Interview with Eloise Knapp

Eloise Knapp Interview

Eloise Knapp is a multi-talented designer and author who makes Seattle her home.  Her breakthrough book, The Undead Situation (published by Permuted Press), takes a unique perspective on a zombie outbreak.  Her latest book, Pulse, is a leading seller on Amazon in Post-Apocalyptic fiction.  She has an eclectic set of hobbies which includes guns, baking, and quilting.

Why do you write about dark and scary things?

I've been infatuated with things that scare me since I was a little kid. All my aunts and uncles loved Twin Peaks and X-Files. My grandpa would tell me classic horror stories like "the hook hand on the car door" and such. It definitely stuck, and here I am!

What is your latest project/release and what is it about?

My latest release is a book called Pulse. It is about a deadly parasite that makes people go insane and become extremely violent.

When did you know you wanted to be a writer and how do you go about the writing process?

I've always written little stories here and there. I didn't know I wanted to write whole novels until one of my family members did. I felt inspired, and like it was something I could do. For my writing process, I usually let an idea percolate for a few months before I start to write. I do outlining, and a bit of writing by the seat of my pants.

What advice do you have for other writers?

Write every day. Even if you only write a couple hundred words, you have to get into the habit. Writing is a muscle you have to work out.

What’s up next for you?

I'm finishing the last book in my Cyrus V. Sinclair trilogy, then after that... the world!

Eloise Knapp bibliography:

The Undead Situation

The Undead Haze

Pulse

Lord of the Dead Launch Party

Launch Party This Friday, March 14, starting at 4:00 PM

Lord of the Dead, the long awaited sequel to Sanctuary from the Dead, gets its official release on Friday, March 14 starting at 4:00 PM ET and running until 9:00 PM. This sequel picks up a few months after Joel and his fellow survivors have found a new home away from the city and the hordes of undead. Just as they start to settle into a routine of daily survival a new and deadly enemy appears to threaten everything Joel and his friends hold dear.

It all happens here on my writer's Facebook page:

https://www.facebook.com/RjSpearsWriter

They’ll be free short stories, other giveaways, trivia, and author interviews. Please plan to come

Eat Your Heart Out Facebook Zombie Book Extravaganza

The Eat Your Heart Out Facebook Zombie Book Extravaganza is Feb. 14, 2014.  It features 30 zombie/horror writers and 30 of their works.

All the books sold that day will cost ONLY $.99.  (Omnibuses or boxed sets will be $1.99)

There's a great array of talent ranging from seasoned and respected veterans to some up and comers in the field of zombie writing.

Here's a partial list:

• Tim Long (Author of Among the Living)
• Rachel Aukes (Author of 100 Days in Deadland)
• Darren Wearmouth (Author of First Activation)
• Rhiannon Frater ((Author of the As the World Dies series)
• Craig DiLouie, Stephen Knight, and Joe McKinney offer up their series the The Retreat
• And many, many more

I'll have a book in the event, Forget the Alamo

Come one, come all.  Great zombie writing for great prices.  You can't afford to miss it.

Lord of the Dead - Launch Coming Soon

I will be officially launching the sequel to Sanctuary from the Dead, Lord of the Dead very, very soon.  It is an epic book at over 110,000 words and picks up after Sanctuary from the Dead left off as Joel and his fellow survivors try to find a new home.  In this book, I introduce an ingenious and frightening new villain and there will be a sad body count.

Dark Matters Released

I just released my first collection of horror short stories, Dark Matters.  It contains 15 stories with seven of them being previously released content and eight stories being never before being published.

The stories cover a gambit of topics and creatures ranging from zombies (of course) to vampire to ghosts to other monsters.  Zombies lead the pack, though, with seven stories being about them.  The stories also vary in length.  There are four flash fiction stories and two extra long short stories and the rest in between.   The collection also includes the premiere of my first youth oriented short story, A Monster in the Woods.

On the whole, I'm pretty satisfied with it.  So, if you're looking for some short scary stories, you should can check it out.

Dark Matters on Amazon

2013: A Year in Writing

2013 was my first full year as a writer.  I have written in the past and actually had my first short story published in 2011.  I did write a great deal in 2012, but also had a few months where I wasn’t so disciplined.  2013 is definitely my first real year in terms of publishing, though.  

In many ways, I’m awe of what I did accomplish.  In other ways, I wished I had been more disciplined.  While I didn’t write (or do something significantly related to writing) everyday, I rarely missed writing for more than two days in a row and kept my output consistent.  

In terms of numbers, here’s my output:

• 1 Novel
• 2 Novellas
• 10 Short Stories Published or Accepted for Publication

I gave away over a 1,000 ebooks in 2013 and sold nearly 200.  If if I had to do a final accounting of my revenue versus expenditures, I’d still be in the red.  (Editing and promotion cost money.)  Obviously, I’d like to see sales increase.  That, I hope, will come in time as I get more books out there.  

I think I’m becoming both a better writer and a more efficient writer.  I have altered my style somewhat to better suit the needs and desires of my readers.  That took some adjustment.

As for 2014, I have some very ambitious goals.

My sequel to Sanctuary from the Dead should come out sometime in late January or early February.  I plan to release a collection of my short stories early in the year, too.

I’m still outlining the third book in my “Forget the Zombies” series and want to have that one out by April or May.  I’ve had more than a few people eager to see this last book in the series.  

After getting through that, I want to get out the third and fourth books of the Books of the Dead series.

Here’s hoping that 2014 allows me to keep bringing the words!

Cover Design Fun

A couple of my author friends at J. Ellington Ashton Press were in need of help with their covers.  I don't consider myself a great designer, but I've done all my own covers, so I thought I would help them out.

Contained Decay is a zombie tale by T.L. Decay.  It starts with an outbreak at the Bedford Institute, asylum for the criminally insane.  It starts out hot and just gets hotter as the zombies starting eating their way though the town.

The first cover was great and I only hoped I could do it credit.  After getting some input from our publisher, I took it the cover in a totally different direction.  The first one accentuated supernatural elements, but I went with a more natural, yet terrifying opponent.