Interview: Comic Writer Jeremy Whitley - Rainbow Brite #1 from Dynamite Entertainment

Give a big sheep welcome to one of my favorite comic writers. Jeremy Whitley created Princeless and Raven: Pirate Princess. Comics with strong young female characters as well as LGBT and POC representation. These are the comics your kids deserve! 

This October Jeremy has a couple of awesome projects coming. Including Rainbow Brite! That's right, he is bringing her back. But what will she be like this time around? Check out what Jeremy has to say about it. 

Sharon: How did you get involved with writing Rainbow Brite?

Jeremy: Kevin Ketner, who is the editor on Rainbow Brite, had worked with me before at Dynamite and we had gotten along really well and wanted to work together again. Hallmark was looking for pitches from people on what they would like to do on Rainbow Brite and Kevin asked if I would be interested in submitting one. Hallmark went through all of the options they had and liked mine the best, so we went for it.

Sharon: Is this a reboot of the series?

Jeremy: Sort of. I mean, it’s not working on the same continuity as the original series, but we are trying to keep as many of the elements of the original series as we can while modernizing the way it’s told. The original was very episodic, largely because it functioned on the needs of a line of toys. We have no such restrictions and therefore are free to tell the story we want to tell in the way we want to tell it. We can introduce pieces of the world a little bit at a time and focus on building a fully realized world and mythology around Rainbow Brite.

Sharon: Since Rainbow Brite is such an iconic character were you given any creative freedom for the comic or were you and the artist given strict guidelines?

Jeremy: For the most part we have been given a lot of room to make this the kind of story we want to make. Hallmark has particular messages and ideals that they want to see Rainbow Brite maintain, but they’re pretty open to recontextualizing that stuff in a way that makes sense. As well known as Rainbow Brite is, there’s actually relatively little canon. The original series only had 13 issues and a made for tv movie. Hallmark definitely has things they don’t want to compromise on, but for the most part, those aren’t things I’m looking to change.

Sharon: How does your Rainbow Brite differ from the original 80s?

Jeremy: I think the biggest difference is that the version from the 80s sort of shows up in the first issue fully formed. There’s not much discussion about who she is or where she comes from, she’s just here to save the day. Our story is going to focus a lot more on Rainbow Brite as a character. We’re going to see her before she’s Rainbow Brite and learn who she was and how she became the hero we know and love. As she grows, she’s also going to have a more varied power set than she did in the original, which we’ll explore the reasons for as we go.

Sharon: Why were these changes made?

Jeremy: The biggest reason we’re making changes is to expand on and explore the world more. The cartoon had a very 80’s cartoon way of saying “here’s the world, this is how it is,” but this is a world that our heroine isn’t from and is just getting to explore alongside the reader, so we want to give her a chance to experiment and learn new things. Plus, when your protagonist doesn’t roll into the story with all of the power, it gives them a little more room to grow. I think characters that learn and grow are important for young readers to see. Nobody is just born a superhero.

Sharon: What aspects of the character did you keep?

Jeremy: The biggest thing is that we wanted to keep her a character who, like Wonder Woman or Moana, is not just a warrior, but is a hero who values traditionally female values. Rainbow Brite is about the powers of kindness, honesty, empathy – not just punching and shooting. 

The other big aspect that’s part of her original character, but has actually become a much bigger thing since the original Rainbow Brite is that she is a magical girl. She’s originally a normal girl named Wisp with an extraordinary capability for compassion. She transforms into Rainbow Brite and if our story, we’re going to play more with her transitioning back and forth.

Sharon: What other projects do you coming up?

Jeremy: Well, my Marvel series “The Unstoppable Wasp” is making its triumphant return this October with a new #1 issue.

In addition to that, my creator-owned series “Princeless” is coming back with volume 7 starting in October as well. “Raven: Pirate Princess,” which started off as a spinoff of Princeless and has since become very much its own thing, is wrapping up year 2 with the upcoming 12th and 13th issues to cap that year off. We’ve already started working on year 3.

On top of that, we have a brand new My Little Pony mini-series coming out from IDW in October called “Nightmare Knights” and is going to be a ton of fun.

There are a few more things coming late this year and early next year, but nothing we can talk about just yet.

Sharon: Are you going to be at any cons this year?

Jeremy: Yes! I’ll be at Dragon Con at the beginning of September, SPX in mid-September, New York Comic Con at the beginning of October, and Bull City Comic Con here in North Carolina at the beginning of October.

RAINBOW BRITE #1

10/3/2018
Writer: Jeremy Whitley
Art: Brittney Williams
Genre: All-Ages Adventure, Media Tie-In
Dynamite Entertainment

SKU: C72513027348201011
Rating: All Ages

Format: Comic Book
Page Count: 32 PagesPrice: $3.99

Cover A: Paulina Ganucheau
UPC: 725130273482 01011
Cover B: Tony Fleecs
UPC: 725130273482 01021
Cover C: "Classic" Cover
UPC: 725130273482 01031

Pre-order

The adventure begins for children and adults alike, as the classic character Rainbow Brite comes to comics and brings a little color to your life!

Wisp and Willow are best friends who live in a small town. They are inseparable, until one night Wisp discovers something is stealing the color from the world! To escape their grasp, Wisp must use her wits and the help of a new friend...from somewhere else! Then the adventure begins!

Follow along with writer Jeremy Whitley (My Little Pony, Unstoppable Wasp) and artist Brittney Williams (Patsy Walker, A.K.A. Hellcat!, Goldie Vance) as we find out how this seemingly normal girl becomes Rainbow Brite and how it changes Wisp, Willow, and their world!

About the Author:
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He is the writer/co-creator of the original series “Princeless", “The Order of Dagonet", and “Illegal".  He has also done work for hire for companies such as IDW Publishing on the properties “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic", “My Little Pony: Friends Forever" and “Courage the Cowardly Dog"."

Princeless" has been nominated for two Eisners, including “Best Series for Ages 8-10" and “Best Single Issue (Vol 1 Issue 3)".


“Princeless" has also won three Glyph Awards for representation in comics including “Best Story", “Best Female Character" and “Best Writer" for Jeremy’s work on the book.  This series was also nominated for “Best Cover" and “Best Artist" both for work by M. Goodwin.

Interview with the charming and unpredictable Author Jasper Bark!

Hey Jasper! It has been almost exactly one year since you last graced the flock with your presence? Looks like you’ve had a busy year. You have a new book, Quiet Places, a graphic novel, Parassassination, a new monthly webcomic, Fear Fix and you started a Pateron page. But first, the question we’ve all be wanting to ask since you were last here...is your hair naturally curly? And how do you combat fizziness?
Jasper: Actually, my hair’s not natural at all. My real hair fell out when I was a very young child, following a traumatic incident when I was accidentally exposed to a late uncle’s stash of naked Liberace porn, while hiding under his bed, during an ill-advised game of sardines.

The local Scout troop was so moved by my condition that they hosted a number of yard sales and sponsored walks to raise money to help me. This money ended up going to the stepfather of a school friend of mine, who worked as a research scientist at British Nuclear Fuels. He discovered that a mutant strain of irradiated crabgrass not only gains a mild sentience when exposed to radium, it also resembles curly human hair. He donated his first test subject to me.

We’ve been together ever since. Of course now the poor thing is getting a little grey around the edges and isn’t quite the sprightly mop of mutant crabgrass that it was in our youth, but it still likes nothing more than to curl up at the bottom of my bed, with a saucer of curdled milk, at the end of the day.

Sharon: We’re gonna tackle each of your projects. Let’s start Quiet Places. It is a novella in the Heresy Series story cycle. What is the Heresy Series and how does Quiet Places fit in. Will there be more novellas?
Jasper: The Heresy Series is an ongoing Story Cycle based around the Qu’rm Saddic Heresy, this is an ancient and blasphemous set of beliefs that have been feared and persecuted since the beginning of time. It was thought of as old even in the early days of Ancient Mesopotamia, which is considered the birthplace of civilization. Very few records of the heresy survive the last vestiges of it were stamped out in the middle ages, and it is all but forgotten today, but it still has the power to illicit fear and outrage in those who know of its existence.

Forbidden knowledge and forgotten beliefs fascinate me, so I have devoted quite a few stories to this little-known religion, from the distant past. Like Brian Keene’s Labyrinth mythos, Laird Barron’s Old Leech stories and H. P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos, the stories can be read in any order, but with everyone you read, you’ll learn a little more about the grand, mythopoeic tapestry into which they’re woven.

In a recent review of Quiet Places, the author and critic Dave Dubrow described the Qu’rm Saddic Heresey as

“the true story of the universe and what lies behind it. Once the door to Bark’s mythos opens, it sucks you in and keeps you from putting the book down in a way horror fans haven’t experienced since Lovecraft started putting tentacles and unpronounceable consonants together decades ago.”

Which was rather kind of him.

Like all of the story cycle, Quiet Places uses the heresy as a backdrop, you don’t need to know anything about it to enjoy the story. It does fill in more of the history though in a slow-burning tale that builds to one of my most shocking endings.

Sharon: What folklore did you borrow from for Quiet Places?
Jasper: As it’s set in the Scottish Highlands, I did a lot of research into Scottish folklore. So, tales of the Will o’ the Wisp, and the Gaelic Teine Biorach (which means ‘sharp fire’), strange apparitions that haunt moors, plains and other lonely places were something of an inspiration. As were tales of the Cù-Sith and Phantom Black Hounds, these were psychopomps, creatures which accompany the lost souls of the dead to the afterlife.

In addition to that, I drew on a modern day folk story, that of the ABC, which stands for Alien Big Cat. These are large feline creatures, similar to pumas and jaguars, that are regularly spotted, and sometimes even photographed, in the wilds of the British countryside. Animals that are not known to be native to British shores, but have nonetheless been seen by enough eyewitnesses to give a bit of credence to the claim that they exist. 

By Midnightblueowl at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, 

Sharon: You wrote the graphic novel Parassissnation. Tell us a bit about it.

Jasper: It’s a time traveling, political thriller, set on the distant planet of Sedulon, and it’s not like anything you’ve ever read before. Three possible futures hang in the balance, two end in total annihilation, and one assassin’s bullet will decide, as a rogue band of time travelers and scientific misfits fight to save the futures of two worlds.

It has a lot of bizarre characters you won’t have encountered before, such as Doc Hydrabus - a brilliant scientist whose body splits into a crowd of his past and future selves, he lives in one present and many futures all at the same time. Cassindra who is 900 years old, impossible to kill and every bit as deadly as she is beautiful. She’s travelled back in time to change the world. And Rushaar and Shartara, alien beings made entirely of gas with one simple plan, to use time travel to assassinate the leader of Sedulon and save their planet Eidolonia.

Each of them must put aside their differences and come together to find a new future for all their worlds, one that lies in the most unexpected of all possible places.

Parassassin
Jasper Bark - Writer
Alfa Robbi - Artist
Bolt 01 - LettersSeptember 18, 2017

Publisher: Markosia Enterprises Ltd
66 pages

Three futures hang in the balance.

Two end in total annihilation.

One assassin’s bullet will decide.

On the planet Sedulon, a rogue band of renegade time travelers and scientific misfits fight to save the futures of two worlds.

Doc Hydrabus - a brilliant scientist whose body splits into a crowd of his past and future selves, he lives in one present and many futures all at the same time

Cassindra - 900 years old, impossible to kill and every bit as deadly as she is beautiful. She’s travelled back in time to change the world.

Rushaar and Shartara - alien beings made entirely of gas with one simple plan, to use time travel to assassinate the leader of Sedulon and save their planet Eidolonia.

The Parassassin - he will take the shot that decides the destinies of everyone in the galaxy.

Politics and parody collide on the bleeding edge of science fiction, in one of the most shocking and innovative thrillers you’re going to read this year.

AmazonUS-Amazon UK

and all good book and comic shops worldwide.

Sharon: How long did it take to bring your story to life in graphic novel format? What were some of the unexpected challenges you ran into during the process?
Jasper: It took quite a long time, as the story was serialized in the award-winning online comic ‘Aces Weekly’. This is an amazing publication put together by the legendary artist David Lloyd, who drew V for Vendetta and designed the Guy Fawkes mask that is so popular with protestors all over the world, from Occupy Wall Street to the Arab Spring revolts.

The main challenges we faced were getting the pages out on a weekly basis over an 8 month period. This was a big commitment from the team and we were always skating on the edge of a deadline. Luckily David, and everyone else at Aces Weekly were always very patient and very helpful. I should also mention the incredible work done by the amazingly talented artist Alfa Robbi, who illustrated the strip, and our wonderful letterer Bolt 01, who always went above and beyond.

Sharon: Your character Dr. Hydrabus was caught in a worm hole generator explosion and now constantly splits into his future and past selves. Every 3 to 4 hours he reabsorbs them and splits again. Would you like to live like your character Dr. Hydrabus for one day?
Jasper: I can quite honestly say I wouldn’t. Aside from it being a rather strange, disorienting, and painful thing to go through, I think it would be rather unnerving to be confronted with so many past and future versions of yourself. We tend to find our own worst faults most irritating in other people, so can you imagine how vexing it would be to be faced with a crowd of mirror versions of yourself?

Most people can’t stand hearing the sound of their own voice on a recording, or the way they look on video, so imagine seeing and hearing it right in front of you in the flesh. You’d be constantly reminded of what an idiot you were when you were younger, and how decrepit you’re going to look in ten or fifteen years time. Can you imagine it? No wonder Doc Hydrabus considers it such a curse.

Sharon: Looks like you caught the comic bug because you also have a free monthly webcomic on your website called Fear Fix. What do you want to say about it that would make our readers want to check it out?
Jasper: Fear Fix is an homage to the amazing black and white comic magazines of the 70s, like Warren Comics’ Creepy and Eerie, or Skywald’s Psycho and Scream, as well as the amazing EC comics from the 50s and even DC’s horror comics like House of Mystery and House of Secrets. Each month it will feature a new self-contained stand-alone story of unspeakable horror, written by me and drawn by some of the best new artists from both mainstream and indie comics.

Like all of the horror comics I mentioned above, Fear Fix has a hideous horror host who introduces all the stories. Only the creepy keeper of this comic crypt is yours truly. That’s right, I’ve stepped into my own comic pages to become a character myself.

The first installment is up right now, it’s called A Bad Girl’s Guide to Making a Killing and you can read it right here.

Look forward to seeing you there.

Sharon: How did you decide on the art style you ended up going with? Will you use the same artist for each story? Who is your artist?
Jasper: The art style was decided by the two amazingly talented artists I worked with on this story. The intro and the outro pages are drawn by my long time collaborator, the quite awesomely talented Rob Moran, Rob and I will definitely work together again. The main story was drawn by an artist called Emily Hare, who is also ridiculously talented. She drew this story under the pen name Manon, but sadly, she decided, straight afterwards, that she didn’t want to be a comic artist and wanted to concentrate on her illustration work. Which is a sad loss to the world of graphic novels, but it does mean that Fear Fix showcases her one and only foray into comics, something that I am extremely honoured by.

Sharon: I asked this last year because Halloween was right around the corner. What are your family’s costume plans this year? You’d make a great Wonder Woman…just saying...
Jasper: Why, that’s most kind of you to say. We’re still making plans on costumes. I do know that my youngest daughter wants to go as a rather sinister looking Red Riding Hood, but the rest of us are still undecided.

Sharon: What’s for dinner tonight?
Jasper: I’ve developed a bit of a taste for the souls of alcoholic parking attendants of late, it’s the bleakness of their existence that adds all the flavour I think, but it’s a bit of an acquired taste, and they’re rather hard to come by, when they’re not in season.

So I think I’ll probably just go with roasted mediterranean vegetables, fired halloumi cheese and chickpeas and cous-cous.

Sharon: You live in England? If so, what is your favorite English phrase? Do you have a favorite American one?
Jasper: I don’t know if I have a favourite phrase, I like old antiquated English phrases of the kind the author P. G. Wodehouse, creator of Jeeves, would have used, such as ‘what ho!’, ‘pip, pip’ and ‘chin, chin’. I also like Scottish phrases like ‘peelie wally’, which means pale and ill, and ‘proper braw’ which means awesome. Unfortunately as I was born south of the Scottish border, I can never use any of those words in conversation. Attempting to do so, would be like a white guy from the Upper East side of Manhattan trying to talk like an African American kid from the West Coast.

My father, a blue collar guy with a black belt in swearing, also had his own unique turn of phrase. One example would be, whenever my sister and I were goofing around or messing about, he would shout: “you pair better stop pissballing and fartarsing around!!”

I don’t know if I have a favourite American phrase either, but one that sprang to mind, when you asked the question, comes from old films from the 40s and 50s. It usually occurs when some poor sap has riled the local bully. The great galoot, will chomp on his cigar, push his bowler to the back of his head, and lean into the poor guy, declaring, threateningly: “why I oughta...!” If he decides to pop the guy one, it will be followed by the phrase: “y’know what? I will too!”

Sometimes, I toy with the idea of writing a novel about a homicidal surgeon who removes hearts, entitled: ‘Why Aorta!’. But luckily, my meds usually kick in time for me to see sense and get on with something else.

Rapid Fire:

Sharon: Right handed or Left handed?
Jasper: I’m actually a bit ambidextrous.

Sharon: lick it or bite it?
Jasper: Lick it definitely, I like to prolong the pleasure for as long as possible.

Sharon: front row or back row?
Jasper: I’m a front row kinda guy, I like to be up close and personal. But I have quite an experimental past, so I’ve spent quite a bit of time on the back row as well (just don’t tell my wife...)

Sharon: Penguins or Hawk?
Jasper: Hawk, I love birds of prey.

Sharon: Little Bo Peep or Miss Muffet?
Jasper: For all kinds of reasons, that you couldn’t possible print, it definitely has to be Miss Muffet.

Jasper: Before I go, I’d also like to mention my brand spanking new Patreon page. If you’ve enjoyed this interview, or any of my books and comics, I’d be very obliged if you’d go check it out here. The page is a way for me to get closer to the people who read and support my work. It’s go some quite unique perks for everyone who gets involved. So I’d love to hear from you and what you think.

Thanks for having me. I had a blast.

Quiet Places: A Novella of Cosmic Folk Horror

by Jasper Bark

September 29, 2017

123 pages

Crystal Lake Publishing 

In the quiet of the forest, the darkest fears are born.

The people of Dunballan, harbour a dark secret. A secret more terrible than the Beast that stalks the dense forests of Dunballan. A secret that holds David McCavendish, last in a long line of Lairds, in its unbreakable grip.

It’s down to Sally, David’s lover, to free David from the sinister clutches of the Beast. But, with the whole town against her, she must ally herself with an ancient woodland force and trace Dunballan’s secret back to its bitter origins. Those origins lie within the McCavendish family history, and a blasphemous heresy that stretches back to the beginning of time. Some truths are too terrible to face, and the darkest of these lie waiting for Sally, in the Quiet Places. 

Quiet Places is folk horror at its most cosmic and terrifying. Blending folklore with psychological terror, it contains stories within stories, each one leading to revelations more unsettling than the last. Revelations that will change the way you view your place in the cosmos, and haunt you, relentlessly, long after you have put down this book.

Quiet Places is a novella in the Heresy Series story cycle and has been substantially rewritten and revised for this edition.

About the Author:

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Jasper Bark finds writing author biographies and talking about himself in the third person faintly embarrassing. Telling you that he’s an award-winning author of four cult novels including the highly acclaimed ‘Way of the Barefoot Zombie’, just sounds like boasting. Then he has to mention that he’s written 12 children’s books and hundreds of comics and graphic novels and he wants to just curl up. He cringes when he has to reveal that his work has been translated into nine different languages and is used in schools throughout the UK to help improve literacy, or that he was awarded the This Is Horror Award for his last anthology ‘Dead Air’. Maybe he’s too British, or maybe he just needs a good enema, but he’s glad this bio is now over.

Interview: Horror Author Kenneth W. Cain + giveaway

Sharon: Tell us about your next release: Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction.
Kenneth: Embers is a bit of a big deal for me in that Crystal Lake Publishing decided to take on the project. It’s a collection of 25 short stories, 3 of which are reprints. And while the stories aren’t related in any obvious way, there’s a thread that runs through them all the same. It’s slight, but it’s there.

Sharon: Do you prefer to read short horror stories or horror novels? Is writing short horror stories easier than a horror novel?
Kenneth: I read both actually, as well as listen to several podcasts that feature short stories. Typically I listen to podcasts or audiobooks while I ride my bike or mow the lawn, pretty much any chance I get. I’m a slow reader, so I often read short stories at the same time I read a longer works.

For me, the process is quite similar. Though I came out of the gates with a trilogy, I’ve learned quite a bit since then. I write what gels at the time, and I don’t worry about length. Letting my characters choose their lives is an important part of my current process, so I’m merely along for the ride. Sometimes that’s a short and quick hit, such as the stories in Embers. Other times it’s a long journey, which might require more time to finish and edit to make everything sync. I think in my case it’s the editing that takes the longest, so perhaps a novel length work is slightly more difficult in that way.
Sharon: What kind of biking do you do? Are you talking motorcycle or bicycle? Where do you like to ride?
Kenneth: Ha! I wish a motorbike, but my wife would kill me. It’s only a stationary bike to break up sitting around in a chair all day. I had some chronic pain issues for a long time that kept me mostly stationary, but I’ve gotten those somewhat under control now. So I’ve been riding that stationary bike in hopes of getting back in shape. It’s a long and slow process, but it affords me some time to read or listen to an audio-book.

I have a mountain bike, too, which I sometimes take out in the summer. But we’ve only lived in this house for two years, and it sits atop a steep hill, so I’ll have to work up to that. I’m getting there, though.

Sharon: You have two other collections. Tell us about the covers. Did you come up with that freaky little concept? (Tales collections)

http://amzn.to/2lE79cT  http://amzn.to/2mYPxcj

Kenneth: It’s kind of a funny story actually. I’d given up on writing and asked my wife Heather what I should with all “these old tales” which had been accepted at a press that went defunct. And it struck me then what to do with them. But Heather couldn’t have been more supportive at the time, though she didn’t like the idea of me giving up on my dream.

Originally I had some poetry thrown into the collection, basically anything I felt had some significance, and I hired this great cover artist, Philip R. Rogers, who I knew from the forums of that defunct press. I had this scene in mind with the play on tales/tails, and I was pretty specific about what I wanted for the cover art. Philip nailed the artwork, which made it easier for me to apply the graphic design I wanted.

Truth is I wouldn’t have come back to writing if it weren’t for Gene O’Neill, who left a message on my Facebook wall about how much he enjoyed the These Old Tales. Gene is one of the nicest writers I’ve met in this business, a truly inspiring guy and great writer. Since then, the poetry has been removed and the stories edited a couple times. But that process led to Fresh Cut Tales.

I’d gained a little confidence when I started Fresh Cut Tales. My only goal was to improve on These Old Tales, and I think I even mention that in the notes at the end of the collection. Anyway, I went into this one wanting the same play on tales/tails, but I thought the elegance of a rose in a vase would separate that cover from the last. The dead rose was sort of a play on beauty in death. It’s somewhat more frightful than the first cover in a way. Anyway, I hired Paul Michael Anderson to edit the collection and went out looking for blurbs. Among others, Mort Castle was kind enough to offer something, which I still very much appreciate. Mort has also been quite inspiring in my short career. He gave me the confidence I needed to move forward with Embers.

Sharon: Do you think the modern horror fan is desensitized by the constant use of gore, so stories like on The Twilight Zone, Outer Limits and Alfred Hitchcock don’t have the same impact like they did?
Kenneth: My daughter will watch horror films with me now and then, and she’s quite desensitized to the gore. It’s interesting for me to see her reactions, how they differ from my own. In fact, we watched several episodes of The Twilight Zone together, and she didn’t think them scary at all. She did like the plot twists and overall enjoyed the first season. So, in a way, yes—I do think readers have seen the gore to no end and have become slightly desensitized to it.

But there’s always that sense of wonder in people, a need to know what makes things tick. When we see horrific things on the news, we can’t help but wonder what made that person commit such terrible crimes. It’s that curiosity where stories like those depicted in The Twilight Zone and One Step Beyond exist. For instance, I do think many of us wonder what comes next, so it’s fun to play on the afterlife and speculate what that could be, even if it’s just slowly decomposing in a bed of worms.
Sharon: Great point about the curiosity… What was the last good horror movie you’ve seen?

Kenneth: My daughter started watching horror movies with my wife and I a couple years back. So she picks a lot of what we watch in that regard. The last one we caught was Sinister. My daughter is big on the jump scares, and Heather is terrified of most everything in those movies. Sometimes I’ll slam my hand down on the couch right when the music gets tense to scare them. It’s good for a few laughs.

Sharon: Finish this song lyric: I’m too sexy for my_______.
Kenneth: Lawn chair.

Sharon: Sticking with the music theme, what group(s) would you pick to create a soundtrack for Embers?
Kenneth: I’m so fond of Pink Floyd. I love their body of work and all the solo albums, so I guess I would choose Roger Waters. He’s always had a sort of vision I admire, his ability to move people with music. Though David Gilmour’s guitar can really convey emotion, so maybe I’d pick him. Wow, this is a tough question. Either way, I’d really want something atmospheric and filled with emotion.
Sharon: I’m a Floyd fan too! Saw them in concert back in the 90s. They have a haunting sound as opposed to a heavy metal sound. 
Kenneth: They’re my favorite band. I’ve seen them three or four times without Waters. Heather and I have seen Waters on tour six times. We’re hoping to catch his tour this year, too.

Sharon: Do you have a hobby or collect anything?
Kenneth: I’m a huge fan of baseball, especially the St. Louis Cardinals. So I collect baseball cards and other memorabilia. I also collect books I’ve really enjoyed. Perhaps my most passionate hobby, though, would be my reef tanks. I spend much of my free time tending to them.

Sharon: Cool! Beautiful tank. My husband keeps a salt water fish tank (90 gal) We like the Braves. Been to many Cardinal’s games?
Kenneth: Thanks. I’ve been in and out of saltwater tanks for 30 years. It’s quite the rewarding hobby. There’s nothing like taking a break and checking out the fish and corals. I’ve only recently started selling homegrown corals on the side.

I grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, and the Cardinals were close by, so you’d think I would’ve caught a bunch of games. But I think I saw them once or twice back then. Nowadays I try to catch a game or two whenever they’re in town. I also subscribe to MLB.TV, so I’m able to watch most of their games if I want.

Sharon: Truth or Dare?
Kenneth: Truth.
Katie: Have you ever eaten food resting on the top of a trash can?
Kenenth: A donut, once. But I was pretty hung-over, if that makes it sound any better. It was a dare in fact.

Sharon: If you could have any piece of art in the world, what would you pick?
Kenneth: This one is another tough question. I have a BFA in fine arts, so I’ve seen so many great works from so many different artists. I love strolling through an art museum, taking it all in. I have the added benefit of living close enough to the Barnes Foundation to have visited it on several occasions. The Barnes features works by so many great well-known artists that you find in books in most cases. But go big or go home, right? So I’d pick The Moses by Michelangelo. There’s something so mesmerizing about that statue.

Sharon: Nice choice…where would you place it?
Kenneth: Heather would skin me alive, but I’d figure out someway to fit it in my office. One way or another I’d get it in there.

Sharon: What is your favorite dipping sauce? What is your favorite thing to dip?
Kenneth: It’s not good for me, so I don’t have it often, but I love this Mango Habanero sauce from Dominoes. I’ll dip anything from crackers to hot wings in that sauce.

Rapid Fire:

Sharon: Attacked by a bear or a swarm of bees?
Kenneth: Since I’ve already experienced a swarm of bees I guess I’ll go with a good mauling by a bear.
Sharon: Please, elaborate!
Kenneth: Years ago I met this woman who was a big hiker. So I asked her out on a date and when she said yes, I took her to a local lake for a stroll around the perimeter. I’d brought along an old machete for brush, and at some point we came to a spot at the far end of the lake that was fully blocked. There I was hacking away at the shrubs, trying to make an opening, when I spotted a hive. I don’t think I’ve ever run faster. I tried to lose them by diving into the lake, but with the water being only a few inches deep, that didn’t do much more than bruise up my body. I abandoned the lake and handed my date a limb, thinking she could use the branch to scrape the dozen or so remaining bees off my back. She nearly beat me to death with that limb. I can’t help but laugh thinking back now, as it was quite the humorous adventure. Pretty easy to see why we never went on a second date, isn’t it?

Sharon: Coke or Pepsi?
Kenneth: Coke.
Sharon: *Leaves the room. Cursing heard. Enters room again. Glares. Eats Moon pie*

Sharon: Night owl or early riser?
Kenneth: Unfortunately, I’m a bit of both. I’ve never slept well, so it’s always a bit of a struggle for me. It feels like wasted time. Imagine all we could accomplish if we didn’t have to sleep.

Sharon: Scooby Doo or Cujo?
Kenneth: Wouldn’t it be awesome if we could combine those two? I guess if I had to choose, I’d go with Scooby.
Sharon: Yes! How about a Jekyll and Hyde version…? He would change whenever he got a Scooby snack.
Kenneth: Ha! Now that sounds fun.

Sharon: bionic arm or bionic eye?
Kenneth: I grew up watching the Six Million Dollar Man, and he had both, of course. But who hasn’t struggled with a jar of pickles or the like? So I guess I would go with the bionic arm.
Sharon: Me too! I was thinking of Steve Austin when I asked this.

Kenneth: I loved that show as a kid and recently showed my son the whole Bigfoot fight scene. He looked at me like I was crazy. I guess some shows hold up better in our memories.

Sharon: Alien or Predator?
Kenneth: Another tough choice, but I’ll go with Predator.

Sharon: crushed ice or cubed?
Kenneth: Cubed.

Do you have a link to a free short story online?

I’m currently giving away my novella Jade for those who sign up for my newsletter: http://eepurl.com/caUofP

Also, here’s a link to an excerpt from “In The Shadow of The Equine,” which is a story that’s in Fresh Cut Tales. It starts after the short essay I wrote for the Horror Writers Association’s Halloween Haunts event: http://horror.org/halloween-haunts-2013-equine-anatomy-by-kenneth-w-cain/

Buy links
$.99 kindle: http://amzn.to/2nIxjZV
print: http://amzn.to/2ogjxAM
https://kennethwcain.com/2016/12/27/embers/

Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction
by Kenneth Cain
only $.99
From the author of the short story collections These Old Tales and Fresh Cut Tales comes his latest effort, Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction. In his youth Cain developed a sense of wonderment owed in part to TV shows like The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, One Step Beyond and Alfred Hitchcock Presents. Now Cain seeks the same dark overtones in his writing. There’s a little something for every reader within this collection. These 25 short speculative stories represent the smoldering remains of a blaze, the fiery bits meant to ignite the mind with slow-burning imagery and smoky twists and turns. These are the very embers of Cain’s soul.

In this collection, Cain features stories of troubled men and women, both living and dead. Themes of loss and the afterlife take on many forms, as he explores the unknown. For instance, “The Chamber” focuses on a hardened veteran of World War II who has committed heinous crimes. He seeks only to find peace from his conscience, but sometimes that comes at a great loss. “Valerie’s Window” visits a small town amid a tragic end to humanity. Only things are not as they seem, and the more Valerie comes to know herself, the more her reality is revealed. “The Benefit of Being Weighty” has a humorous side, but the theme of this story revolves around fat shaming and the price one must pay for being so ignorant. Hopefully, these three short descriptions have increased your curiosity to read the book.

When the dark comes, light a match. Let the fire burn bright and hot. So that when it dies the embers warm you.
Table of Contents:
• The Chamber
• “Valerie’s Window”
• “A Window to Dream By”
• “Each New Day Unknown”
• “Gone”
• “Under the Drift of Snow is Another World”
• “Blackbird’s Breath”
• “Desolate”
• “Lost in the Woods”
• “Final Breaths”
• “Closer”
• “Flocking Birds”
• “Pirouette”
• “To Save One Life”
• “Of Both Worlds”
• “Breathing Cave”
• “Soul Tapped”
• “The Water People”
• “Water Snake”
• “Evolved”
• “Buried Beneath the Old Chicago Swamps”
• “The Bad Men”
• “Parasite”
• “Strip Poker, Crabs, and Blue Women”
• “The Benefit of Being Weighty”

About the Author:
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Kenneth W. Cain first got the itch for storytelling during his formative years in the suburbs of Chicago, where he got to listen to his grandfather spin tales by the glow of a barrel fire. But it was a reading of Baba Yaga that grew his desire for dark fiction. Shows like The Twilight Zone, The Outer Limits, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, and One Step Beyond furthered that sense of wonder for the unknown, and he’s been writing ever since.


Cain is the author of The Saga of I trilogy, United States of the Dead, the short story collections These Old Tales and Fresh Cut Tales, and the forthcoming Embers: A Collection of Dark Fiction. Writing, reading, fine art, graphic design, and Cardinals baseball are but a few of his passions. Cain now resides in Chester County, Pennsylvania with his wife and two children.

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an ecopy of Embers

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