Annie’s Book Stop of Worcester is happy to invite Christopher Golden to be our Local Author Spotlight this week! Golden is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of such novels as Of Saints and Shadows, The Myth Hunters, The Boys Are Back in Town, Strangewood, and Snowblind. He has co-written three illustrated novels with Mike Mignola, the first of which, Baltimore, or, The Steadfast Tin Soldier and the Vampire, was the launching pad for the Eisner Award-nominated comic book series, Baltimore. As an editor, he has worked on the short story anthologies The New Dead, The Monster’s Corner, and Dark Duets, among others, and has also written and co-written comic books, video games, screenplays, and a network television pilot. Golden was born and raised in Massachusetts, where he still lives with his family. His original novels have been published in more than fourteen languages in countries around the world.
What was the inspiration for your latest release, Snowblind?
CG: SNOWBLIND has a wide variety of inspirations. Some of my favorite novels of mine have come together because I’ve had several different novel ideas that have found themselves suddenly bound together into a single story by the arrival of a single new element. A few years ago we had a terrible ice storm during which friends of mine lost power for more than two weeks. It got me thinking about the fact that wealthy people would not stay in their homes during such an outage—that they’d fly off of to their second homes or could afford to stay in hotels, leaving their homes empty—and how easy it would be for thieves to break in during that time, with no power to burglar alarms. Somehow that storm, and this idea about thieves, pulled together disparate ideas I’d had for other stories and they all became one.
How important has the New England setting been to your writing?
CG: I grew up in Framingham, Massachusetts. I lived in New York for three years after college, but otherwise I’ve lived in Massachusetts my whole life. I’ve certainly written books with other settings but most of my books take place in New England, including the Body of Evidence series, which is set at a fictional version of my alma mater, Tufts University, and my latest, SNOWBLIND, which is set in Coventry, a fictional version of my current hometown of Haverhill.
What piece of advice would you want to share with other writers?
CG: Always be working on the next thing. That way your hopes are invested in what you’re working on at the moment and less dependent upon whatever you’ve got out under consideration at the time.
While you’re writing, do you prefer music, silence, other? Please elaborate!
CG: It depends on the day, but I’m nearly always listening to music. The past year or so I’ve been obsessed with The Frames and Glen Hansard, so I’ve been listening to that a lot. Sometimes it’ll be my iTunes but other times I’ll have Pandora radio on. I’ve also recently gotten into the habit of listening to baroque music while writing. What I can’t do while working on anything that requires real focus is listen to the music I loved as a kid because I know all the words, and if I know all of the words it’s hard not to let my brain get off track.
What else can we expect from you in the near future?
CG: Early next year, Ballantine will publish TIN MEN, which is a huge departure for me. It’s a near-future SF thriller. It’s already been optioned for film by Warner Brothers and sold in half a dozen or so countries around the world. I could tell you the plot, but then I’d have to kill you.
Where can people find your work? (Besides ABSW ;)–though they should totally check here first!)
CG: All the usual places, I’d think. I’ll be launching a redesigned version of my website soon with links to IndieBound, Amazon, and B&N for all of the books. Meanwhile, check your local bookshop.
How can we follow your work, share your awesomeness, or otherwise stalk you in a totally non-creepy way?
CG: My site, christophergolden.com, has links to my Facebook and Twitter presence. Hope to see you there!
Thank you so much for the interview, Chris! Best of luck in all your endeavors! Besides Snowblind, Annie’s Book Stop of Worcester at 65 James Street has several books by Christopher Golden for you to enjoy!
Annie's Book Stop of Worcester 