Jeffrey Hale recently hit the
scene with his first novel, MUTE. It's an ingenious twist on the current
plethora of apocalypse novels saturating the market. In Hale's twisted future,
the undead don't make a peep, and you can't hear them coming. The novel offers
up genuine chills and I was finally able to grab a moment with the author to
talk about the important things in life.
RT: How did you come up with the
premise for MUTE?
JH: Mute is the result of
various psychotropic drugs, not excluding Malibu and Twizzlers. It’s
disturbingly easy to pen a horror novel when you’re jacked up on melon-flavored
rum and sugary snacks.
Actually, I kid.
I’ve always been a fan of post-apocalyptic fiction. I wanted to take the “zombies appear, zombies attack, zombies take over the mother-effing globe” concept, and give it a unique twist. I also wanted to explore the question: “What makes us human? Are we just animals, deep down?”
Hopefully, I succeeded on both
fronts.
RT: There are three big gorillas
at the zoo near my house...which James Bond movie would they like best and why?
JH: First, I would like to
congratulate you. Gorillas are badass. If I could live across the street from a
bunch of those hairy bastards, I would in a heartbeat.
Second, I have a confession. I’ve
never watched a James Bond movie. Therefore, I would recommend xXx. I
believe Vin Diesel and Gorillas have a lot in common. In a good way.
RT: Who are the authors you read
for inspiration these days?
JH: I wish I could say
“Kafka, Keats, and Longfellow,” but I’m not that deep. My current favorites are
Gregory Lamberson, David Wong, John Connolly, and Jeff Jacobson. Those guys
know their shit.
RT: What's the weirdest thing you
would put on your pizza?
JH: Anchovies. Boring, I
know, but I’m a pizza purist. I blame it on my Italian fiancé.
RT: I believe MUTE is your
first novel...what was the best part about writing it?
JH: The end (insert
laughter). If memory serves me, I wrote it over the course of a year. The first
draft took about eight months, and the editing took another four. I kept
setting it aside, because it frustrated the hell out of me. By the third
revision, it was 20,000 words shorter.
RT: What's your writing
process like? Do you listen to music? Sequester yourself in an empty room? Etc?
JH: Stephen
King may listen to rock while he writes, but I can’t. I don’t possess the
capacity to multitask. I have to be in a small, quiet room to concentrate.
Otherwise, I can’t produce a damn thing.
RT: I just made up this
word: GLUFFORANT...what does it mean?
JH: Overly-elegant. Like a
medieval king crossed with a Vegas showgirl.
RT: What's the best bit of
advice you can give to someone starting to write their first novel?
JH: Get your thoughts in
order. Build a solid outline. But don’t be afraid to deviate if your characters
develop, and move the story in a new direction. Also, don’t give up. If you
stick to a schedule, you’ll be finished in no time.
RT: The Rock, Duane Johnson,
agrees to be your slave for five whole minutes. What do you have him do and why?
JH: There are so many
options. Right now, my apartment is pretty dirty, so I would have him dress in
drag, quote Macbeth, and juggle furniture while I vacuum. That’s not weird, is
it?
RT: You're rounding out the
trilogy that is MUTE. What can we expect from you after?
JH: Other than a 500-page
ode to Bruce Campbell? I recently finished a horror-comedy novel called Cyborg
Bitches and Machine Pimps, and have a number of promising outlines. Most
are firmly rooted in horror, but there’s a sci-fi novel in the queue. If I’m
lucky, Cthulhu won’t return before I’m finished!
Pick up a copy of MUTE here: MUTE BY JEFFREY HALE
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