#59 Michael Seidlinger

20 Questions with Mourning Goats

INTERVIEW FIFTY NINE

Michael J Seidlinger

Michael Seidlinger is one of the biggest and best promoters I've run across online, not only for himself, but everyone he loves and respects. After having the opportunity to speak with him, I'm pumped to hear about the things he's a part of and can't wait to see where he goes. Enjoy number 59, Michael Seidlinger! 

1. What comes to mind when you hear, "Mourning Goats?"

I picture a field of dead, or dying grass, with a dozen or so cows standing around posing as other animals. But not as themselves. How a cow poses as something else… I have no idea but really the cows would have no clue that they’re posing; they’re cows. It would be the person theoretically looking at this fucked up scene. I guess that person would be me which means… I have no idea. What was the question again?

2. I've found with most authors I talk to, they don't normally come from a background of one career choice, but jump all over the place. As someone who's been everything from a professional boxer to a construction worker, do you think the reason for this is that creatives get bored easily?

I think we all get bored easily. Everyone. Nothing lasts forever and after the first impact, the first taste, everything has a tendency to filter away with each repeat experience. It’s a reason to enjoy the first time as if it were the only, or last, time. If you decide to do something, go into it believing that it’s one-of-a-kind. There’s really no guarantee it’ll be anything but that.

3. Do you think writers have a choice to become writers? Or is it's something that just...happens?

I think it just happens but, then again, so many writers are far more certain and confident about their choice to write than I am. I fell into writing after quickly becoming enamored by all sorts of modern/contemporary experimental literature. Ask someone else and they’ll go on about how they have dreamed of being a writer from an early age. Though everyone writes, at some point the inclination to tackle an longer written piece (like a novella or novel) is a conscious one. It is an incredible challenge that is never fully completed. The completion of one novel fulfills its specific constraints but no “one novel” will ever fulfill a writer’s ultimate challenge to write what is in their minds to be the best they can produce. There is, and will always be, better. And so you write. Even in a less than conscious state, you write.

4. What have you done in your life that makes you most proud?

I don’t know. I’m still living it, I think.

5. I see how much promotion you do on your Facebook page, for not only you, but others. Do you think social media is a necessary evil for authors these days?

It isn’t evil if you look at social media as a tool. So many people are quick to call Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, etc an evil presence on their lives. I have always looked at it as nothing more than a promotional and social tool. It is highly beneficial of writers and “creative” in general to incorporate social media into their routines. You will not only be able to reach an audience but also you’ll find other writing/art that you wouldn’t have discovered without it.

6. What are you most excited about with Civil Coping Mechanism? Anything you can talk about?

Cheesy answer but: I’m excited about the future. All of it. So much great work in the world and I’m merely glad to have CCM to help bring that great work into the world. Specific details? Keep that ear to the social networking channels. I’ll mention more there.

7. In one interview you said that the book that you remember starting your path toward being a writer was House of Leaves by Mark Danielewski, how did you come across a 700+ page beast like that and decide to get it, let alone read it?

I don’t actually remember. It was during undergrad. I believe I found out about it via a friend who had mentioned it in conversation. Something about how it was basically The Blair Witch Project if it were a novel (not via premise but via the sheer ambition to go against film/literary conventions of the time). That was enough for me to go ahead and pick up the book. Upon purchasing it, I ended up reading it cover-to-cover over a single weekend. I barely slept, completely captivated by the piece. It certainly was the harbinger that led me down the literary path. After that extremely positive reading experience, I was lured into the wormhole of postmodern literature – Vonnegut, Coupland, and, yes, Palahniuk before I started on the experimental stuff like the Oulipo authors, Joyce, and so on.

8. You're currently in NYC and it sounds like you're leaving in August, do you think you'll ever make it a more permanent home?

Good question. I hope so. As of now, it doesn’t seem like a possibility. I go where the opportunity is and lately I haven’t founded a permanent funding source. The labels “poor” and “nomadic” seem to be good descriptors for my immediate future. Comes with the territory, I guess.

9. Cameron Pierce said that your new novel, The Laughter of Strangers, is the "most original boxing novel ever," can you give us an idea of what to expect?

The Laughter of Strangers is about a boxer celebrity named Willem Floures on the tail end of his career, struggling to remain the current “most noteworthy” version of himself. This is a world where fighting in the ring means fighting yourself. You face the versions that decided differently; you wage war with the versions that want to be the penultimate, the one that best represents “Willem Floures.” This is a story about the version that had it all and yet still wants more, he wants to keep fighting and is willing to do whatever it takes, even if it means losing himself in the process.

10. Since your first book came out in 2010, you've had six books published, while at the same time going after a master's degree and working on a ton of side projects... when do you have time to sleep?

Secret’s out: I don’t sleep. Ever. Well, the reality is that I am an insomniac. If you are already a workaholic and also suffer from insomnia, you end up, more or less, where I’m at.

11. What's the reasoning behind the Master's degree? Do you want to teach?

I am actually pursuing a master’s in business primarily to learn more about the world of publishing and business at large. There exists a greater purpose that has to do with working with and/or operating a successful business; the postgraduate program, in theory, will help me get closer to this goal.

12. What are you reading these days? Is anything knocking you on your ass?

I find myself gravitating towards indie/small press work these days. Big surprise, I know; however, I really do think the writing being produced within the smaller and independent presses (everything non-Big Five) is more exciting than another 400-500 page hardcover from Doubleday or Knopf. Lately, notable reads include "Crapalachia" by Scott McClanahan, "Go to work and do your job. Care for your children. Pay your bills. Obey The Law. Buy products" by Noah Cicero, "I will never be beautiful enough to make us beautiful together" by Mira Gonzalez, and "I Don't Know I Said" by Matthew Savoca.

Of course, this excludes all the CCM material that knocked me on my ass, aka surprised me, enough to publish it. It's a great time to be involved in the indie press community.

13. The Summer Rooftop Reading Series you host looks like a good time, is it more focused on the reading or the camaraderie and drinks afterwards?

It is all about the camaraderie and drinks. It’s highly informal and in many ways is my way of denying yet another “reading” to exist. There are so many readings in any given city; it’s kind of ridiculous. You have the commodities, the reading series that consistently put out a great event like Franklin Park Reading Series championed by Penina Roth. Those sorts of readings are important; however, for every Franklin Park you have a dozen meaningless ones that end up feeling awkward, sterile, and docile. Whatever happened to just having a writer stand up and read? When did it become more about accolades? I mean, what the hell? Anyway, yeah, I’m not a fan of the standard reading format if it isn’t done well (curated and planned correctly).

14. Do you have a writing schedule or are you a write when the feeling hits kind of guy?

I adhere to a quota. Depending on the novel it can be up to 2000 words a day. By default, I write 1000 words a day. This is the minimum; I always attain more than 1000. Quality matters too. I edit as I go so that I don’t end up with filler that merely exists to exist. There needs to be purpose to each paragraph, each scene. If I didn’t maintain this sort of quota, I’d likely grow lazy.

15. Do you have a favorite book you've written or is it always the one in progress?

It’s always the one that’s currently in progress. Once it’s done and out in the world, I begin seeing them as their own entities. Never “my books” just “a book.” A book always takes on a life of its own. Being its author merely entails that you were responsible for its birth.

16. What would you say your writing style is? Do you feel you fit into a genre?

You tell me because I really don’t know. I’d hope that the world “literary” is somehow attached because I have made it a personal goal to always provide more than a narrative; a story that’s merely a story is hollow. There needs to be an underlying substance that fuels the reason for those words to exist at all.

17. In June you wrote something for Melville House on famous writers rituals. Do you have any?

I need coffee at my side, even if I don’t end up drinking it. I need music, something atmosphere and preferably without any vocals. This is likely why I am so into post-rock. I like to lie down rather than sit up; I also prefer solitude to a hectic coffee shop. However, I can adapt to any setting as long as I have music and headphones to block out the humanity.

18. There are many definitions of "a writer," what's yours?

You could say that all people are writers; however, the one’s that brandish it as part of their being are a breed of person that tries to make sense of the sentences work in a grander scheme of things. Whatever that scheme may be has usually to do with the exploration of deeper themes that only a certain level of creation can achieve.

19. What advice would you give someone who wants to break into the writing world?

I truly believe that it’s important to care about the work above all else. There’s no reason to write if you are only doing so for the satisfaction of publication. If you are looking to become a writer because you want to be a million seller and/or turn novel-writing into your day job, I’m not going to say it’s impossible but I will say that it’s going to make it far more difficult to write because you will treat the craft as more a struggle than a worthwhile challenge. As for “breaking in,” I wish I could tell you because I don’t believe I have any advice to give. It almost feels like “breaking in” isn’t something that happens; rather, it is something that is always, one hopes, happening. It’s the constant fight to find and discover. Hmm. Advice to give. Write what thrills you and fuels those late night writing sessions. Odds are you’ll leave something beautiful imbedded into those sentences.

20. What's next for Michael Seidlinger?

There’s always a novel, always another project; I am always working towards what I distantly see to be something exciting. Other than that, we’ll see.

Thank you!

Goat

Definitely "like" the Mourning Goats page on Facebook for all of the newest interviews, here: www.mourninggoats.com 

#58 Jessica Anya Blau

20 Questions with Mourning Goats

INTERVIEW FIFTY EIGHT

Jessica Anya Blau

I was lucky enough to meet Jessica a few weeks ago and sneakily stole her phone, sent myself an email requesting an interview, and then wrote back to her with the questions... she may have handed me the phone to do it, but I say what I want, it's my interview. She's fantastic, her books are fantastic, and YOU are fantastic for reading them. Enjoy the one, the only, Jessica Anya Blau! 

1. What comes to mind when you hear, "Mourning Goats?" 

Rutting bucks. I realize goats aren't bucks but a mourning goat just reminds me of a rutting buck. And a rutting buck reminds me of a guy with a bottle of imported beer in his left hand.  So I guess you could say that I think of guys drinking beer when I think of mourning goats.

2. When Nick Hornby speaks, people listen, what happened after his glowing review in The Believer? 

My publicist sent the review to me when I was out running errands. I was on a hectic schedule and couldn't stop and read it so I forwarded it to a friend (while at a stoplight) and had her read it to me over the phone. And then I just laughed. It made me immensely happy. As for what happened to the book . . . I guess we'll see, right? The book just came out. 

3. What's it been like publishing through Harper Perennial?

Oh, I love all the people I work with there. They're funny and fun and authentic. No one seems to be playing any part--they're all exactly who they are. And my editor is brilliant. I feel very lucky. Also I have a great publicist who takes good care of every book he has even when you're not Cheryl Strayed or someone like that.

4. You didn't start writing until you moved to Canada after college, what was the prompt? 

Loneliness.  Pending lunacy. I found I felt okay about myself, my day, my life, when I wrote. 

5. For your novel WonderBread, you have a blurb from another Mourning Goat Interviewee, Paula Bomer and you're email pals with Nick Hornby who answered the goats questions last year, do you think that with the connectivity of social media more authors are becoming pals and then helping each other? Do you think it's a necessity in these hard publishing times? 

Well, Nick wrote me after that review and, of course, I had to write back and thank him for the review and all that. He is a supremely generous person. I met Paula when she asked me to read with her in New York and found her to be so fascinating and smart and funny, too. I don't think it's "necessary" to help other people out but I do believe that we're all in this together.  We writers.  And even we people on Earth. It's hard to write and it's hard to get published, and it's even harder to get a published book noticed.  If we look it as a community, a group of people who love each other, then it makes sense that we help each other out the best we can. So, no, I don't think it's necessary but I do think it's the right thing to do. We should treat each other kindly and as generously as possible. 

6. Are  any of your books being optioned for the big screen? Which would you most like to see? 

I think Wonder Bread Summer would make a great movie and I'd love to see it on the screen. Drinking Closer to Home would probably be the most difficult to make into a movie.  I think Drew Barrymore should play the mother in Naked Swim Parties. It is hard to think of her as a mother, but she is the age of the mother in the book.  And she'd be perfect standing at the grill, making pancakes, with nothing on but an apron. 

7. Do you have an average timeframe that it takes you to write a book?

About two years.  And then there's the year of revisions with my editor if I'm lucky enough to have sold it.

8. Have you ever had negative feedback from anyone you've written about? Either way, does that change anything? 

No.  My family is used to me writing about them and I pretty much just crack them up. Other people don't see themselves the way I see them. I've had many, many people tell me they thought one character or another was based on someone in particular and they're usually wrong. 

9. What are your thoughts on social media? Does it help or harm writers? 

I'm on book tour now (actually I'm on an airplane right now) and more than one person has come up to me at a reading and said they showed up because I posted the reading on Facebook. So I guess it helps. I get sick of myself pretty quickly, sick of the sound of my own voice (and my voice in my head, too), so I try to tweet and Facebook post about other writers, ideas, and images as much as possible.  Then I stick myself in there from time to time because I do want people to come to readings and I do want people to read the book.

10. How did you get your agent, Brandt and Hochman Literary Agents, Inc. New York, NY? What was the process like? 

I met Gail Hochman in the French House at Sewanee.  It was late at night and we stood on the porch and talked about kids. She showed me pictures of her kids.  I didn't know she was an agent.  Later, after we had talked for a good long time I said to someone, "Who was that woman? She's hilarious." They told me who she was and I wrote her name down somewhere.  When my book was done, months later, I sent it to her and . . . well, here we are.

11. If someone were to tell you one thing before you started writing, what do you wish it had been?

You aren't as dumb as you think. 

12. What's the scariest part about giving a reading?

Standing there and having people look at me. It's terrifying. I try to pretend I'm someone else. Someone who isn't scared out of her mind and trembling inside. I fake myself out. I also try to remind myself that no one really gives a shit about me and even if I bomb, the only one who will remember is me. Nothing I do will make the news, so it's stupid, really, to be so afraid. I once stepped out of a jacuzzi in a women's locker room, and vomited and passed out, NAKED, in my own vomit. Sometimes I tell myself that no matter what happens, it probably won't be as bad as that. 

13. Did I hear right? WonderBread is taken from a lot of real events you've been through? 

Yup, sure is. Here's the round up of stuff I've encountered in real life: 1. The bread bag full of cocaine. 2. The girl (moi!) working at a dress shop that's really a front for cocaine dealing. 3. The quadriplegic with the head pointer who makes "erotic" films (in real life the guy made sex films that he called "art", in the book the guy makes porn). 4. The blind date with the quadriplegic (my blind date was with a paraplegic). 5. A guy named Vice Versa (the real one wasn't a hit man). Hmmm, there's more, but I can't remember right now. 

14. What's the hardest thing you ever had to write? 

The hardest things for me to write are promo/ad copy sort of things. Fiction is way easier than stuff like that. Actually, the hardest things to write are mission statements, essays, statements of purpose.  The kind of stuff you have to write to get into colonies.  I find that kind of writing agonizing.  

15. Did I hear that the very first story you sent out was published? What did that feel like?

It did and I was shocked.  I was staying home with my baby, pulling weeds from the lawn with my crazyass next door neighbor who had screws in her mouth for teeth and liked to weed my lawn with a fork. I was sitting in the park all day, talking to other mothers, watching my crawling baby eat sand and crawl up the steps to the slide and then slide down face first.  When she napped I wrote. I didn't tell anyone, it was my secret. I had no idea if anything I wrote was good or not. Getting that story published gave me the courage to apply to graduate school. 

16. I saw your first two books have book trailers, is The Wonder Bread Summer going to have one? What do you think they do for the book? 

I'm not sure they do anything for a book.  In fact, I'm pretty certain they do nothing. But they're sort of fun to make and fun to look at. I think shorter is better. I don't' think any book trailer should be longer than 60 seconds. We are making one for Wonder Bread. We were going to shoot it last week but my schedule got too crazy.  I think we're shooting it next week.  

17. Have you ever considered doing the audio book version of your books? 

Hey, I'd do the pantomime version of my book if someone wanted it! 

18. Do you participate in any writing workshops, or is it just you and your editor? 

I have a writers group.  It's me and three guys, they all have at least two books out and they're all great writers. We eat dinner. They drink wine. We talk about everything. And then we give macro responses to each other's work. No one's really into the minutiae and that's how I prefer it. It's our editors who get into the micro. 

19. On your website it says that you have a novel in progress called Running from Vice Versa, are you nervous about giving away too much too soon? 

Really? Does it say that?  That was my working title for The Wonder Bread Summer. My webpage was recently updated.  I don't think it says that anymore, does it? OH, maybe on the HarperCollins page for me it says that, doesn't it? 

20. Other than Running from Vice Versa, what's next for Jessica Blau? 

I have five things going at once and I'm feeling somewhat paralyzed. I'm feeling a bit scared and I don't know why. I think it's because I'm in the middle of promoting Wonder Bread and so I can't get my head away from it enough to really dive into something else. I have three first chapters to a new novel (three different novels). And I have short stories I'm writing. And other stuff, too. I need to pick one thing and just dig in. I need to ignore myself for a while (my constantly critical self-doubting, niggling voice) and just do it. I'm starting tomorrow. I swear. 

Thank you! 

Goat

And as always, don't forget to "like" the Mourning Goats Facebook page for all the latest interviews! www.mourninggoats.com 

#57 Jesus Angel Garcia

20 Questions with Mourning Goats

INTERVIEW FIFTY SEVEN

Jesus Angel Garcia

This interview has been over a year in the making, but after the festival with Iggy (yes, that Iggy) and the Stooges, we got some questions answered. So, without further adieu, I give you Jesus Angel Garcia and his book, badbadbad! 

1. What comes to mind when you hear, "Mourning Goats?"

The remorse of a 14-year-old Catholic boy, masturbating.

2. Do you consider yourself more of a novelist or musician? 

I've played music and written "seriously" since 8th grade. I'm glad I'm still able to do both, but what's more important to me is how I live, quality of life. I'm just trying to be a decent human being and enjoy what's left of my time.

3. That being said, you have 30 shows lined up for 2013, already. When are you going to have time to write? 

Yeah, I've got a lot going on with my string band Three Times Bad. Most of my writing right now is song lyrics. I've also begun to write my next book -- a collection of stories and prose poems based on Billie Holiday tunes. I make time when I can, when I feel like I need to get something down. I like flying because I'm trapped on the plane and all I do is write (and read). It's a respite from everything on the ground demanding head space. I'm doing a writing retreat in Portland this summer, so I'll crank out some more Billie Holiday drafts then (and learn to play this banjo I recently picked up). I'm also seeing this beautiful poet who won't let me not write. We're talking about launching a transmedia publishing company.

4. What was the idea behind doing not only the book and music for the book, but also film? Was it all marketing? 

Nah, less marketing than unrestrained creative impulse, I guess. It's hard to remember exactly. I think the multimedia stuff for "badbadbad" started out simply from my interest in exploring the novel's themes through different lenses, just to see what that would look like. I did originally plan to make a couple of videos from the audio-visual material to promote the book outside traditional literary channels. I've always been into music, and at the time, I had just bought my first point-and-shoot camera and editing software, so I was fired by the possibilities. As I got deeper into writing songs and interviewing people on the street, the whole thing sort of took off and I could see these distinct yet interrelated projects coming into being. I couldn't stop once I saw what they could be. I wound up with a complete soundtrack and a full-length documentary film that extended the breadth of the novel beyond the words on the page. It was an unexpected outcome.

5. What's going on with Down in a Hole?

That's my second novel. It took me six years and fifty thousand drafts to get it right. The manuscript's on my hard drive. I should probably print a hard copy. I haven't shopped it much, focusing instead on Three Times Bad. No luck with the few indie presses I've hit up. I should probably put more effort into getting that book published. It's a paranormal anti-romance historical fiction existential meditation on mortality. Got any recs?

6. What was it like working with New Pulp Press? Any plans to go back for another book? 

New Pulp's editor/publisher Jon Bassoff is a great guy. He's easy to work with and incredibly supportive. But I don't have plans to write anything new in the transgressive noir vein, and his aesthetic is pretty much twisted crime fiction, so I'm gonna have to look elsewhere for a home for my next books.

7. What's your writing schedule look like? Do you have one? 

I travel by plane as often as possible.

8. It seems as though you're a full-time musician and novelist, is that right? What else do you do to fill your time? 

I freelance: First Church webmaster, reiki massage therapist, mile-high entertainer on those private jets where CEO's and politicians lick each other's billfolds.

9. Mud Luscious Press just closed up shop, where do you think indie lit is headed?

From what I can tell, indie lit is a luminescent, Hydra-headed beast with boundless energy, badass attitude, and an appetite for self-destruction. Indie lit is hungry, and it feeds on itself. When one braintrust dies, a new one rises from its rotten corpse. As there's no end to cynicism in the indie lit world, there's also no end to the idealism of bleary-eyed writer/editor/publishers-in-training. Have I mentioned that I'm starting a press? Of course: "Unsolicited submissions are not being accepted at this time."

10. What's your take on e-books? Are they killing the printed word? 

E-books are... eeeevil? Nah. I don't care. Go on and lick your laptop/tablet/cellphone screens. Me? I eat words on paper. I like acoustic instruments and I like books that smell.

11. Have you received a lot of backlash from BadBadBad? You hit on some pretty rough topics. 

Some but not so much. Suffice to say, the book has triggered a range of reactions, most positive, most passionate.

12. You said in one interview that, "the haters tend to hate it with a passion," do you think that those who hate, and share their hate, actually help sales? The whole, any press is good press. 

Sales? Surely you jest.

13. You compiled nearly 80 gigabytes of film for the documentary, how did you choose what to include? 

At first, the editing process was complicated, searching for connects and just-right juxtapositions and narrative sequences among so many faces, voices, and words. It was easier once I homed in on the sounds. Then I just constructed the film like you'd compose an extended musical work. Once I listened, it was obvious which parts to include and which to cut.   

14. It seems as though you're almost angry about how digital the world has become, do you think we're going in a negative direction with how connected we are or does it amplify reality? 

I AM NOT ANGRY!!! Maybe we've always been as pathetic as we often appear to be while sucking the digital teat all the livelong day. My biggest problem with e-obsessive/compulsive behavior is that a lot of people seem to have forgotten how (or have simply given up on developing the capacity) to communicate and connect face-to-face, eye-to-eye, skin-to-skin. It seems to me that a lot of us use digital media as a way to tune out, not tune in. Information overload, clickety click culture, always-on oversharing... all that stuff tends to be, I think, a diversion from or disruption to more meaningful nuanced communication, one-on-one connection, healthy sleep patterns, etc. That's a sad misuse of the technology and it makes me feel like too many of us are little more than two-legged hillbilly cyborg dogs.  

15. I've never heard of a dating site used for novel research, what went down on OkCupid? 

Hunger, hunt, gorge, vomit, repeat.

16. Do you think that being a musician transitions to the way you write? Do you feel that your writing is almost lyrical?

I hope so. Yeah, I think they're connected. They can't not be, right? I've been doing both for so long. My first writing was poetry, so there's that.

17. You're all over the social networks, do you think that they're a necessity in today's self-promotional world? 

I guess. I dunno. I'm not sure. I'd like to quit. I guess I would if I wasn't a cyborg dog.

18. What's been the most exciting news you've received about the book, the band, or the film? Each have so many exciting things happening! 

Hard to say. Excitement is fleeting, ya know? What goes up... anyway, when you first see your first book in print it can't not feel like something that matters. But then reality kicks in. Do you know how many books are published every year in the United States alone? Still, my favorite moments with the book were probably when a legit critic wrote a thoughtful review and I was like, yes, this writer gets what I was trying to get across and he or she took the time to articulate it. I'm super appreciative for the times that happened. With the band... we just played all three days of this badass Ink n Iron Festival in Long Beach on the Queen Mary, a historic cruise ship, with headliners Iggy & the Stooges and so many other world-class bands. That was an honor. Also, our on-stage partnerships with burlesque dancers are kinda magical dream-come-true experiences. There's nothing like a performance that kills. With the film, getting an acceptance email from the first film fest I applied to was a good day.

19. Are you reading anything that you can't stop telling people about? 

Anne Carson's "Autobiography of Red" is kicking my ass and reminding me what language and story can do when you push yourself to write big.

20. What's next for Jesus Angel Garcia?

At this moment, a much-needed vacation with family and old-school friends I haven't seen in way too long. Maybe after that, a new chapter in creative publishing.

Thank you! 

Goat

Check out his other places on the web, at www.threetimesbad.com and www.badbadbad.net and as always, go "like" the Facebook page for the newest interviews, updates, and pages to chew. www.mourninggoats.com 

#56 Seth Godin

20 Questions with Mourning Goats 

INTERVIEW FIFTY SIX

Seth Godin 

I've been following Seth for a few years now, and back in February sent my first email to him. Once he agreed to the interview, my first thoughts were, "Goat, what have you gotten yourself into this time? Seriously, what do you ask someone who's been touted as the greatest marketer of our time? Someone who sold their company (Yoyodyne) to Yahoo for $30 million? Someone who's written over a dozen New York Times bestsellers?" After some research, I came up with these twenty. I hope you enjoy, I know I did! 

1. What comes to mind when you hear, "Mourning Goats?"

Nothing. At all. Sorry.

2. Congratulations, you just had your 5,000th post on your blog! Why do you think your blogging has gone longer than any of your other professional projects?

Blogging is magical because there's no business objective. I just get to share. Since there's no peak, there's no end. It's me, thinking and sharing and ranting and musing. I guess I'm hooked.

3. You've had a plethora of New York Times best sellers, what do you owe your success to? Marketing, subject matter, timing, a mixture of it all?

Certainly a mixture. I've been fortunate enough to stand up and name things that needed naming, and to do it at a time when ideas were easier to spread than ever before.

4. You've resisted the pull of social media because it would take you away from what's most important to you, but for the rest of us, just getting started, do you think that social media is a necessity or does it all come down to putting the time in to create something and continue on that path, letting things fall where they may.

I think that for just about everyone, Twitter is a time-waster, not an asset builder. There are exceptions, but not many. Facebook and LinkedIn can amplify your work as a generous connector, but they are more of a symptom than a cause.

Do work that scares you.

5. I usually get your emails between 5:30 and 6:30am, what's your writing schedule for the blogs, the books, and everything else? Do you try to keep any kind of schedule? Is that possible in your world?

I'm super disciplined about many things, it makes it easier to be crazier when I need to be. So yes, there's a discipline to the blog.

6. You recently did a search for a two-week internship and one of the asks was that the person gave back to society in some way, I also saw that you give 5% of profits from Squidoo to charity. Are you a big believer in Karma?

I'm a big believer in doing what you can, when you can. If you can't be generous, who can be?

7. Are you still in contact with your 9 six-month MBA students? Are there any who are really standing out?

I hear from them all the time. I'm incredibly proud of the paths they're choosing to walk.

8. As someone who hardly watches any television, do you read fiction at all? Or is your creative reading in the non-fiction world?

I read junky fiction, but I find I lack the patience for real literature. That's my loss.

9. In one interview you said that a successful book of yours led you to a book that was a failure, led you to another successful book. What deems a book a success/failure in your eyes?

For me, every book is a success, in that if I thought it was a failure, I never would have sent it to the publisher. But many of my books haven't met the publisher's hopes for sales, so in that respect, a failure.

10. One of the questions you included in the internship interview was, "Where are you going?" I'd love to ask you the same, where are you going?

I'm trying to build a reputation, a platform and to leave things a little better than I found them.

11. In one interview, you were asked if you were "satisfied creatively" and you responded, "not even close." Do you think as a writer and as an entrepreneur, this is the biggest driving force in what you do? That feeling that there's always more to explore?

Exactly! It's hard to say, "this is perfect, it's done, I'm done." Some people can do that, but I can't.

12. Mourning Goats published an author interview book in May called Chewing the Page. We went through a traditional publisher (Perfect Edge Books) and I was wondering, do you think kickstarter is a good way for up-and-coming authors to help build their audience and procure a publisher?

Read this: http://www.thedominoproject.com/?p=2228

13. Your thoughts on education are dead on. Do you see passion, experience and insight being something that schools look at and implement in educating students in the future?

We can hope! I think it's going to take longer than it should.

14. I feel like your thoughts on goals and making money are a lot like a fiction writer's. Put hundreds, if not thousands, of hours into a project, do your best work, do something that you're proud of, and if it makes you any money, good for you. Is that about right?

I'd add: make generous connections. Contribute as much as you can to the community that you depend on. Raise the bar and teach what you can...

15. You once said, "When anyone can publish an ebook, anyone will." Do you think this helps or hinders what's put out into the world?

Both. Without curation, it's really difficult to choose. On the other hand, without curators, there's no gatekeeper to keep the undiscovered off the market.

16. 900 rejection letters? Many of the authors who read this interview just fell in love with you for pushing through! What's the best piece of advice you have to get past rejection and on to success?

Rejection isn't about you. Rejection merely means that the story you told to someone didn't resonate with them. Blame the story or blame the rejector, but the work is the work. I saw rejections as, "no for now."

That doesn't mean you shouldn't learn from what doesn't work. But failure is an event, not a person, as my friend Zig used to say.

17. In fiction, most, if not all of us fail, a lot, before getting published; did you write any unpublished books before Permission Marketing took off?

I created 120 books as a book packager--YA fiction, books on gardening and business and many things in between. Some I wrote, some I commissioned, some I built teams for. The Information Please Business Almanac, for example, took 6 people a year of full time work to put together. The original Kaplan review books were a huge project as well.

18. In 2010, you said that Linchpin would be your last book you publish in a traditional way, how do you think this has played out for you and where do you see it changing in the future?

Well, it's been true. I love people in book publishing, but an always not-so-good business model is now officially a terrible one.

19. I started this interview site back in 2010 and have interviewed over 50 of my favorite writers, so far. Who would you go after next? Which authors out there do you think have the most to say?

Charles Darwin?

20. Finally, I've seen a ton of similarities between three of the Mourning Goats interviews; you, Gary Vaynerchuk and Tony Hsieh. Do you think most successful entrepreneurs, as well as authors in general, are the ones not scared to take the risk of failure?

Entrepreneurs don't take risks. We see opportunities.

Thank you, Seth! 

Goat

Also, this interview, along with the other 55 will be moving over to Facebook, one at a time, over the next 22 days. "Like" the Mourning Goats page and follow along! And finally, don't forget to grab the book over on Amazon! Chewing the Page: The Mourning Goats Interviews. 

#55 Richard Thomas

20 Questions with Mourning Goats

INTERVIEW FIFTY FOUR

Richard Thomas

And we have a new winner in the fastest turn-around time for questions! Questions were sent at 4:56pm and returned to me at 7:07pm. I asked Richard a little bit about his "secret" to success, but after seeing how fast he got this back to me, I found that it's just because he works his ass off. Definitely one of my favorite interviews, thanks again, Richard!  

1. What comes to mind when you hear, "Mourning Goats?"

I see a lot of black shrouds and there is definitely a low, guttural moan—surreal, strange and oddly touching.

2. Medallion Press just bought an anthology you've been working on with Chuck Palahniuk and Dennis Widmyer, what's it like working with the man who got you started in writing?

We’re all really excited about this project. Mostly, I feel honored that I was able to step in and help get this ball over the goal line, yeah? So many wonderful people have been involved with this, the authors have written such amazing stories, and it all started with Chuck, right? I have to say that CP is the main reason I’m writing today. I was in a funk, my career as an art director and graphic designer fun and paying the bills, but not fulfilling. Like many, I saw Fight Club, and then came to the Cult, and then read all of his work. It was a slap in the face, a wake up call. To work with Chuck, to have my name alongside his, it’s really an honor. I’m humbled by his generosity and his work inspires me. It’s just a dream come true, really.

3. You received an MFA from a low-residency program (as did I), what do you think about low-residency programs as well as the teaching of creativity?

I really had so much fun—to be around “my people” like this, to read and write, to talk about great books. Part of the reason I went to Murray State University is that Holly Goddard Jones was teaching there, and Dan Wickett, Matt Bell and Aaron Burch had just visited—all great minds that have gone on to heavily influence my writing career. Back then, the MSU program was reading Knockemstiff, by Donald Ray Pollock, and I thought that was awesome. I was reading it, too. Being a part of that program I read so many wonderful authors, some, people I’d never read before. I got into Flannery O’Connor, Cormac McCarthy, Haruki Murakami, and Mary Gaitskill, to name just a few people.

I had a job, and a family, so a low-res program was the best option. I had some great teachers, and Dale Ray Phillips was my thesis advisor. The man was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, and was an encyclopedia of information. Tell him you were working on a story about swimming pools and he’d rattle off three other stories, and tell you to go read them. The creativity, the community, it’s all what you make of it. You get out of it what you put into it. I wish they were more accepting of “genre fiction,” that they would talk more about how to be a commercial success, to actually make a living at it, and I wish they knew more about what’s going on in contemporary literature, but otherwise, I had a blast.

4. You took a class from one of the Mourning Goats Interviewees, Craig Clevenger. What was it like learning from someone you admire so much?

That was another pivotal moment in my career. I’d read both of his books, and took his class to see if I had any ability at all. If he told me I sucked, I would have quit. He liked my work a lot, even compared it to an idol of his, Steve Erickson, and I have to admit, I was surprised, and really moved by his support. In fact, the one story he personally encouraged me to send out, was “Stillness” which got accepted in Shivers VI (Cemetery Dance) where it was published alongside Stephen King and Peter Straub—another dream come true. I owe Craig a lot. Palahniuk, Clevenger and Baer, they have all been major influences on my career, in a number of different ways.

5. What's your writing schedule like these days? Do you write every day, do you think it's necessary?

I don’t write every day. The last year has been a ton of management—getting Disintegration to my agent and out to publishers; sending off my thesis stories; editing two anthologies. But I also rewrote my first book, Transubstantiate, as a YA title, and I’m part of a collection of novellas called Four Corners, and I’ve been writing as a part of the various WAR battles over at LitReactor.com. I write when I find time, when a story comes to me, when I’m moved. I write for deadlines, anthologies that get my attention. For example, when Michael Gonzalez announced the whole Cipher Sisters anthology at Thunderdome, I KNEW I wanted to write a story, so I kept that brewing in my head, simmering for weeks, and then the story “Dance, Darling” came spilling out. First time I’ve used German in a story. (Yes, the story got in!) What’s necessary is to do what works for you, whatever that is.

6. The more interviews I do, the more I realize how many tight-knit groups of writers there are all over the world. What do you think about the support system of the writer in general and in your world?

It’s so important. We need that network, a support system, for when we fail, and for when we break through. Not all of our spouses and kids and co-workers really “get” what we’re doing. For me it’s been The Velvet, The Cult, Cemetery Dance, LitReactor, and of course, social media like Facebook and Twitter. It’s silly, I suppose, but when I have a big announcement, and I see the people that comment, that click “like,” these authors, editors and artists that I really respect, it’s touching. It really is.

7. You're very active on social media, do you think that self-promotion these days is more important than ever?

I do. You never know where you’re going to be discovered, you need to get the word out, build your audience. I don’t try to shove it down people’s throats, but I’m always thrilled when I find a new fan, when something I write really resonates with somebody, when it inspires people to write, or submit their work, or just push through an obstacle. I have my mentors, my rabbits to chase, the Stephen Graham Joneses and the Matt Bells of the world. We’re all struggling to get our work published, and it’s my dream to be a writer, a teacher, an editor, and a publisher. When you’re as small-time as I am, you need every means of promotion you can get your hands on, and the time I spend on Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, etc. it’s very important—it really helps to get my name out there. And then, it’s a matter of the writing being good. That’s all I can hope for, to get somebody to read a story, and hope I impress them, entertain them, take them to another place and time and do something that impacts them emotionally.

8. Navigating your Facebook page, there are a lot of publication announcements. Do you do anything other than write or is it a pretty 24/7 focus?

Oh, sure. I do other literary things—editing, teaching, advice columns, and book reviews. And then outside of all of that I’m a father and a husband. I love to read, see movies, play golf and tennis, softball—I do exist in the real world.

9. You recently "harpooned" one of your "white whales" in writing, with a story in Midwestern Gothic, where else would be a dream for you to publish?

Ha, just got that in the mail today. I was holding it in my hands and looking at it, and then I set in on the shelf. I’m sending a copy to my professor, Dale Ray, down at Murray. I wrote that story, “Garage Sales” under his guidance. So many places, where to even start? Plus, I write across so many different genres. I won’t hold my breath about The New Yorker, Tin House or The Paris Review, but I’d love to get into The Missouri Review, Cream City Review (short-listed there as we speak), Hobart, Juked, Barrelhouse, Caketrain, GUD, Copper Nickel, Ploughshares—and those are just the literary places. As for horror, I still haven’t gotten into Cemetery Dance the magazine, or Shroud, Shock Totem, and that damn Shimmer. Fantasy & Science Fiction is one I’d love to get into, Clarkesworld, too, Fantasy Magazine. I got close with Ellery Queen, they’re a big name, as well as Hitchcock’s—not to mention smaller places like Needle.

10. Your goal after getting the MFA was to teach, in the Chicago area, is that what you're doing now? Is that still the goal?

My goal is definitely to teach, and I’ve finally started getting in-person interviews. I’ve taught some shorter classes, a day at Story Studio Chicago, and a two-week class at LitReacotr.com. It’s brutal out there. I feel like I’ll have to take that MFA and cobble together something that is a mix of writing short stories, novels, and columns, as well as editing, teaching, and publishing. It’s all connected, and I love doing all of it, but yeah, if I could make a living just writing? Wow, that would be amazing.

11. I saw you got an agent last year, what do you see as the best part of having an agent, other than saying you have an agent? ;-)

Ha, yeah, that is a bonus. Paula is getting me in front of people that I couldn’t get to on my own. Without an agent you just can’t get in front of the big six, and their imprints. Hell, you can’t get to a good number of independent presses either. We’ve gotten so close. It’s come down to board votes, losing by one vote. Paula really believes in my writing, my voice—she thinks I’m special. And I know that sounds stupid, like I’m talking about my mother or something, but isn’t that what we all want? She gets my voice, the reason I write the way I do, the heavy settings, the lyrical prose, the layers of language, emotion, metaphor, love, lust, darkness, death and rebirth. She gets it all. And that's who I want representing me. The biggest problem with the big publishers is they want a guaranteed success—they want to sell books, so in many ways all that they want is a book with a broad appeal. My writing does not appeal to everyone. But I’m okay with that. I’d rather be closer to Palahniuk, Baer, and Cormac, than Grisham and Patterson. 

12. You're working with Shya Scanlon, another Mourning Goats Interviewee, at The Nervous Breakdown. What do you do there and how do you like it?

Shya is great—he makes my writing so much better. He’s an ideal editor, and one hell of an author himself. I loved his novel, Forecast. I’ve worked with several editors, and it has been painful at times. I’ve had to rescind my review before. But Shya gets it, he lets me speak about the books and authors I enjoy, and say what I need to say—and then he steps in with his scalpel and trims the fat. He’s amazing. I keep reviewing books at The Nervous Breakdown because of the authors I profile, and my relationship with Shya. He’s just that good.

13. In 2011 you were a residency at Writers in the Heartland, seven days in a house with 9 other writers, what came of it and how did you get involved?

That was a lot of fun. Aside from my MFA, I’ve never done anything like that. We wrote a lot, and then wandered the cornfields at night, smoking clove cigarettes, howling at the moon. We’d sit in the hot tub and talk about writing. We’d walk around the pond and get lost in the overarching branches of the trees.

I wrote about 30,000 words while I was there—a novella originally titled The Outskirts (now called The Golden Geese) which is being shopped by my agent as part of a bigger project called Four Corners, with Nik Korpon, Caleb Ross, and Axel Taiari; a long short story, “Chrysalis,” which was just accepted at Arcadia, out this May; and the first 7,000 words of my third novel, Incarnate, which has been stalled for a while. It was a great week. And I’m still friends with a few of the authors and poets from back then.

14. You've only been on the scene a few years and it seems like you're connecting with all the right people. What do you think the biggest "secret" to your success is? Other than the obligatory hard work?

Thanks for that, you’re a very generous Goat. I think it’s a couple things. First, I have no fear. I have no problem asking any author for a blurb, or advice. I just track them down. But it’s not about the name—I have to have a genuine love for their work. So whether I'm talking to Peter Straub or Tim O’Brien, Brian Evenson or Dan Wickett at Dzanc, I just speak from the heart, and find common ground. I also do my best to support other authors, big and small. The books I review at TNB are almost entirely independent small presses, or if they are bigger presses, it’s that first or second book, that breakthrough. You’d be surprised how easy it is to connect with people if you just aren’t a dick. Plus, like you say, I try my best to put my money where my mouth is. I don’t just stargaze and talk about things I’ve never done. I’m out here in the trenches with everyone else, suffering, crying in the dark, hoping and dreaming, glowing when I break through, grateful when the kind words and acceptance comes. I’m constantly floored that Stephen Graham Jones, Craig Clevenger, Karen Brown, Joey Goebel, Craig Davidson, Donald Ray Pollock, Scott Phillips, Rob Roberge, Kealan Patrick Burke, Lisa Morton, C. W. LaSart, Damien Walters Grintalis, and Max Booth III have all blurbed my work. Every time I sent out a manuscript and ask for a blurb, I worry that they’ll pass, and many people have, but when they come back with generous words, it’s just so amazing.

15. What's your favorite and least favorite part of giving readings? 

I hate the nerves, the way that I get sick to my stomach, even if I know the crowd, even if I’ve read that story before. I love it when I finally settle in and find my voice, when the crowd slips away, and I’m there, in my story, wherever it is, and I’m sharing that vision with them, and they react—they laugh or gasp, they go silent, heads bowed, a tear in their eye, and then the applause. I just want to share with them what I’m feeling, and when we connect, it’s really quite intimate.

16. I saw that you released one story, “Transmogrify,” on kindle, as a teaser for your short story collection, Staring Into The Abyss. What success have you seen come out of this? It's a brilliant idea! 

Thanks, that was George’s idea over at Kraken. He’s an amazing artist, but this publishing is a new thing to him. I think I’m the second book he’s put out. It seemed like a smart thing to do. I don’t know if it’ll translate into sales, last I heard we had several hundred downloads of the free story. But when you’re an unknown author on an unknown press, you do whatever you can to get the word out. The free eBook, the microsite, the blurbs, the Tweets, Facebook, Goodreads, the book trailer, etc—you just throw it at the wall and see what sticks. We’ve gotten good reviews so far, mostly 4 and 5 stars across the board. I know it’s not a perfect collection, what is, but there are a few of my favorites in this group of stories, so I’m excited to get it out there and find new people with my work.

17. Staring Into the Abyss comes out this month (April 2013), you have one sentence to sell it, what do you say?

“Battle not with monsters, lest ye become a monster, and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”—Nietsche

18. Did I read that you were a designer before being a writer? Do you think that that kind of creativity changed the way you see things and in turn, the way you write?

Yes, I’ve been a graphic designer and art director for almost twenty years. It’s still what I do for a living, my full-time work, how I pay my mortgage. I do think it informs my writing, and visa versa. It’s all connected—writing, television, film, music, art, dance, etc. There is beauty and horror in all of it. I do see things in visual terms, my stories are almost always short films in my head, and there is always color, the five senses, it’s visceral to me, something real. I think that’s why at the end of my second book, Disintegration, I started crying, thought I might throw up. I’d been this man, this monster, for two years. It had drained me of my own spirit and emotion and left me an empty shell. I filled up again, but for a moment, it was intensely overwhelming.

19. Who are some newer authors you'd like everyone to know about? Or anyone currently blowing your mind?

Oh, man, where to start? I feel like I talk a lot about the male writers I read, since I grew up reading genres that were dominated my men, but lately, it’s been the women that have really been destroying me. In addition to the names I’ve already mentioned earlier in this interview, here are some women that I really love to read: Roxane Gay, Lindsay Hunter, xTx, Amelia Gray, Ethel Rohan, Monica Drake, Amber Sparks, Jac Jemc, Mary Miller, Paula Bomer, Claire Vaye Watkins, and so many others. They all take risks, they all bring a lot of emotion and power to their stories, and they continuously surprise me.

20. What's next for Richard Thomas?

Well, Staring Into the Abyss releases soon. I just had that story, “Garage Sales” come out in Midwestern Gothic. Up next is “Chrysalis” in Arcadia out in May, and you know about the anthology with Palahniuk, Burnt Tongues, in August of 2014. I’m also editing an anthology for Black Lawrence Press (The Lineup: 25 Provocative Women Writers) out in late 2014. You’ll see ALL of the women I just mentioned in that anthology, such an amazing collection of edgy, contemporary fiction—I was so lucky to get them all to say yes and contribute to this book. It’s basically 25 of my favorite stories from the past five years. Beyond that, there are other things in the works, but only time will tell how they turn out! Wish me luck.

Thank you!

And thank you, Goat. These were some excellent questions, you obviously did your homework, and I really appreciate the support and respect you’ve given me here, it means a lot.

To keep up to date on all the newest Goat news, "like" us on Facebook and don't forget to pre-order the Mourning Goats book, Chewing the Page: The Mourning Goats Interviews!