When I reviewed Bill the Vampire a couple of months ago, I was surprised at two things:
1. How much I truly enjoyed the storyline as well as the well-developed characters.
2. How amusing a situation that involves life and death could be easily portrayed as satirical, taking the reader into a realm that clearly departs from the norm when dealing with the paranormal.
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| Author Rick Gualtieri |
The story was loaded with one-liners that produced everything from a minute smile to an outright chuckle, and as I turned the last page, I had to give it to Mr. Gualtieri. He had taken a genre of the paranormal into a different direction...at least different for me.
I reached out to Rick to find out a little bit more about his work and his persona. To my delight, I found that he was just as amusing in our correspondence as he is when he breathes life into his characters. If I had to describe him in four words or less, I would call him "quirky with a twist."
JL: How would you describe the genre that you write in and why do you write in it?
RG: I’m a multi-genre writer, but I guess my main focus (for now) would be considered horror comedy. I’m a big fan of movies such as Army of Darkness, Big Trouble in Little China, and Ghostbusters. All of them have the commonality of being a potentially terrifying situation that’s confronted by protagonists who just don’t take it all that seriously. I really like that mix. Rather than go down the slapstick route, I’m writing about scenarios that have life or death consequences and can, and often do, get very bloody. The difference between it and true horror, though, is that rather than screaming and running away my heroes are too busy mocking it to realize just how bad things are. It’s almost like if you were to take the hosts from Mystery Science Theater 3000 and actually place them inside of the movies they’re reviewing. It could end badly for them, but they’d probably have a lot of fun before that happened.
JL: How did you land your contract with your publisher?
RG: The founder of Wayman Publishing is also an accomplished author. I first became a fan of her blog and then later her books (she has an incredible voice). We began corresponding via email where I learned that not only was she a good writer, but she had a good head for marketing and an amazing work ethic. I eventually shared with her some of my work and things just sort of progressed from there.
My agreement with them is kind of non-traditional in that it’s more of a cross marketing relationship than a true publisher/client one, but it works for me and my somewhat anal-retentive nature. I’m very happy to be a part of the Wayman family.
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JL: If there was one thing that you would want your followers to know about you, what would it be?
RG: The funny thing is I’m pretty open online (a little too open if you were to ask my family), especially via twitter and email. If asked, there’s very little I won’t discuss (short of maybe spoilers for my books). I do get a lot of emails that start out with things like “I’m sorry to bother you” or “You’re probably too busy to read this”. I would say don’t worry about that. Outside of maybe spam, I’m happy to hear from people - and that includes someone who really hated my books and just wants to tell me so.
But that really wasn’t the question was it? Okay fine. Something I want people to know about me...Ah, I have one. I can’t stand seafood, any kind of it. What does that have to do with writing? Nothing really, but hopefully it’ll keep people from preemptively mailing me tuna steaks.
JL: What advice would you give to new and aspiring authors?
RG: The common advice is to keep writing and keep getting better at it. I won’t rehash that since hopefully they’ve heard it by now. Instead, I would tell them to make sure they’re actually ready to act like a professional before they hit that publish button. Keep their ego and temper in check. Writing is a long road for most, one in which there’s most likely going to be a lot of disappointment along the way. They should be prepared for that and learn to take their victories and defeats with a little dignity.
JL: What is next for Rick Gualtieri?
RG: I just released Holier Than Thou, book 4 in my Tome of Bill horror/comedy series. Since then, I’ve been busy plotting out the rest of my year. I’m currently working on a couple of projects including Devil Hunters, a sequel to my horror novel Bigfoot Hunters. After that, I’ll be diving back into the Tome of Bill. From there, we’ll see. I have a lot of stories to tell. It’s just a matter of which ones are desperately trying to escape my mind at any given time.
Aside from that, I am continually striving to learn in this industry and improve myself. I’m not sure where that will eventually lead me, but I’m excited to find out.
You see? This is what I meant by quirky with a twist...and delightfully so. By the time that he reads this, Mr. Gualtieri will know that I am looking forward to reading the remaining books included in the Bill the Vampire series. Now that the stage has been set, I really want to know what is going to become of one of my favorite characters. So how about it Mr. Gualtieri?
To read the review of Bill the Vampire in it's entirety, click on the link below:
http://www.examiner.com/review/bill-the-vampire-by-rick-gualtieri
To find out more about the books listed above, click on the link below:
http://www.waymanpublishing.com/index.php/books
~ J.L. Whitehead
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