Interview with author, Michael Brookes

Ever since I put out my book, The Darkness of the Womb, I've met a lot of independent writers, mostly on Goodreads. I thought I'd interview some of them because 1: I like interviewing people (It takes me back to my old journalism days), and 2: I find that independent writers are really fascinating. Today, I'm interviewing writer and game producer, Michael Brookes. Let's see what he has to say.

(Image taken from: Goodreads)

According to your blog, The Cult of Me, you are a game producer by day. What kind of games do you produce?

I work at one of the leading game develops here in the UK - Frontier Developments. I've worked on a number of titles - RCT3, Thrillville, Kinectimals, LostWinds and I'm currently working on Elite: Dangerous, which is pretty cool as this is the sequel to the game that got me into gaming back in the mid-eighties.

You also say that you're a writer by night. What kind of books and stories do you write?

I tend to write horror (ish) stories, generally with a metaphysical flavour. I've recently branched into science fiction with my novel Faust 2.0 and I have just completed the first draft for Sun Dragon, the story about the first manned mission to Mars.

One of your books is actually called "The Cult of Me". You seem to really like that title. What does it mean to you?

When I was coming up with the title for that novel it fitted the idea of the story (about a person who centres everything on himself and is able to mould people around him to the same way of thinking). I also like the sound of it, so I used it for my blog as well.

You have done a lot of author interviews on your blog. Is there any reason why you've chosen to support so many independent writers?

I found the indie author scene to be full of helpful people, so I decided that I want to give something back so I do what I can to help promote other indie authors. It's also a great way to meet new authors.

It is! What is your favorite song, and why do you love it so much?

Always a tricky question to reduce it to one choice! I'll go with the 'Mythhistory' by a band called Sabbat. The reason is mainly for the lyrics which are simply superb:

Mother, sister, virgin, whore
She is all these, and yet still more
That I could to understand,
She takes my heart, I take her hand

And can you blame me?
Is it such a crime?
To crave for one small piece of Heaven.
that I can call mine.

Wonderful lyrics.

One of your favorite things to do is sleep when you have the time (Which seems to be rarely). What's the craziest dream you've ever had?

Another tricky question as I tend to only remember fragments. I like falling dreams though, there's something quite awesome about leaping from asteroid to asteroid or jumping into the Sun.

I see that you like to write horror. Do you also like to read horror? And if so, who are your favorite authors in the medium?

I do enjoy reading horror and have a number of authors I love reading, as well as the classics like Poe and Lovecraft I also like contemporary authors like King and James Herbert. Clive Barker is also my favourite horror writer.

There's also some great indie horror writers, David Haynes and Kit Tinsley stand out for me.

Two part question: If you could have any superpower, what would it be, and with this power, would you be a hero or a villain? Why?

I would be a villian on the face of it, but I would be using my powers to change the world for good. I love the juxtaposition of bad people doing good things for the wrong reasons.

My choice of superpower is a bit trickier, I would probably go for something boring like being able to read people's minds and see the secrets hidden there.

What are you currently working on and where can we find it?

I'm currently working on 'An Odder Quintet' which is the follow up to my previous short story collection:

A quartet of dark short stories (10,000 words total) each with a twist in the tale. The drabble enhanced edition also contains some of my favourite drabbles (100 word stories).
The Yellow Lady
Grave robbing is a dirty business, in more ways than one. When he disturbs the grave from a childhood scary story he discovers it's not always treasure to be found.

This Empty Place
At the heat death of the universe, Death contemplates his existence.

Forced Entry
Terrorists seize an average suburban house. A Special Forces hostage rescue team is sent in and encounter more than they were trained for.

The Reluctant Demon
A young demon prepares to take his possession exam.

Available from:
Amazon (US): http://www.amazon.com/An-Odd-Quartet-...
Amazon (UK): http://www.amazon.com/An-Odd-Quartet-...
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/an-od...
iTunes (US): https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id63...
iTunes(UK): https://itunes.apple.com/uk/book/id63...
Kobo: http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/An-Odd...

Do you have any last thing that you want to talk about or plug?

I do - thanks. I run a monthly short fiction contest on my blog. There's no entry fee and you could win a £50 Amazon gift card. Find out more at this month's competition page:

http://thecultofme.blogspot.co.uk/p/w...