Author Interview: Stephen B. King

Today it is my great pleasure to introduce you to Stephen B. King. This prolific Australian author has quite a story to share.  But before we get started, let’s take a peek at his new release “Domin8”.

After his wife loses interest in him, fifty-year-old Dave Barndon turns to the dark side of the Internet and sex chat rooms.  There he finds willing partners who are happy to fulfill his needs with no strings attached.  But they aren’t the only ones looking to play.     

When a woman he had an affair with is murdered he becomes the prime suspect.  He thinks his alibi is solid until a second woman is murdered, and then a third.  He fights for his freedom and redemption while the body count rises.  He must figure out who is framing him and why before the killer strikes again.  

So let’s find out more about the man behind the story.  Tell us about your past. 

I was born in the UK but moved to Perth Australia at age 16. I considered myself to be an Aussie from the day I arrived. I proudly took citizenship here, and have never once gone back to my homeland.

What’s your favorite thing to do for relaxation?

Boring answer, sorry. I write. Not promote, or edit but write – it is pure joy.

How long have you been writing?

All my life. At school I wrote horror stories that shocked my teacher. I wrote poems about love and war and all things in between. I won two short story competitions as a youth, and then I came to Australia and got into music as a long- haired rock guitarist and wrote songs. But all my life I wanted to write books, and now I do. I am living proof that anyone can achieve their dreams.

Are you able to write full time?

I manage a large Kia Dealership and spend a minimum of 58 hours a week there. I  have been in the motor trade for many, many years. I’d love to be a full time writer, but, until I score that one ‘bestseller’, it ain’t gonna happen any time soon.

Is there one genre that you write?  More than one?  What led you there?

I’d like to think any genre is possible that I get inspiration for. My first love is for a good thriller, preferable a psychological one with an engrossing serial killer. But I’ve written sci-fi romance, a historical romantic thriller and some others under top secret pseudonyms. There have been seventeen poems published, and love songs sung by some reasonably well known people. But my first love is (hopefully) an un-put-down-able thriller.

What authors had an impact on you growing up and as an adult?

Four come to mind instantly. As a teenager John Wyndham who wrote The Midwich Cuckoos, Day of the Triffids and others. Then as an adult, Val McDermid, Stieg Larssen, and Michael Robotham.   I enjoyed Larssen’s triology. Looks like I need to add the others to my reading list.

Has anyone in your life influenced you or encouraged you to pursue your interests of writing?

My English teacher at high school was always supportive. She sent something I wrote for an exam to a literary agent for an appraisal. I left school shortly after and she moved to Scotland, so I never saw Mrs. Stewart again. One day I picked up a major rock album in a record shop and there on the inside of the cover was that piece I wrote. I realized then I could write and began to dream.

What is your favorite aspect or writing?

Even though my publisher won’t let it stay in the book, the absolutle best part is writing THE END on a first draft.  Yes, that is quite a feeling of accomplishment.

Your least favorite? 

The re-writes and edits. But I have a saying: ‘write from the heart and edit from the head’.   Great advice!

What aspect of writing would you most like to improve on?

 
Having left school at fifteen, I hate that I don’t know grammar as well as I should. That’s why I need my editor. Thank goodness she puts up with me.

Is there a common theme or item that appears in each of your work?  
 

It’s true to say there is always, without fail, a love element, no matter how dark the story.  In fact, the darker the story, the more it needs lightening, and love is the best way to do that. We all are in love or looking for it, had it and lost it and striving to find it again. Love is such a part of what makes us human beings. I’d find it difficult to write a hundred thousand word novel and not put a love story in there somewhere.  Yes, the pursuit of love and happiness are the key to so many stories.

What have you learned the most from being in the writing business?

That the greatest gift I have is to be able to entertain. If I can get the reader to invest in my characters, I can take them by the hand and take them on a roller-coaster ride.

Your latest book comes out on Monday, April 13.  Care to share an excerpt?

Oh, my God, will the embarrassment of tonight never end? They’ve read my emails? I must have turned an even deeper shade of red, because he smiled and chuckled. “Oh, don’t worry, you weren’t the only one. Let’s just say she enjoyed being single and led a very uninhibited lifestyle. Your letters were kind of tame compared to some of the other men, and women, she dated. But the fact is on Saturday night, so far as we know, you were the last person to see her alive. She died sometime between nine and ten, so the Medical Examiner tells us, though that is never an exact science.”

I sat open mouthed and couldn’t speak. After what could have been seconds but may have been minutes, I became aware they had been watching me closely, obviously to gauge my reaction. “But she was in her late thirties or early forties and pretty fit.  What killed her, a heart attack or something?”

“No, Mr. Barndon. Someone bashed her head in with a piece of scaffolding pipe in your motel room. I’ve never seen so much blood and brains splattered everywhere in my life.”

The shock and the thought of what it must have looked like was too much; I vomited. I only just turned my head in time; otherwise, I would have hit them with the projectile. My earlier dinner came up, and my stomach continued to empty until I was dry retching. Through the fog, I heard a voice ask, “are you alright? Would you like me to call your wife, Mr. Barndon?”

How did you decide on your story plot?

A combination of things. An episode of a very good British TV show called Wire in the Blood featured a serial killer using the screen name of Domin8. Then consider the rise in popularity of Fifty Shades of Gray which seemed to make submissive women ‘cool’. And at poker one night with a bunch of fifty-year-old male friends, everyone lightheartedly complained about the lack of sex in their marriages. Those three things percolated around until I came up with Dave, his addiction to sex in a sexless marriage, and a stalking serial killer who wants to punish him by murdering everyone in his life and framing him for the killings.

Outline or ‘seat of the pants’ writing? 

I start at the beginning and go forward from that point. I don’t have a plan, or an outline, I write my way toward the unknown ending. What I find is that I want to write to find out what happens next. In re-writes I play around with things like the order of chapters, add more or delete some, but a first draft for me needs to flow from the heart chronologically.

Do you have a favorite scene you’ve written? What makes it special? 

For my enjoyment the best scene(s) are the ones that I had no idea what I was going to write before I wrote it. Sometimes I read it back when it’s done and say: “Wow, where the hell did that come from?” This is particulary true for the ending of Domin8. I had no idea what was going to happen when Dave finally gets to confront the killer and find out why such horror had been inflicted on him. Of course it doesn’t matter what I think, it’s up to the reader. But the final scenes in Domin8 are to my mind very good, and I certainly enjoy a sense of achievement even today through editing and revisions I’ve read it a hundred times.

Thanks for stopping by Steve. Best of luck with the new book!

A sidenote.  Steve was the inspiration for the collaborative effort that became “Australia Burns” the three book collection of short stories donated by the authors, publishers, editors and staff of  The Wild Rose Press.  Proceeds from the sale of these books are donated to support the ongoing relief efforts.

BUY LINKS

Bookbub: http://bit.ly/38NApSu

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2xCrMNC

Barnes and Noble: http://bit.ly/2Qe0vaI

Apple: http://itunes.apple.com/us/book/isbn9781509230761

You can find out more about Steve and his other novels on the links below.

www.stephen-b-king.com

Twitter: @stephenBKing1
Facebook: @stephenbkingauthor