Last year I received an e-mail from a pretty respected young journalist called John Wisniewski who wrote for The Los Angeles Review of Books and the Small Press Book Review. He said he was interested in conducting an interview with me to discuss any upcoming projects etc. I was, obviously, very excited and flattered to have been contacted by an industry pro and was looking forward to a bit of cool high-profile publicity. Turns out John was really nice and I enjoyed talking to him.

Unfortunately, the interview was never published, for what reason I don’t know. Most of the things spoken about have since become out of date, the projects I mentioned have come and gone – but I feel like I gave some interesting answers to John’s more general questions.

Our last communication was in January this year, so it looks like it’ll never see the light of day, which is sad. I doubt any respected publication would be interested in moth-eaten dialogue with an unknown writer like me either.

So anyway, i’ve decided to publish our discussion here, hope you enjoy (and thanks again John) –

1) When did you begin writing short stories? When and where were they published?

 

I began writing shortly after i dropped out of university, roughly around 18 or 19 I think? I was a tremendously angsty person back then too (all Smiths t-shirts and floppy hair) – on top of my predisposition for self-inflicted misery, I also felt a bit aimless in my life in general. It was only a matter of time till the proverbial hit the fan.

 

Having been simultaneously dumped by my girlfriend and then dumped out of uni i tried my hand at something different creatively, something positive and expressive instead of just moping about like a stick in the mud and hating on everything. 

 

I had always loved reading, but art was my main passion growing up. I didn’t really write short stories as a young kid – i always read, but never wrote. Then a cataclysmic sequence of  events put this writing notion in motion. That was 7 years ago and I haven’t picked up a paint brush or a drawing pad since…

 

 

 

2) Whom are a few writers who are influential to you, Chris?

 

I think there are some pretty obvious writers who’ve influenced my writing. Philip.K.Dick, Kathy Acker, William Burroughs, Samuel.R.Delaney, Ray Bradbury, Alasdair Grey, Charles Bukowski – all writers i’ve had stages of obsession with. You’ll notice too that there isn’t a big science fiction influence apart from Dick and Delaney. While I do love SF i do tend to take my composition and technique from more literary writers (not that i think sci-fi can’t be literary).

 

Lately i’ve rekindled my real love for classic European writers. I’ve returned to the authors who I enjoyed during my time studying at university, the writers I read when I should have been reading stuff on the actual curriculum. I’m thinking people like Tolstoy, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Arthur Koestler and Leopold Von Sacher Masoch. There’s something about about their approach to prose that appeals to me. It might even be down to something being lost in translation, but the style seems more experimental, obscure somehow. It’s something I try to emulate in my own writing, that sense of ‘the other’. 

 

 

3) Your stories present us with characters who live in a world of their own-perhaps in post-apocalyptic future-how do you create this world for the reader?

 

 

I like the idea of everyone perceiving the world in their own way. For example, some people like the servility and ignorance that the Slave State provides – where one person finds it oppressive another might be relieved to be in captivity. Usually I create these worlds in a few different ways, depending on the character’s perspective. I do describe the squalor and nastiness of each city within the Slave State, (the urban decay, the sinister high rises), but it can be achieved through alienation techniques too. I might use a non-linear narrative or be deliberately obtuse in my language to project a sense of isolation and futility. I might deconstruct the entire story and give the novel some self-awareness, most of my books know they’re books and often admit as much. I want every city in the Slave zone to feel unstable, like it WANTS to hurt you…

 

 

4) Do Sci-fi readers enjoy your writing?

 

I think some of them do. People who read a lot of space opera stuff tend to be less enamored with my work or my title as an SF author. There’s a lot of Dickian elements to my stories, so I think people who appreciated what PKD was doing will certainly getwhat i’m trying to do. There’s still loads of aliens and intergalactic conquest going on too though.

 

5) Could you tell us about any upcoming projects, Chris?

 

Sure! I have a few things in the pipeline at the moment. There’s my next novel, my magnum opus, ‘The Dissolving Zinc Theater’, which is in the early editing stages at Villipede. It’s a book i’m very excited about, not just because it found a really terrific publisher, but also because I think it’s probably the best thing i’ve ever written. I took my time with this, tried to make something that would be lasting and seem important, whether I’ve achieved that remains to be seen. In my opinion though it’s a definite turning point in my development as a writer. 

 

I also just signed a new contract with Bizarro Pulp Press and Journalstone to publish a novel called ‘Rattled by the Rush’ – my third book with BPP – so that’s also exciting. It should hopefully be with us by summer 2015, but could be later or earlier (you know how it is in the publishing industry!). 

 

I’m slowly working on issue 3 of Imperial Youth Review as well as a comic book with Phil Differ called ‘The New Animal Liberation Front’ AND an anthology book of writers who’ll be expanding on my Slave State mythos. We already have Rhys Hughes and a few other crackers geared up for that one. 

 

http://welcometotheslavestate.com/slave-stories/

 

Busy, busy, busy!

 

 

 

6) What are you doing when not writing, Chris?

 

When i’m not writing or editing, i’m working at my day-job (assistant librarian) – or i’m thinking about writing. When I was younger my interests were more art and music based and trying to figure out a way to make something good come of those things, but i do my best to focus on one preoccupation at a time (recently its all been about the writing). I still have a long way to go refining my craft, but i believe the only way to reach that level of proficiency is to write as much as possible. Of course when i’m NOT sitting down putting stuff together I do keep myself busy. I enjoy reading, traipsing around Ayrshire with my girlfriend, drawing, playing music, going to the cinema – occasionally i exercise or watch football.

 

The rest of the time is all a panicky blur worrying about the rent, job prospects, worrying about children and family, about animal welfare, about LIFE in general and all the other things that elude my control…

 

 

7) Could you tell us about writing “Last Exit to Interzone”, Chris? was William S.Burroughs an inspiration while writing?

 

 ‘Last Exit to Interzone’ was written as a direct ode to William Burroughs and Hubert Selby Jr. Both writers have influenced me greatly and i’m often told their prose style permeates my own work – or at least i TRY my best to emulate their sense of the macabre. ‘Last Exit to Interzone’ was a fun book to work on actually and probably the least stressful to write and develop(I actually wrote it specifically for Jordan Krall’s Black Dharma Press – an imprint of Dynatox Ministries). In fact, I don’t think you can buy it anymore given that it was released as a limited edition chapbook. 
 
The idea came simply from my own fascination with both writers, so i was able to draw from existing knowledge. I think they’re both really interesting people as well as interesting writers. Most folk already know about Burroughs insidious habits and I wanted to play on the myth behind the man a bit, make him a really twisted, malevolent character. Conversely, Hubert Selby Jr had a warmer reputation, i think he was more an everyman, a blue collar grafter –  he was certainly less formally educated than Burroughs. 
 
Both ‘Naked Lunch’ and ‘Last Exit to Brooklyn’ were hugely important for me growing up. Burroughs and Selby shared a unique and dark handling of the American dream (much like Bukowski), but were intrinsically different people in their personal lives. I wanted to see what would happen when these two people met….

 

8) Do readers find your writing to be unusual and original? What kind of reactions and feedback do you receive from critics, and readers?

 

Like anything that’s a projection of extreme circumstances, my books garner a mix of responses. Some people are really quite disgusted by how unusual and almost willfully ugly the world i’ve created is; a world of depression viruses and nihilism and detestable bloody characters. I get the negative reactions towards my work, i do (that is to say I expect it). 

 

People, generally, I think, are merely looking for distraction, something that’ll take their mind off of the various agonies of life. They want characters you can root for and situations they can relate to. They want catharsis. They want a reminder that everything is going to be ok. I can’t do that. No one can make that promise (that’s a job for a different ‘type’ of writer)

 

I’m stubborn in my own way. I have only ever written what I wanted to write. I don’t doubt that I will continue to write what comes naturally. A friend once asked me why I didn’t try and write a more accessible book, a YA novel or something? I’d get way more exposure, more fans, more kudos, etc…

 

Couldn’t do it – that’s the short answer!

 

Conversely, people who like my books do tend to find me at least halfway original. People who enjoy dark transgressive fiction or something a bit different will appreciate what i’m trying to do. I actually want to be completely unapologetic. You know, there are things in this world that get me so frustrated and sad and angry, The Slave State is all that negative emotion compressed – and the thing is, the thing that actually puts people off the most, is that the stories ARE relatable. 

 

I certainly don’t censor myself and I won’t go with a publisher who would try to censor me.