Literary Express Full Interview

The reader and book-centered website Literary Express recently interviewed me and, in a particularly nice touch, published the interview on Halloween (which, if you haven't explored their site by now, please do so; if you like reading, books, and the creative process, you won't be disappointed!). As is always the case in interviews, some of the raw material had to be edited due to space limitations, so I thought it might be interesting to publish the full interview here. That way you can see the entirety of my answers. 

Enjoy, and thanks once again to Literary Express for featuring me!

How long have you been writing?

Before I answer this straightforward question, let me explain a few things. Antonio Ricardo Scozze is a pseudonym I write under. Unlike most pen names, however, I use it because he is actually a character in the overarching stories I'm writing. His own story will slowly unfold as these stories go on.

Ultimately what I'm trying to create is a cohesive, complete world of horror with my writing, so the narrator of my stories needs to have first-hand knowledge of this dark world that exists right under our feet, one of demons, ghosts, and unspeakable terrors. (You can learn more about this character here).

So, in answering your questions, I'm going to be referring to myself rather than Antonio. Who I am is irrelevant; who Scozze is -- that's the question! (As a quick aside, anyone who'd like to ask me questions about Scozze in an attempt to figure out who he might be is free to reach to me on my -- er, his -- Goodreads page.)

I've been writing, one way or another, since I was a kid, and usually creepy or weird stories. I can remember writing out a story when I was maybe nine or ten about a Medieval ruler who saw what he thought were Viking longships and was thrilled because they were going to fall into a trap he'd set for them, only to find it was actually a school of sea monsters who destroyed his castle. It was only a few paragraphs long but suggestive of what was to come later.

I went on to write several short stories as a teenager, inspired by the works of Poe, King, Barker, etc. I never tried to get these published, being more of an outlet for the narrative I had rattling around in my head, but even then I would see something weird (or something normal I'd make weird!) and start spinning a yarn about it. Some things never change.

I wrote my first book in my 20s, but that was based more on enthusiasm for creating rather than skill in writing, so it was actually quite atrocious. Significantly, this story was not in the horror genre, believing at that time that if I were going to be a published author, I'd have to write a real book. That was a foolish notion I've long since gotten rid of. 

I continued to begin with projects in fits and starts, never really getting into the project or being able to complete the story. Then, I decided to return to my first love -- horror -- and this idea of a complete world of terror, a complex one with its own twisted more, norms, and values, occurred to me. I spent several months mapping out the boundaries, internal workings, and interconnections of this world, and in so doing, Antonio Ricardo Scozze was born. I've been writing obsessively ever since, feeling like I'm reconnecting with the truest version of myself. 

Tell us about your published works. How did they happen? What's your latest book about?

I currently have one book published, called The House on Blackstone Hill. This is one of those classic haunted hose tales notched up a few steps, as well as being the introduction to my world of horror and Scozze himself. 

The thumbnail sketch on this book is that Adam Long is an award-winning journalist who disgraced himself by quashing a story about Jeffrey Epstein. While visiting a creepy ghost town with his wife, Ava, and their kids, he finds an abandoned colonial mansion and immediately becomes obsessed with possessing it. Ava, meanwhile, feels very uneasy about the house and realizes after Adam purchases it without her knowledge that there is something demonically wrong with their new home. 

How this book came about is a pretty interesting story: I was driving along somewhere during the winter months some years ago and was able to look down into a vale. As I drove along this sunny winter day, I saw a flash in the small valley below and looked down to see a very dilapidated old house. A shard of broken glass had glinted in the sun and caught my attention. 

As sometimes happens for writers, the overall storyline of the book immediately crashed into my head fully formed, and I thought about a story of someone seeing the glint of a broken window that brings them to an old house in the woods, only to realize after they refurbish it that it has a long, evil history of murder and madness. All I did then was firm up the plot and fill in some details, and the result is my first published novel. 

Before you start with a book, do you in your mind have the plot and characters you are going to incorporate, or do you not know how the story is going to unfold unless you get done with it? 

With all my previous failed attempts to write a book, I would do the "pantster" thing and make it up on the fly...since I said these were my failed attempts you can tell how that works for me! Maybe writing a book like that works for some people, but it doesn't work for me.

Now that I do is, first, I make a basic write-up of the entire story I want to tell. I tell the story in a very preliminary and rough way, in one long sweep almost as if I'm telling it to someone else. At this point, I usually don't even have names yet (names in my stories are very important and typically have some hidden meaning that points to the characters' motivations and roles they'll play in the story) but just let the story pour out of me.

Then, I take that rough write up and break it down into a detailed outline in which I include the fleshed-out storyline, every beat that I'm trying to hit, a detailed timeline, etc. If needed, I'll write up character backstories, almost none of which will ever be shared with the readers but are things I know about the character so I can more realistically capture their nature.

By this point, I've usually spent months thinking about the story and weeks writing out the first two steps. I'm well acquainted with the story and characters by then, so actually writing the thing is fairly easy for me. This also gives me a good bird's eye view so I can add scenes, characters, beats, connections, etc., as needed.

Do you have any favourite authors? If yes, please who they are and why they inspire you.

Every writer should also be a reader, and every reader has their favorite authors. I have a great many. Of course, there is the original genius, Edgar Allan Poe. I don't think anyone has ever been quite so good at capturing the visceral fear and loathing of his characters, and he is definitely my model when it comes to trying to make my readers feel what the characters are. I try, but I know my skills pale to insignificance compared to his. 

Then there is Stephen King, obviously, who's given us some of the most memorable horror characters and truly horrifying situations in the genre. I would rank Clive Barker as his equal, and what I really love about him is his way of letting go, of taking a situation and elevating it several steps beyond bizarre to make it something unique. I also am inspired by Dean Koontz.

Beyond horror, I've always loved J.R.R. Tolkien and his almost lyric use of language -- even the languages he didn't invent! I often feel like a blacksmith, hammering and pounding large pieces of steel into a shape I find pleasing, whereas Tolkien was a goldsmith, taking delicate strands and gently turning and twisting them into something remarkable.

I love George R.R. Martin's work and am always amazed at his ability to manage so many characters, timelines, motivations, etc., and to weave all these disparate threads into one amazing fabric. I also am inspired by the way he slowly allows his narrative to unfold without dumping information on you, which draws me even deeper into his world. 

Finally, I also really enjoy the works of John Stanford and Bernard Cornwell. Not only are their world good, fun reads, but I appreciate their workman-like mindset when it comes to producing books. I believe writers are as much craftsmen as they are artists, and no crafter can afford to make one item every ten years. We need to practice daily, and so by writing something every day we can produce quite a large collection of work. That's what I'm striving to do. 

When do you generally write? Do you follow a schedule, or do you write when you have an urge to pen down your thoughts?

As I alluded to in the above answer, I believe it's very important to write every day, unless there is a significant reason not to. I like the saying that a page of bad writing is better than a page of no writing because you can always go back and edit, and I try to live up to this.

Other than daily, no, I don't have a particular schedule. I tend to have more time in the evening to write, though I actually prefer writing first thing in the morning. But at the same time, I'll often write for an hour or two in the middle of the day if that's when my schedule allows me to.

Where are you currently residing? Could you make known your educational qualifications and your age?

I live in the United States. That's all I'm going to share about that because I want to maintain some level of mystery!

Was becoming an author a conscious decision?

Yes, to a degree. Like I said before, I started writing earlier in my life because the pressure of these stories in my head was too much and they needed to get out. However, I could just lie them lie undisturbed, but I made the conscious decision to get them published. 

How do you juggle between writing and other tasks? What are your hobbies and interests besides writing?

I take deliberate breaks from my writing on a regular basis to pursue other interests or duties. This is both because I still need to get things done throughout the day, but also because it can be good to push away from your desk and so something else. That helps keep things in perspective, keeps you fresh, and can help maintain your enthusiasm for your story. 

Tell me a bit about your works in progress. Do you plan on becoming a full-fledged author?

I'm always working on short stories even as I chip away at my novels, because I find them a pleasant break from the book and something I can get done in just a few days. One of my short stories, "Club 27," is set to be published in the November 202 edition of Schlock! magazine. I'm excited about that.

I'm also working on my second book currently. It's going to expand this world of horror we began exploring in The Hose of Blackstone Hill, and, while not wanting to give away too much about the plot, will focus on a werewolf, a powerful coven of Satanic witches, and a U.S. Congressman eager to become President and willing to do anything to get there.

I have every intention of becoming a full-time writer, and plan to keep plugging away at it until I get there!

What would you like to tell the budding authors who lose motivation if a few of their works don't do well?

First of all, don't ever give up. No one ever achieved anything by giving up.

Secondly, you always need to write what you want to read. You can never afford to write for the audience, which means sometimes the audience won't like what you write. But that also means sometimes they will, and like it very much. So always be true to yourself and don't compromise by writing what you think people want. 

Finally, just because something isn't doing well now doesn't mean it won't be next year. The popularity of a book has this way of ebbing and flowing, so something can go from being a dud to a bestseller almost overnight.

If there's one thing that you would like to change in this world, what would that be?

I'd change the way people treat one another. I'm tired of the powerful taking advantage of and using the weak and have seen enough hatred for two lifetimes. People need to stop lusting after power and just be content with the blessings God has given them. 

What is your routine on any usual day?

Get up, work, write. Nothing too impressive there!  

What languages besides English do you know/speak? How?

OK, let me preface this by saying I've always been a language and history nerd, so learning languages is like a hobby for me. But, at any rate, with widely varying degrees of fluency, I can speak French, Spanish, Italian, German, Latin, Arabic, Polish, and Russian.

How? Thanks to Duolingo combined with a deep love of languages!

If there is something else that you would like to share, please do.

The only thing else I'd like to share is my various social media sites, and ask folks that are interested in what I'm doing to go to these sites, like, follow, share, etc. I use these various sites in different ways, but together they help flesh out the world I'm creating, as well as chipping away at answering that overarching question: Who is Scozze?!

Official website (still under construction), Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and Goodreads.

And, just to make things interesting, I will tell folks I have one more account on a social media site not listed here. Let's see if people can find it. In the profile for that site, I give some information about Scozze that will begin to point people in the right direction...but you'll still have to read my stories to get all the clues!