Author Interview: Jason Greensides

Do you have a favorite character you’ve created?

Nathan Dawes from The Distant Sound of Violence. He doesn’t fit in with regular society, has a philosophic turn of mind, and is helpless when it comes to the opposite sex. His heart is in the right place, but he has a need to submit to higher principles. This makes him sacrifice himself, and sometimes those around him, for the sake of a noble cause.

Everyone likes to compare. What book, TV show, or movie would you say has the most similarity to your books?

 Any book or film featuring ‘outsider’ types, particularly the novels of Paul Auster. I also love the New Hollywood films of the 1970’s.

What made you decide to publish your first book?

The real need I had was to simply write it. Publishing, at least for me, was merely a consequence and end point of that process.

Your favorite book and why? (Not written by you)

The Crimson Petal and the White by Michel Faber. It has compelling characters, a world to get lost in and, most of all, it is beautifully – stunningly – written. Everybody should read it.

Best writing advice for newbie authors?

Write what you love. Have something to say about the world and say it. You must have a point of view, as this will be the key to developing your authorial voice. Read different genres, including non-fiction. Read plenty of guides on the basics of writing, then take on board the primary advice they all agree on: Write. Read. Write. Read. Write…

Do you have children? I’m sure you have an abundance of embarrassing moments if you do. Shout out the most embarrassing one you’re willing to share.

No kids yet ;)

Best mode of transportation: Unicorn or Dragon?

Dragon.

Favorite movie of all time?

Mulholland Drive by David Lynch.

Favorite song or artist/band?

I can’t answer that, but my favourite genres are Classical, jazz, and…er… Norwegian Black metal…? *Coughs and hangs head in shame*

Night or Day?

Day. I know people love to party on a Friday and Saturday night, but if I had my way, people would be partying on a Monday afternoon.

Gremlins or Goonies:

Gremlins. I rewatched The Goonies recently and I was not impressed.

Superman or Batman:

I’m sorry, neither. I can’t be dealing with all this superhero stuff. Erggh! OK! Superman! He can at least fly…

Silence while writing or music blasting:

When writing a first draft I can just about cope with instrumental music low in the background. Editing, however – forget it! Silence!

Coffee or Tea:

Coffee. Black. And not the posh stuff, either. The cheap instant crap. The kind they’d serve to a trucker in some cheap and sleazy diner.

Stephen King or Dean Koontz:

King.

I know this is going to be hard…. share only three sentences from any of your books.

All three are from The Distant Sound of Violence:

- He was like the positive curvature of space: begin with him, keep moving in a straight line, and you’ll always end up at the same point from which you began.

- If she’d come into the living room and peeked through the velvet curtains, she’d have seen a young man, half-hidden by rosebushes, staring up at the house with yearning and hope; this boy now cradling his head in the moonlight, hair ruffled by the midnight breeze, so consumed by solitude he was willing to die for her.

- As it was, the last thing Fahad heard before the bags fell to his feet, Aniseed Balls spilling across the road, was the clattering rasp of a broken exhaust, the scream of tyres, and the unintelligible utterance of a teenage mind gone haywire.

Share the opening line from up to three of your books.

Opening line from The Distant Sound of Violence: ‘You can’t change the size of fire.’

What are you currently working on?

My second novel. It’s another literary coming-of-age mystery about the investigation into a boy’s suicide.

When do you anticipate another release?

Around the middle of 2016.

Bio

Jason Greensides has a degree in Video Production and Film Studies and has made several short films, two of which have been broadcast on television – but writing fiction is his real passion.

He’s interested in ‘outsider’ types, people operating on the edge of society. This inspired him to write his first novel, The Distant Sound of Violence. It’s about a group of kids, one in particular, Nathan Dawes, whose philosophical obsessions and criminal connections have made him an outcast at school.

Jason is now working on his second novel, another coming-of-age mystery, but on coffee breaks he blogs and tweets about writing, and throws in the occasional book review.

His debut novel, The Distant Sound of Violence, will be on $0.99 / £0.99 Amazon Kindle promotion between Tuesday 29^th September and Sun 4^th October.

Amazon link for The Distant Sound of Violence mybook.to/TDSOV

Other links:

Website: jasongreensides.com

Facebook: facebook.com/jasongreensidesauthor

Twitter: twitter.com/jasongreensides

Google Plus: plus.google.com/+JasonGreensides

Pinterest: pinterest.com/jasongreensides

Goodreads: goodreads.com/Jason_greensides

Have a great day. Read a book and laugh!