Welcome, today we are talking with Declan Finn! I would like to thank you for taking time out of your busy writing schedule to answer a few questions.
First, I think it’s important for readers to get a little insight on an author that they don’t necessarily get from your professional bio. You’d be surprised at what readers connect to, and sometimes the simplest ‘I can relate to that’ grabs their interest where nothing else can. Don’t answer anything you feel uncomfortable with.
Can you share a little something about Declan Finn that’s not mentioned in your bio on your website?
I grew up with an almost liturgical collection of films.
For St. Patrick’s Day, it was Blown Away and Patriot Games; Father’s Day was Empire Strikes Back. July 4 was 1776, Yankee Doodle Dandy, and Independence Day.
What is your favorite:
Animal Dog
Food – I live in New York. Pizza is obligatory.
Movie – Probably the family Christmas movie …. which is Die Hard
TV show – That’s a tough one. Right now, much to my surprise, it’s Lethal Weapon. But all time favorite is Babylon 5
Actor – David Suchet and Alec Guiness. Mostly because they could disappear into their roles.
Singer – Sharon del Adel, of Within Temptation. Rogue of The Cruxshadows. And Tarja Turunen, formerly of Nightwish. I could listen to any of their work on a loop.
Author – Timothy Zahn.
What are your pet peeves?
Bad writing that is praised as genius.
And stupidity. Can’t forget that.
Who is your hero?
John C Wright. I want to be that smart when I grow up.
Give us one thing on your bucket list.
A spot on a bestseller list would be nice.
What would readers find surprising about you?
Despite having a strong romantic streak, I am a cynical SOB.
Sadly, I’m probably not cynical enough.
If you could go to heaven, who would you visit?
I hope to get there eventually on my own. With luck, they’ll let me in.
Otherwise, Jim Baen.
Any bad habits?
I’m too lazy to stop working. Stopping takes effort, and I haven’t figure out how to make myself simple stop.
**What’s the funniest thing that ever happened to you?
I was accused of being a terrorist once.
… It’s funny in retrospect. Honest.
Now that our readers know a little bit more about Declan Finn, let’s get down to the business of your 3rd book in the Love At First Bite Series, Live And Let Bite.
How long did it take you from beginning to end before your novel was completely finished, and how did you decide on the topic and title?
I originally wrote the original pieces in 2001, 2002. It’s gone through a few variations since then. It started out as fan fiction. I won’t say as what, you’ll have to read the book for that. The original series was based around a simple problem I had with vampire fiction – on the one hand, why are vampires automatically evil? If they’re not, then why do holy relics impact them? My solution was simple – if they decide to become an evil bloodthirsty fiend, limits are placed upon them; otherwise, they’re unaffected.
The plot of this book was based on the idea that in book one, our heroes have stumbled onto a demonic conspiracy, spearheaded by vampires. In book two, one member of the cabal went after them, and got killed. This time, they’re sending in a professional killer, with an army of minions. In this case, the minions are armed with machine guns, and they used to be professional soldiers.
As for the topic … it was a James Bond pun no one else has used yet. At least not that I could find.
Are you planning any more books in the series?
There will be one more book for certain. That one will wrap up the primary storyline, and the ultimate fate of our heroes. I’m considering a continuation based off of the simple idea that, well, “The great big evil made other evils keep their heads down – what happens when the cabal of evil is gone?”
I want to do that mostly to have a necromantic alderman in Chicago.
Please tell us a little bit about Live And Let Bite.
It ties everything together from book one and two. One of our heroes was dragged into this via a mystery that was never answered, and you get hints of it here. My main leads have been in a will they / won’t they situation since book one, and I give an answer.
Also, I ratchet up the tension in a big way. Romantically, things come to a head. Personally, there’s a collision coming. And the physical threat … well, I blow up even more stuff in this book than I did in the last two.
What was your hardest challenge writing this book?
Keeping a balanced pace. I mostly write thrillers. This series is the first one where I have to make certain I keep everything relatively slow to start with. Some people have plot-driven stories. Usually, mine are bullet-driven. These are character driven. I have to suppress my natural impulse to blow something up.
Any other works in progress?
One called “Dark Court”
Any advice for aspiring authors?
If you want to be a writer … don’t. Really, don’t.
If you have to be a writer – you are driven to write, and can’t stop yourself – then go at it full speed, and don’t even blink.
Final words?
I hope you folks like book two and three as much as you did Honor at Stake.
Tory
Interviewer at Coffee Time Romance & More
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