Suspense Magazine November 2012

S. MAG.: On your website, you have a detailed bio of your main character, John
Madison. Is he real or based on a real person
DJM: He sure seemed real to me in that he came fully formed to my imagination even
including small details about what he looked like as I started to write. But he doesn’t
resemble anyone I’ve met. Perhaps in a past life—who knows
S. MAG.: What would be the most important ‘find’ an historian could make in your
lifetime
DJM: Wow, neat question! So many possibilities. One of the most intriguing is the
lost city of El Dorado and an Inca Chief who dusted himself with gold. When the
Inca were finally defeated, the Spanish found the Incan city abandoned. The people
had taken their hoards of golden treasure and fled into the deep cover of the Brazilian
rainforest. Thus, the legend of El Dorado was born. Recently, satellite imagery has
detected remains of a vast settled area in this location. How exciting to think El
Dorado might eventually be found!
S. MAG.: Who would make your shortlist of best rock/blues guitar players
DJM: Well, it’s a long shortlist! At the top is Steve Vai who takes the rock guitar
to places never heard before. I went back time and time again to his masterpiece,
Whispering a Prayer, while I wrote “The Witch.” Jeff Beck, who I was so fortunate to
see in concert this year, is as thrilling as ever. Jim Hendrix with his famous black and
white fender Stratocasters. Joe Satriani, and the incomparable Carlos Santana. Jimmy
Page’s unforgettable performance in 1975 at Earl’s Court, together with the very hot
Robert Plant. With his double-necked Gibson playing “Stairway to Heaven,” Page
gave us one of the greatest guitar solos of all time. Steve Lukather’s rendition of “My
Guitar Gently Weeps”—just sublime.
S. MAG.: John Madison is sitting in front of you. What would you like to ask him
DJM: Well, since I know he’s single, whether he’s free for dinner, LOL. On a more lofty
level, Madison’s been told by his older brother who raised him that he was born and
orphaned in Turkey, but he’s beginning to realize the story of his birth was made up.
I’d like to know if he suspects what his real identity is.
S. MAG.: The beginning or the end of the book, which do you feel has the biggest
impact on a reader and which is the most difficult to write
DJM: The highest impact is, I think, at the beginning. That is often the basis on which
a reader makes his or her choice about whether to buy the book and a great beginning
is essential for us to want to continue on. That said, I think the ending is far harder to
write. It must deliver the “reveals” in an organic and satisfying way. The endings I like
best have a strong ‘punch’ and often a twist reader’s don’t see coming and they set up
some hooks for the next book without leaving readers feeling cheated. Accomplishing
all that is challenging.
Thank you, DJ. We appreciate the time you afforded us to get to know you
a bit better. If you want to learn more about this talented author and her
work, check out her two sites at, www.babylontrilogy.com and www.
djmcintosh.com.
SuspenseMagazine.com
Donald
Allen
Kirch
“...genuine horror with
a perfect balance of
suspenseful thrills in his
latest creation—“REICH”!”
—Barbara Watkins, co-author of
“Six-Pack of Blood”
“ONCE HE STRETCHED
OUT HIS HAND AND
EUROPE TREMBLED.”
A U-boat Captain is ordered
to transport Hitler to a secret
military base in Norway
during the closing days of
World War II. While on this
mission, he discovers that
there is more to Germany’s
“Supreme Warlord” than
meets the eye. To his horror,
the Captain discovers the
ird Reich’s darkest secret:
HITLER WAS A
VAMPIRE!
WWW.DONALDALLENKIRCH.COM
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