Daniel J. Williams in the gory guy behind the Mace of the Apocalypse series. He followed his first monsterpiece with its sequel The Value of Jade. His third Znovel is shuffling this way in April. Let's claw into that tasty cranium of his...
Ang: When were you first bitten by the zombie affliction?
Can you take us back to how the infection began? What’s the most difficult part
about sharing this ghoulish love as an indie?
Dan: I was just a kid, around 10, when I first caught Night of the Living Dead on TV. I was all alone and it just scared the hell out of me. I don’t think I could even get out of my bed after watching it. I don’t know why fear has such an intoxicating effect, but from that moment I was completely hooked on zombies.
The hardest part of embracing the zombie genre as an author is being taken seriously. When you try to tell someone that you’ve written a zombie book they kinda look at you sideways, lol.
Dan: I was just a kid, around 10, when I first caught Night of the Living Dead on TV. I was all alone and it just scared the hell out of me. I don’t think I could even get out of my bed after watching it. I don’t know why fear has such an intoxicating effect, but from that moment I was completely hooked on zombies.
The hardest part of embracing the zombie genre as an author is being taken seriously. When you try to tell someone that you’ve written a zombie book they kinda look at you sideways, lol.
Ang: If you had to dumb down the plot of your series so a zombie could understand, how would you explain it?
Dan: You get bit, you go bye-bye. Don’t get bit. It’s all about survival.
Ang: Describe the lucky survivors who engage with the festering horde of the dead.
Dan: The main character, Mace, is a troubled man who is haunted by his past and struggling to find himself in the middle of all the madness. He has some anger issues that push him to his boundaries.
Mace’s girlfriend, Jade, is extremely loyal, competent, and
no shrinking violet when it comes to confrontation. She is his rock. Mace’s
mentor is Father Jack McCann, who tries to hold onto their humanity and faith
amidst all the death and chaos. I could go on but then you wouldn’t need to
read the book. :)
Ang: What was the most important aspect when writing your
non-zombie characters? Realism (losers, assholes, and cowards) or fantasy
(Rambo or the guy/gal who has a Rambo hiding inside them)?
Dan: I went with realistic characters. I wanted people to be able to experience real emotions and not just get taken on a ride. I wanted the reader to experience every emotion in the book: Joy, pain, laughter, sadness, etc…
Ang: Does your book begin just as the zombies start building their paradise or have zombies already gotten things rocking and rotting?
Dan: The zombie apocalypse begins inSan
Francisco
Ang: Zombies are people too. They come in all shapes, sizes, speeds, and smarts. What types of the walking dead inhabit your series?
Dan: My zombies used to be people. Now they’re just walking dead maniacs. They lost all trace of their humanity when they became infected. They are fast, vicious and operate on pure rage. They are propelled by alien proteins that control their brains and central nervous systems. They do not have the ability to reason. They have no desire to share anything but death. They are scary, man.
Ang: Will your infection spread to more books and series? How many blood and guts offerings do you predict in your future? How soon can our zombie and human readers expect to see your next festering contribution?
Dan: I am about to release my third book, Children of the Apocalypse, in early April. I am going to write at least one more book in the series, but the zombies will start to die off so I’m not sure where it will lead.
Ang: What is your favorite way to kill a zombie? Shoot ‘em, hack ‘em, poke ‘em, burn ‘em, or something even more fiendish? ***Zombie readers please turn away to avoid having your putrefied feelings eviscerated.
Dan: Shoot ‘em in the head! Exploding heads are just awesome! But wait, hacking them up is pretty awesome, too. A crowbar through the skull? Fucking wicked. I guess anything that takes one out is cool with me.
Ang: Do you have a favorite cinematic zombie? Example: My co-blogger Zombie Earl is quite fond of Zombie Roger from the original Dawn of the Dead.
Dan: Zombie Roger was a pretty good one, but Zombie Shane would have to be my favorite from The Walking Dead. That was a great scene when he rose up in the field.
Ang: Who is your favorite character from The Walking Dead (comics or TV show)?
Dan: It would have to be Rick. He’s kept them alive so far, even with his mind slipping.
Ang: Finally, how prepared are you for the zombie apocalypse that we all know is just around the corner?
Dan: I am not prepared in the least, which is how I want to face it. I want to try to survive it on the fly. I know basic zombie 101, but after all, we don’t really know what type of zombies we’ll be facing.
Get your copies of Mace of the Apocalypse and The Value of Jade at Amazon. ***Mace of the Apocalypse is free at Amazon until the 13th***.
Dan: I went with realistic characters. I wanted people to be able to experience real emotions and not just get taken on a ride. I wanted the reader to experience every emotion in the book: Joy, pain, laughter, sadness, etc…
Ang: Does your book begin just as the zombies start building their paradise or have zombies already gotten things rocking and rotting?
Dan: The zombie apocalypse begins in
Ang: Zombies are people too. They come in all shapes, sizes, speeds, and smarts. What types of the walking dead inhabit your series?
Dan: My zombies used to be people. Now they’re just walking dead maniacs. They lost all trace of their humanity when they became infected. They are fast, vicious and operate on pure rage. They are propelled by alien proteins that control their brains and central nervous systems. They do not have the ability to reason. They have no desire to share anything but death. They are scary, man.
Ang: Will your infection spread to more books and series? How many blood and guts offerings do you predict in your future? How soon can our zombie and human readers expect to see your next festering contribution?
Dan: I am about to release my third book, Children of the Apocalypse, in early April. I am going to write at least one more book in the series, but the zombies will start to die off so I’m not sure where it will lead.
Ang: What is your favorite way to kill a zombie? Shoot ‘em, hack ‘em, poke ‘em, burn ‘em, or something even more fiendish? ***Zombie readers please turn away to avoid having your putrefied feelings eviscerated.
Dan: Shoot ‘em in the head! Exploding heads are just awesome! But wait, hacking them up is pretty awesome, too. A crowbar through the skull? Fucking wicked. I guess anything that takes one out is cool with me.
Ang: Do you have a favorite cinematic zombie? Example: My co-blogger Zombie Earl is quite fond of Zombie Roger from the original Dawn of the Dead.
Dan: Zombie Roger was a pretty good one, but Zombie Shane would have to be my favorite from The Walking Dead. That was a great scene when he rose up in the field.
Ang: Who is your favorite character from The Walking Dead (comics or TV show)?
Dan: It would have to be Rick. He’s kept them alive so far, even with his mind slipping.
Ang: Finally, how prepared are you for the zombie apocalypse that we all know is just around the corner?
Dan: I am not prepared in the least, which is how I want to face it. I want to try to survive it on the fly. I know basic zombie 101, but after all, we don’t really know what type of zombies we’ll be facing.
Get your copies of Mace of the Apocalypse and The Value of Jade at Amazon. ***Mace of the Apocalypse is free at Amazon until the 13th***.
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