Jeremy Robinson is a prolific writer who is truly living the dream of being a successful author of thrillers, chillers, and mayhem. He was a great sponsor of last years Geek Gala, and we wanted to see what he was up to these days and ask him a few more questions.
1. Jeremy, your book Xom-b came out last year and gave readers an incredibly unique and innovative take on the zombie drama. Unfortunately, there was a problem with the title that very few authors have to deal with. Can you talk about that?
Grumble, grumble, sure. I pitched the book with the name Freeman, after the book’s main character. That didn’t go over well with the marketing people so we went through nearly a hundred alternate titles. One of them was Xom-B. The one my editor and I agreed on was Uprising, but Xom-B was a favorite at the office and that’s what they went with. Flash forward to the book’s release and sales aren’t anywhere what anyone expected. It was my best book, and everyone loved the package, but only about 50% of people could pronounce the title. Apparently, not everyone knows and X at the beginning of a word is pronounced as a Z. Some people looked at it in an thought it said X-om-B. I even spoke to one person who read it as X-Bomb. Sale struggled and most everyone agreed it was because of the title, which has been changed to Uprising for the mass market edition.
2. What new work can we look forward to on the horizon?
The short answer is, a crap-ton. The long answer is, after MirrorWorld I’m launching a new pen name, Jeremiah Knight, whose first novel is Hunger, the first of three post-apocalyptic novels. Then comes Herculean, a new novel spin-off from my Jack Sigler thriller series. Then comes the second Jeremiah Knight series, The Berserker Saga, a post-apocalyptic Viking trilogy. Then comes two new Kaiju novels, Apocalypse Machine, and Project Hyperion, the fourth Nemesis novel. And speaking of Nemesis, a comic book adaptation of Project Nemesis is being launched in September! All of that, and a little bit more, is happening between now and November. To stay up to date on all of this (and more, like the Jack Sigler movie) visit www.bewareofmonsters.com and sign up for the newsletter!
3. You have written about all kinds of monsters, everything from megalomaniacal robots, to biblical bohemians of the ocean, to kaiju, and so much more. Which of your monsters holds a special place in your heart for its terrifying qualities?
My favorite monster has to be Nemesis, because she’s more than a simple monster. While she is a giant, city destroying, people eating behemoth to rival Godzilla, she’s also got a real soul. Created from the DNA of Nemesis, the mythological goddess of vengeance, and that of a murdered little girl, she’s consumed by the need to avenge her own death. Despite the fact that she’s laying waste to cities and eating countless people, you can’t help but hope she reaches her goal and gets her revenge. She’s cool in a horrible monster kind of way, but also sympathetic. I think that’s why she’s become so popular, spawning a video game “Fall of Nemesis” and an upcoming comic book adaptation.
4. Robinsonfest, this is an upcoming event in June, but it is not just a literary sci-fi/horror festival. What and who do attendees have to look forward to?
Robinsonfest is going to be a smallish gathering of fans from around the world and it’s really just a time to kick back with fellow fans, me, and some of my co-authors and contributors. We’re going to tour some locations featured in the books, including a Nemesis cruise, have a few panel discussions with co-authors and one of my narrators, hit some great restaurants, and give away a bunch of books.
5. This year’s theme for the Geek Gala is Monster Mash. Thinking back to the original Godzilla movies, what do you see him more as, big cuddly lizard, who was a good dad, or cranky monster who just wanted to stamp out the human race?
While I recognize and appreciate the Godzilla who stomps out the human race, my heart belongs to the dancing heroic and sometimes corny Godzilla. That’s the one who inspired me to clomp up and down the neighborhood after the snow plow went by, fighting imaginary Gigans and Megalons. That said, as an adult, Godzilla 2000 is my favorite Godzilla (monster and movie). It has everything I love about the movies and I got to see it in the theater. So it was an amazing experience for me.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGNhLZuD6a8]
What did I tell you? This is a crazy busy man. Thank you Jeremy for spending some more time with us and supporting the Geek Gala. Click on the links above and find out more about his work and where you can hunt him down.
Look for reviews of Jeremy’s books in the future.
