Enjoy the Ride!
Big action and high adventure from thriller author Sean Ellis
Authors You Need to Read!
Every writer wants the same thing: Readers! It used to be we relied on word of mouth recommendations, or perhaps reviews and bestsellers lists, and why not? The publishing industry, limited by technology, could only put out so many books at any given time. Nowadays, technological improvements have facilitated the emergence of small but successful independent publishers, with a resulting flood of books on every imaginable topic.
But how to get the word out to readers?
This guest author program is designed to give authors a chance to raise awareness of their titles and help interested readers discover books of which they might otherwise not have heard. This isn't a review site and the presence of a particular title here should not automatically be construed as an endorsement. But if you're like me, you're always on the lookout for something new, so think of this as a way to browse the covers in the adventure section of the virtual bookstore.
Hope you see something you like!
This week join veteran adventure novelist and International Thriller Writer member David Wood as he takes readers "Into the Woods."
David Wood
Tell us a little about yourself.
I write thrillers with an emphasis on mystery and adventure. I try to bring some of the fun of the old pulp stories to the modern thriller without letting technology take over the story. Outside of my writing life, I'm a married father of two, a teacher, a second degree black belt in Taekwondo, and an avid Atlanta Braves fan. What's the story behind Into The Woods? Into the Woods is a novella based on the true story of my great-great (several times over).... grandfather Jonathan Wood. He was an "Overmountain Man" as those who settled beyond the Blue Ridge mountains during America's colonial period were called. My dad spent many years researching our ancestry, and we wanted to tell Jonathan's story in a lasting way. We decided to fictionalize his life so we could weave in some mystery elements and historical anecdotes, and supplement the story with a biography and bibliography. Although historical fiction is not my normal genre, my readers will recognize many common tropes of a good adventure story, and will hopefully find this a fun read while they wait for the next Dane Maddock adventure. In fact, Into the Woods plants a seed for a future Maddock adventure. It will be released on December 22, so be sure to check it out!
Tell us about your other books.
My first two novels are titled Dourado and Cibola. Each is a modern-day thriller with an archaeological back-story. Dane Maddock and "Bones" Bonebrake are former Navy SEALS turned treasure hunters. They try to lead relatively normal lives, but keep stumbling into mysteries they just can't resist exploring.
I'll readily admit to being influenced by Clive Cussler in terms of form, and by James Rollins and the old pulps to a certain degree in terms of subect matter. Otherwise, in writing these novels, and in creating Dane and Bones, I was mostly inspired by what I don't like in contemporary thrillers. In terms of plot, I don't care for a linear plot in which the mystery is revealed early and the character simply marches through escape after escape until the inevitable conclusion. I also don't enjoy a book in which the high-tech gadgets hijack the plot, or become deus ex machina. I want my characters to get out of situations using their instincts, resourcefulness, and skill. In terms of character, I don't want to read about a bulletproof, genius, ladies' man who never makes a mistake, never grows weary, and never feels lingering pain from an injury. 
Care to offer some insight into the inspiration behind Dane Maddock and Bones?
Consequently, my stories are heavy on mystery. The characters use what resources they have at their disposal to piece together the clues, and even when they think they have the entire picture, they are wrong. Thus, the "secret" that drives the plot is more important than the action, though there's action throughout. My characters have both good and bad qualities, and have their own personal demons with which they struggle throughout the story. They do heroic things, but they are not cartoonish action-heroes. When someone reads one of my books, I want him or her to feel that he or she could almost be one of the characters taking part in this adventure.
What's the hardest part of writing adventure?
I think writing from the antagonist's point-of-view is the most difficult. You want to craft a "bad guy" who is a real threat to your main characters without creating the stereotypical "evil mad scientist with a plot to blow up the world." You also have to be careful when writing from the bad guy point-of-view that you don't give away something that will spoil the mystery. On the positive side, you can use the bad guy to add to the suspense by revealing threats of which your characters are not yet aware. It's a tricky balancing act, and I do a much better job of it in Cibola than in Dourado. I particularly admire writers like George R.R. Martin who can show every character in varying shades of gray, and make you sympathize with every character. That's hard to do in our genre, but it's something to which I aspire.
What writers do you read?
Within the genre, my favorites are probably James Rollins and Jeremy Robinson, but I also enjoy many others, including Robert Masello, Thomas Greanias, David Golemon, David Gibbins, Andy McDermott, and some guy named Sean Ellis. I also enjoy the older works of Clive Cussler and Matthew Reilly. Outside the genre, I love George R.R. Martin, Robert Jordan, Brandon Sanderson, Edward Rutherfurd, Jim Bernheimer, Stephen King, and William Dietrich, just to name a very few. As much as I love writing, the downside is that it cuts into my reading time. There are so many great writers out there, and I fear that I'm missing out on lots of good writing, but what can you do?
Any advice to would-be adventure novelists?
Foremost, don't shortchange your characters for the sake of plot. Next, take a long, hard look at the books you love (not just adventure books) and figure out what specifically you love about them. Then take those elements and try to make them even better. Finally, have fun with it! Writers are always advised to write what they love to read. Adventure novelists get to take it a step further- write an adventure on which you'd like to go. Your enthusiasm and sense of wonder will come through to the reader and make your story that much better.
What's next?
I tend to stay very busy. The next Dane Maddock adventure is going to be fun because we get to meet Bones's family. There are some very interesting characters in that clan. We're going to gain insight into what made Bones turn out so... different. As usual, there's a historical mystery to be unraveled, and we'll explore some cool, new places. There might even be a few beautiful women and some gun-toting bad guys here and there.
The other project takes the adventure story to a broader scale, more like what you see in most of the current popular thrillers, but applies the elements I discussed earlier that I believe make an adventure novel great. It's much more than an elite team battling bad guys until the inevitable "big finish." I think readers will love it!
I'm also working on a top-secret project with two other thriller authors, but more on that later...
Thanks for making me your featured guest, and I'd like to invite everyone to visit me at www.davidwoodweb.com and davidwoodonline.blogspot.com, and to friend me on Facebook. Oh yeah, and the Dane Maddock adventures make great gifts for Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwaanza... And don't forget: December 22 is the birthday of the late Gene Rayburn. Buy your copy of Into the Woods in memory of this great hero of The Match Game.
Thanks Dave, and good luck with Into the Woods!
Archive~Check out previous guest authors!
Barry Reese (Featured Nov 30 - Dec 13)
First off, who *is* Barry Reese?
I’m a 37 year old Library Director in middle Georgia. I’m married to my high school sweetheart, artist Cari Reese, and am the proud father of a young son named Julian. Beyond that, everything is classified on a need-to-know basis!
How did you get into writing and where did your love of pulp adventure come from?
I’ve always written stories and dreamed of being a professional writer. After several years of writing and posting stories on the Internet, I was approached by an online friend of mine, who told me that he had gotten a job at Marvel Comics. Marvel was looking for someone to write the Ghost Rider and Blade sections of one of their Marvel Encyclopedias and my friend wanted to know if I would be interested in the job. I said I was, sent in a writing sample and was hired the very next day. From there I worked for nearly two years for Marvel before moving on to greener (and pulpier) pastures. I’ve since written for Wild Cat Books, West End Games and Khepera Publishing. My love for the pulps was instilled to me at an early age. My father owned a lot of Doc Savage and Conan novels and I quickly fell in love with them. Wild Cat Books has published four volumes of the Rook so far and more are on the way – how did the character come about and what does the future hold for him? When I first created the Rook, I had just finished a novel entitled The Conquerors of Shadow, which was a Edgar Rice Burroughs style planetary romance. I wanted to do something different but still pulp-related. So I set out to create a character who embodied all my favorite qualities of various heroes but who had enough of me injected to him to stand on his own. From that was born Max Davies. After I wrote his first adventure (“Lucifer’s Cage,” printed in volume one), I didn’t plan to write any more Rook stories… but within a month I was writing “Kingdom of Blood,” which was supposed to be my final word on the character. But I ended up writing another and then another and then another. Every time I’ve finished a volume, I’ve said “this is it, I’m done with the Rook” only to start writing another one soon.Obviously, I should now inform you that I am currently writing the final story for what will be volume five in the Rook series *and* I'm working on a spinoff series called Claws of the Rook!Past that, I honestly don’t know what the future holds. Comics legend Norm Breyfogle did the cover for volume four and will also be doing the cover for volume five while Anthony Castrillo is covering the Claws of the Rook series -- so you know the books will look good, if nothing else One thing that’s kind of unique about the Rook series is your decision to reveal parts of the character’s future (as shown in “The Black Mass,” from volume one). What prompted you do that? Years ago, there was a comics company called Valiant who published a book entitled Rai # 0 that laid out much of their universe’s future. I loved how from that point forward you saw things building towards those events. So I wanted to do my version of it. In volume four, you’ll actually get a better view of it in a story entitled “The Four Rooks” which features scenes with Max, his son William (the Rook of the 1960s), his daughter Emma (the Rook of the 70s) and Ian (the Rook of the 21st century, as shown in “The Black Mass”). The legacy aspect of the Rook is something that appeals to me and makes the entire affair feel more epic. Hopefully, readers enjoy that, as well. Any favorite characters in the Rook Universe? Well, obviously Max is my favorite but beyond him…. I like Will and Evelyn, both add something to the dynamic that I think is needed. Some of the villains are favorites to write, as well – the Warlike Manchu and Doctor Satan were both great fun (and both return in volume four to wreak more mischief) and I enjoyed writing the Iron Maiden quite a bit. Also, Ascott Keane and the Black Bat were a lot of fun in “The Bleeding Hells.”I’m not sure how many folks realize it, but I’ve created a shared universe amongst most of my stories. Leopold Grace, who’s popped up in several Rook stories, is the son of Eobard Grace, the hero of my Conquerors of Shadow novel and the sword that the Iron Maiden is in pursuit of in this volume of Rook stories belongs to a character introduced in the Norse Gods anthology that I wrote for Wild Cat Books. And a story published in Startling Stories (“The Great Work”) is part of the greater tapestry as well. It’s something I find a lot of fun to do. Any other pulp authors or series that you’d like to recommend to fans of the Rook? Well, I really enjoyed the first volume in the Scarlet Shroud series by the Carney brothers, pretty anything written by Wayne Skiver is fun and I’m a big fan of Clive Cussler’s Dirk Pitt series, which is nothing if not a modern day pulp adventure series. In terms of classic pulp, you can’t go wrong with Conan, Doc Savage, John Carter of Mars or the Avenger, all of which are favorites of mine. In fact, I'm pleased to say that I've recently written a story starring the Avenger for Moonstone Books and that was definitely a dream come true. I'd previously done a story starring the Green Hornet for Moonstone so it's great to be able to not only produce "new" pulp heroes but to work on the classics, as well. Check out more of Barry's work at his website!
Craig Smith (Featured Nov 15-29)
Craig Smith is an American ex-pat and former professor of humanities, living and writing for the past 16 years in Lucerne, Switzerland. In 2002 his novel, The Whisper of Leaves, won the Bronze Prize in ForeWord Magazine’s Book of the Year Awards in the Mystery category. For more information visit his website at: http://www.craigsmithnovels.ch/ The Blood Lance begins on the Eiger’s famed north face when assassins attack Lord Robert Kenyon, his young bride Kate, and their Swiss mountain guide. When it is all over, only Kate is still standing. Nine years pass. Kate rebuilds her life and fortune and has finally agreed to marry her long-time partner, Ethan Brand. The two have made their living breaking into wealthy estates and stealing black market paintings, but with their fortune made, Ethan has convinced Kate to give up the life and settle down. Before she does she wants one more go at finding out who killed Robert Kenyon. Joining forces with an ex-Company operative named T. K. Malloy, Kate and Ethan follow what appears to be a viable lead into the city of Hamburg, Germany. But in order to find the man they are looking for, they have kidnap a wealthy Hamburg attorney. The snatch comes off perfectly, but In the long night that follows there are ambushes, car chases, and finally a siege in one of the city’s parks. The following morning, they escape the city wounded, disheartened ... and no closer to the truth. In Zurich a file that Malloy recovered from Hamburg makes everything clear, and the team converges on a mountain fortress on the island of Majorca for a deadly confrontation with the man responsible for the deaths on the Eiger. Woven into the narrative is the story of a penniless Jewish archaeologist named Otto Rahn who joins the SS as Heinrich Himmler’s Grail Scholar. The Faustian bargain brings Rahn all that he ever wanted: money, fame, friendship, and love. Too late he learns the cost. There is no fine print in this contract with the devil, no way out of Nazi Germany in 1939, especially for a Jew, but that doesn’t mean Rahn can’t fight back... The seemingly disparate plots are united by themes of love, betrayal and revenge, but ultimately by the Holy Lance of Antioch, discovered during the first Crusade in 1098 . Check out The Blood Lance.
