One of the questions writers get asked is, which of their own books is there favorite? It’s a difficult question to answer because each book has its own charm and special qualities. However, if I were to be hard pressed and had to give an answer, I’d say it’s my first book, A Stranger Dead, simply because it was my first book and the one that kicked off this book-writing career of mine.
It’s the story that asks the question: If you found out who the Antichrist was before his season of power, would you kill him? It’s like asking the famous question if one would go back in time and kill Hitler.
The story is solid and one I’m proud of. Looking back, the writing needs work, which is why I plan on one day re-releasing the book. Perhaps on my twentieth anniversary of being a writer. Either way, it’s a favorite book of mine.
There’s something about that first book that was atmospheric, both in the story itself and in the air whenever—and wherever—I wrote it. It was my first special world, one I had complete control over. It was my first attempt at making a book.
Firsts, no matter what they are, good or bad, will always stand out as the benchmarks of our lives. A Stranger Dead was one of mine. What is one of yours?
It’s a small niche and is outside the mainstream, but I’ve been giving a lot of thought to alternative reading and how important it is. It’s the stuff that’s not controlled by big corporations or publishing houses. It’s the stuff where money isn’t the primary objective. It’s the stuff that has the freedom to be open and honest—an industry not run by greed, but one run by love.
I encourage you to check out zines, check out bizarro literature, check out off-beat publications, and support that side of the industry by not only getting the books and comics, but by also spreading the word about them. This world is so brainwashed it’s sad. We’ve been force fed the same shit over and over and all we do at the end is smile with our crap-covered faces and say, “More, please.”
Time to shake things up, but we have to do this together. But it’ll never happen. It’s easier to sit in shit than to actually get moving and find a better, alternative spot.
I love comics. Below are my top ten graphic novels and/or graphic novel series in no particular order.
1) Alec by Eddie Campbell 2) From Hell by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell 3) Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons 4) The Crow by James O’Barr 5) Sin City by Frank Miller 6) Transmetropolitan by Warren Ellis and Darick Robertson 7) American Splendor by Harvey Pekar et al. 8) King-Cat by John Porcellino 9) Cerebus by Dave Sim and Gerhard 10) Sunnyville Stories by Max West
Every writer loves to read, so here are ten of my favorite books in no particular order and, yes, there’s even a kids one in there, too.
There are others, but this is enough for now.
1) Dreamcatcher by Stephen King 2) Batman: Knightfall by Dennis O’Neil 3) Stone of Tears by Terry Goodkind 4) Voice of the Fire by Alan Moore 5) The Chamber by John Grisham 6) The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien 7) The Long Walk by Richard Bachman 8) George’s Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl 9) The Death and Life of Superman by Roger Stern 10) Batman: No Man’s Land by Greg Rucka
Like all writers, I’ve read countless books over the years. Some were awesome, some so-so, and even the ones that weren’t that great I still appreciated for the story even if the writing needed some work. Out of all those books, some have impacted me in different ways both personally and professionally.
Here is a list of 5 books in no particular order that have influenced my writing. I’ve stuck to fiction for this list instead of any writing how-to book. (To purchase the books, simply click on the book’s title.)
Stone of Tears by Terry Goodkind – an ultra long read, but worth every page. The dude knows how to paint pictures in your head with his words and, aside from Stone of Tears being a killer story, it was this word-painting that stuck with me and set the bar for how I paint pictures for the reader in my own work. Not saying I’m anywhere near Terry Goodkind’s caliber, but his great description definitely stuck with me over the years.
Batman: Knightfall by Dennis O’Neil – The first superhero fiction book I ever read and my favorite book of all time. (Yeah, I have a soft spot for superheroes, as you well know.) This book got me in Batman’s head in a way the comics didn’t, and humanized him in a way I could relate to on different levels. It also showed me superheroes didn’t have to be confined to four-color comics or to movies. Clearly, this influenced me later on when it came time to write The Axiom-man Saga.
The Summer I Died by Ryan C. Thomas – Easily the most brutal book I’ve ever read, and I don’t mean brutal as in bad. Not only is it an intense story–people kidnapped by a madman–but the violence level in this thing is through the roof. I loved reading it, and I hated reading it. Ryan made you live each terrifying and painful moment his characters went through. Like live-live. Crazy. But it showed me how to get nasty with violence when needed and how to draw the reader in when it came to someone getting hurt, and it reemphasized for me the importance of ensuring the reader is indeed in your characters’ shoes and not outside of them no matter what is happening.
The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks – Such a bittersweet love story, and it was this book that demonstrated the difference between a romance book and a love story book. It was the love story between the characters that impacted me the most, not their romance, and nowadays when I write two characters in love, I play up the love story angle versus the romantic one. I did this in my book, April, written under the name Peter Fox. To me, love stories have so much more heart than romances.
Left Behind by Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye – Aside from the entire series being an interesting story of the Earth’s last days before Christ’s return, the writing takeaway from this book–and the rest of the series–were the constant cliffhanger endings to each chapter. It was just non-stop, and since I’ve read them I’ve done my best to cliffhang each scene and each chapter in my own books. Even cliffhang the ending of book one of a series to get the reader pumped for book two. Cliffhangers keep those pages turning.
So there you have it. A quick list of 5 books that impacted me as a writer. There are more, but I’ll save those for another post.
What books have influenced you as a writer? Sound off in the comments below or send me a note here.
Running weekly from May 2015 to April 2016, The Canister X Transmission was sent via email to readers worldwide.
Every week, readers received updates from the desk of A.P. Fuchs that served as a behind-the-scenes gateway into his views on the publishing industry and past work.
The newsletter covered four main topics:
Writing/Creating/Publishing, in which Fuchs shared his views on writing and creating as well as tips to help other writers and artists along their journey.
Project Analysis, where A.P. discussed his extensive backlist and what went into each project.
Creator Spotlight, where a variety of writers and artists were given the spotlight as well as their professional and personal impact on Fuchs and his work.
Weekly Ramble, in which whatever happened to be a point of interest that week became the topic of discussion.
Exclusive to this collection is a special Issue Fifty-three A newsletter unavailable anywhere else.
Axiom-man has been captured and locked inside an enormous electric cage. Within? A small city and residential zone. Who made them or for what purpose, he doesn’t know. One thing is certain, however: he is trapped and at the mercy of those who took him captive.
The intentions are soon made clear with the appearance of two super-powered beings: the tank-like Battle Bruiser and the playful femme fatale Lady Fire. Soon the battle begins and Axiom-man is forced to survive against those with powers that rival his own. And it seems these two new metahumans are only the beginning. Something is brewing beneath the surface of reality, something sinister that will change the course of history and Axiom-man’s life forever.
Vicious Verses and Reanimated Rhymes: Zany Zombie Poetry for the Undead Head
The dead rise. The world dies. Mankind falls and enters Death’s halls.
Over 90 poems of carnage, hopelessness and despair mixed with oodles of the living dead await you. Featuring poems by W. Bill Czolgosz, Paul A. Freeman, Keith Gouveia, J.H. Hobson, Rich Ristow, Lester Smith, Steve Vernon, Zed Zefram, Zombie Zak, and many others, Vicious Verses and Reanimated Rhymes will not only melt your brain . . . it’ll tear out your jugular!
