Bobby Nash interview
Hi Bobby, how are you? It’s been a while since you were on
Ralph’s Rants, glad to see you back again.
BN: Thanks, Ralph. Glad to be back. Thanks for having me.
So what’s new in the world of Bobby Nash? You always have
about a hundred things going on so I never know what surprises you have up your
sleeve. I think you have somewhere around 20 books out now right?
BN: I do try to keep busy, yeah. (laughs) I don’t have an
exact count handy, but I have somewhere around one hundred published stories
scattered across novels, anthologies, ebooks, comic books, graphic novels,
audio books, and screenplays. I was first published in 1992 and had a few comic
books published around that time as well as doing comic strips for a local kids
magazine that ran for 12 years. It wasn’t until my first published novel, EVIL
WAYS premiered in 2005 that I started to write and get published steadily. Hard
to believe that’s been 10 years.
As for what’s new, oh you know how it goes. There’s always a
new project or twelve ready to go. I’m currently nearing the end of EVIL
INTENT, a novel sequel to EVIL WAYS plus a 10th anniversary EVIL WAYS hardcover
edition for my BEN Books imprint. I’m always working on a story for my next Pro
Se Signature Series: From The Pen of Bobby Nash story called CRIMSON MOON and
writing comic scripts for the forthcoming DOMINO LADY THREESOME comic book
series for Moonstone Books. And that’s this week. HA! HA!
So tell us about your newest project, Bobby.
BN: Artist Jamie Chase and I worked on a graphic novel
adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ AT THE EARTH’S CORE novel that will be in
comic shops on Wednesday, August 19th. It will be available at all other
bookselling outlets on September 1st. It is from Sequential Pulp Comics and
Dark Horse Comics. I had a great deal of fun working on this one, but also a
bit of nervousness. Trying to adapt a well-known and respected author like ERB
is a touch scary. Hopefully, the Pellucidar fans will like what we’ve done.
Where is this story set? What era?
BN: AT THE EARTH’S CORE takes place in Pellucidar, the land
at the center of the planet Earth. Pellucidar is a thriving ecosystem filled
with many races from humans to the most savage of beasts and is ruled by the
deadly Mahars. When David Innes and Abner Perry drive their fabled Iron Mole
beneath the Earth’s crust, they find themselves trapped in Pellucidar, a land
of eternal daylight and danger. How could I not have fun writing that?
Is this an ongoing tale? As in will we see these characters
again?
BN: AT THE EARTH’S CORE is the first of Burroughs’ novels
set in Pellucidar. Jamie and I are back to work on book #2 now, simply titled
PELLUCIDAR. It’s great fun revisiting these characters. If they do well, we
hope to be able to adapt all of them. Fingers crossed because Tarzan eventually
makes his way to the Earth’s Core, you know?
What drew you to write this story?
BN: This was one of those odd situations where I was hired
to work on the book. Once I was signed on, I read the novel and went from
there. I’m reading through PELLUCIDAR now and staying just a few chapters ahead
of Jamie. Outside of that, it was an easy project to say yes to doing. I read
many Edgar Rice Burroughs tales as a kid and loved the sense of adventure found
in them. I love writing adventure so it was a delight to play in those worlds
ERB created. These stories are classics and I was honored to be invited to be
part of them.
You’re one of the busiest and most successful guys around,
what else do you have cooking that is going to be coming out soon?
BN: As I mentioned above, AT THE EARTH’S CORE hits this
week. Other releases coming up include ESO’S TALES OF THE STATION anthology for
the Earth Station One podcast and published by New Legend Productions (I also
helped out with the editing on this one), THE BLACK BAT RETURNS from Moonstone
Books, SNOW STORM from Stark Raving Press, EVIL INTENT from BEN Books, STRONG
WILL from New Legend Productions, V-WARS vol. 5 from IDW, THE RUBY FILES vol. 2
from Airship 27 Productions, plus stories featuring DOMINO LADY, GHOST GAL, THE
AVENGER, and more. I don’t know in store dates on all of them yet, but they’re
all in some form of production or another.
Are you where you want to be as a writer, Bobby? What I mean
is, are you happy the way things are going for you writer-wise?
BN: Never. Or, perhaps I should say, “Yes and no.” Yes, I am
very happy with where I am as a writer. I have come a long way from back in
1992 when I had my first story published. I’ve accomplished a lot and am
humbled and thrilled to be where I am today. However, the no side of that is
that I’m not done. I still have goals to strive toward and I want to continue
to do more and be able to support myself with my writing. I also wouldn’t mind
seeing the words “New York Times Best Selling” in front of my name, either.
That’s a goal, one of many, I’m still working toward.
What to you is the biggest stumbling block to get past as a
writer?
BN: There are two.
Time. Time is a big factor. I work a full time day job at
present and I have a rather lengthy commute so writing time during the week is
short and sometimes non-existent. I spend my weekends writing and doing cons.
As you can imagine, there’s never quite enough time to do everything I need to
do.
The other stumbling block is me. What’s the old joke? A
writer says, “I’ve got a lot of writing to do today so I better get started.
But first… let me clean my office.” You can insert almost anything after “But
first…” and it’s easy to see how I keep myself away from the writing desk.
Deadlines certainly help when it comes to getting past this, but there is also
discipline. Once I get in front of the laptop and start writing, I am usually
okay. It’s just sitting down that’s the hard part sometimes.
What is the biggest thrill to you as a writer?
BN: Seeing all of my hard work finished and in a physical
form I can hold in my hands. Getting that first copy of one of my books is an
absolutely amazing feeling. There’s just nothing like it. I hope that’s a
sensation that never goes away, no matter how many stories I have published in
my lifetime. Second to that, I’ve met some wonderful people who have said some
very nice things to me about my books and that is another big thrill. Plus,
I’ve gotten to meet many talented people because of my writing. Some of my
closest friends are people I’ve met as a result of my writing, whether at a
convention, through mutual publishers, social media, and the like. I love the writing
community. It is filled with wonderful people.
How far ahead do you plan? What I mean is do you say ‘I‘m
going to do this book next and then that one and then that one’? Or do you just
do one at a time?
BN: What’s this “plan” thing you speak of? In all
seriousness, there is a plan, sort of, most of the time... kinda. I know what
projects need to happen and I have a nice white board in my office and a fancy
Excel spreadsheet on my computer to help keep track of them. Then I spend my
time juggling them as deadlines pop up or galleys or edits come in, which
aren’t scheduled most of the time, and I try to juggle as best I can.
Do you think it’s a bad idea to plan far (Several
books) ahead, or do you consider it a
strength as a writer?
BN: Oh, it’s absolutely helpful for me. I know all writers
have things that work for them, but knowing what needs to be down helps me. The
hard part is keeping the new ideas from jumping the line. You have to clamp
them down and make them wait. Following your muse is awesome, unless you have a
deadline on another story. Plus, if you’re working on a series, it never hurts
to have a general idea where you’re going. I have loose plots for future
stories with several of my characters stacked up in the corner of my brain just
waiting to go. I just have to make the time to get them all done.
What are you strengths as a writer, as you see them?
BN: That’s a good question. I’ve never really thought about
it. My writing style is pretty straightforward. I write stories to entertain.
I’m not looking to change the world or anything or push an agenda. I write
stories that I hope will entertain readers. I guess that’s a strength. I also
do my very best not to miss deadlines. I am a writer and I love my job, but
I’ve learned to treat it like a job as well, which means writing whether you
feel like it or not. It can also mean sleepless nights, weekends spent chained
to the writing desk, or whatever it takes to get the job done. It can be a
tough job at times, but I absolutely love it.
Finally what does the future hold for Bobby Nash?
BN: Wealth and prosperity. Or so I hope. Ha! Honestly, I
don’t know. I have no plans to stop writing any time soon, but the world is a
strange place, especially in corporate America. My day job could be gone
tomorrow or editors and publishers could stop offering me work. I hope that
doesn’t happen, but it is interesting times in which we live. I would love to
do more comic books, more novels, and more screenplays. I still have ideas
buzzing around in my head and goals not yet met. There’s still a lot of hard
work ahead of me, I think.
Bobby, as always it was wonderful having you here and I want
to wish you the best of luck in all your endeavors. Feel free to leave our
readers your contact information (Web page, twitter handle, facebook page,
Amazon Authors page etc.
BN: Thanks, Ralph. This was a lot of fun. I appreciate the
opportunity. Here are some links where folks can find me:
www.bobbynash.com
www.twitter.com/bobbynash
www.facebook.com/AuthorBobbyNash
www.google.com/+BobbyNashAuthor
http://amazon.com/author/bobbynash
http://ben-books.blogspot.com
http://instagram.com/bobbynash14
www.pinterest.com/bobbynash
Thanks Bobby, looking forward to talking again soon!
BN: You bet, Ralph. Thanks again.
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