What is the strangest thing that has happened to you since you started writing true crime?
Being accused of being a sociopath and a misogynist by a couple of so-called professionals in this business because I also enjoy extreme horror films.
Oh, and being pelted with oranges by a homeless person on L.A.'s Skid Row. That was after he threatened to kill me for not taking his photograph.
Given your enjoyment of "extreme horror," would you ever consider crossing over to that genre?
I would love to write horror novels, horror film screenplays, direct horror films, you name it! I have already directed a horror-based music video for a death metal band out of Oklahoma called Divine Pustulence. It was definitely in that Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Hostel vein (so to speak).
I am currently working on an apocalyptic horror novel set in Texas. I write on that one occasionally mainly for craft and for fun. My publisher at Kensington has stated she would be happy to take a look at it once I finished, so we shall see.
Of course, if that ever gets published it will provide more grist for the mill for some so-called professionals in this business who believe you shouldn't mix horror and true crime. It's okay to write about rape, dismemberment, pedophilia, and other horrible crimes, but don't dare write about those things in a fictional setting. Huh? People are just so darn confusing and confused.
What scares you and puts goose bumps on the back of your neck?
After experiencing the unexpected death of my first wife, Lisa, six years ago, I have become somewhat impervious to fear. I have lived through the worst possible scenario and come out of it a stronger human being. Nothing anyone can throw at me can make me flinch.
As a result, I would say that the things that scare me the most are the feelings of helplessness created by the soulless machine of government and business that our beloved country has turned into is truly frightening. The stripping of our basic civil rights by the current administration does not bode well for a future of people who want to scare you with threats of terrorism and the evil "other." Our government should stop wasting so much money on fighting international terrorism and focus it on the kinds of people I write about in my books that live, breed, and kill on our own shores on a daily basis.
Also, I despise spiders.
Will you ever retire from writing or is it something you will continue doing for the rest of your life?
I am a lifer. I simply hope that enough people like my work, will go out and purchase my books, and make my publisher satisfied so they will continue to pay me enough money to keep on doing this.
Any Regrets?
The only regret I have is that I know I will not live long enough to write all of the stories I have in my head. With more than one hundred stories spinning inside my cranium, at the rate of one book a year, I don't foresee how they will all leak out onto the page.
Maybe someone will invent a literary syringe that can extract the ideas out of my brain, turn them into little vials of liquid, and keep them in cold storage for future publications.
Sounds like the makings of an interesting sci-fi/horror tale right there...
The "Word of the Day" is: OF
Be sure to follow Corey Mitchell's Pure Murder Virtual Book Tour tomorrow, June 5, at the True Crime Blogroll, hosted by Michelle Gray.
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