HORROR AND HEROISM
BY
M. LEON SMITH
Hi, M., so glad you could make it for a few days. Tell us, what kind of stories do you really write?
“What sort of stories do you write?” is a question
authors are commonly asked. For quite some time it was a question I had a hard
time answering. “Bits of this and that,” I would answer. Hardly, I think you
would agree, a great answer. Luckily for me, the answer was supplied by a
reviewer on Amazon…
Suddenly I was an author of supernatural
and natural horror and I was quite comfortable with the definition. Certainly a
lot of my earlier published work fell squarely into that category and, when I
collected my published stories into ‘Olverston Grange …and Other Stories’ , I
certainly had no qualms about describing it as horror.
As I was learning my trade I had produced a
body of work that included the expected horror icons of ghosts, vampires and
zombies which covers the supernatural… but
what the natural? I had tales of a hen-pecked husband, a child who is
scared of the dark and a host of deeply personal poetry and I swear there’s penguins too!
There is something deeply satisfying about
supplying the reader with a scare. One review even stated ‘This is an anthology that
will touch on fears you may not even know you have.’ And that gave me a sense of intense
satisfaction. Being an author is as much about touching a reader as it is about
giving freedom to the stories that rampage around your head.
\Countless times a day, I see or hear
something that just has to appear in
a story. I also have ‘What if?’ moments that lead to a story and, I must admit,
when I am having a bad day then a character is a story is going to have a very bad day. Sometimes I even feel bad
for them, a fictional being that sprang from my own mind. One such put-upon
character is Tim Hewitson.
Tim is the hero of the first of my Blue
Jackets series, ‘Induction’. During a rough phase in my life, Tim was born. I
was particularly cruel to this young man. He is bullied at school, unhappy at
home, and lives with what he has been told is a disability. He is granted his
greatest wish when he finds out his condition is a superpower. Then life gets really hard!
I find myself wondering if giving my
characters such a hard time is cathartic, that I’m somehow exorcising my own
demons or whether I’m just being mean! I also wonder if other authors feel the
same thing or whether I’m reading too much into things (excuse the pun).
This
was taken to further lengths in third part of the series, ‘Thursday’s Child’ in
which we see Tuesday, who has had her powers from birth and is well adjusted
with them, happy if fact. Her life is one of adventure and travel, one which
fulfils her wanderlust and gives her a sense of purpose before throwing her
into a huge problem whilst in Paris.
Underneath the tales of horror and heroism, there is another story. One of an author dealing with his own fears. I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2009 and, almost overnight, became a wheelchair user. The fear of what had happened is most prevalent in ‘Scared’ which features in ‘Olverston Grange …and Other Stories’ and my acceptance of what has happened to me has, inevitably, coloured the stories I have written. I hope this is evident and mostly I hope you enjoy anything you read by me.
Underneath the tales of horror and heroism, there is another story. One of an author dealing with his own fears. I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2009 and, almost overnight, became a wheelchair user. The fear of what had happened is most prevalent in ‘Scared’ which features in ‘Olverston Grange …and Other Stories’ and my acceptance of what has happened to me has, inevitably, coloured the stories I have written. I hope this is evident and mostly I hope you enjoy anything you read by me.
M.
Leon Smith was born just outside of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and grew up in the
rural North-East. Ever since reading ‘The Lord of the Rings’ at the age of
eight he wanted to be a writer. It took until 2009 (some twenty-odd years later!) for him to actually chase the dream.
The second manuscript he submitted was
published and he hasn’t looked back since. He is currently published by Books
To Go Now and Skinned Knuckle Books.
Outside of his passion for literature, he
is consumed by his love of music.
Links to find out more:
Facebook: www.facebook.co/MLeonSmith and www.facebook.com/TheBlueJackets
Twitter: @GeordieWriter
His own website: www.mleonsmith.com
His Amazon page: http://www.amazon.com/M.-Leon-Smith/e/B0049STLL8
Great post, M. I like the covers.
Folks, leave a comment for M, we'd love to hear from you,
Hi, M.
ReplyDeleteIt's so nice to have you here today. I love the covers on your books.
Anyway, welcome to the Flowers and Thorns blog.