Ask the Author: S.D. Perry

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Hi S.D., I'm a big fan of your Resident Evil novels, and I love having the opportunity to tell you so! My question is more for the aspiring authors out there (myself included): How did you get started writing series and tie-in novels? Do you have any advice for others trying to break into this weird, fan-fed, lucrative sub-field of writing? Thank you!

S.D. Perry Hi! Thanks for saying, that's very kind of you! As far as getting into the biz, it's mostly an invitation only kind of deal... companies hiring contract writers are looking for people who already have credits to their name. I lucked into this through pure nepotism; my father writes, and he invited me to collaborate on a couple of projects. When those turned out well, I started getting calls. Once you're "known", you might get an invite to work in a shared universe, but it's an iffy business. Contract writers have to be fast, write clean, and not mind a flat fee. I don't get regular work, and I've written a lot of books.
Your best bet, barring luck, is going it the hard way. Get published. Write, edit, submit, repeat. Write the stories you want to read, build your own universe. Practice 'til you have a book good enough to send to an agent, publish, and publish as often as you can... And if you write stuff that's got a similar feel to a particular franchise, AND that franchise has leased the publishing rights to an editor who knows your name, THEN you might get tapped.
I'm sorry, it's horrible news, I know. It's not impossible, but in my experience, publishing houses aren't likely to take a risk on an unknown when they're dealing with licensed materials.
I hope I didn't bum you out. Thank you again for taking the time to say hi, and happy Halloween!

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I take you are a feminist SJW from your twitter account ?

S.D. Perry Well, I'm female and have opinions, but I wouldn't say I'm any kind of warrior.

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I was just wondering...if Capcom gave you the okay...would you write a novelization, RE4, RE5, and RE6 as well as both Revelation games?

S.D. Perry The way licensing works, Capcom would have to lease the publishing rights out to a book company, and the book company would then have to hire me to write more RE books (that's how it worked the first time)... That said, yeah, I would totally write more. They were fun to work on. :)

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Derek This’ll be a doozy =] As a fan of your work who hopes to be of 1% help (because for a time Resident Evil turned into a hot mess)? If (hopefully “when” This’ll be a doozy =] As a fan of your work who hopes to be of 1% help (because for a time Resident Evil turned into a hot mess)? If (hopefully “when”) that day does come with Capcom? What with the Remakes enriching the character actions and motives (congruent with things you thought up in your novels), and with the lore being enriched and broadened by 7 & 8? Resident Evil 7, then 8 aka Village set up things that we can see and learn in the Remake of Resident Evil 2, Remake of 3, and the Remake of 4. Without spoiling anything for you?

There are small and massive implications alike.

There’s now a huge connection with the “Cadou” which goes all the way back to James Marcus and Ozwell Spencer. Being careful not to spoil the major things, I’ll say that it can be seen in minor things such the presence of gnarled, ropey, black vines somewhere between a vein and a root system taking hold in the sewers as Leon crawls, twists, and slices his way through those dank, fetid interiors. It changes the implications of Lisa Trevor from the Remake of 1 and of Nemesis in the Remake of 3. It brings back the idea of the, “Pale Heads,” (the pale white, naked, sexless zombies) originally presented in Resident Evil Zero in the water treatment plant, evolves them for the Remake of 3, and sets up where the “Regenerators” come from in the Remake of 4.. After all, those, “products,” have a new biological function, and those, “products,” are now found in the shipping department in the Remake of 3.

There is a channel of doctors, biologists, Chem majors, and other professionals called, “Roanoke Gaming,” on YouTube, who’ve done incredible work in the wake of the new releases who would have invaluable information for you on the science theory front ma’am (not quite sci-fi nor is it exactly fantasy).

Breaking down the front of more major elements in play (without spoiling)? Something infinitely more ancient is at hand, and it makes paranormal lore of our natural world at large into something far more supernatural. If (hopefully “when”) the time comes? What I’d recommend is playing (or watching a zero commentary play through.. from someone who takes it slow, reading all documents, such as channel, “Pineapple Express,” on YouTube) in the order of their release (that would mean Resident Evil 7, then Village aka 8, finally on to the Remake of 2, Remake of 3, and LASTLY the Remake of 4) and doing this so that you catch both the little things, and the big things which present themselves slyly and with couth. After and beyond that, you could listen to a recap or analysis of Resident Evils 5, 6, and “Damnation” in order to extrapolate the useful from the congealed and disappointing.

And, I know you will pick up on all the connections and enriched lore given how long I’ve read your work.. Jeeze.. has it been 18 years already? Characters that were once flat now have incredible arcs, and/or serve as strong subplot characters (in a genuine sense: strength through contrast to the protagonist). What you once wrote about Ada and Leon is now on full display. Once Luis is in the mix he serves as a subplot character to Leon along with Ada, yet Ada and Luis are Venn Diagrams of one another. And, they couldn’t occur at a better time in Leon’s arc. Leon begins from a Steve Rogers early in the MCU type of person (clear right and wrong in the world). He’s a person who would trust the police chief, believe that because Ben is locked up then he ought to be in a cell, only trust Ada because she claims FBI.. then have his worldview challenged before the end of Resident Evil 2 Remake. By the time we reach Leon —who was once a bright eyed Golden Retriever— in the Remake of Resident Evil 4? He’s now the old Golden Retriever from, “Homeward Bound.” By, “Damnation,” he’s… well… oh my…

When you last left off from this world of RE it took a SWIFT downward plunge. Since then, Capcom has achieved the unthinkable: they managed to build on all their greatness and flaws to make something deeper, and with characters you actually feel for. Then, they went back in time to recapture lightning in a bottle three times in a row, then turned in their work as a two for one special (old lightning recaptured plus a brand new bottle of lightning), and ALL of it correlates. That’s a feat I’ve never seen anyone achieve.

They know how to do it right: they put together teams composed of those who worked on the originals, some members who worked on newer entries like 7 & 8, and people who are super fans of the originals yet have a firm grasp on their skill sets and modern gaming… Know that if Capcom were to reach out? That’d like be the most optimal order (chronologically as per how they were released in reality, essentially, otherwise what’s brought on by 7 & 8, and the implications it has in the Remakes of 2, 3, and 4 would fly under your radar). You would create a bombshell of a Resident Evil 4 novelisation.

Again, I hope nothing came across the wrong way. All I hoped was maybe I would help make life easier for one of my favourite writers, and hopefully my peace sign and heart emoji come through here: ✌🏼❤️ ...more
May 10, 2023 05:48PM · flag

Hi Stephani! How are you? I would like to know who does represent you (agent/agency)? Best regards

S.D. Perry Hi! I go by my middle name, Danelle, by the way... I'm fine, thank you! My agent is Jennifer Weltz, with JVNLA. :)

Who would we need to ask to see about you writing more Resident Evil books? I have enjoyed reading the ones I have over and over, but I'm left hanging! What's going to happen to Leon, Jill, Chris, Claire and the others!!?

S.D. Perry I guess you'd have to talk to Capcom...? They lease out the publishing rights to different companies, and then the company hires the writer. Sorry to leave you hanging!!

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Hi S.D I am a fan of the series. The first game of RE i played was Code Veronica and it was hard and fun at the same time. I liked RE 4 a lot since I like exploring a lot. I was asking are you gonna write novels following the New Seventh Installment or Other installments after Nemises?

S.D. Perry Since RE is a licensed property, I could only write more in the series if a company with the publishing rights hired me to do so. Tie-ins and novelizations are contract work, and contract writers (like me!) have to be hired to work in shared universes like RE. If I'm contacted about writing more, I probably would... But no one is knocking on my door! :)

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Hi S.D., I was wondering if you could possibly share three tips on becoming a successful writer and how you became successful?

S.D. Perry I was lucky, because my dad's a writer; I was able to get my foot in the door early, which was undoubtedly key to getting more work.

As to how to be successful? The only difference between writers and non-writers is that writers write. You can't get good at something if you don't practice regularly, and edit, and redraft, and write more. Writing feels good; you get to make up characters and have them run around and do stuff... but being creative is only the beginning. That's the fun, easy part. It's making it readable that requires effort, and you can't get there if you don't teach yourself, by trial and error. So, my three tips are write, write, write.

Hope that helps!

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are you making a 7th resident evil book?

S.D. Perry Pardon my very late reply... I just found a bunch of questions that I didn't know had been posted, including yours. Sorry to say, there are no RE projects currently on the horizon. I don't think Capcom is doing any publishing right now, and if they are, they haven't contacted me. Sorry!

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i've played the games before but in the remastered version of the 1st one the dog came INTO the house and i used all my ammo and died :(. I WONDER WHY THEY DID THAT?

S.D. Perry To mess with us, obviously. :)

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See a lot of people asking about your Resident Evil books, truth is I'm here for the same reason! Since the game practically changed genre anyway, is there any chance you could write a book with that similar feeling the old RE games had, only not from that universe?

S.D. Perry My apologies for the late reply, I just found a slew of questions I somehow never saw before... Actually, I'm working on a man vs. big lizard book right now, which will be sort-of survival horror. I don't know that it will feel particularly RE, but maybe my next project... I'll keep it in mind. Anyway, thanks for writing!

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I'm a huge RE fan and didn't know about the book until last week and quite frankly I'm speechless. I also found an audiobook of RE Umbrella conspiracy read by Zombie ducky productions on youtube and I think maybe you guys could work together cause. Your work and his reading, no word!!!! amazing. but just wanted to say you are a genius. what's your next move?what's your next project? thanks much

S.D. Perry Hello! Sorry it's taken me so long to get to your question... I just realized that I've missed about two years' worth of questions (I don't hit Goodreads often enough)... Anyway, I'm not a genius by any means, but I'm glad you liked the books. I've got a couple of contract projects in the works, and am currently writing a big action thriller, giant lizards versus pioneers. I also just wrote a horror novel that is still waiting to be sold. One of these days, I'll make a website so I can post about what I'm doing... thanks for caring!:)

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Hello S.D. I just wanted to say I loved your work with the Resident Evil series. I even got my brother to read them and he has read barely more than 10 books in his life on his own time As for my question, what is your best method for putting your complete focus into your writing? To block out distractions and give your 100% into the project during a writing session?

S.D. Perry Hi! Thanks! Um, I put on my iPod and turn up the music loud enough to drown out my family. Usually that works... :)

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Love your work. Your interview link is broken :(. Can you link to it again?

S.D. Perry If I can figure out how...:) Thank you!

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in your book ALIENS: LABYRINTH, you wrote "every year or so there was a rumble about some renegade scientist or top brasser who had gone mental and set up some bizarre operation, like the one about Doctor Reuf with the DNA pushing" Was that originally meant to be a reference to Professor Ernst Kleist from ALIENS: ROGUE? Or is Reuf a new character with a story yet-untold?

S.D. Perry I'm so sorry to say, I don't remember. Chances are good, I made it up.

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I just stumbled across your goodreads page from a blog and I have to say it is so weird to me that you're a person. Your resident evil books brought me so much enjoyment in high school and college it made me discover the concept of "reading for pleasure". Crazy idea right? Some of your characters, like Rebecca Chambers, are still adventuring around in my head to this day. Thanks for all the good times!

S.D. Perry Hey, thanks! Nice of you to say!

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Are you making a 7th resident evil book? I would LOVE to read it!!

S.D. Perry Hey, Tommy! Sorry to say, it's unlikely that I'll be doing a 7th. I was hired to write those books and the material is licensed; that is, one must be invited to write Resident Evil (or Star Wars, or Silent Hill, or whatever). No one has contacted me in many moons regarding new RE stuff. Sorry! But I'm glad you liked the books! :)

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And Two (this is less serious) are you aware that most of the books you write are basically fan-fiction? (I think this about ALL books that are based on movies and games and what not lol)

S.D. Perry Yeah, I guess so. I don't think of them that way, since I'm hired to write stuff often before I've even seen the source material. But yes, I think that's a fair assessment.:)

I have two questions your, o-writer of many of my favorite books. One, how do *YOU* get over writers block. And I don't mean, I have no idea what to write, writers block either. I mean the, "I know exactly how I want this to go and how I want to write it but I just can't sit down and DO IT!" writers block?

S.D. Perry This might sound sarcastic or trite, although I don't mean it that way... to get past that kind of block, I just sit down and do it. Lots of people think that they can write, if they just put words on paper, but to get good at it, they have to practice. I have to practice. I think one has to be willing to just plow through, even if they're not feeling inspired... maybe that means they churn out some crap, but there's really no other way to get better. Deadlines also help, from an editor or just self-imposed. Hope that helps!

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Hello S.D., I loved the Resident Evil series you wrote years back. I had been wanting to ask, have you ever played the games, if so what was your experience? Having played the games myself reading books 1, 3, 5, and 6 at times felt like I was reading a strategy guide while also getting some behind the scenes info which is what made me love the series more.

S.D. Perry Hi, Victor! Thanks for saying. I was a fan of the first game... was still in the mansion, in fact (my very first playing of RE took, like, 20+ hours) when I was hired. The original contract was for 4 books, two based on the first two games, two original. So, the first two games, I played extensively. I was such a fanatic for details, I got to where I could get through the first game in under two hours--for me, that was fast. The second game, I played a bunch, but not as much as the first... and that was when I discovered game guides. I played all of the other games multiple times, but totally cheated to get through them, and used the guides for outlining.

So yes, I was a fan... It's funny, though, I dug up the first game a few weeks ago and tried to play...? It is SO dated, tech-wise, and my sad reflexes made it so I kept running into walls. I died in the first hall of dogs and gave up in self-disgust.:)

Most of the character stuff I made up, although I was helped along by my editor--he came up with some of the background stuff for a couple of the characters, and it was his idea to include the mysterious Trent.

Anyway, I hope that answers your question, and I'm glad you liked the books. Have a good day!

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Hi S.D.! So happy to see that the Resident Evil books entered a new printing; picked them all up at B&N and reading them again for first time in many years. Do/did you actively pursue the intellectual properties you wanted to write? Or, in other words, how did you end up with the contracts for RE, Aliens, etc..?

S.D. Perry Hi back atcha, Mark! The RE books--and Aliens, Star Trek, etc.--were all invitationals; an editor called and offered the job. I wrote the books for a flat fee and little or no royalties. As to how I got them, I was lucky... my father is a writer. The first few books I wrote were ones that he turned down or couldn't make time for.
I saw that the RE books came out again a couple of years ago... ah, would that I still got royalties from those! No one even told me that they'd been re-released.:) Anyway, I'm glad you're enjoying them (again), and have a lovely day!

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