HORROR AUTHOR INTERVIEW : PATRICK MALLOY

BANG BANG BY PATRICK MALLOY

 Patrick Malloy is a writer and lawyer from the charming borough of Narberth, Pennsylvania, about one mile from Philadelphia. After bouncing around the country for a few years, Patrick now lives in Philadelphia with his beautiful wife and his hyperactive dog, Baloo the Kai Ken. When not writing or doing lawyery things in suits, Patrick enjoys dive bar food and bad 80s music. 

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HORROR AUTHOR PATRICK MALLOY

Could you tell the readers a little bit about yourself?

My name is Patrick Malloy. I am from Philadelphia and I have a soul made of Disney movies and dark beer.

Do you prefer the term Horror, Weird Fiction or Dark Fiction?

Weird Fiction sums it up the best. Horror makes it sound a little too skewed toward only scaring the reader rather than character development/etc, whereas Dark Fiction makes it sound a little too “Hot Topic-y.” Weird Fiction covers that wide range of Steven King to Edward Lee with anything off the beaten path in-between. 

Who are some of your favourite authors?

For whatever reason I’ve always loved Southern writers so Faulkner, Twain, Flannery O’Connor and John Kennedy Toole off the top of my head.

What was the last great book you read, and what was the last book that disappointed you?

“The Half-Made World” by Felix Gilman was a great read that I finished lately. Gilman has an amazing talent for creating bizarre, believable worlds which is something I’ve been trying to improve on in my own writing. The most disappointing book that I recently tried to read was “The Cuckoo’s Calling” by Robert Galbraith aka JK Rowling which was like being caught in traffic without gas.

How would you describe your writing style?

I’ve always described my style as Twain-y, because I purposefully lifted Mark Twain’s style which I love so much. Most of his work has this strange, sassy, omnipresent narrator commenting on every little thing about the story, the characters, and society which I’ve found is a fun style to read and write.

Are there any reviews of your work, positive or negative that have stayed with you?

One reviewer on Goodreads said that “parts were sad, parts were funny, and it holds a record for the number of characters vomiting” or something along those lines. No other reader has understood my vision so perfectly.

What’s your favourite food?

Buffalo anything (the sauce, not the animal).

Who would be on the soundtrack to your life story?

Any band/singer with a synthesizer. So probably the entire “St Elmo’s Fire” soundtrack.

What’s the most important lesson you have learned about writing?

Writers change and stories change, usually over the course of a single work. Going in with one idea and coming out with something else entirely is all a part of the process.

What aspects of writing to do you find the most difficult?

Editing. There’s nothing worse than rereading your own work and realizing you did something unbelievably stupid. Recently I came across a “their” versus “they’re” situation during preliminary edits and realized that when I’m in the zone my literacy sinks to the level of an internet troll.

How do you think you’ve evolved creatively?

I’ve definitely become more detail-oriented. Things like weather and other subtler details can really make or break a scene for the reader, so finding a way to work them in without getting Tolkien-level specific has been something I’ve focused on recently.

What is the best piece of advice you ever received from another author?

Being a writer doesn’t stop at publication. With technology and sites like Goodreads and Amazon, the real work starts when the writer becomes a promoter. Interaction with readers and self-promotion is key at every level from local bookstores to international websites.

Who is your favourite character from your book and why?

My favourite character is Grace McOlta, the daughter of one of the serial killers in “Bang Bang.” I guess she’s my favourite because she seems to resonate the most with my readers.

How about your least favourite character?  What makes them less appealing to you?

Since “Bang Bang” was my first novel, it began to take shape a while back (2008), and I wanted the comic relief to be based on the Italian guidos that I knew growing up in the Philadelphia/Jersey area. When I started writing the character Vinny there was no such thing as Jersey Shore, but by the time the book was published, guidos were the nation’s new lazy joke on par with “That’s what she said” or nerds in 80’s movies. So if I had known that Jersey Shore was going to make the character seem like a lazy joke, I would have altered the character a little more, strictly to keep out the impression that I was jumping on a bandwagon.

Fame, fortune, or respect?

I’d love to say respect, but I’ll take fortune if you’re offering.

What piece of your own work are you most proud of?

The world that I created for “Bang Bang” was a dystopian version of my own city, Philadelphia, which gave me a mix of hometown pride and creative pride simultaneously.

Can you tell us about your last book, and can you tell us about what you are working on next?

My last book was my first book, “Bang Bang,” about two funeral home workers in a dystopian future where pharmaceuticals grant immortality, so they turn to serial killing. “Bang Bang” was the dark comedy I’d always wanted to write. Right now I’m working on a few things ranging from steampunk to western, but most likely up next is an urban fantasy about a retired hitman getting involved in some pulpy New Orleans voodoo. I’ve always wanted to write something mixing crime and supernatural elements, so it’s been a lot of fun even though I’m on the third round of preliminary edits, and editing is boring.

What's the one question you wish you would get asked but never do?

“Hey, aren’t you Jon Hamm?”


FIND OUT MORE ABOUT PATRICK FROM THE FOLLOWING LINKS 

Website: I should get one of these.

Blog: I should probably get one of these too.

Facebook: Now I feel like an old man, I don’t even have an author page on FB.

Twitter: 

Amazon Author Page

Smashwords: 

Goodreads:

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