Author Interview with Rusty Fischer + Giveaway!

Its Easter Fever! Happy Easter everyone! Today, here in Palm Books Journal, I am very honored to introduce a very awesome and talented author of Zombies Don' Cry: A Living Dead Love Story, none other than, Mr. Rusty Fischer! I am very thrilled and honored that he accepted to be interviewed! His book, Zombies Don't Cry will be out this coming May 1st! Don't forget to get your own copy of this awesome book!

If you haven't read my review of Zombies Don't Cry, you can check it out here! This is my second author interview plus another giveaway! Without further ado, let's begin! :]

About The Author

A former high school teacher, Rusty Fischer has worked for the best-selling educational magazines The Mailbox, Learning and Bookbag. His work teens and young adults has been published in Seventeen, Stories for a Teen Heart, and Chicken Soup for the Preteen Soul.

Visit Rusty Fischer here: Blog | Goodreads

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"The plot is brilliant! How did you come up on writing Zombies Don't Cry? Is there someone or something that inspires you to write it?"

RF: Thank you! I will say that this book went through many lives before it emerged as what you read in Zombies Don’t Cry. Once upon a time it was called Have a Nice Afterlife, and started with Maddy already being a zombie with no real back story. My very helpful agent at the time suggested that it would be more interesting if we found out HOW she became a zombie, and that changed things a lot!

"Based on your great, funny and cool characters, are they related to someone you know or you just made them all up?"

RF: They are totally made up people that I picture in my mind when I sit down to write. In fact, I often get to know the characters before I figure out what story to put them in! But even though they’re fictional, I feel like I know them in my head. I can see them in my mind, what they look like, hear their voice, watch them walk down to the cemetery or stand in front of the mirror in their prom dress full of grave dirt! Once you get to know them that well, telling the story gets easier…

"What is the best and not-so-good part on writing this story?"

RF: The best part is getting to go into this new, secret world of zombies and create these laws, these rules, these characters and then watch them all go to town. That’s actually pretty fun. The not-so-good part is keeping track of all the laws and rules and characters and making sure you’re giving them enough time and paying attention to the details! That’s like… work!

"Was it challenging for you to write something on a girl's point of view?"

RF: Not really. A lot of people ask me that, especially since I’m not just a guy but a 43-year-old guy! But when I stepped into Maddy’s character, I wasn’t really thinking boy or girl, young or old; she was just this young friend of mine who had a story to tell. I didn’t want her to be too strong or too weak, too masculine or too feminine. That’s why her name is vaguely tom-boyish, but not too. That’s why I don’t go to great pains to describe her physically, except for when she “goes zombie.”  I really wanted whoever was reading it, 17-year-old girl or 43-year-old guy to kind of see him- or herself in that situation and relate to her. I hope that’s what I accomplished!

"What are your resources and references on writing this novel?"

RF: The great thing about zombies is that they’re kind of this wide open field. Unlike vampires, which have this very specific lore involving garlic and mirrors and stakes and bats, or even werewolves with their full moons and silver bullets, zombies are kind of like a blank canvas. So my research was really my imagination and trying really hard to stay away from the dead-eyed, shuffling zombies you see in so many movies, on TV and in other books.

"Who designed this great cover?"

RF: The cover was designed by the great, wise and talented James Tampa of Medallion Press! If you liked the one he did for Zombies Don’t Cry, wait’ll you see the one he did for my next book, Vamplayers (right):

"If Zombies Don't Cry turned to be a movie. Who would you like to portray: Maddy, Stamp and Dane?"

RF: Ha! Good question! I will say that I never thought that far ahead (I had non-celebrity types pictured in my head while I wrote), but the publisher asked me this same question once upon a time so I forced myself to think long and hard about it. For Maddy, I would definitely see someone pretty, smart and funny, like a Kat Dennings (Thor; Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist). Stamp is more like a Brandon Routh (Superman; Dylan Dog) type; strong and silent who maybe can’t keep up with Maddy but loves her anyway. For Dane, that’s a tough one. Maybe a younger Paul Walker (Fast and Furious, Takers) type with a shaved head?!?!? Someone tough and sensitive but with a massive smart aleck side as well.

"I am very intrigued for this question. Are you planning to make a sequel for this book?"

RF: I definitely have an outline on tap, and very definite thoughts on what I’d like to see happen to Maddy, Dane and Stamp, but we’ll have to see how Zombies Don’t Cry sells first!!!

"What are you currently working on? Can you tell us a little about it?"

RF: Right now I’m gearing up to do the first round of edits on my next book from Medallion, Vamplayers! It’s about this awesome team of kick-butt vampire chicks who go undercover in America’s high schools trying to sniff out the Vamplayer; part-vampire, part-player whose job it is to cause an infestation in the town, from the high school out. It’s my first non-zombie book, but I wanted to do something with vampires because I think they’re so cool. I hope you like it!  

Lastly, to your readers, what would you like to say?

RF: Hey, have an open mind! I hear from a lot of readers that zombie books aren’t their thing, but… this isn’t your regular zombie book!!!

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Thank you very much for stopping by here in my blog, Mr. Fischer! I am very honored! I really enjoyed reading the interview as well. And so as the book, of course!  I definitely agrees with Mr. Fischer, that this is not just a regular zombie book! You're gonna love this one! Congratulations on your book Mr. Fischer! We'll be waiting more from you! :] If you haven't checked my review on Zombies Don't Cry. Visit here.

And now, for the:

Zombies Don't Cry Giveaway!

This Giveaway is now closed. Winners will be posted soon. Thank you for participating to this contest! :D