The Author
C S Dixon
The Title of Your Work or Group:
I have seven books out currently, so it’s not easy to choose, but I will go for ‘Fly On The Wall’ which is a horror/mystery short story. This is the second of three in the same genre, the first was ‘Shadow’ and the most recent is ‘Dead and Buried’
Where are you from?
I am now living in South Wales with my wife, but I am exceedingly English and was born in the county of Northumberland in England. I have traveled widely and this is now the sixth country I have lived and worked in after my native England, The Czech Republic, Taiwan, Greece and Thailand.
In what genre do you write?
I write across a number of genres, horror/mystery/erotic/romance/noir/fantasy and poetry, I do like the challenge and diversity of writing in different genres and this also reflects my eclectic reading tastes too!
In your own words, what is your book about? If you were not the author and trying to explain this awesome book you just read to a friend, what would you say about it?
‘Fly on the Wall’ is about a man trapped in a room, is he in the middle of a terrible nightmare or is it all real? He is alone, something else enters and then a fight for survival begins…..you are never sure from one moment to the next, what is going to happen and why!
What is your writing style? Do you follow all guides and rules? Synopsis, outline etc. or do you just sit down at the computer and type to see what happens.
I’m very much a seat of the pantser, I do make some brief notes about plot, but basically I do sit down at the computer and go with the flow.
Have you ever written anything and thought; " The world has got to see this!" ?
Without sounding arrogant, I’ve been writing professionally as a journalist/editor and now author for more than 32 years, so I do write to be read. I’m never complacent, it’s corny, but you are only as good as your last story or feature.
Do you have an editor and Cover Designer or do you do this yourself?
I do have an editor, he does proof my stories. I usually choose the images for the covers myself but he then makes the covers.
Who is your favorite author. Not just someone that you read allot. I wanna know whose book you read that made you suddenly know that if you didn't do this for the rest of your life then you would never be happy.
That’s a tough question, as a writer and reader who enjoys the diversity of many different genres, I have many from those varied categories. There’s never been just one author, who has influenced me, I am very much my own person. My parents read my sister and I stories each night when we were young. Over the years I have always counted Poe, Lovecraft, Dickens, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Hammett, Tolkien, Dorothy B. Hughes and Chandler as some of my favorites. I’ve been writing almost as long as I’ve been able to read.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
A good question again as I mentioned earlier, I thrive on challenges, but I do sometimes find the ending of a story a test, while I know how the denouement will be, it’s the getting there that can be an issue. I don’t suffer from writers’ block, but the current story I’m crafting, another horror/mystery tale has given me some sleepless nights as I wrestle with the finish!
Do you write your characters or do they write themselves through you?
I find the characters drive themselves, on the same ghost story I am writing, I literally cried at the demise of one character.
Do you ever write yourself into the characters?
I don’t. There is the cliche’ that a writers’ first story is autobiographical, but I think that is indeed a cliché’. In my erotic writing, I do however, employ a mix of actual and imagined experiences, the readers will have to guess which are fact and fiction!
Is writing your full time job or are you "Keeping your day job"? So to speak.
I have enjoyed a range of careers from professional acting, youth counselling, journalist, (including ten years in radio sport with the BBC), sales, retail and teaching. I continue to teach full time at a language school, this does pay the bills, while I try to do most of my writing at the weekends.
If you could go back in time and meet one famous person or legend in history, who would it be?
Another good question, there are so many, It’s probably an obvious choice but I would go for one of my favourite women-Marilyn Monroe another Gemini and she was never a dumb blonde! Apart from her beauty, a conversation with her would be interesting to say the least.
If you could go back in time and meet one famous person or legend in history, who would it be?
I guess this is blowing your own trumpet time, well I think powerful descriptions, compelling narratives, believable characters and realistic dialogue and good pacing, to keep the readers interested!
In the world of Indie, marketing is very difficult, especially if you don't have the funds to pay for it. Have you found a great free way to market your work that you think other Indies will benefit from?
I wish I could find one single way to promote and market my books, I do enjoy the interaction of social media in its various forms, but at the same time it can be a chore, the endless round of tweets, posts and entries on sites. As you know, it’s always a fine line between devoting time to social media and writing!
Places to follow the work of CS Dixon.
Twitter: @CrickChris
Website/Blog:
Smashwords: Smashwords – About C S Dixon, author of 'Shoe Horny', 'Dead and Buried', 'The Making of Melissa', etc.
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/cdixon1408/
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