Predator blog tour ~ Author Interview

Join me in giving a big warm welcome to Janice Gable Bashman!!!!

Welcome to the blog Janice!

Let’s start with some basics!

Tell us about yourself? Where are you from? Do you have any pets? What was your first book? Those kind of things.

 Predator is my first novel and my first solo book project. It was so much fun to write. I wrote my first book, Wanted Undead or Alive (non-fiction) with Jonathan Maberry.

 I live in the suburbs of Philadelphia with my family. I have lived in this area for most of my life except for when I attended college and worked in New York City for a few years after graduating. I was always into playing spots growing up – softball and basketball. Today, I’m more into exercising on the treadmill. I had a cat named Pele’ who loved to bat a ball around the house, but he died a few years ago, so I’m pet-free at the moment.

I enjoy reading. I always have a huge and varied pile of books waiting to be read and am open to suggestions in any genre. I’m into photography and have been for as long as I can remember. I also love to travel. And spending time with my friends and family is very important to me.

When would you say you first considered yourself an author?

I considered myself a writer when I published my first article in 2006. But it wasn’t until I published my first book a few years ago that I considered myself an author.

How did you come up with the title Predator?

Wolves are predatory creatures that must hunt to survive. Werewolves take this to the extreme. The rogue soldiers in the novel become unstoppable killing machines, so the title seemed fitting.

What did you base your ideas off of when writing Predator?

I came across some articles on bog bodies and was fascinated by how the bodies were preserved and how the people died – most were murdered. I’ve always been interested in science and genetic engineering. And, I researched and wrote about werewolves in Wanted Undead or Alive, so it all naturally came together, with a lot of hard work of course.

Did you get inspiration from a song or pictures? If so can you share that with us?

There wasn’t a particular song or picture that inspired Predator as a whole, but I did get inspiration from pictures when writing particular scenes. I found pictures of bog bodies, bogs, werewolves, and other items related to the book and used them to help me visualize the scenes.

How do you keep track of your world? Do you have spread sheets, post its, or just tables and tables of stuff?

First I create an extensive outline of the book. Then I make a character list in a separate document. Once that is completed, I use a Post-it to represent each chapter by writing a brief description, chapter number, and main characters for the chapter on the Post-it. The Post-its are then placed sequentially onto a tri-fold science fair display board that stands on the floor of my office. This process gives me a visual feel for the novel and enables me to see its structure all at once. I can move the Post-its however I wish to see how things would look if I changed the ordering of the chapters.

Can we expect a series from this world? If so will it be same characters or different characters same world?

Predator is a stand-alone novel, but can easily spin out into a series of YA novels.

Who is your favorite author to read?

There are so many good writers out there it’s hard to pick just one. I love reading P.T. Deutermann—thriller writer, Walter Mosley—never disappoints, Mark Bowden—non-fiction writer, and Tim O’Brien—explores the Vietnam War through his fictional characters. Young adult writers whose books I enjoy reading are Jandy Nelson, John Green, Jonathan Maberry, Nancy Holder, Veronica Roth, Marie Lu, Jay Asher, J.K. Rowling, Allen Zadoff, Markus Zusak, and many others.

How do you pick a book online or in a store? Do you look at covers or actual book blurbs?

I prefer to look for books in a physical bookstore. I like to check out the cover, read the blurbs and the back cover copy, and then read a few pages to see if I’m interested in the book.

What was the hardest part about writing your book?

I had to make sure all the science was plausible within the plot of the book. Creating super soldiers had to have a scientific base that made sense. Making sure readers understood that science amid the high pace and high action was important. I gave readers only the information they needed and not a bit more so that the science didn’t drag down the story.

And since we are a nerd blog… do you nerd out about anything (i.e. starwars, comics, amine, tv?)

I never miss an episode of The Big Bang Theory – I love it. I always have. The characters are fantastic and the show always makes me laugh.

How do you define a nerd?

I think a nerd is a person who has a passion for a particular subject (for me it was the TV show M*A*S*H) and devours everything about it. They are intelligent people who are highly-knowledgeable in their area of expertise and enjoy sharing that knowledge with others.

Anything extras you want to share with the readers or feel that we should know?

I interviewed a world-famous geneticist to help me figure out how to create the werewolves using modern-day science and how it can go horrible wrong. I hope readers enjoy the book and that they relate to the themes of loss, hope, strength, and perseverance that inform it. Predator is fast-paced with lots of action, romance, and suspense—it should be fun read.

Here’s the blurb for Predator:

Sixteen-year-old Bree Sunderland must inject herself with an untested version of her father’s gene therapy to become a werewolf in order to stop a corrupt group of mercenaries from creating a team of unstoppable lycanthrope soldiers.

When Bree went with her scientist father to Ireland, she thought it would be a vacation to study bog bodies. She never expected to fall in love with a mysterious young Irishman and certainly never expected to become the kind of monster her father said only existed in nightmares.

Dr. Sunderland discovers that lycanthropy was not a supernatural curse but rather a genetic mutation. When they return home, her dad continues his research, but the military wants to turn that research into a bio weapons program and rogue soldiers want to steal the research to turn themselves into unstoppable killing machines. Bree’s boyfriend Liam surprises her with a visit to the United States, but there are darker surprises in store for both of them.

As evil forces hunt those she loves, Bree must become an even more dangerous hunter to save them all. Predator gives the werewolf legend a couple of new spins by introducing the Benandanti (an actual folkloric belief that certain families of Italy and Livonia were werewolves who fought against evil) as well as a modern scientific approach to mutation and the science of transgenics.

 She will become the thing she hates, to protect those she loves!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Janice Gable Bashman is the Bram Stoker nominated author of PREDATOR (Month9Books 2014) and WANTED UNDEAD OR ALIVE (w/NEW YORK TIMES bestseller Jonathan Maberry) (Citadel Press 2010). She is editor of THE BIG THRILL (International Thriller Writers’ magazine). Her short fiction has been published in various anthologies and magazines. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, Mystery Writers of America, Horror Writers Association, and the International Thriller Writers, where she serves on the board of directors as Vice President, Technology.

www.janicegablebashman.com

https://www.facebook.com/JaniceGableBashmanAuthor

https://twitter.com/janicebashman

  

Thank you so much for joining us today I can’t wait to read Predator!

Thanks so much for having me. It’s been fun.