day.

Who are your favourite authors/books and why?
I love anyone who writes witty character-based stories. Without wishing to be clichéd, I have been a big Nick Hornby fan for more than twenty years. He writes about people you wouldn’t be surprised if you met down your local. Lisa Jewell’s ‘Ralph’s Party’ is also a story that has stuck in my mind. But I probably have to confess that Adrian Mole, or should I say Sue Townsend, probably convinced me that I wanted to write. Adrian and I are the same age. Obviously Adrian’s penis is shorter than mine, but other than that, the two of us had a lot in common. I started writing a diary once I had read his, and the rest, as they say, is history…

You are doing lots of self-promotion. What is the best advice you can give to an indie author from what you have learned promoting your first two books?
Don’t give your money to the multitude of websites that claim to have millions of readers clamoring to hear about your books. Instead, get active on social media. Blog more often than I do, tweet, be nice to other authors and doors will open for you.

From the two books you have written, which character is your favourite and why?
All of my characters have their personality faults but I love each and every one of them. They have all occupied a place in my heart for months at a time. If I had to pick a few out, I would say that I enjoyed writing Dave’s dad’s dialogue in ‘Six Lies’. He’s a cantankerous old sod. And Graham Hope’s children gave me some fun in ‘Six Months to Get a Life’. Children say things that adults might think but wouldn’t dream of saying.

I read one of your blog posts where you said writing is better than sex. Care to explain?!
No, my girlfriend has only just started talking to me again. If you really want to hear the argument, you can have a look here.

And finally, what can we expect next from Ben Adams?
More of the same I’m afraid. My third book, provisionally called ‘Trouble in the Staffroom’, is clogging up my laptop at the moment. I am thoroughly enjoying writing it. Hopefully it will be out later this year.

Great stuff, thanks Ben! Good luck with the new book.

Author Interview: Chris Hill

Hey Chris, welcome to the Lad Lit Blog. So tell me what's going on in your world right now?
Hi Steve, many thanks for inviting me along today. It’s a real pleasure. What I’m up to is the usual double life authors have of writing on the one side and the real world on the other. So I’ve got my day job, working as communications officer for the children’s charity WellChild, my family - teenagers, dog, the whole works. Then on the writing side I’m still promoting The Pick-Up Artist which has been out for about 12 months now with Magic Oxygen Publishing, plus I’ve started on another book.

You published The Pick-Up Artist last year. Tell me a bit about that book and how it has been received so far?
It’s essentially a romantic comedy, it’s about a shy young man’s attempts to find love, or sex at least, with the help of a peculiar online community called the Pick-Up Artists who claim to be able to use psychological techniques to attract women. It’s not giving much away to say it doesn’t go as smoothly for him as he might have hoped. But it’s also about the women he meets who are my favourite characters in the book I would say, they’re rude and funny and don’t take any prisoners. I’d say it’s done maybe a bit better in terms of sales than my last book which was literary fiction, but they are both with smaller publishers and that kind of puts a cap on what they are likely to sell as you don’t have the marketing machine and distribution network that the big publishing houses do. They’ve done okay though, I’m very grateful they are out at all and that I found publishers who wanted them.

It is described as 'A lad lit romcom about dating in the digital age.' Have you got any experience of dating in the digital age and how much of this novel was based on true life experiences?
No experience personally, I’ve been happily married for about a thousand years. Luckily, the beauty with fiction is that you get to make things up, or use stuff you have observed in others, I spent lots of years as a journalist which you could describe as being a professional observer, so I’m quite good at people watching. The lad lit description came from my publishers. They decided that was the way to market the book and I deferred to them on the subject as it’s their area. I was a little uneasy about it at first - the majority of my readers are women, both for my first book and for this one. I didn’t want to do anything to put them off or make them think this book wasn’t for them. Luckily I needn’t have worried, most of the readers who have contacted me about PUA are women and most of the reviews have been from women, and thankfully they seem to like it.

What is the best pick-up line you have ever used? And more importantly, what is the worst?!
I didn’t used to use pick up lines - maybe that’s where I was going wrong. The PUA people in my book are a real movement who believe you can attract women through supposed psychological techniques. A lot of their ideas sound barking mad, others sound like they have a grain of truth in them, many of them are described in the book. Do they work? I don’t know, I’ve not tried them. I’m uneasy about the whole idea really as it sounds like a recipe for using people and trying to bend them to your will. I suppose if The Pick-Up Artist has a moral position then it’s that, though it is basically a comedy.

Do you think the lad lit genre gets the praise it deserves?
If I’m honest, until the publisher told me I’d written a lad-lit novel I didn’t know I had done, or really that it was a genre. What I do believe is that the best writers, and the best books, in any given genre transcend that genre and are just appreciated as great writing.

Who is your favourite lad lit author/book and why?
I’m no expert on the genre I’m afraid. What I did with this book was try to pitch it around the area inhabited by say Lucky Jim, by Kingsley Amis, or The Rachel Papers, which was Martin Amis’s first book. I think maybe it has a little taste of Nick Hornby, that kind of thing. But I was also influenced by the more romantic literary fiction books out there such as Love in the Time of Cholera and Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter. I read a lot and it all gets into the mix - I find it easier to see what has influenced me with a book when I have finished it.

You are a winner of the Bridport Prize. What can you tell me about that award?
It was years ago I won it but it still follows me around, in a good way. It’s one of the bigger short story prizes in the UK and is considered reasonably prestigious. On the one hand, winning something like that doesn’t mean very much to you as a writer, it’s not like I had agents and publishers banging my door down because of it, but on the other hand it did give me a boost of confidence and made me think I was perhaps on the right track, which was great. It’s also something which pops back up again from time to time, publishers like sticking it on blurbs and websites, and I even get the odd gig off the back of it. I’ll be at Evesham Festival of Words on July 1st giving a talk on ’Winning the Bridport Prize’ (and hopefully flogging some books) so, be there or be unfashionable.

Your first book, Song of the Sea God, is not exactly what you would call lad lit. What made you make such a jump from one genre to the other?
I basically write the books I feel compelled to write and then try to find a publisher who loves them enough to put them out. So my first book is nothing much like my second and the one I’m working on now will be different again. Wiser authors than me will say I’m doing it all wrong and that I should write in the same style every time to build up a readership, but I think what the hell? I’d rather write what I’m inspired to write and see how that goes - that’s the fun of it surely. There’s not much money in this so I might as well enjoy it. Song of the Sea God, published by Skylight Press, is a literary novel set on a small island of the coast of England where a strange figure washes up and tries to convince the local people he is a god. It’s like a kind of creepy fairytale. Some people really seemed to like it - they wrote all kinds of essays about various aspects of it, what it secretly meant and so on. PUA is a lot more straightforward but I like to think it’s just as worthwhile in its own way.

What advice would you give to an author just starting out?
Practice - nobody gets good at this straight out of the box. It’s a funny thing that people wouldn’t expect to pick up a guitar and know how to play it without having learned, or paint a great picture the first time they pick up a brush. But, perhaps because everyone can write there’s this belief that everyone is automatically a writer. Put in the work and eventually you will get good.

And finally, what is next in the pipeline for Chris Hill. Any more lad lit?
My next book will be different from either of the others but I’m not quite sure yet what it will be. It takes me two years to write a book, soup to nuts, a year for a first draft and another for rewrites, at the moment I’m right at the start of that process which is quite an exciting place to be but also quite daunting, who knows where I will end up?

Thanks Chris and good luck with that third book!

Chris Hill is an author from Gloucester in the UK whose new novel The Pick-Up Artist is published by Magic Oxygen Publishing. You can find it on Amazon here.

Chris is a social media addict with 25,000 followers on Twitter @ChilledCh he is on Facebook here, and has a popular blog where he talks about reading, writing and more at http://www.chrishillauthor.co.uk/.

Author Interview: Jon Rance

Jon Rance is the best selling lad lit author of This Thirtysomething Life. The success of that novel earned the self-published writer a two-book deal with Hodder and Stoughton and set him on his way to a number of other successes including Happy Endings and most recently Sunday Dinners. 

He took time out of his busy schedule of working on his next project to talk to me.

Hey Jon, thanks for taking the time out to speak to me. So what are you working on right now?
Hi Steven, thanks for having me on your blog! Right now I'm working on novel number five. It's a romantic comedy set in London. That's all I can say at the moment. It's really my first romantic comedy novel and I'm very excited about it. People sort of pop me in the Rom Com genre, but I don't think I've actually written a straight up Rom Com before. All of my other books were about relationships that were already existing or family while for this book I wanted to write a 'classic' romantic comedy. It's actually been a lot of fun!

A Notting Hill Christmas is your most recent published work. How has the book been doing and what can readers thinking about picking up a copy expect? 

I wrote A Notting Hill Christmas at the end of last year after my novel Sunday Dinners was finished. A Notting Hill Christmas is a festive novella about one man's attempt to host Christmas at his small Notting Hill flat. It's a very funny look at Christmas, family and love, all set around the backdrop of the biggest day of the year! It's done very well and it was very much a short, fun project that I just wanted to do. My last novel, Sunday Dinners, which came out at the end of October last year is doing really well too, which is quite exciting and good for the bank balance! Sunday Dinners is different from my other books in that it's definitely a comedy drama. All of my books are essentially comedies that touch on difficult and dramatic subjects, but Sunday Dinners definitely goes to some darker places.

You have made that elusive transition from self-published author to author with an agent and a book deal. Is the grass greener on the other side or are you a bit like Del-boy from Only Fools & Horses who misses the chase after he made his millions?
I've actually been there and back again. My first two novels got picked up by Hodder and Stoughton and on the back of that I got an agent. However, Sunday Dinners didn't find a publisher and I self-published that on my own. I really think we're in a world now when you can do both and it can work. Sunday Dinners has done really well and that is all down to me and I have to say, it's a great feeling. However, saying that I will be looking for a publisher for my new novel and so going forward I'll probably end up doing a bit of both.

This Thirtysomething Life was the book that put you on the map when it became a Kindle best seller. Has anything else come quite as close (professionally speaking) to the feeling you got watching that book climb the charts?

Probably not. The first one is always the best. I think because I really didn't expect This Thirtysomething Life to do so well, the whole thing felt a bit dream like. This is going to be a horrible thing to say and will annoy lots of other indie authors, but I didn't really do very much for This Thirtysomething Life. I didn't market it very well, do lots of interviews and work with bloggers to get reviews. It just took off and I have no idea why. So as I watched it climb the charts and eventually reach number 7 on the Kindle chart, I was just in complete and utter amazement. It was definitely one of the highlights of my writing career. That and signing my book deal, getting the first paperback from Hodder HQ in London, and also the success of Sunday Dinners.

What do you think it was that caught people's attention with that book and what sort of advice would you give to an indie author trying to climb that ladder today?
Like I said, I really have no idea why it did so well. There's so many things that have to happen for a book to do well in the charts. You need to write a decent book, but after that it's all about timing, luck, and getting momentum. I think the last one is key. Momentum. The way the Amazon charts work is that you need to get visible. Visibility is everything. You need to get your book attached to as many bestselling, popular authors as possible and then you get momentum. When This Thirtysomething Life and to a slightly lesser extent Sunday Dinners were doing well, I wasn't doing anything because they had momentum. Once a book gets high enough in the charts it starts to sell itself. Plus once books start doing well Amazon will promote you for free. I suppose it's a giant Catch-22. You need to do well to do better and the better you do the more promotion and visibility you will get. It's super hard for first time authors because no-one knows who you are. It's why you need to have a huge online presence, get to know book bloggers, get your work read and reviewed as much as possible. I think the best advice I can give to first time authors is don't expect to make any money. Charge 99p because you want as many reviews as possible. Offer your book to as many bloggers and reviewers for free as possible and use the first book as a way to get your name out there. And don't be afraid to ask other authors for help. I've met so many lovely people and most authors will help you out if they can. It's about getting your work read and if it's good enough you will get the rewards.

One question I love to ask authors is out of all the books you have now written, who is your favourite character and why?
Probably Harry Spencer from This Thirtysomething Life and the sequel This Family Life. When I wrote those books the character of Harry was based very loosely on me. He's far more gullible, stupid and gets in far more trouble than me, but what I love about Harry is that he always tries to do the right thing. He's a fighter. He just wants an easy life, but the harder he tries the more he seems to cock everything up.

You are part of a growing number of successful UK male authors writing romantic comedy from the male perspective. Will lad lit become as big as chick lit one day?
I don't think so simply because the majority of readers are women. One of my biggest and luckiest breaks was working with an amazing and lovely editor at Hodder. We became good friends and still are. One of the first things she told me was that most of my readers were women. It made me realise that I wasn't writing books for blokes like me, but women, who were not like me at all. You have to take this into account when writing. I don't think lad-lit really exists because not enough men read it. This is why it's so hard for men to tackle the world of romantic comedies. We're at a disadvantage going in. There's also a lot more women writing in this genre than men. But that doesn't mean a handful of men can't be successful.

Ever thought about trying your hand at a different genre and if so, what would it be?
I have and I might write something in a slightly different genre. I don't think I'd ever tackle thrillers because that's just not my thing. Despite the fact they sell infinitely more copies than romantic comedies, I just wouldn't be very good at it. I've thought about writing a children's book and that might happen one day. I have an idea I'm working on at the moment that's a bit different, so I'll see how that goes.

You're from Southampton so the burning question has to be who is Southampton's greatest son - Craig David or Matt Le Tissier?
Come on Steven that's not even a question. Le Tissier of course. The most talented player of his generation. It's unfortunate he isn't playing now because England could use some of that magic!



And finally, and I have saved the best question til last - you state in your 'About Me' section on your website that Three Lions is the best football song ever made, when quite clearly World in Motion is the number one footy anthem. Please explain yourself?
They're both great songs. I love World in Motion and the John Barnes rap is a thing of beauty. I also love New Order so it should be my favourite. "Some of the crowd are on the pitch" - brilliant. But the reason I chose Three Lions is that EURO 96 in England holds a special place in my heart. It was in the 90's the time of Oasis, Blur, Gazza, TFI Friday, and then we had EURO 96. I was 21, the pubs were packed for every game and that song was sung around England. It became like a National Anthem. So it's more about what that means to me than the quality of the song. Although it is a cracking song! "Thirty years of hurt, never stopped me dreaming! England! England! England!" Come on, Steven, you know it makes sense. At least I didn't go for Fat Les and Vindaloo!

Find out more about Jon Rance at his website and but his books at Amazon and all good book retailers.

Author Interview: The Bourbon Kid

 Have you heard about that international best-selling book that doesn't have a name? You know, the one written by that anonymous author?

No? Hmmm, let me ask you another question then. Have you heard about the white-knuckle roller coaster thrill-ride sandwiched into 450 pages of blood-splattering, side-splitting wit and carnage, fused together by a hitman who has spent far too much time at the Heartbreak Hotel, a Mexican barman who is serving up more piss than Bear Grylls could handle, and an alcoholic supernatural serial killer who Van Helsing couldn't even compete with on his best day?

No? No?! In that case you had better get the hell of my blog and never return because you must have been living under some sort of literary rock to not be familiar with one of the most exciting authors of his (or hers?) generation. With comparisons to Quentin Tarantino and Hollywood queuing up to transfrom the blood-thirsty residents of Santa Mondega into a cinematic psycho's playground (not to mention Margot Robbie being a fan), the man who uses the moniker of his most famous creation is on a mission to make sure you never forget the name The Bourbon Kid. 

But because I'm feeling in a charitable mood, I'll let you watch this video so you can be introduced to the best book you haven't read yet. For those of you who have already welcomed The Book With No Name and it's three sequels (The Eye of the Moon, The Devil's Graveyard and The Book of Death) into your heart and know why you should avoid the Tapioca bar at all costs, feel free to relive the wonderful story again before reading my interview with The Bourbon Kid as he talks about his crazy creation and his new soon-to-be-a-cult-success book The Red Mohawk.

Hey Bourbon Kid, pull up a seat while I pour you a drink. So let's get down to business - Sanchez was and always will be the real star of show right?
Absolutely! Initially I stuck him in The Book With No Name just so that he could be the eyes and ears of the reader, but he ended up becoming so much more. I used to be a bartender myself, so lots of the things Sanchez sees, hears, thinks and does, are things I experienced. I never poured piss in anybody’s drink though.

You tied up all the loose ends in The Book of Death to complete the story, but do you miss Santa Mondega?
I miss it a lot. By creating a fictional city where pretty much anything goes, I was able to get away with some pretty crazy shit that readers would never accept if the stories were set in New York, London or Paris. It also gives the story more appeal to international audiences than say, a book set in a quiet English village.

Your writing style and stories have been compared to the likes of Quentin Tarantino, but where do you really get your inspiration from? Hopefully not real life experiences!
Actually some of it is from real life. In my days as a bartender I met characters like the Bourbon Kid, Rodeo Rex, Elvis and Marcus the Weasel, although I obviously exaggerated them for the book. Some of the stuff that happened in TBWNN was based on events that happened when I was working. For example, I once did see Papa Smurf get beaten up by a couple of angry nuns on a fancy dress evening. That made it into the book. But mostly my inspiration comes from movies. I like to take little pieces from lots of movies of different genres and then stick them all together and see what happens. It can be fun. In The Red Mohawk for example, I imagined what would happen if the killer from the Halloween movies showed up in Dirty Dancing.

The Red Mohawk is your latest outing about a crazy serial killer stalking the residents in the small town of B Movie Hell. Tell me where this new idea came from and is this the start of a new series of books, and if so, what can we expect from the next installment?
I was watching the movie Drive one day and there’s a scene about an hour in, where Ryan Gosling (who is the hero) sticks on a rubber mask and starts stalking Ron Perlman. And I started thinking, what if that was the opening scene of the movie? You’d think Gosling’s character was a total psycho. So I decided that it would make a good starting point for a novel. Consequently the opening scene of The Red Mohawk involves a masked serial killer stalking a police officer.

I read somewhere that you might be thinking about pairing The Bourbon Kid and The Red Mohawk together later on down the line. Any truth in that?
It’s what’s coming next. It’s called The Plot To Kill the Pope and it’s already been a success in Europe and it will be out here in a matter of weeks. It’s pretty insane and features the Bourbon Kid, the Red Mohawk, Elvis, Rodeo Rex and a plot to kill the Pope that also involves Frankenstein and Dr Jekyll. I’m pretty sure there’s never been a book like it before, which is always my aim when I write something. If it turns out there is already a book like it, I’ll be livid.

The characters you have created are all very unique and endearing (in that serial killing, blood thirsty, anti-hero type of way). Which one is your favourite character and why?
It’s a toss up between Sanchez and the Bourbon Kid. They’re actually very similar characters except that Sanchez is a coward who pours piss in people’s drinks if he doesn’t like them, whereas the Bourbon Kid kills them. But also in The Plot to Kill the Pope there is a character called Jasmine who first appeared in The Red Mohawk. She’s great fun and provides the comic relief that’s normally reserved for Sanchez.

The Book With No Name was commissioned for a TV series called Pulp. What happened with that and is it true that Tobey Maguire’s Material Pictures are developing The Red Mohawk into a film?
Unfortunately Pulp got cancelled before it really got off the ground which was a big disappointment. But the rights for The Book With No Name are now in the hands of a company called Belga Films. I’ve worked with them on the script for a movie. I’m really happy with what they’ve done and it’s already caught the eye of one of my absolute favourite Hollywood A-listers (although I can’t say who just yet!). And Tobey Maguire’s Material Pictures are working on a TV series based on The Red Mohawk. So it’s all looking very good at the moment. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that at least one of these projects makes it to the screen.

You made that successful transition from self-published author to best selling author. What is the best advice you would give to all aspiring indie authors?
I guess from my own personal experience I would say, "Don’t write what you think publishers want. And don’t try to write like anyone else. No one can write like you better than you can, so do that instead! And cut out all the boring bits."

Your books have received quite a cult following over the past decade. What is the strangest thing you have had a fan ask you or request?
I’ve had quite a few people pitch me their idea for a novel and then offer to split the royalties with me if I write it for them. Can you imagine that? Cheeky bastards.

Tell me about it. Hey, how about in your next book Dan Hilles from my novel The Drought teams up with The Bourbon Kid and they go around killing every girl who refuses to sleep with Dan? You can write it and then I'll help with the administrative side of things like looking after the bank accounts. What do you think? Why are you looking at me like that? Oh no, please put the bourbon down! Let's wrap this up before you do something stupid! Finally, what can we expect next from you?
Well The Plot To Kill the Pope will be out soon. And that will be followed by a new one I’m writing which is currently called The Roman That Followed Jason. But it will probably end up being called something else. But it’s got Sanchez in it, so it’ll be good fun.

Sounds amazing - I can't wait to read it! Thanks again for agreeing to do this interview. I'm genuinely a huge fan of your books - The Bourbon Kid series is definitely up there in my top 5!
My pleasure. And I wish you all the best success with your novels The Drought and The Flood.

For more information on The Bourbon Kid and my book reviews click in the links throughout this article and make sure you check out this amazing rogues gallery of Santa Mondega's finest.

Author Interview: Matt Dunn

Hi Matt, thanks for taking the time out to chat with me. You are busy working on your tenth novel at the moment - what is it called and what's it all about?
The working title is A (Christmas) Day at the Office - it's a sequel to A Day at the Office, and revisits the Seek Software team nine months after that fateful Valentine's Day. It's set on the day of the office Christmas party, when big changes are in store for the company, and all the people who work there...

Your last novel, Home, has so far proved to be your most popular work in terms of reader reviews (4.5 average rating on Goodreads). Why do you think this story has been so well received?
Well, the Goodreads score's closer to 4, and it seems to be well-received on Amazon too (not that I check more than half a dozen times a day), but to answer your question, from what people have told me, it's mainly because a lot of people seem to identify with the story (people leaving small towns to live in the city/complex relationships with their parents/the people they leave behind, family, illness etc.). Plus it seems to make them laugh and cry, which I think lends to a much more involved reading experience. My previous novels have been pure comedies, so maybe I'm on to something...

The main character in Home, Josh Peters, returns to the seaside town he grew up in after living in London for the past 18 years. You also grew up in a seaside town. How much of this is based on real life experiences?
None. I made it all up completely. At least, that's what my lawyers have told me to say.

You are one of a number of successful British male romantic comedy novelists alongside the likes of Mike Gayle, Nick Spalding, Danny Wallace and Nick Hornby. How do male writers tackle the genre differently to their female chick lit counterparts?
You'd have to ask them. But personally, I think we just tell it how it is from our point of view. Or rather, how we see it. Which is kind of how it is, if you believe all that 'perception is reality' bollocks. Which I do, obviously.

Of all the characters you have created in your novels, who has been your favourite and why?
Dan, from the Ex-Boyfriends/Ex Girlfriends/Accidental Proposal trilogy. He's the one I've had the best feedback about. Though I stress he's not me. And probably because I could get away with a lot, given that he's so extreme/shameless.

If you could have written any book other than one of your own, which book would it be and why?
Fifty Shades - for the royalties. But in terms of quality, Nick Hornby's High Fidelity. It's the perfect example of my genre, and the book that I wanted to emulate when I first read it. Ten novels later, I'm still trying.

Your second novel, The Ex-Boyfriend's Handbook, was optioned for sitcom development by CBS. What happened and if it was made into a TV show, which actor would you have playing Edward Middleton? 
Hmm. I get paid more the more popular it is, so whoever the current biggest box office draw is. One of that Game of Thrones lot, perhaps?

Social media platforms have revolutionised the way fans can communicate with their favourite authors. What is the strangest thing you have ever been asked by a fan?
The strangest thing that actually happens is being asked for free (signed) books by people who aren't fans, without any preamble. I get a lot of that. They might at least buy me dinner first. Generally, though, I LOVE social media. I spend all day at my desk creating an imaginary world, so it's great when real people email me, or tweet, or say 'hi' on Facebook.

What is the best piece of advice you could give to an aspiring author? 
I'll simply pass on the best advice I was given: read the best-sellers in your genre, and see how they achieve their page-turning quality. And then, um, do that.

You turn 50 this year, any big plans on how you will be celebrating your half century?
'Celebrating' turning fifty? Yeah, right!

Check out all of Matt Dunn's work at his website and Amazon page

Author Interview: Adrian Simon - author of Milk-Blood

In 1978, drug trafficker Warren Fellows was imprisoned for 12 years in Bangkwang Prison in Bangkok. He told his story of that living hell in his book The Damage Done, which I reviewed a few years ago.

It was a powerful story of survival, but perhaps omitted from his book was one of the most powerful struggles of them all - that of the family Fellows left behind.

Adrian Simon was just two-years-old when his father was convicted for attempting to smuggle heroin, and his life and that of his mother was about to change in way's they could never imagine. Now, after over three decades, Simon has decided to share his own story in the painfully candid memoir Milk-Blood. I caught up with Adrian to ask him about his book...

Hi Adrian, thanks for taking time out to speak with me. Tell me about your book and why you decided to write it.
My Father’s choice not to flush the bags of heroin down that Bangkok hotel sink when I was two shaped my life forever, in ways I wouldn’t fully understand for many years. Thirty-four years later my life had gone to shit. The weight of it all was too heavy. I was beaten and at breaking point, desperately in need of ventilation and release. I had no choice but to write Milk-Blood. My own blood became literally so inflamed that if I hadn’t there was the real possibility I wouldn’t live a long life. So I bled my emotions and traumas out onto paper.

The story is about what I and my family went through before during and after the arrest, exploring the psychological and physical cost it had on me and how I got through it. I absorbed way too much for a child to compartmentalize the heavy effects of having a father in a foreign prison. My mind broke, and by nine I suffered a nervous breakdown, developing a severe and crippling mental anxiety disorder. I scraped through my teenage years with the help of my mother and sports. As soon I was able, I left Australia to seek my own adventures and leave the past behind. The older I grew I longed for answers to try and understand the complexities and lifelong consequences the arrest and subsequent fallout created, and why life had been so bloody challenging.

After traveling for over a decade I returned needing clarity and answers to the past. This is when I started piecing it all together. Some doors are best not opened, and some truths are devastating. But I had to. In a sense I weave the threads of my family’s history together to understand and piece the fabric of mine. In doing so blasting the dark shadows my father casted over my life. I dislike using the term closure, but I had to seal shut the past to create my own future.

Sounds hectic, and it is, but along the way you’ll find it a wild ride, and most importantly it gives the reader a glimpse into the untold story to what the media doesn’t show, the people left behind. The other side of the story.

If you could explain why someone should read your book in one sentence, what would it be?
I can’t tell you how many jaws have dropped when I’ve recounted stories of mine and my family’s life. They all said I had to write a book. So I did.

Your father wrote the best-selling autobiography The Damage Done about his time spent in a Bangkok prison. What were your thoughts after reading what he went through?
It took me years to finish his book. It rubbed at my soul like sandpaper but I forced myself through to the end. It was extremely tough to read about my father, my own flesh and blood suffering, over and over. It was all quite surreal. I kept saying to myself, ‘This is my father.’ I ended up quite numb to the torture. I think that was how I could deal with the visuals; blood splatter, the New York gutter rig, heavy drug use, and heads being cracked opened like water melons.

What really broke my spirit was the story of him seeing his father for the last time, the immeasurable guilt he must have felt. It really saddened me to the point I was physically ill.

The truth of the matter is life would have been much easier if he hadn’t released the story. The media were all over it again like a rash. Mum and me could have done without it. We were still picking up the pieces. As an added insult many readers considered him some type of hero. A legend for surviving the big tiger. Alternatively, there were people who fiercely believed he should have been executed. I was only 18, and confess very conflicted. The Damage Done was done to us all and our wounds were far from healed. But hey, it was what it was.

One of the most powerful themes of the book is the relationship with your mother. How important was her influence on you growing up, and secondly, your decision to write this book?
Immeasurable. Without her strength and worldly attitude guiding me, who knows how I would have ended up. I was a troubled kid and like all good mothers, my (in my case single) mother protected me from the searing heat of an unforgiving extended family, a judgmental society and an attacking media, saving our skin on many occasions.

I was given free reign, but when it came to moral standards, my mother never tolerated poor and inexcusable form and would kick my ass. I have never known a person who has been dealt a harder and wilder hand of cards in life. Without question, she is my hero. What she endured to protect and provide for me and my father while he was in prison sickens me as a son. She has indomitable spirit, a natural love of life, and is truly remarkable as she can still smile and have love in her heart. I was enormously motivated to illuminate parts of her story through Milk-Blood. For those who’ve read The Damage Done you may find this hard to believe, my mother’s story leaves my fathers in the dust.

You left school early in favour of "chasing the good times" which saw you take in many adventures. Which one of those good times stick out the most for you and why?
The best time in my life was on one of my backpacking adventures around Europe, starting in Amsterdam and ending in the Greek islands. For the first time in my life I felt completely free. I didn’t have a plan or an itinerary, I went where the wind blew. I met the coolest people, found myself in messed up and dangerous situations, fell in love with a handful of sexy girls, drank and partied like a wild man and loved every minute of it. I could write a book alone on this trip. It was my time to relax, let go and forget about the troubles a world away. It’s what all twenty-two-year-olds should do. Get out and explore the world, start finding themselves. And taste life’s offerings.

Are there any stories that you were unable to include in the book, and if so are you able to share them?
This is the million-dollar question. Simply put, yes. I wish I could share with you but the legal knife took to the draft. ‘You can’t put this in, legally we advise not to say that.’ One of the hardest challenges writing was to accept I had to cull and leave out quality content. Then there are stories for health and safety reasons I can’t tell. I learnt from a young age not to talk out of school, and besides I like my life. If you know what I mean!

Okay, now a bit about writing. How did your structure your writing process? Do you just dive in or are you someone who needs time to plan?
The project was years in the making, taking shape in many forms from screenplays, a mother’s diary to eventually me writing Milk-Blood. The most challenging aspect wasn’t the writing but rather the path to publication. Gaining interest wasn’t the trouble but telling the story in the way I wanted to tell it was the challenge. Fortunately, the evolution of the work led me to an innovative and forward thinking company, The Author People, who unlocked the handcuffs and let me loose. I’m not kidding, millions of brain hours consumed me before writing. When I got the green light I mapped out my plan, drew up the schematics like scaffolding around a building, chapter by chapter. I think I was actually possessed and wrote like a mad man seven days a week, completing the draft inside seven months. I dive in head-first and can’t stop till the job is done. Otherwise it would do my head in. The unsung heroes of the writing world are the editors. Linda Funnell finessed and masterfully guided the draft beyond any expectation. I thank Lou Johnson, Co-Founder of The Author People for teaming us together.

What is your favourite book of all time and what type of novels to you tend to read?
As boy I read The Magician, by Raymond E Feist. That was my favourite, but until my mid 30’s I wasn’t much of a reader.  Then I picked up the same book and read the whole series followed by everything he had written. A book a week for a year was my writing education. I learnt the art of writing through other authors. (Thanks Raymond). I laugh with schoolmates as back then I failed. It’s remarkable what us humans can do if we put our minds to something.

What are your top five writing tips?
1. Create a solid structure that enables the narrative to flow effortlessly in conjunction with sub themes and plots. Easier said than done. Stick to the plan. Adjust alone the way.

2. Have no fear of what you to write, connect with the reader as if you’re talking directly to them. Don’t feel you have to be an English major to tell a story. Modern day language has evolved.

3. Be kind to yourself. Step away when you have to realign the brain cell.

4. More is best when writing. You can always trim and refine during editing.

5. Most of all enjoy it. It’s a bloody hard job, so pat yourself on the back. Writing is very isolating and can be lonely.

What does the future now hold for Adrian Simon the author?
A novel loosely based on my mother adventures living in the subcontinent. Jan, my mother was courted and asked to be the second wife of a French Madagascan prince. His right hand man, an ex-delta force captain also fell head over heels for her as he flew her around the world. All this was before she was 21. I’m shaking my head as I say this. It is without doubt the coolest story I’ve ever heard. The working title is Twist and Twirl and I’m commencing the process in March. I’m also involved in breaking down the many socially relevant topics within Milk-Blood to create documentaries, both online and mainstream. Working with youth, talking at schools and sharing my experiences in the effort to help others understand their own situation. This is really cool as it’s rewarding to give back.

There is also interest in converting all this material into feature films or an international TV series. The future is finally looking bright. Now I can look back in the rear vison mirror and safely say, sometimes when we go through a world of shit, we can turn it around and make success from it.

Milk-Blood: Growing up the son of a convicted drug trafficker by Adrian Simon is available now in paperback and in eBook format.