My 1st Interview...(sort of)

It seems like all of sudden people are starting to ask me about The Darkness. From people I interact in person, my face book and my myspace "friends" and from emails sent by complete strangers people seem to what to know I am. A few months ago my BFF "interviewed me" about The Darkness and I thought it would be a good idea to add others peoples questions to the ones she asked and post them here in my 1st unofficial interview. Here Goes:


What made you want to write science fiction?

Well it’s the way I like to be entertained. I’m a big fan of the idea of forbidden knowledge, conspiracy theories, government cover-ups, and secret societies.
I rarely missed an episode of the X-files or Millennium. My own worst enemy was right up my alley and now I’m watching Fringe both on DVD and online…I can’t get enough of it; and every book I pick up has some type of monster in it.

How long have you been writing?

I’ve always been able to tell a really good story. I asked my mom if she could remember when I first started telling stories and she said, “Yes I remember…it was from the moment you learned how to tell a lie.”

My mom said I got in trouble for whatever it was I was lying about but not necessarily the lie because they were always so imaginative and creative. She says that sometimes I would create a whole cast of accomplices even if I was the only person at the “crime scene.”

My brother once found a play that I had written for our father when I was very young. It was only three acts but what was so crazy was that it had instructions for the lighting and stage crews.

I was in jr. high when I started transferring my oral stories to paper and I have been writing them down since.

What is your writing method?

I write like a raving lunatic! I was once told that the way that I write is raw and undisciplined and I think he said that because I’ve never taken any type of writing classes.

He was reviewing a chapter of The Darkness and three pages consisted of one giant run on sentence. My written grammar is atrocious and my spelling is even worse but I don’t care because I know what I’m trying to say; and besides that why God created editors!

I just write and I write on everything. I have several note pads full of what appears to be the ramblings of a madman, reams of scratch paper full cultural proverbs, references to the Bible & Koran and random quotes; and my research consist of sticky notes that are plastered everywhere…and once I wrote on my forearm while I was driving on the freeway because I didn’t want to lose an idea.


What gives you inspiration for your stories, what sparks the different characters, and how do you intertwine them?

The inspiration for my stories comes from everywhere: the things that I am afraid of, a partial conversation I hear as I walk through a crowed room; the crazy, wonderful, unexplainable, things that little kids say and do, the crazy, horrible, inexcusable, things that we do to each other as adults and the random acts of heroism and kindness of strangers – and of course Monsters, Anti-hero’s and Villains (oh my!)

What sparks my characters are the everyday people I grew up around and surround myself with, which for the most part are women. I got an email asking if I was a feminist and though I believe in equality among the sexes I hardly qualify as an activist. I grew up in a matriarchal household; most of my friends did too.
Growing up watching the incredible things that my mom did to ensure we were taken care of; and watching the way her and her friends took care of each other and all of us is the bases on which my character development comes from and every story I write has an incredibility strong woman at its foundation.

I’m not sure I would use the word intertwine, collide is more like it and they do so with such violence you can actually hear it.


Who influenced your writing?

I think I’m more influenced by concepts and “What if” questions rather than other authors; however when you read my work there is no denying who my literary hero’s are and who I try to emulate: Stephen King, Dean R. Koontz, Octavia Butler, Michael Crichton and Robin Cook.


Why is Adam not trying to understand his "mother" the Dr.? It seems he would have many questions for her?

He’s angry. He does have a lot of questions but the more he thinks about it the more it upsets him.

It’s because Adam doesn’t ask the right questions or know the whole story is why you start to get that awful feeling in the pit of your stomach. It’s like seeing there is going to be a train wreck but knowing there’s nothing you can do to stop it.


Does Adam know that his power does not simply come from Inanna?

Actually I don’t think that he does. Adam was only four years old when Inanna rescued him. His earliest memories are of her alter room, reading from her spell books and studying in her library.

Inanna and Myrddin taught him how to use and control the results of his genetic alterations through their skill and knowledge of witchcraft and sorcery; and though Adam uses both his powers from his genetic engineering and his powers from witchcraft he doesn’t seem to differentiate between which war chest he gets his armory from.


Is he going to ever leave the "dark side"?

“If you only knew the powaaah of the Dark Side” I’m sorry, that’s a pretty bad impression of James Earl Jones. Actually Adam quotes Darth Vader in The Darkness, he says the exact same thing but his impression is much better than mine. So will Adam leave the dark side…we’ll just have to say a prayer keep our fingers crossed and wait and see.


Was it Inanna’s goal to cause Adam to be so powerful, and vindictive?

Wow, that’s a really good question and one I haven’t really thought about in that way. Gosh, I don’t think so. Inanna loves Adam and they are extremely close.

Anyone who knows these two would never believe that Inanna did not give birth to Adam, no mother wants anything bad to happen to their kids; and like wise no mother would want to knowingly raise a child like David Seltzer’s Damien – but with that being said Adam was already extremely powerful due to his genetic engineering and Inanna increased his power by teaching him witchcraft; but you can only teach someone what you know. Because Inanna is so powerful and vindictive it was inevitable that her son would be too.