Interview conducted by MyMiserys (aka Kimberly Cook)
1. How old were you when you wrote what you consider your first story?
About ten or eleven years old I think. My memory is horrible, so I can't be certain. I was in the forth or fifth grade. I don’t remember the title (horrible memory, remember) but I do remember it was a haunted house story full of monsters and floating heads.
2. What inspired you to write it?
It was a school assignment. I was always a horrible student, but for some reason I really got into the spirit of this assignment. The story seemed to impress the teacher. He took me aside after reading it and encouraged me to continue writing. I'm lucky this was the early 80s. If I'd written this in the 90s or the double Os they probably would have locked me up.
3. What was the first book you wrote?
My first book was a short action/hero novel called Some Kind of Hero. It wasn’t very good, but it was a great learning experience.
4. Of all the books you've written, which is your favorite?
Sex, Death & Honey. Nothing supernatural, just a fun protagonist, a sexy heroine, and lots of action. It’s a limited hardcover novella, but I’m going to expand it to novel length and try to resell the paperback rights. If it sells I’d like to make it the first in a series.
5. Which book would you like to forget you wrote?
Black Day. I wish that one would just go away.
6. Who is the most influential person in your life?
I’m not sure exactly how to answer that. There have been influential writers, Stephen King, E.A. Poe, and Charles Grant to name just a few, but I can’t think of anyone who has been influential on a personal level. There are people who compliment me on my work, tell me they love my books, but those compliments always freak me out a little bit. Don’t get me wrong, I love it, but I always have a sneaking suspicion they’re full of shit. No one in my life really inspires me or influences me to write, or influences what I write.
7. Who is your favorite author?
Douglas Adams. It’s a shame he had to leave us so soon.
8. If you could only own one book, what would it be?
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, omnibus edition. All of the Hitchhiker stories (excluding the sixth and final book And Another Thing, written by Eoin Colfer) in one volume. Ha! Thought you could limit me to just one, did you? Take that!
9. When and where do you write?
Whenever possible I like to work outside. My favorite time is from Dusk until exhaustion makes me stop. I love working outside. Then that isn’t possible, anywhere I can. My favorite new gadget is my Ipod Touch, and my favorite new application is a program that lets me create and edit DOC files. It’s like having a pocket sized laptop. I can literally write anywhere now.
10. Do you have a "day job?"
Yep. Same one for ten years now.
11. Do you have a "dream job?"
Yep. The one I’ve been trying to turn into a fulltime thing for around fifteen years.
12. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?
New Mexico or Florida. Someplace warm and within walking distance of a large body of water I can fling myself into. How much water is there in New Mexico, anyway? Any snow? I hate snow. If I never had to see another snow drift or icy road I could die a semi-happy man.
13. What is your guilty pleasure?
Theoretical physics, quantum mechanics, and cosmology. Learning about the deepest and strangest laws that govern our universe, and sometimes even understanding them.
--Kimberly Cook
(The Black Glove thanks Brian for his time and efforts. Visit him at his official website: http://brian-knight.com/ )
