Something you already know about Duane Swierczynski, author of SEVERANCE PACKAGE: His name is hard to spell. Something you didn’t: how to spell it. Ha ha! But I kid. Read on and learn about his recent panic attack, how actress Michelle Monaghan has changed his life and his role in a nationwide baked good conspiracy …
BOOKGASM: SEVERANCE PACKAGE’s talk of vanilla muffins and Tastykake brings up a most important question: Are you trying to make me fat?
SWIERCZYNSKI: You didn’t see the memo? At the last meeting of the Protocol of Elders of the American Book Association, editors and writers nationwide agreed to include gratuitous references to savory, calorie-laden snack foods whenever possible in an attempt to fatten us up so that our Alien Overlords (long may they rule us, long may they use your bones to pick the tough bits from their teeth) have something good to eat upon their arrival. You call yourself a book blogger? How did you miss this?
BOOKGASM: Whatevs. Your novels are known for their high concepts. Do you purposely look for that and have to work toward that when constructing a plot, or is that just how you roll?
SWIERCZYNSKI: I guess that’s just how I roll. When I’m cooking up a new book, I think about situations that would be interesting to explore for 200, 300 pages — situations that won’t bore me to death. My filing cabinet is full of partial novels that didn’t make the cut.
BOOKGASM: Your novels also read so fast. I’m curious, however, about your writing process. Do they flow right out of you like a stream of urine, or is their creation an exercise of hair-tugging that leaves your scalp exposed to the elements?
SWIERCZYNSKI: Actually, I don’t allow myself to urinate unless a finish a chapter. This is why … um, my chapters are very, very short.
It all goes back to my golden rule: If I’m bored with something, then any potential readers will certainly have taken the express train to snoozeville. So I try to keep things moving as much as possible.
BOOKGASM: And now you’re cranking out the comics for Marvel, too. How has that experience been and how do you find that writing for that medium differs?
SWIERCZYNSKI: It’s just fun to play in someone else’s sandbox. And you have to admit: Marvel has the coolest damn sandbox going. Working in comics gives me that “team” feeling that I used to get while editing a newspaper. I usually head up to the Marvel office in New York once a month to meet with my editors, bat around story ideas … and that pretty much satisfies my need for social interaction for the next 30 days. It’s the perfect setup.
BOOKGASM: What characters would you love to play around with, but haven’t yet had the chance?
SWIERCZYNSKI: I would kill to have a shot at a Marvel horror character, such as Werewolf by Night — the first comic I ever read. I think I’ll always be a frustrated horror novelist.
And okay, Spider-Man, too. Just so I could go back in time and tell my 10-year-old self, “Do you believe this shit! You’re writing a fucking Spider-Man story!”
BOOKGASM: You recently quit your day job to focus on writing full-time. How tough of a transition was that? And in all this talk of an economic downturn, do you ever ask yourself, “Duane, Duane, what the hell were you thinking?”
SWIERCZYNSKI: The day I quit my job, I went home and had the first serious panic attack of my adult life. I mean, a sitting-on-the-floor, breathing-slowly, trying-not-to-puke kind of panic attack. But I’m happy to report that Marvel’s been keeping me very busy, and I’ve gotten myself involved in other projects — none of which I can talk about right now — that have cushioned the blow.
I have no right to complain about work … like, ever. I’m living the dream I had when I was 15 years old: writing novels and comics for a living. If I ever complain, you have the right to put a bullet in my head.
BOOKGASM: Duly noted. As a fan of KISS KISS BANG BANG, it’s hard not to be a little jealous hearing that you’ve hung out with Michelle Monaghan, who wants to turn THE BLONDE into a movie. Tell me some flaw she has that’ll make me not so green with envy.
SWIERCZYNSKI: I wish I could tell you about Ms. Monaghan’s flaws, but ever since I talked to her on the phone, life has been bathed in this peaceful, soothing golden glow, and it’s hard to see the ugly in anything.
BOOKGASM: You don’t have to rub it in. —Rod Lott
OTHER RECENT BOOKGASM AUTHOR INTERVIEWS:
• Q&A with STEAMPUNK’s Ann and Jeff VanderMeer
• Q&A with THE ALCHEMY OF STONE’s Ekaterina Sedia
• Q&A with THE MAX’s Jason Starr
OTHER BOOKGASM REVIEWS OF THIS AUTHOR:
• THE BLONDE by Duane Swierczynski
• SEVERANCE PACKAGE by Duane Swierczynski
• THE WHEELMAN by Duane Swierczynski
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Good stuff, Rod. Adding these titles to my Amazon wishlist pronto.