Q & A with DAVE ZELTSERMAN

Dave Zeltserman, author of the newly published Monster: A Novel of Frankenstein, as well as A Killer's Essence and The Caretaker of Lorne Field, talks to The Winged Elephant:


What originally drew you to the Frankenstein story?

When I was a kid I grew up thinking that the Frankenstein novel was the same as the Boris Karloff movie. When I was in high school I heard that the novel is very different and ends up in the Artic, and that Frankenstein’s creature instead of being the lumbering Karloff monster is an intelligent being who speaks eloquently, and that got me interested in reading the book. About halfway through it when the creature is telling his story to Victor Frankenstein it becomes absolutely riveting. In its own way, the story is also very noirish. The creature has every right to make the demands he does on Frankenstein. Frankenstein recognizes that these demands are reasonable, but he also rightfully fears the consequences if he does as the creature is asking. And from there both characters are doomed without any hope.

Did you do much research on Shelley’s 1818 novel, or the many adaptations in film, television, and theater?

I spent nine months of research before writing  Monster. Some of it was on Shelley, but most was on 18th and 19th century European history, the Marquis de Sade and his works, Samuel Hahnemann, E.T.A Hoffmann (which is who I named my creature after), witch trials in Europe, and London hellfire sex clubs.

After a series of critically acclaimed crime-fiction novels you began to include supernatural elements and even horror themes in The Caretaker of Lorne Field. Now comes Monster, something altogether different. How did that come to happen?

I’ve always been focused more on the story I want to tell than the genre. My second book, Bad Thoughts, is actually a mix of crime and horror. With The Caretaker of Lorne Field I didn’t set out to write horror. I knew the book would be taken as horror by most readers, but I was really writing an allegorical fable.

Back in 2008 I had the thought of retelling Frankenstein from the creature’s point of view, but it didn’t go much further than that then. Over the next six months more ideas came to me: making everything a dying Frankenstein tells Walton be outrageous lies to protect his reputation, having the creature be a heroic, yet tragic character, and flipping things around completely so that Frankenstein would be trying to play playing Satan instead of God, and he and the Marquis de Sade would be in league to bring hell to earth. At this point the ideas was still very loosely thought out, but I was excited enough about it to want to start researching it. A friend of mine was working on a PhD in 19th century European history, and he made out a reading list for me, and over the next 9 months as I went through the books on his list the story for Monster took firm shape.

In Monster I have a young man, Friedrich Hoffmann, framed for the brutal murder of his beloved fiancée and sentenced to be broken on the wheel, which was an excruciatingly painful way to be sentenced to death in the nineteenth century. When Friedrich awakens after his execution, he finds that he’s been transformed by Frankenstein into an abomination. While Monster is very much a horror novel, it’s also novel about good versus evil, and a very human story as Friedrich desperately tries to retain whatever remains of his humanity as he also seeks vengeance against the man who has so horribly wronged him.

When you look back on all of your fiction, do you group the books in any way?

All my books are very different from one another so it’s hard for me to group them. Serpent’s Tail published a ‘man out of prison’ crime thriller trilogy, and all three books of this trilogy (Small Crimes, Pariah, Killer) are very different in style, tone and structure. My three Overlook books Monster, The Caretaker of Lorne Field, A Killer’s Essence are also very different from each other.

Do you write every day? Has the process changed from when you began your writing career?

I write most days. I’d spent almost twenty-five years working as a software developer, and back then I squeezed in the writing whenever I could. Almost four years ago when I got my film deal for Outsourced I decided to go for broke and try doing this writing gig fulltime. So now most days I spend 5-10 hours either writing, working on detailed outlines or editing, or a combination of the three. Every once in a while I take a day off.

Do you ever solicit feedback from readers or bloggers who write about your books?

From the beginning I’ve had a core group of early readers made up of my wife and friends from high school and college, and that’s who I solicit feedback from. There are a few professional writers I know who sometimes get added to the mix. What’s good about this group is none of them, especially my wife, are shy about being critical about my work.

What have you learned from the tradition of American crime fiction and noir?

I had read 100s of crime novels from Hammett, Cain, Stout, Ross Macdonald, Spillane, Willeford and many others before I ever thought about writing something that could be published, and what I loved about these books were how strongly plotted they were, how spare and straightforward the writing was, and how there was nothing fake in them—characters acted in a way that was logically consistent and made sense for them. Those were the books I loved reading, so now I try to make sure my own books have those same characteristics—strongly plotted, lean, spare writing with no padding, and a complete honesty with my characters.

Do you ever think about where your creations are coming from while you’re in the process of writing?

My ideas come from all over the place. It could be from newspaper stories, or listening to someone on the radio, or while weeding my front lawn. Once an idea for a story pops into my head, it may stay there percolating for years before I do something with it. When I choose which idea to use for my next novel, I’ll write a detailed outline before I start writing the novel, so most of my creations already exist firmly in my mind before I write the first word of the novel. That said, once I start writing I usually end up in this feverish place where I lose myself in my writing, and my book becomes something organic taking on a life of its own.

There’s much talk about your novels being adapted for the movies. What is in the works at the moment?

Outsourced has been optioned by Impact Pictures and Constantin Film, and A Killer’s Essence has been optioned by Braven Films.  I know both film companies are very serious about getting these films made, so I’m hopeful. I came close last year to also optioning The Caretaker of Lorne Field. I had a very hot award-winning director want to make it, and a producer who was working with him was trying hard to get a deal together for financing. We ended up thinking we had the deal with another film company, but the damn thing felt apart at the last second. Every few months I hear from someone about either Killer or The Caretaker of Lorne Field, so I feel pretty good that one of these days I’ll get deals put together for both of those.

You’ve been publishing e-books and e-stories for several years. Has the e-book revolution affected what you write and what you publish?

I’m really not that aggressive with e-books. I’ve brought back my first two books, Fast Lane and Bad Thoughts, I’ve also put together several collections of short stories that had been previously published, and I’ve self-published two original novels—Blood Crimes, which the best way to describe it is something along the lines of Sin City with vampires, and Julius Katz and Archie, which is the first full-length novel based on my award-winning Julius Katz mystery stories. The one thing I have been doing recently specifically for ebooks is working on a series of 80-120 page novellas. This series is a mix of Parker/Richard Stark-like heist capers and government conspiracy. The first two of these (The Hunted, The Dame) have been published as ebooks, and I’m currently working on the third.

More Praise for Dave Zeltserman's A KILLER'S ESSENCE

Dave Zeltserman's new novel, A Killer's Essence, is getting terrific review attention this week. Here's a sampling of the critical praise:

"In a truly chilling scene in the first chapter of A Killer’s Essence two young children miraculously elude a murderous pedophile, an experience that leaves one marked for life with a sixth sense for evil. The book then jumps forward to when that child, Stan Green, has become a burned-out Manhattan homicide detective. All he has to show for his psychic talent is a divorce, a cheap suit, and a bitchy girlfriend. . . In riveting narrative, Zeltserman illustrates what happens to a wounded man whose psychic powers outstrip his ability to cope. Think you’d like the power to see inside the dark hearts of others? Think again. How would it feel if, on the way to the office, we saw demons on the sidewalk, harpies on the subway? This is strong stuff, and the author is expert at sharing Zach’s horror, as well Green’s empathic reaction to it. In the end discovering the killer’s identity isn’t half as compelling as the inner torment of two men who are “gifted” with psychic abilities. - Mystery Scene

"Dave Zeltserman has had to put himself in the shoes of any number of disreputable types in his estimable noir novels - hit men, out-of-control cops, old coots who think they’re saving the world by weeding a field. Now, in A Killer’s Essence,’ comes the ultimate in empathizing with the dark side. Zeltserman, who lives and dies with the Red Sox, creates a protagonist who - the horror - is a Yankees fan. But while it’s fun for formerly long-suffering Red Sox fans to relive the glory days, the 2004 playoffs are the sideshow. The main event is Green’s attempt to unravel three murders in which the bodies have been grotesquely mutilated. Few writers are Zeltserman’s equal in setting up the chessboard with obsessive perps and depressive cops. And it isn’t always easy in the world of noir fiction to tell the difference between the two.

A major arbiter in this tale should be Zachary Lynch, who witnessed one of the murders. The problem is that Lynch suffers from lesions in the brain from a previous trauma, and he sees nothing but horrific hallucinations when looking at certain people. Just Green’s luck. But if you’re thinking this development is too far-fetched, it turns out to be a superb, perhaps metaphysical metaphor for the evil and sadness in the world. The chapter in which Lynch details his affliction, and tells Green why he sees holes instead of eyes when he looks at the detective, is one of the finest pieces of writing Zeltserman has penned.

And that’s saying something because Zeltserman’s lean but muscular style, so evident in “Killer’’ and The Caretaker of Lorne Field, is just as sharply honed here. His ability to juggle Green’s story and Lynch’s, develop a riveting murder mystery, and even mix in some Brighton Beach ex-KGB sleazeballs, all in less than 250 pages, is a pretty neat page-turning trick. Perhaps this is all like complaining that the Red Sox were almost swept by the Yankees in 2004. Ultimately they were a memorable winner. So is A Killer’s Essence. - Boston Globe

Congrats to Dave Zeltserman on the ALA Shortlist!

We're thrilled to announce that David Zeltserman's THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD was shortlisted by the ALA for the 2011 RUSA Reading List in the Horror category. It was a great year for genre fiction in general (two Overlook favorites, Olen Steinhauser and Louise Penney, were also winners) but we're excited that Zeltserman's quirky "superb mix of humor and horror" (Publishers Weekly) got some much-deserved recognition.

Horror

“The Dead Path” by Stephen M. Irwin, Doubleday (9780385533430)

Guilt ridden Nicholas Close retreats to his family home in Australia after the tragic death of his wife, only to encounter an ancient malevolence lurking in the nearby woods. Childhood nightmares and fairytale motifs combine in this emotionally powerful tale of implacable evil. Arachnophobes beware!

Read-Alikes:

“It” by Stephen King, “Faerie Tale: A Novel of Terror and Fantasy” by Raymond Feist, “Dark Hollow” by Brian Keene

Short List:

“The Caretaker of Lorne Field” by David Zeltserman, Overlook (9781590203033)

“The Frenzy Way” by Gregory Lamberson, Medallion Press (9781605421070)

“Horns” by Joe Hill, William Morrow (9780061147951)

“So Cold the River” by Michael Koryta, Little Brown (9780316053648)

Newsday on THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD: "Weeding and Writing"

We loved the headline of this recent review of THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD in Newsday, especially with back-to-school fever sweeping the nation, although it's something of a typing-tongue twister ("weeding and writing"--we had to triple-check the spelling!).

Here's the full review, but here are a few of our favorite parts, below.

Every man, woman, child - not to mention dog and plant - owes its life to Jack Durkin. Had he and nine generations of Durkins before him not been weeding a field in a small New England town from winter thaw to first frost, we'd all be goners. For these aren't weeds, but lethal, fanged killing machines that, if allowed to grow, would have us all for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

At least that's how Durkin, the title character of Dave Zeltserman's delicious horror-ish novel, "The Caretaker of Lorne Field," sees it. His family was contracted 300 years ago by desperate villagers convinced that these Godzillas in the grass would destroy the world if left unchecked. ....

Zeltserman is the author of increasingly accomplished crime novels, distinguished by spare and crisp prose, believable dialogue, imaginative plot twists and tightly wound characters who don't wear out their welcome.

He may be even more suited to the fantasy/horror genre than to a literary life of crime. Without slowing the action, Zeltserman wryly sprinkles in sub-themes about belief vs. logic, sacrifice vs. selfishness, and one generation against another. Perhaps the most interesting characters in the book are the older people who believe in Durkin and who, knowing how underpaid and unappreciated he is, treat him like a local hero rather than the fool on the hill.

Of course, this is literally a dying breed of citizenry. The question is whether we'll all be a dying breed of humanity if Durkin isn't allowed to keep weeding. Me, I'm not saying anything except, keep reading. Durkin may or may not be a loose caboose, but Zeltserman is fully in control.

Hope all of you fantasy/horror fans have already picked up your copy of Dave Zeltserman's latest! Here's the Winged Elephant's full coverage of Zeltserman.

Happy On-Sale Date for THE HORSES OF ST. MARK'S and THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD!

Today two brand-new books were born--or, perhaps more accurately, officially put on shelves at bookstores nationwide, with their Amazon pre-order buttons changed to allow customers to "buy it now." Hooray! In case you haven't been following our pre-publication coverage of these two great but extremely different titles, let me introduce you to them.

The Horses of St. Mark's: A Story of Triumph in Byzantium, Paris, and Venice
by Charles Freeman

A must-see for any tourist in Venice, the history of these four beautiful statues is even more interesting than one might think. They witnessed some of Western history's most significant events--the founding and sacking of Constantinople, the height of the Venetian republic and its fall, and Paris under Napoleon through the revolution in 1848. Making their way back to Venice, the rich backstory of these storied statues is a must-read for those interested in history, art, travel--or just interested in a fascinating tale that Charles Freeman, author of A.D. 381, brings vividly to life.


The Caretaker of Lorne Field
by Dave Zeltserman

In a starred review, Publishers Weekly called The Caretaker of Lorne Field a "superb mix of humor and horror." The dark humor and noirish horror combine in this unique take on the genre--the tale of Jack Durkin, the ninth generation of the Durkin family, who has weeded Lorne Field for hundreds of years. He's stuck there until his son comes of age because he knows a monster will grow--one capable of destroying a country in weeks--if the field is left untended. Or will it? In the words of Locus Magazine, Zeltserman's "black comedy of errors ... invites comparison to stories by Kafka, David Prill, James Hynes, William Browning Spencer, and other authors who have mused on the dark side of daily breadwinning."

Book reviewing bloggers--interested in reviewing? Email Kate at kgales@overlookny.com for a review copy.

Happy reading, everyone!

Dave Zeltserman's THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD in Locus Magazine

Locus, the leading news and review magazine of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, offers a preview of The Caretaker of Lorne Field, by Dave Zeltserman: "For anyone who has ever joked as they left for work in the morning that they were heading out to save the world – or who knows somebody so fanatical about their job that it seemed as though they thought that – Dave Zeltserman has written a very darkly funny dark fantasy. The black comedy of errors that ensues invites comparison to stories by Kafka, David Prill, James Hynes, William Browning Spencer, and other authors who have mused on the dark side of daily breadwinning. . . . Though Zeltserman’s approach is clearly tongue-in-cheek, he deftly balances the competing interests of the characters to keep the truth of the narrative events ambiguous. A few deaths at conveniently inopportune moments and several coincidental fades to black only add to the dramatic tension of the narrative. Stories of this kind are hard to pull off and often collapse under the weight of their outrageous premises long before they end. It’s to Zeltserman’s credit that his novel holds together up to and through the final paragraph, and that it compels the reader to stay with it for that long. - Stefan Dziemianowicz

Dave Zeltserman's THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD Earns Starred Review in Publishers Weekly

Dave Zeltersman's The Caretaker of Lorne Field receives a starred review in Publishers Weekly: "Zeltserman’s superb mix of humor and horror focuses on Jack Durkin, the ninth generation of firstborn sons in his family who have daily weeded Lorne Field to purge it of Aukowies, bloodthirsty plants that could overrun the world in weeks if not attended to. Though Jack takes his job seriously, no one else does: his oldest son doesn’t want to follow in his footsteps; his wife is tired of living poorly on his caretaker’s salary; and the townspeople who subsidize him are increasingly skeptical of purported menaces that no one has ever seen because Jack diligently nips them in the bud. With his support dwindling, Jack finds himself driven to desperate measures to prove that he’s truly saving the world. Zeltserman (Pariah) orchestrates events perfectly, making it impossible to tell if Jack is genuinely humankind’s unsung hero or merely the latest descendant of a family of superstitious loonies. Readers will keep turning the pages to see how the ambiguous plot resolves."

The Caretaker of Lorne Field will be published in August 2010.

Dave Zeltserman, author of THE CARETAKER OF LORNE FIELD, Profiled in The Boston Globe

Dave Zeltserman, author of the forthcoming The Caretaker of Lorne Field, is profiled in today's Boston Globe: "Robert B. Parker had been the face of Boston crime fiction for nearly four decades when he died on Jan. 18. There is no replacing a writer who built a larger-than-life persona and cut a unique swath with his best-selling Spenser novels. But who are the new faces to watch? Who stands poised to possibly follow in Parker’s footsteps and make their mark with hard-boiled protagonists and gritty stories drawn from the streets of our fair city? Here are a few likely suspects:

Dave Zeltserman worked for 25 years as a software engineer at companies like Digital and Lucent before he got his big break as a writer of crime fiction. And it happened just in the nick of time, because Zeltserman was prepared to abandon his dream of being a novelist.

So excuse him if he seems like a man in a hurry - he wrote last year’s “Pariah’’ in six weeks - rather than pausing to savor his success.

Zeltserman broke through two years ago with “Small Crimes’’ and quickly followed it up with “Pariah’’ and his new novel, “Killer,’’ out in the United States in May (Serpent’s Tail has published all three). Before that, while he managed to get a couple of books published, he had to weather constant rebuffs from publishers who told him his work was too dark. “I was about to quit writing for good, because I was frustrated as hell,’’ says Zeltserman, 50, of Needham.

Kudos are flowing his way these days. The Washington Post compared Zeltserman to pulp-master James M. Cain, author of such classics as “Double Indemnity.’’ National Public Radio chose “Small Crimes,’’ which revolves around a corrupt ex-cop in Vermont released after serving time in prison for stabbing a district attorney, as one of the top five crime and mystery novels of 2008, calling it “a thing of sordid beauty.’’ Globe reviewer Ed Siegel lauded “Pariah,’’ one of whose characters is a Whitey Bulger-like mobster, as “darkly enjoyable,’’ adding that Zeltserman’s “smooth, lively writing’’ makes him “a fine addition to the local literary scene.’’

You ain’t seen nothing yet, according to Zeltserman: “I have a bunch of books coming out that are actually better than the books that are being published.’’ Though his reputation is for writing rough stuff about tough guys, don’t assume Zeltserman is either. “I’m not a gritty type of guy,’’ he says. “Writers are not necessarily what they write.’’