Earlier today I posted an excerpt from a Two and a Half Dead Men by Jason Krumbine. So we all know how he writes. Let’s get to know him a little bit…
Bryce: Start by telling about your latest series.
Jason: The Grym Brothers was something my wife actually came up with. We were looking for a concept that was a little more conventional then my usual work. Typically my books revolve around a single lead character and tends to skew more towards the everything in the kitchen sink of storytelling. We wanted to tone things down and focus more on one particular concept. In addition, the idea of brothers working together has always been something I’ve wanted to explore further(I’ve touched on the relationship between brothers in EXPLORERS OF THE UNKNOWN). The Grym Brothers gave me the opportunity to explore that relationship.
The Grym Brothers series is kind of a ghost story by way of the crime genre. The idea is that grim reapers are real and are kind of like bounty hunters, going after stray dead souls that aren’t quite ready to go to the afterlife. Sometimes this means the Grym Brothers have to chase down suns on the run. Other times, they have to help bring closure to lost souls.
TWO AND HALF DEAD MEN starts the series. THE DEAD COUPLE is book two and I’m hard at work at book three, HOW I MET YOUR DEAD MOTHER.
Bryce: What is your writing process? Do you work an outline, or are you a seat-of-your-pants kind of guy?
Jason: I used to be a by-the-seat-of-your-pants kind of guy. Up until TWO AND A HALF DEAD MEN I just sat down with my notepad and pen(I used to also write all my first drafts by hand), took my idea and ran with it. Sometimes I would have the last page written, but beyond that I wrote the book as it came to me.
When I started TWO AND A HALF DEAD MEN my wife and I worked out a publishing plan that has me writing and publishing a book a month. To meet that deadline I had to start outlining my books beforehand.
On the upside, by outlining I don’t run into as many plot problems, such as getting to the end of the book and having no answer to who the bad guy was or how everything tied together(that happened twice, once with FRUITBASKET FROM HELL and then again with the sequel A IS FOR AMNESIA, B IS FOR BULLET. Nothing like forgetting to add the bad guy to the book. Awkward…). But nothing beats the exhilarating rush of just figuring out the book on the go. Outlining kind of makes it feel like a “real job” because it actually involves working beforehand. But I can’t argue with the results.
Bryce: Interesting. I always feel a little more creative when I’m using a pen and paper. So when I really get stuck, that’s usually how I un-stick myself. Once I’m back in the groove, I hit the keyboard where I can get words down faster.
One book a month? That’s crazy fast. How long of books are you aiming to write and how long does that mean you’re writing everyday?
Jason: Well, I’m aiming the books to be around 35,000 – 40,000 words. These aren’t mammoth, epic tales. I’m shooting for easily digestible nuggets of entertainment. With the Grym Brothers it’s a series of 5 or 6 books. So, while they’re shorter than your average novel, they’re building to a larger story arc that’s spread out over the six books. This way new readers can come into the series and not feel intimated by long books. I hate having to read three or four 400+ page plus books to get caught up for the newest volume.
My goal is to write 3,000 – 5,000 words a day. That would spread my workload out in a nice, even, comfortable manner. What actually happens is, I sit in front of my computer for three or four days typing about 500 words, freaking out that I’m never going to make my deadline, and then in my last week bang out 7,000 – 10,000 words a day. Apparently I work better under stress…
Bryce: 10,000 words a day is pretty intense. Do you still have a day job and just never sleep?
Jason: Yeah, it’s a little intense. I’m lucky enough that writing is my day job right now. But there were a few days when I was writing TWO AND A HALF DEAD MEN that I was up until three in the morning.
Bryce: Okay, so when you’re not staying up until three writing, how do you spend your time?
Jason: In what little spare time I have I read a lot. Books and comic books, mostly. I’m in the middle of the Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde (great series). I also run a weekly podcast, One Stray Word. When we can, my wife and I love going to the movies.
Bryce: Okay, what else should I have asked you if only I knew you well enough to ask?
Jason: Well, that question probably would have been: “What are the two major goals you hope to achieve?”
And the answer is: To be happily married(Check. I’ve been married to a wonderful woman for the last four years.) and to write books full time(Mostly checked off for these last few months.)
Bryce: Sounds like you’ve got a good thing going. Good luck as you keep writing.
If you want to learn more about Jason, go check out his site: http://www.jasonkrumbine.com/