Friend and fellow writer Nikki
Hopeman tagged me, and because I’m a good sport, I decided to play along.
Basically, I’m to answer the
following ten questions, then tag five other writers to do the same about their
respective works.
1. What is the working title of your
next book?
While I’ve more or less decided my
next book will be “The Hooterville Book” and will be (mostly) non-fiction, I’m
more interested at this point in talking about the book I actually have coming
out shortly, “The Heart Absent.”
2. Where did the idea come from for
the book?
I’ve always been a British history
buff and during a visit to London when I was 18, I went on one of those “Ripper
Tours” where they take you to the sites of the Ripper murders. The tour guide
decided to use me as the model to show the rest of the tour where the Ripper,
well, “ripped” up his victims. At the time, I found the experience
understandably creepy, but years later I believe it spawned my early interest
in the infamous crimes.
The idea to write a book about “Jack
the Ripper in love,” however, came from repeatedly viewing the crime scene
photos of the corpse of Mary Jane Kelly. So many aspects of her murder differed
widely from the other “Ripper murders” – or at least the five canonical murders
most expert Ripperologists agree were the handiwork of the faceless, nameless
terror nicknamed “Jack the Ripper.” She was murdered indoors, in her own living
quarters, and it’s generally accepted that she quite willingly brought her
killer to the scene of her horrible demise. She was younger and more attractive
than her predecessors. Her death was more gruesome than the others. The Ripper
took the time to do to her what he wasn’t able to do to the rest, or so it
appears. He literally dissected her like she was some kind of hideous
experiment. All of the aforementioned details combine to paint a picture of her
murderer as someone who had a personal connection with her. The obvious
connection, in my view at least, is that he was in love with her and, perhaps,
she spurned him.
The idea to make James Nemo, the “Ripper”
character in my novel, an artist who liked to paint prostitutes came from
Patricia Cornwell’s novel “Portrait of a Killer,” in which she accused the
British painter Walter Richard Sickert of being Jack the Ripper. Her theory doesn’t
hold water and falls apart under any real scrutiny, but the notion of Jack
being an artist I found appealing and romantic. As one of my former mentors
often said, “Good writers borrow, great writers steal.”
3. What genre does your book fall
under?
“The Heart Absent” is a historical
horror novel with elements of romance and (I hope) elements of literary fiction.
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
4. What actors would you choose to
play the part of your characters in a movie rendition?
Scoff all you like but when I
picture James Nemo, I picture Leonardo DiCaprio. For Mary Jane Kelly, Mena
Suvari is my gal. She’s beautiful but not in a conventional way and I’ve had a
girl crush on her since “American Beauty.” For Charlotte, the classic hooker with
a heart of gold, I’d cast Christina Hendricks. She’s got an awesome combination
of beauty, brains and boobs, which is exactly how I picture Charlotte. For
Joseph Barnett, our hero, the choice is less clear. When I started writing this
novel, Joe had a full head of hair but by the time I typed “The End” the man
had no hair at all! Since he’s the hero of the novel, I’d cast one of my own
personal two choices for sexiest man alive: Jon Hamm or Charlie Hunnam. (Whichever
one is willing to shave his head, grow a scraggly beard and participate in a very elaborate casting
call. Meow!)
5. What is the one-sentence synopsis
of your book?
“The Heart Absent” is “My Fair Lady”
gone horribly wrong.
6. Will your book be self-published
or represented by an agency?
“The Heart Absent” will be published
by New Libri Press in early 2013. It will be released in e-book format first
followed by a (paperback) hard copy.
7. How long did it take you to write
the first draft of the manuscript?
The idea for “The Heart Absent’
first occurred to me in 2003 but the bulk of it I wrote while enrolled as a
graduate student at Seton Hill University. It was my thesis novel for my Master
in Fine Arts degree.
8. What other books would you
compare this story to within your genre?
The following titles aren’t
necessarily in my genre, but they definitely inspired me: Brett Easton Ellis’s “American
Psycho” and Margaret George’s “The Autobiography of Henry VIII.” “The Heart
Absent” fall somewhere roughly in the middle.
9. Who or what inspired you to write
this book?
I plead the Fifth Amendment. People
who really know me will recognize part of the story as closely mirroring
aspects of my own life. That’s all I’m going to reveal for now. The rest I'm saving for Oprah.
10. What else about the book might
pique the reader’s interest?
“The Heart Absent” is a story about
Jack the Ripper’s evolution from boy to man to monster, but there are many
other topics tackled in the novel. I would like to think it’s also a parable of
sorts about the consequences of controlling relationships. Some may consider
parts of the novel to be irreverent in terms of religion. I did that on
purpose. Finally, in spite of the rather dark subject matter, the novel is
sprinkled with humorous one-liners and the strong ties of friendship between
some of the major characters are certain to warm the cockles of your heart.
Next, I’m tagging Gordon Hooper,
Sharon Bailie, Cindy Lynn Speer, Ron Gavalik and Sheldon Higdon.
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