The Interview - K.J. Jones, Author of Dark Humor Apocalypse Series Extinction Level Event

https://www.kjjonesing.com

Which character do you enjoy writing the most as a writer and why? If choosing a favorite character is like choosing a favorite child, which character do you find requires the most attention and detail from you as a writer?

My favorite is my male lead who steals my personal lines. He's the easiest POV to write through. My female lead is almost the secret woman so many modern women wish they were in her confidence, strength, and warrior ways. She is beyond the modern day female insecurities. Alas, my Southern redneck character, a beloved character for my fans, says all the impish things the rest of us wouldn't dare say. 

Can you explain your writing process? Do you prefer to create an outline and plan beforehand, or do you prefer to write more spontaneously and organically?

I'm a panzer writer.  I grow bored if I already know what will happen. 

What are some books or authors that you would recommend to our readers?

If this question is asking about our influences, mine transparently are Stephen King and Toni Morrison, which is a weird combo, don't you think? 

Like so many people today, I am oriented towards movies and TV. I write in the modern style of 'like reading a movie.' 

Have you been able to incorporate your previous experience in [jobs/education] in your writing?

Yes, I have been able to. There are many, many ways, including a background in the US Armed Forces. One of these is the characters' perception of time passing changes once our society or civilization is gone. This comes from being outside a first world/most developed country and noticing how our perception of time changed. You also experience a shrinking of your world--only the immediate world exists, as the characters experience. Us vs. Them grows very strong. 

Do you identify with your main character or did you create a character that is your opposite?

Three of my main characters have bits of me in them. They also have bits of other people in my life in them. My lead male constantly steals my joke lines! You know you have got some powerful characters when they are alive to you. They basically walk up to you and say, "Here I am and this is what I would say and do." 

Would you like readers to have any specific takeaway from your book?

As fans write about my series, they laugh at the jokes while being terrified from the realistic disaster scenario. Since the characters believe they are in a zombie apocalypse, I want you to never see that fiction entertainment genre the same way again. I'd love it if there are some facts readers come away with, such as medical, history, or culture. 

Do you have any unusual writing habits?

I often have to say the scenes out loud. People witnessing this think I have lost my mind, lol! 

As an author, what critique has been the most challenging for you to receive? On the other hand, what compliment has been the most rewarding?

In 2021, my Book One got hit on Amazon reviews by the extreme right who used political language instead of hate language. I loathe being dictated to about my politics. I lacked any right to be an individual, which infuriates me like a pissed off silver back gorilla having a fit. The lies they wrote was severely hard to take and created paranoia in me that I struggle with to this day. 

Alas, the more they attacked, the more violent the story became until heads are lopped off and put on stakes (it's their heads in my mind). 

I resorted to creating an identical series under a different tittle, Zombie, and pen name. Kat-Jo Jones, to get away from their horrorfest. 

What do I care about how they hate women and people of color or anyone different from them such as white ethnic Irish Catholic from Boston (the lead male)? The hubris of believing they can pick anything on Amazon and expect it to comply with their specialized extremist views, wow! 

This is a dark humored story with a lot of military combat vet smart-assery, as it tells in the blurb. The extremist in their dictatorship strictly forbid dark humor to exist and demanded every dialogue line must be read as dead serious no matter how outlandish the line was. How much I wanted to set them on fire and watch them burn, words cannot describe! 

These monsters disapproved of a woman author writing things about spec-ops military even. Wow, so what century are we in—the 19th? I felt like Mary Shelley authoring Frankenstein. Should I have published under "Anonymous" as she had to do on the first edition of her book in 1818? How far back do we want to go in this archaic, undiluted insanity that promises to destroy first world/most developed countries? 

On the flipside, I have a huge amount of fans who are downright addicted to my series! I constantly receive emails complimenting me on the series. It's still surprising that the series is so beloved after the horror and stress I went through from the extremists. I remain struggling with paranoia and self-doubt thanks to the extreme right's attacks. This series is great for cathartic violence we won't do in real life! 

To date, what is your favorite (or most difficult) chapter you have ever written?

My Catholic Irish background kicks in with embarrassment whenever I write a more sexual scene, lol! My forensic anthropology background kicks for descriptions in violent scenes, describing what someone's head did at the impact of bullet or how their head came off their necks. Those are fine for me. But I blush even editing more sexualized scenes. 

What is your take on book boyfriends? Do they actually exist? Or do they set the bar for “real life men” impossibly high?

My lead female’s “book boyfriend,” who is the lead male of the story, is realistic. He says dumb guy things to her that cause her to roll her eyes at him. Sometimes she punches him in the upper arm for something he has said, and then he critiques how strong of a punch that was, saying things like, “Babe, you’re still punching like a girl.” When she achieves a punch that causes him to cringe in pain, he is happy because that means she’s growing better at defending herself. When he does romantic things, it’s actually her that is a bit of the butthead—she laughs at the cheesiness. The duo have a great relationship that is heavily based on friendship and comradery as “brothers” in arms in the apocalypse. It’s been pointed out to me by female fans that they love how supportive he is of her being a badass warrior.

 I disbelieve in the unrealistic book boyfriend because it sets women’s bar way, way too high. In my life experience, guys who are too perfect like some of the book boyfriends are usually dangerous sociopaths who believe they “own” their women and that’s where the domestic violence, even murders of women, comes in. “Perfect” guys should make you run! My mom had Mr. Red Roses Too Soon, and I grew up in a hell hole of DV.

Have you ever experienced writer’s block? How did you deal with it?

For writer's block, drink!

Was there anything you had to research for the book?

Oh, my God, this series is nothing but research! It begins with having to know everything a large and varied cast would know and grows worse from there. For Book 8, I am a year into learning everything I can about radiation, argh! I have to study areas that I have not lived in. I have had to learn about agriculture. I have a "gun guy" to help me with that aspect because it gets complicated and you best get it right. I am now practically an expert on the Lakota Pine Ridge Reservation but I still have trouble with the Lakota language because all of that comes up in Book 8. Whenever I have hit a wall in research or knowledge on something, I use the POV of a character who would not know about it and will just produce funny snark about it. I do not need to know the Lakota language appropriately--I just use the POV characters who haven't a clue what they hearing. 

Did you have any say in the cover design?

Yes, I made the cover. 

What can we anticipate from you moving forward?

At this time of this interview, I am writing Book 8, Generation of the Damned, of the series. OMG, what happens is mind-blowing! Since the series is realism-based, what takes place in a heart wrenching realism for the scenario. 

Do you have any movie or tv adaptations in the works?

I want to. My fans want to see a streaming series of my series, which would fit perfectly. 

Did you always want to be an author? If not, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Actually, I have a master's in archaeology with an undergrad in anthropology. My master's was achieved in the UK—I'm American. It was a slight struggle to go from science report writing to fiction writing. But I have lived my whole life since I was small in my head, imagining things and making stories up—it didn't stop at age appropriate time. My mom and my grandmother wanted to write but never really pursued it. When I grew chronically sick, unable to work in my field, I began writing what my imaginary world had always been, and used the people I already knew. 

How long did it take you to write this book?

The first five books took me together merely 18 months. Then I came down with a chronic autoimmune disease and each book takes more than a year to create and publish.

Where do you like to write? In a coffee shop? In your home office? On the beach?

In my screened-in porch because I smoke like a chimney when I am writing. I also often need to drink sweet tea and dark rum to open myself up and slough off any self-conscious nonsense. Gotta be in the zone, seeing what the characters see, smelling what they smell, being there, and hearing them talk. 

Do you listen to music while you write? If so, what kind of music do you like to listen to?

I do very much depend on music while I write. It ranges from heavy metal, like Five Finger Death Punch, to rap. I am on the constant search of some music that helps inspire action scenes, which is actually quite difficult to find  and then not grow overly used to it. A lot of the time the action scenes are written to action scene movie soundtrack. 

Are any of the characters in your book based on people in your real life? If so, can you tell us more about that process and how it influenced your writing?

One of my characters even walks like someone who was in my life. Just picture the person and describe what you are seeing. 

Do you have any personal connection to the story or characters?

Several of the combat veteran characters are based on real life combat vets of the Iraq War, some of which did not get to come home.

Welcome to LIT LINC, the ultimate solution for your online book promotion needs, including Kindle book promotion, eBooks promotion, and global book marketing. We provide a range of services to help you promote your books, such as Kindle Unlimited book promotion, author interviews submission, article sharing, book posting, and eBook sharing. Our goal is to assist you in reaching your target audience and increasing your sales, which is why we offer affordable packages to fit every budget. We invite you to visit our website today to get started with promoting your books to a wider audience.

LitLinc   © All Rights Reserved - 2024