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Sunday, November 22, 2009
His name is William C. Carl, but if you meet him you'll almost certainly know him as simply, Bill. I remember the first time I met Bill. It was at a Horrorfind Convention. You know those rare occasions where you meet someone and immediately you know you have a close friend? That's the way it is with Bill Carl.
Another thing I can say about Bill Carl is, the man knows fiction. For one thing he reads more than just about anyone I know. His social life must be even worse than mine. For another, Bill is a bookseller by trade. He sees the trends in the business as they are happening, giving him an insider's view of the publishing industry.
And, as you are about to find out, Bill Carl is a writer. Bill has published numerous stories in various genre markets, and his debut novel, Bestial:Werewolf Apocalypse, was published last year by Permuted Press. You can probably find it on the shelf in the horror section at Borders.
In The Cutting Room, Bill evokes the fun spirit of E.C. Comics. I think you'll enjoy it as much as we did.
Oh, stick around after the feature and we'll pick Bill brain a bit.
Horror Drive-In: Bill, I mentioned E.C. Comics in the intro to The Cutting Room. Were they a direct influence on this piece?
Bill Carl: Oh, yes! I loved the E.C. and Warren comics when I was growing up, and I still do now that they are republishing them. The storys are simple, fast, fun, violent, and the bad guy always gets what's coming to him in the end - something we see too little of in the real world. I always loved the way retribution was dished out in those comics, and it's very similar to the way the old Twilight Zone worked. I also think the short short story lends itself to such a simple, proven blueprint. My writing tends to be simple and straight forward, and that can lend itself to camp or cheesiness. I say we can't have enough camp, especially in times like these when things are not so simple. I am influenced a lot by horrors of the past - E.C., Warren, Outer Limits, Hammer Films, Universal Horror, those great giant creature flicks from the 50s.
HD-I: Ah yes, you're a drive-in kind of guy.
BC: Without question. When I was in high school, I was part of the Freddy Club, based around a group of us that saw NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. We went to an awful lot of drive-ins throughout high school and saw a lot of fun, and a lot of terrible, movies there.
HD-I: Oh man, I love that. I wish I could have been in the Freddy Club.
How long have you been writing, Bill?
BC: About seven years. That is, writing and submitting. I used to write when I was terribly poor, just after college when I worked in the film business. It was something I could do for free, and telling stories has always been in my blood. I had piles of poorly typed, poorly told tales in a cardboard box. Every once in a while, I'd get a diamond in the rough. I never had the guts to submit them. Then, I became a fan of Richard Laymon's work and started following the Richard Laymon Kills website. I heard about this anthology Cemetery Dance was doing, IN LAYMON'S TERMS, and I had a story that fit the theme, so I sent it in. It was accepted right away. I was shocked, but very pleased. So, I started submitting all over the place. Sometimes successfully, often not. With working retail as my day job, it can be tough writing every day, but I still manage several days a week, and I am still submitting. Sometimes successfully, often not.
HD-I: Your story in IN LAYMON'S TERMS is called DIG, right?
BC: That's right.
HD-I: Can you tell us a little about it?
BC: I always noticed with Laymon's books, that he had strong women as lead characters. That doesn't mean awful, terrible things didn't happen to them during the story, but they were most often women who fought back. I don't think Richard Laymon liked women who sat back and just took what came at them. I think he liked the fighters. My story, DIG, is about a psychopath who forces people to dig their own graves, then he buries them alive in them. This time, however, he's chosen a woman who isn't going to give in so easily. She's going to fight to survive. It was a lot of fun to write, and I thing Richard Laymon would like it.
HD-I: It does sound like something Laymon would like and I agree about the women in his stories.
What came after DIG?
BC: I sold a short story to an anthology, THE MANY FACES OF VAN HELSING, edited by Jeanne Cavelos for Ace. I tried to come up with an origin for Van Helsing, a reason why he was compelled to hunt vampires, and I tied in Krakatoa's volcanic eruption to the story. It's gothic, like Hammer gothic, and I am very proud to be in that anthology with the likes of Tom Monteleone, Joe Hill, Tanith Lee, Christopher Golden, and Thomas Tessier. After that, I had a story in the charity anthology TALES FROM THE GOREZONE, which you write the introduction for! It was a tale of the big one hitting California and possibly the kindest, sweetest tale of cannibalism anyone ever thought of writing. I am also very proud of a story I sold to OUT OF THE GUTTER magazine, 'Rumble.' It's a fairy tale turned on its head that takes place in the Cincinnati hood. Sort of a pimped up version of Rumplestiltskin.
HD-I: Yeah, I remember something about TALES FROM THE GOREZONE! That was a cool little project if I do say so myself and your story, IMPORTANT, is a damned good one.
Getting into THE MANY FACES OF VAN HELSING was a major coup for you at the time, wasn't it?
BC: A huge one! I had admired Jeanne Cavelos' Abyss line with Dell very much. There are some truly terrifying books in that line and many that broke all the rules for horror, such as Kathe Koja's books. I also had my first feeling that I could actually do this. I was in the company of some very impressive names, people whose writing I had admired for many years, and here I was in the middle of them! It was a real thrill. It was also the first time I went through an editing process. Jeanne is a great editor, and we worked very hard to make my story the best it could be. I had to make several big changes in the tale, but they all worked out very nicely.
HD-I: Oh yes, the Abyss line.. I miss them. Those were good days for the genre.
Bill, you've amassed quite a few short stories so far. Has there been any interest in a William C. Carl collection?
BC: Not yet, but from your mouth etc etc... I have several non published stories and stories that were published in small press books hardly anyone saw. There's a story I loved called '3 Days' in an anthology called SHADOW REGIONS edited by Cesar Puch, and the antho literally did not get past the contributor's copy stage. It's full of terrific stories, one after another, and nobody got to read it. If there's ever any interest in a short collection, I would love to get it out there and show some of my versatility.
HD-I: Maybe if I ever get my dream project of Horror Drive-In Books off the ground....
Let's go back to your influences. You mentioned E.C. Comics and movies, but what about authors? Who were your favorites in your formative years?
BC: First and foremost, Robert McCammon, who gets it all just right, the perfect balance between B-movie cheesiness, real terror and suspense, and great characters to root for. STINGER, SWAN SONG, GONE, and especially BOY'S LIFE are favorites of mine. As far as short fiction goes, it may be a cliche, but I believe Ray Bradbury and Robert Bloch were huge influences. They could tell a story, and the scenes would be so evocative. Richard Matheson wrote some of the greatest books and short stories ever, and I AM LEGEND was a giant influence on BESTIAL:WEREWOLF APOCALYPSE. I really gravitate towards the masters of the genre - M.R. James, Algernon Blackwood, Lovecraft, and E.F.Benson. I love a great story, and these authors could spin a yarn. WHISTLE AND I'LL COME FOR YOU, MY LAD is possibly the creepiest thing I have ever read. As far as novels go, the eighties, when I was in junior high and high school, were the era of paperback horror. Remember those crazy Zebra paperbacks, all with either skeletons or cut fruit on the covers? Ate them up like candy. Also, at that time, Michael McDowell, James Herbert, and anything with a creature, giant or otherwise, on a rampage would make me happy. I still have a real fondness for creature feature type tales.
HD-I: Oh man, do I remember the 80's. It was the greatest time to be a horror fan. The books, the movies, it was wonderful.
What contemporary authors do you read, whether within or out of the genre?
BC:Good Lord, I read a LOT. I've already read 160 books this year! Within the genre, I never miss a Brian Keene, Ed Lee, F. Paul Wilson, and my two favorite horror writers Peter Straub and Joe Lansdale. They are so very different, though. Straub is a master of deep characterization and gorgeous writing. He is our current day William Faulkner. As far as Mr. Lansdale hissownself, I just get such a kick out of his books and stories. He is so brilliant at evoking real people and those that we wish were real. I personally thanked him for the entire gay community for Leonard, one of the best drawn characters ever. Outside genre writing, I never miss a John Irving, Michael Chabon, Wally Lamb, Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, Lee Child, Tanya Huff, Harlan Coban, Michael Connelly, Ken Bruen, or Jim Butcher. I read a book this year called CITY OF THIEVES by David Bernioff that simply blew my socks off. A brilliant book in every possible way.
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