Killer Nashville Interview with J. A. Konrath
Killer Nashville recently had a chat with author J.A. Konrath regarding his prolific—and eclectic—writing career. A pioneer of the self-publishing model, Konrath has sold over 2 million books worldwide. His latest novel, The List, will be available in trade paperback May 2018. Konrath is a 2018 Killer Nashville Guest of Honor and will be participating in several conference sessions.
Take a moment and enjoy the wit and wisdom of J.A. Konrath.
Founder of Killer Nashville
An Interview with J.A. Konrath
by Liz Gatterer
KN: I read on your website that you received over 500 rejection letters before getting published. How did you handle that and what advice do you have to new authors that are experiencing the same thing?
Joe: I drank. And I recommend that to all authors, new and old.
These days, I don’t advise authors to spend years chasing agents and publishers. A saner approach is to self-publish. As you build an audience, agents and publishers will no doubt find you.
Remember, the end goal is to find readers. Those are the people you need to be chasing. You can do that with good stories. Or with promises of cash. What reader would turn down piles of cash?
Are you giving out piles of cash at this conference? Is Deaver? Is that why he always has people around him?
KN: You are a most prolific and varied author, but you really resonate with whichever audience you are writing for. I read The Globs of Use-A-Lot3 to my six-year-old. He almost peed the bed laughing so hard! But, he got the message. He is now quite tyrannical about recycling in our house and he is most proud of his gaseous eruptions-thanks for that. You write in so many categories and genres–horror, mystery, comedy, instructional, … (blushing slightly) other genres, and even children’s books! How do you switch hats so easily?
Joe: Thanks for the kind words. I’m lucky to be interested in many genres and find all of them fun to write for. Hopefully the fun I’m having translates to the reader.
If you don’t find my books fun, that’s entirely my fault. I apologize. I’ll try harder next time. Would you like a pile of cash?
Besides the children’s picture book, I’ve also published other odd things. Like adult coloring books (The Ultimate Adult Coloring Book of Circles—which is 100 pages of circles), the Stop A Murder series (where you solve puzzles to catch a serial killer, unlocking clues, more story, and videos are you progress), eco-punk science fiction (Timecaster), and very funny erotica (Want It Bad).
And, of course, The List is now available as a mass market paperback, and I haven’t had any mass market paperbacks in years. It’s a technothriller with memorable characters and a lot of fun moments. Everyone should buy two copies; one for personal use, and one for their mother.
KN: You are a full-time writer and full-time professor with a full-time family. That’s a lot of time! How do you balance it all?
Joe: I’m actually five people. Which is expensive when buying shoes.
Were you the one who brought up drinking and money? Because that seems like a good idea. Maybe we can combine the two. Having a beer, while sitting on a pile of cash. Also, people dance for our amusement.
That would be the life, wouldn’t it?
What was the question again?
Oh, balance. I quit teaching, and my kids are grown, so now I just write. It’s a great job, and I highly recommend it.
KN: Throughout all of your stories, comedy plays a big part. Even the scary novels have their funny bits. But writing is serious work. How do you keep your sense of humor through all of it?
Joe: Reading is like giving your limbic system a work-out. It allows us to vicariously experience all emotions; fear, sorrow, joy, excitement, and laughter. Laughter is my favorite. So even when I write dark stuff, I try to find room for humor. It makes things more fun.
Hmm. I just re-read the above paragraph, and that wasn’t fun at all. Maybe I should add some emojis.
Laughter is my favorite. 😊 Even when I write dark stuff. ☹
Does that make it more fun? If not, you should have a beer.
KN: You are a big proponent of self-publishing and self-promotion. Aside from suggesting that they read your book A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing, is there one thing you think all new authors need to know?
Joe: Don’t write crap.
No reader wants to waste her time with bad books, so do her a favor and don’t write any.
It is difficult for writers to judge the merit of their own writing, even if they’ve written a few dozen novels. We all need some sort of objective feedback. Let your family, friends, peers, editors, and beta readers tell you what isn’t working because then you can fix it. Things are much harder to salvage if you publish something sub-par and get a bunch of well-deserved 1-star reviews. Don’t ever publish anything before it’s the very best you can make it.
You have one goal; make the reader happy. Don’t blow it.
Many thanks to J.A. Konrath for so graciously taking time to answer our questions and to Vida Enstrand and Lauren Vassallo from Kensington Publishing for facilitating this interview.