interview with a zombie. err...zombie author! (+ giveaway)

Monday, September 13, 2010 |

Jesse Petersen, the author of hilarious new release Married with Zombies (my review HERE) is with us today for a zombie-licious interview.


What made you want to write about zombies? Have you had any personal experience with them?

No personal experience… yet. Though I think I’d do pretty damn well with a zombie apocalypse if I do say so myself. As far as what made me want to write them, I just got an idea I thought was funny after we saw "Zombieland". It was strictly to entertain myself and then suddenly it was sold! Which is awesome.


Ever meet someone whom you thought (secretly, of course) could be a zombie? Maybe a reclusive neighbor? A distant relative? An old fourth-grade teacher?

My second grade teacher was kind of mean, but not zombie mean. More Stephan King mean. We used to have hookers and druggies who hung out in the alley behind our shitty apartment in Seattle. Any one of them could have been a zombie and I never would have known the difference. Gross.


I know that most people browsing around a bookstore are drawn to the title or the cover artwork. Who do you think will pick up your book?

I hope anyone who likes the funny and the zombies, which I think are both reflected in the cover art (done by the fabu Lauren Panepinto at Orbit) and the title (which was put together by my editor Devi Pillai and her team). Doesn’t that cover just POP! I love it.


How hard is it to write funny books? Imbuing your words with the meaning you want them to have isn't easy, so how do you manage to make people laugh out loud? (Or, how long does it take you to come up with jokes?)

Like I said, I wrote the first book in this series mainly to entertain myself, so I think I had the cheaters route. If it made me laugh, I wrote it down and kept it in. Luckily Devi and my agent both shared my twisted sense of humor and so have most of the readers I’ve encountered who have read it so far. The second and third books were harder. I was thinking more about the “big picture” audience at that point. Don’t want to repeat jokes, that sort of thing. But still… if it makes ME laugh, it tends to stay.


Do you read zombie books on a regular basis? Are there any you'd recommend?

I’ve been very zombie-centric lately. I loved WORLD WAR Z, FEED (by Mira Grant) and I just started THE WALKING DEAD graphic novel series. Honestly… zombie almost always equals awesome. They’re like pizza. Even when they’re bad, they’re good.


What about romances or chick lit - any recent favorites?

I still love my historical romances. Love Lisa Kleypas, Kathryn Smith, just read SOULLESS, which isn’t shelved as romance, but has a strong romantic element.


A good portion of your novel takes place in Seattle, my hometown. What made you pick such an obviously awesome place?

I lived there for almost six years, so it was a city I felt comfortable writing from a technical standpoint. Plus, it’s Seattle! Homebase of cool!!


If you had to own a cow (in a naturally-occurring cow color), what color cow would you own?

Oh, good question. I’d probably go with a how-now-brown cow in a natural color (because I’d get to say that every time I saw it). In an unnatural color, I’d say purple.


What is going to cause the Apocalypse?

Zombieism. I’m voting for zombies. Probably caused by a government leak.


I’ve been hearing about a Zombies vs. Unicorns war that is brewing in the YA book sphere. Who do you pick for the win?

See, now Unicorns have horns, but the problem becomes that the second they are bitten then they are zombie unicorns with horns. So I’d say zombies in the long term. With a lot of carnage caused by unicorns first.


Thank you, Jesse! And just for the record, I agree with you completely re: Zombie Unicorns. Double awesome.


Would you like to win a copy of Married with Zombies? I’m giving away two. Just see the info below!


------


To enter:


Leave a comment on this post answering this question, “Of the people you see everyday, who would be the first to succumb to the zombie plague?” You can earn an extra entry by commenting on my review.


Please include a method of contact. Giveaway is open internationally. Comments will close on September 30 at 11:59pm EST, and I will notify the randomly selected winners via email.


Good luck!


This post is part of the September Zombies event. Author photo credit info here.

25 comments:

M.A.D. said...

Mary D
zenrei57 (at) hotmail (dot) com

Married with Zombies sounds awesomely disturbing lol

In answer to your Q:
I'm pretty confident that our rural mail carrier would be one of the first to succumb because -
A) Zombies like secluded, rural areas best it seems
B) That huge mail satchel would have to slow him down considerably, especially around the first of the month lol
C) He looks like potential zombie chow

M.A.D. said...

Mary D
zenrei57 (at) hotmail (dot) com

+1 commented on your review

Melissa (i swim for oceans) said...

Oh, awesome interview! This book sounds so much fun.

I think my little sister would become a zombie first because she would want to be a zombie haha :)

iswimforoceans(at)gmail(dot)com

vvb32 reads said...

ooo, like the thought...
zombies, taste just like pizza ;-D

and hey, i was taken with the pink on the cover!

Sullivan McPig said...

Good interview. I'm getting more curious about this book the more I read about it.
As for your question:
I think the first person to be turned into a zombie will be one of my co-workers. There's a lot of boring work so some of them are already halfway there.

Tia said...

The first person to be turned into a zombie would be my obnoxious neighbor who keeps trying to "save" my cat. I'm sure she'd be convinced if she just brought the zombies into her house, all would be okay.

tiasbook AT gmail DOT com

Sara M said...

My brother would be the first to succumb to the zombie plague because NOTHING gets him away from his video games.

Thanks for the giveaway!

Sara M
sara_UFblog [at] yahoo [dot] com

Gaby G said...

OMG! I'd have never thought about Zombie Unicorns! I want one *_*

Q: Of the people you see everyday, who would be the first to succumb to the zombie plague?

A: The first one? My dog, Cotton. He's just too lazy. Spend all the day sleeping and doesn't move unless he wants to eat or take a walk.

magabygc(@)gmail.com

Kai Agito said...

I've been interested in this book since a friend of mine (and fellow bookworm) pointed out how awesome the summary is. I love Zombie books (a shame it won't happen in reality though. LOL)

I think my co-worker (who I'd like to call Mike) would be the first one to be a zombie. he even looks like one now. we'll probably have him volunteer as bait to lure the zombies away from the rest of us. LOL

amaterasureads@gmail.com

Fi-chan said...

Hmm.. I know this guy and I think he would love to be a zombie, probably just to amuse/impress/please people. I bet he finds them fascinating as well. Besides, I don't think he cares enough to not eat brains. LOL :x

feeyonachan at gmail dot com

thank you :D

Fi-chan said...

ohoh and I commented on your review :D

BURIED IN BOOKS said...

Actually, I read Tyger, Tyger from Net Galley too! I put it off for a long time thinking I didn't want to read it, but it was really great. I just didn't think I'd like a zombie story, but these zombies are really beautiful. And there is a lot of folklore in there that I had trouble with, but she repeats it enough that it finally sunk in.

READ IT!!!

And tell me what zombie book you'd recommend for me-I don't do horror! Stephen King stuff is out!

Heather R.

Nely said...

Haha - I'd say that the first one to succumb to a zombie plague would be ME. I am a klutz! I'm constantly banging into things and tripping all over the place. So I know for a fact that if I were to be running from a zombie I'd probably fall and start crying and well... aaaaaahhh ahhhhhhh ahhhhhhhhh {that's me, moaning as a zombie}. You catch my drift ;)

I'd love to read this!
Nely
bookwormygirl[at]gmail.com

Great interview BTW!

Llehn said...

My cousin cuz he's oblivious!

lesly7ch(at)yahoo(dot)com

buddyt said...

Instead of celecting a single person I would nominate a species of human (if they really belong to that species of course !).

Who - Politicians.

I am convinced that a lot of them, Internationally, are already Zombies.

Thanks for the giveaway.

Caro, T

buddytho {at} gmail DOT com

BURIED IN BOOKS said...

I don't know, I think politicians could be the ultimate zombie killers. They'd talk them in circles until the zombies got all tied up in knots. Or they would lie so much about where they were and who they support , "Up with Zombies" then "Down with Zombies" I think the Zombies would be end over tail and start falling apart just from the sheer hell of trying to figure them out!" Now, who do I want the zombies to kill? Ahem, I don't want Homeland Security after me so we'll leave it at that, but Dear God don't let them become Zombies, they don't need anymore power!

Heather
Buried in Books

jellybelly82158 said...

My next door neighbor. He just looks like a zombie now

throuthehaze said...

Probably me. I would end up having an anxiety attack, and while I am out of breath and disoriented a zombie would come up and chomp on my brains.

throuthehaze at gmail dot com

Unknown said...

Probably my English professor. He's such a silly goose...


lcintocable[at]gmail[dot]com

DurĂ£o said...

My boss!
Because I would throw her into the zombie mob!

(Zombie mob = Zmobie? :P )

carlos_durao AT hotmail DOT com

Unknown said...

My ninth grade vegetarian English teacher.
He's be too busy philosiphizing about zombies to kill any.
HazelXDragon at comcast dot net

Unknown said...

I think that my cousin would succumb to the zombies because she would just be curious and want to know what they are all about. Thanks for the giveaway
tanyainjville at yahoo dot com

Cecelia said...

Heather: try the short stories in Zombies vs. Unicorns! You'll get your feet wet with different levels and types.

Mrs. DeRaps said...

I think my best friend (sorry!) because she's attracted to dull, lifeless creatures who want to swallow her brains and leave her as mindless as they are...

mrsderaps @ hotmail . com

Spav said...

Probably one of my best friends. She doesn't know what's going on most of the time, and I think that would get her in trouble faster than anyone else.

spav05(at)gmail(dot)com

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