Atomic Fez Publishing discussion

The Beautiful Red

Tea or coffee?
Coffee for the day job, tea when writing.

City mouse or country mouse?
Born and raised in the city, live in the country. Miss being able to order takeaway food without a 10-mile round trip, but living a stone's throw from Sherwood Forest more than compensates.

Wine or beer?
Red wine when dining, beer in the pub, late-night whisky when with close friends.

Jazz or blues?
Jazz.

Cats or dogs?
Dogs, though I'd never own one. Cats are indifferent to everything, while cat owners seem emotionally invested in the damn things to a ludicrous degree.

How do you feel about snails?
They're very tasty.

How old were you when you got your first library card?
Four or five. There was a public library attached to my primary school and my mother used to take me in at the end of the day. It was no more than a large shed really, but it helped create an addiction that I've never been able to shake.

What's the first book you remember reading on your own?
Janet & John series. I looked at them again recently, remembering them fondly. In truth, they're utter shite.

What's the book you've reread most often (and why do you keep rereading it)?
I'm not a big re-reader of books. There are too many new novels released and time seems to be an increasingly precious commodity. I'm no longer able to read quite as voraciously as I once did. On saying that, I've read Of Mice and Men by Steinbeck and To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee many, many times. Both books shine a light on aspects of human nature that I find endlessly fascinating: friendship, betrayal, family, morality, love. I suspect that over the next few years Cormac McCarthy's The Road will be another book I return to for similar reasons.

Who's the author/what's the book/to whom/with which you'd most like The Beautiful Red to be compared?
Graham Joyce. His voice is rich and direct, his stories insightful and engaging. Quite brilliant.

What's the one thing you'd like to say to say to someone reading The Beautiful Red?
Thank you for buying the book.

Why do you write?
It's the only really satisfying way to wrestle the demons. In a paragraph or two, all the bad stuff can be extracted.