Who is Sean Cummings – give us the low down.
He’s just a 42 year old geek who lives in Saskatoon Canada and who was influenced by a series of comic books back in the late 1970’s called “Werewolf by Night”. It was, for me at least, the starting point for a life long love affair with urban fantasy. I’ve been writing with a goal of having a book published since my son was in diapers – he’s turning twenty this year. That said, I have always wanted to have an urban fantasy series set in Canada, so when I started outlining Shade Fright, it seemed like there was a lot to work with if I injected a bit of Canadiana into the novel. I’m from Calgary Alberta, Canada, so it’s the setting for most of what I write.
Shade Fright is told in Valerie’s point of view. Why did you choose to write a female protagonist?
That’s a good question. I knew I wanted to write someone who was a kind of wizard and who would carry a staff. I couldn’t write a book with a male protagonist who wields a staff because Harry Dresden absolutely rocks and I wouldn’t go there as a writer if you paid me. Valerie Stevens just sort of fell into my word processor and I’ve written her as an amalgam of the women I served with when I was in the military. She’s not butch by any stretch of the imagination and she’s not overly feminine. Finally, it really challenged me on a ton of different levels to get her right because I wanted female readers to relate to her.
Dave, Valerie’s boyfriend has a gunslinger mustache, loves British PBS and cooks and cleans for Valerie. This is my dream man – and I have been known to drool over a man with good facial hair. Why did you give him a mustache? Where can we find a man like this in the real world?
I wanted to write Dave as a very blue collar guy and I thought it would be cool to have a fairly cultured guy who is happy with a simple life of blue collar work. Dave is sort of an enlightened everyman – the mustache just seemed to fit because I could just see a blue collar guy at the opera in a gunslinger mustache having the time of his life while the blue bloods look on in horror.
Valerie’s friend, and spirit, Fifty-Dollar Bill is a great character based on the tenth Prime Minister of Canada, William Lyon Mackenzie King. According to his biography, he was highly eccentric and liked to commune with spirits. What would William Lyon Mackenzie King say about Fifty-Dollar Bill if he read Shade Fright? Is he well represented?
HA! That’s a great question! I’d like to think he’d be pleased as punch that someone was making an attempt to weave a bit of Canadiana into popular culture. If you ask the average Canadian to name our Prime Ministers, you might get about two or three names and that’s it. Canada doesn’t really do a very good job of teaching its own people about its history, and God only knows why. Mackenzie King was an utterly brilliant and ruthless politician who governed Canada through its darkest days. Yeah, he was a bit of a nut job, but he doesn’t get his due anywhere in the history books. I had to put him in the book because it seemed like a fantastic idea to have a very eccentric character who was fascinated with talking to dead people during his life deciding to hang around with the living once he’d passed on. Is he well represented? I’d like to think so. I spent a good deal of time reviewing old National Film Board of Canada newsreels and documentaries so I could get his speech patterns, dialect and his mannerisms down. Fifty-Dollar Bill is a fun character and he’ll be back in the sequel.
Yay, I can’t wait for more of Bill. Name three things you need with you when you write.
The first thing would be silence. I can’t write worth a damn if I hear anything and I often wear earplugs believe it or not. The second would be coffee – I guzzle it like crazy when I’m writing. The last thing would be a reliable computer. Nothing worse than having your system conk out on you when you’re halfway through a paragraph.
Shade Fright is set in Canada and it is also where you live. The television show, South Park once told me to Blame Canada for everything. Give me one good reason why we shouldn’t.
Because as I say in the book, Canada is like your friendly neighbor from whom you can always borrow a lawn mower, no questions asked. If we’re going to blame anyone, I’ve long held that Greenland is highly suspect – or the Danes.
*Glares suspiciously at Greenland* What is the last book you read? Pretend you are on Twitter and review it in 140 characters
Believe it or not, it was Chick Lit. SPIN by Catherine Mackenzie is a remarkable work for a debut author. (And it is. I bet the author $20 it will be made into a movie, too.)
I will put SPIN on my wish list! You have a great love of comic books – what are some of your favorites? Did any particular one inspire Shade Fright?
Well, as mentioned, I was heavily influenced by Werewolf By Night – for me, at least, it’s the starting point for all urban fantasy. Anything by Alan Moore is a must read – Watchmen is a brilliant piece of work. Crisis on Infinite Earths where DC comics rebooted the entire line back in 1985 is another must read. Shade Fright wasn’t based on any comic I’d read – but I will put in a pitch for Captain Canuck!
I love the cover of Shade Fright – it is very different. Did you have any input? Are you happy with the outcome?
Any author will tell you they don’t have a lot of say in the cover art. A good example are the Chris McGrath covers for Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden. Harry doesn’t wear a hat in the books, but he does on the cover art. Anna Torborg did the cover art for Shade Fright and from the get go, we agreed we wanted to have a cover that was far different that most urban fantasy cover art where the book is about a strong female protagonist. While I love artwork where scantily clad women in leather pants have a tramp stamp tattoo on the small of their backs, after awhile, all the covers kind of look the same. Anna suggested something Jasper FFordish and I absolutely love the pulp fiction/comic book feel of her artwork. She did a fantastic job!
The sequel to Shade Fright, Funeral Pallor comes out this July. What can you tell us about it?
You bet:
There’s a nest of rotting husks in an old Calgary warehouse and they’ve got a hankering for human flesh, but that’s the least of Valerie Stevens’ problems. While necromancers are a dime a dozen, these mindless killing machines all have one thing in common: they were all recent occupants of every funeral home in the city. The evidence points to Caroline as the source of the outbreak and to make matters worse, Val’s best friend isn’t exactly making life easy since she’s been blacking out and unable to account for her whereabouts. If Valerie plans to clear her best friend’s name, not to mention an outbreak of the living dead. she’ll have to move fast: someone has dispatched a bounty hunting zombie assassin and Caroline’s only hope may rest with a pair of middle-aged head bangers with a big ass snowplow.
A big ass snowplow – I like the sound of it. What would you rather be – a zombie, troll or ogre?
I’m already a bit of an ogre because I’ve been known to be grumpy more times than I care to ad it. I suspect I’d enjoy being a zombie if I had to choose between the three – mostly because I am a HUGE fan of zombie films, books… you name it. Zombies freaking ROCK!!
A big thank you to Sean Cummings for taking the time to chat today. He is offering up a signed copy of Shade Fright to one lucky commenter.
To enter, answer the following: Sean lives in Canada – if you could live anywhere in Canada, where would it be and why?
The contest is open to US/Canada/UK only and will run through Thursday, February 25th, and Sean will pick the winning answer on Friday.
Great interview Smexi! It was informative and funny. I enjoyed it a lot. I loved the moustache question. Sorry had to mention it. lol And the South Park question. That was hilarious.
If I had to live anywhere in Canada I would pick Toronto because it seems like a great place to live. And I like big cities.
This book sounds like a lot of fun. I'm going to be totally impractical and pick Prince Edward island, because I really love the Anne of Green Gables books.
Thanks for the great giveaway!
That is where I would pick too, Kimberley!! For the same reason…LOL
I don't listen to South Park and have always loved Canada (even though I've only been as far as wandering around Niagra Falls). Everyone just seems happier and more carefree up there…
I've always held a fascination with Toronto, even though I've never been there, but after watching some of the Olympics, Vancouver seems like a nice place also.
Thanks for the interview! The questions were different from most interviews, but still informative. :) I'll definitely be picking up a copy of this book if I don't win.
Sara M
sara_UFblog [at] yahoo [dot] com
I'm not familiar with many of the Canadian cities but after watching "DaVinci's Inquest" Vancouver is my pick. I love the fact that it's got both mountains and the ocean. I also love to garden and the pics of Stanley Park's rhododendron and azalea's are gorgeous!
alterlisa At yahoo DOT com
Great interview. I havent had the chance to go to Canada yet but if I had to pick it would be Toronto. I always wanted to visit there and love cities so it seems a nice one to choose.
bacchus76 at myself dot com
Love the cover art for Shade Fright!
P.S. Anyone that can deflect blame onto Greenland goes into my cool peeps category.
I'm going to opt for Nova Scotia. Since I'm of Acadian heritage, my folks started there, so I guess I could close the circle by ending up there! Thanks for visiting today.
Thanks all, for the great comments so far!
Great interview – very informative that Canada is not always the enemy – except in hockey :)
I would pick Toronto to live in – all the nice underground tunnels to travel through in the winter with shopping and gigantic malls with pools sounds fun to me (though last time I went there was when I was 10 so maybe my memory is exaggerating).
Great interview! Shade Fright sounds awesome.
I would live in Vancouver, B.C. It is much closer to the part of the US that I live in now–so much closer to my family.
I've always dreamt of living in Prince Edward Island ever since reading Anne of Green Gables. I love that novel and even moan to my parents because they couldn't bore me with red hair. (The fact they they were both Asian with black hair never entered into my mind).
:)
vision.nguyen AT gmail DOT com
I loved it. And I LOVE werewolves! The South Park question was good :], id probably never thought of using it.
And i'd probably live in Toronto, because one of my favorite families from a book series lives there. And As much as Prince Edward sounds cool, im not a fan of Edward or islands. Well to live on of course, i would love to visit though.
-Leilani
vampiregirl813@gmail.com
Vancouver, it's suppose to be gorgeous. Of course, I've always wanted to visit Montreal too..
kaylajohnson3969@sbcglobal.net
I've never been to Canada, always wanted to visit, tho. After watching the Olympics, I'd have to say I'd want to live in Vancouver. It looks beautiful there.
mlawson17 at hotmail dot com
I giggled about the South Park question. Hehe I would live in Toronto because I have family there. I might need their help someday.
Sue
okibi_insanity[at]yahoo[dot]com
I'd want to live on Prince Edward Island. It's where Anne of Green Gables takes place & just sounds beautiful! Plus, it's still in the southern part of Canada, which works for me because I don't do quite so well in snow, snow, snow. : )
If I could live in Canada…I would have to say, I would like somewhere like Prince Edward Island. What a gorgeous place! But then there is all the gay activities in Toronto…hmm…
:)
Please consider me for the contest.
Thanks!
Jase
vslavetopassionv(at)aol(dot)com
Lol! I live in Ontario so if I could choose elsewhere, British Columbia because it's beautiful there. :)
faked_sugartone at hotmail
Great interview – I love the sound of this series :o)
I've never visited Canada so it is hard to pick where I would live if I moved there. Ideally I'd love to do a tour of the major cities before I picked one to settle in. I know my other half would love to go to Canada for the fishing so he'd probably make me live near the lakes (I can't remember the name of the area he mentioned). I'd love to visit the Rockies :o)
sarahsreviews at ymail dot com
There are so many beautiful places to pick in Canada. But if I had to pick one I would say Nova Scotia.
lizzi0915 at aol dot com
I'd love to leave in Vancouver. Its not as cold as the rest of Canada, and the scenery is awesome!!!
heatwave96(at)hotmail.com
If I were to live in Canada I think I would pick Vancouver. Although Prince Edward Island reminds me of Anne Of Green Gables.
seriousreader at live dot com
Thanks for hosting a great giveaway!
I'm with the majority here, I'd pick PEI because of Anne of Green Gables. I think this and hockey are the two things that come to mind when I think of Canada.
Hey Sean, do you say "soda" or "pop"? :) j/k
heather y
click4cash4me(at)gmail(dot)com
I'd say Vancouver because my dad went there years ago and I've never had the chance. he loved it there and the photos he took made me fall in love with the place.
Great interview. Loved it!
If I could live in Canada, it would be on the outskirts of Victoria BC. That place is so beautiful!
Digicat {at} Sbcglobal {dot} Net