Tuesday 17 March 2015

IAIN ROB WRIGHT IN THE HOT ZONE - THE INTERVIEW PART TWO



Welcome back to night two of the Confessions of a Reviewer special, featuring Iain Rob Wright.

Tonight is the conclusion to the interview with Iain where he talks about his new book Hot Zone: An MCU Thriller, his wishes for the future and lets us in on the secret of what’s coming next. He will also answer The Ten Confessions.

Get your drink, get your nibbles, here we go!!




COAF - Moving on to Hot Zone. Tell us a little about the story, without spoilers of course.

IRW - It starts with Ebola and gets worse. Readers will find out who kidnapped Sarah at the end of Soft Target and they will also see how Howard operates on his own. The plot concerns a crazy Doctor who wants to show the West what life is like in impoverished Africa. It’s non-stop once it gets going.


COAF - Why the change of direction to include thrillers?

IRW - I love the TV show 24 and the Jack Reacher novels. When I love something, I want to write it. 


COAF - Do you never get an urge to throw some horror into the story? Maybe add a monster or two?

IRW - I often get the urge to spin the MCU into an X-Files type of organisation. I may do this after the initial trilogy ends.




COAF - What made you decide on a female main character?

IRW - I get a bit sick of how female characters are portrayed. My father is a sexist and it disgusts me (although it’s indicative of his generation rather than entirely his fault). I feel obligated to try and create strong female characters to combat the misogyny I was raised in. Joss Whedon had similar motives with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and if there’s anyone I would like to emulate it is him.

COAF - Hot Zone has some dramatic scenes in it set in London and Heathrow Airport. How do you research for these scenes to make sure you don’t get any detail wrong?

IRW - Google-baby! I try to keep scenes within the spectrum of my knowledge and avoid writing about things I know nothing about, but I fill in any mental gaps I have with copious amounts of Internet. It’s hard to get everything right, but at least these days it’s easy to make a change if somebody points something out after publication.


COAF - Do you have ideas and plots for many more in the series or are you taking it book by book?

IRW - I will write a third book which will serve as the conclusion to the Al Al-Sharir conspiracy and then go from there. It all depends on demand. If people want more MCU books then there will be more. Elsewise I will retire Sarah Stone and maybe use her somewhere else.




COAF - You seem to be a busy family man with your wife Sally and new son Jack but what do you like to do when you are not writing.

IRW - As I said, I enjoy TV shows and moves, as well as reading, but I also like walking the dog, going out for the day to various places and eating at nice restaurants. Sally and I love Disney and can’t wait to take Jack there one day. We also love board games and own a shit load. Zombicide is our newest but Articulate and Smart Ass are the party favourites. I’m also a big videogamer and love RPGs and Strategy Games. Sally likes HALO, FABLE, and TRIALS FUSION. We also use to rock Guitar Hero and Wii Bowling back in the day.


COAF - What would your ultimate wish be with your writing?

IRW - Would love to have a paperback on sale in an airport. As an ‘Indie’ my ultimate goal is to receive some exorbitant offer from a big publishing house, as well as getting a film deal (with a Hollywood production company). For the moment I am extremely lucky and more than content with making a living doing what I love. To ask any more than that is greedy and cupidinous.


COAF - If you could change anything from any of the books you have already written what would it be?

IRW - Honestly nothing. I would love to have them strenuously edited to perfection, but story-wise I think they are what they are – to change them would ruin them. I wish I had started writing a couple years earlier, though; that is my biggest regret. Things were a bit healthier in the beginning. Indie Publishing is a bit of a gold rush as the moment and that is hurting legitimate writers.


COAF - You wrote about a character in C is for Clown called Nev Murray. Do you think he should get his own series? Most of your fans I have spoken to say yes.

IRW - Sadly, no. Leave the audience wanting more, I say.


COAF - What’s coming in the future from Iain Rob Wright?

IRW - I will shortly be starting work on The Gates. An epic, multi-character, end of the world saga that will stretch for at least 3 books. Gates to Hell are going to open all over the world and humanity must fight for its survival.



I honestly cannot thank Iain enough for this interview. It is the first one I have hosted and he was very gracious in taking the time to answer everything I threw at him, very candidly I might add, and gave us a great insight into the man behind the book covers.


Now. I wanted to come up with something a little bit different for my interviews and here it is. The Ten Confessions. In this segment, anyone I interview will be asked exactly the same questions. I’m basically trying to make them cringe a little and feel as if they are under interrogation. They must answer the questions honestly. I suspect we may get a few dodging direct answers over time but hopefully they will all play along. I hope you enjoy Iain Rob Wright’s confessional!!



THE TEN CONFESSIONS



1. Who would you view as your main competitor in the writing world?

I suppose Matt Shaw has become somewhat of an adversary. He and I are polar opposites in many ways, but I can’t deny how hard he has worked and how passionate he is. For a long time I was the only show in town, but Matt came along out of nowhere and kicked my ass. I would like to return the favour one day. Now there are a lot of guys doing well and it’s great to see, as well as guys who have already made it, like David Moody, coming back to the indie fold. J


2. What book or author have you read that you think should never have been published?

I would never call out another author or their work as it is not my right, but there are many many books I have given up on after a few pages, and those have been from both indie authors and big names. I am very fussy; more so since becoming a writer myself.


3. Are any of the things your characters have experienced in your books been based on something that has actually happened to you? What was it?

ASBO is the closest to my real life. I grew up in suburban gang and was surrounded by violence. The character of Damien has a similar arc to myself in that he sees the error of his ways (and never truly belonged in the first place, more a victim of circumstance than truly wicked).




4. Have you ever blatantly stolen an idea or scene and adapted it for one of your own books? If so, care to share?

The Final Winter was heavily inspired by the film Legion. It is the closest I have come to stealing an idea. For the most part I think I am pretty original. I mean, Sea Sick is basically Dawn of the Dead meets Groundhog Day meets the Love Boat. Name another book anything like that?!


5. Have you ever anonymously left a bad review for someone else’s book? If so, care to share?

Nope. Never. I can’t even leave book reviews now as Amazon banned authors from being able to do so. Before that, I would only leave reviews for books I enjoyed. Better to praise good behaviour than punish bad.


6. What’s the one thing you are least proud of doing in your life and why?

There are many many things which are for me and me alone to dwell on, but most of them revolve around being a teenager and being drunk.




7. What’s the one thing you are MOST proud of doing in your life and why?

My son, of course. When Jack was born and lying against Sally’s chest, I knew that I had made it. They legitimised all the bullshit I had waded through to reach that moment. They erased my past and endorsed the man I had become. It was a baptism of sorts, and when Jack was born I was cleansed of sin. The joy and pride I felt that day has not waned and the love I feel for Sally and our son is like a fire in my heart. They both changed my life and to have them is more than I deserve.


8. What’s your biggest fault?

An oversized penis.


9. What is your biggest fear?

Having to do anything else. Now that I’ve achieved my dreams of becoming a writer, there is a massive fear in my heart of doing something wrong and losing it. My son and wife rely on me and I can’t screw up. I get to be at home with Jack and Sally and if the writing career ends I will have to do something else and I will lose all of that time I get to be close to them. That terrifies me.


10. If you had to go to confession now, what would be the one thing you would need to get off your chest?

I once broke my Mother-in-law’s bathroom mirror and blamed it on a child!


Do you think he answered honestly enough? I think he dodged a couple to be honest.


THE END


So the interview is done and dusted. Again my huge thanks to Iain for taking the time out to answer the questions and make this possible.

Don't forget to come back tomorrow night when we have the EXCLUSIVE look at the first chapter of Hot Zone.


You can see more about Iain at his website.

Iain's author page is here.

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