Upgrade Your Story Podcast
Last week I had the pleasure of chatting with UpgradeYourStory.com’s Ally Bishop (and, briefly, her dog) about writing, comedy, and Zeus Is Dead: A Monstrously Inconvenient Adventure. The interview went up the Upgrade Your Story podcast yesterday.
Head on over there and have a listen!

Click my noggin to go to Upgrade Your Story and hear why I said, “I’m sorry I killed that guy.”
Seattle Geekly Podcast
On August 24th I had the pleasure of meeting Shannon and Matt, two great local geek-types who host the popular Seattle Geekly podcast. I traveled to their studio in west Seattle to meet their feline interns and talk to them about Zeus Is Dead. Shannon also read and reviewed the book (and Matt’s now got it on his own reading list), and I’m happy to say she really liked it!
I mean just imagine how awkward things would’ve been if she’d thought it sucked, right?
You can listen to the podcast on the Seattle Geekly website here, or catch the podcast on iTunes or Stitcher…
2nd Zeus Is Dead feature: Ares!
The second behind-the-book featurette for Zeus Is Dead: A Monstrously Inconvenient Adventure is now up on YouTube. This time it’s a quick profile of one of the book’s characters: Ares, god of war, chaos, and general jackassery.
The video is embedded below, but first I want to share one of the character quote graphics that my manager at Booktrope (my publisher) has created. There will be more to come. Please feel free to post and tweet the graphic wherever you like!
And now, the video. Be sure to subscribe to get advanced notice when the next one comes out, or subscribe to my YouTube channel…
Missed the first featurette? Check it out here…
Less than a week before the release!!!
My Writing Process (blog tour entry!)
So a couple of weeks ago a fellow writer named Eric M. Ralph (who has the death sentence in twelve systems for aggravated punnery) asked me to talk about my writing process as part of a greater blog tour that’s spreading across the Internet: The Writing Process Blog Tour! (Cue fanfare, streamers, balloons…maybe a unicycling monkey in a Lara Croft cosplay for some reason…) His invitation to action ended with “Don’t make me destroy you,” so of course I said yes!
But first, a little about Eric: He does lots of stuff™! He also likes to write: books, short stories, poetry, speeches, and really disturbing puns. He has a self-described odd sense of humor, a blue and orange bow tie, and a novel: And God Said…An Absurd Tale of Love, Power, and Paperwork. (Hey, I should check that out…) You can find his own part of the tour here, but ignore any libelous codswallop about me that you find there.
And now, on with the content!
What am I working on?
I’m working on two things at the moment. (Well, three, if you count this blog entry. Though maybe that only counts if it’s RIGHT this moment—in which case I’m only working on this entry and nothing else but—okay, I’m over-parsing the question, aren’t I?) So, yes, two things: Working with my publisher (Booktrope) on the final part of the publishing process for Zeus is Dead: A Monstrously Inconvenient Adventure (my comedic fantasy about the Greek gods returning to public life in the modern day), and writing the third and final book in my cyberpunk series The New Aeneid Cycle.
How does my work differ from others of its genre?

Humor nozzle for writing Zeus Is Dead…
It’s written by ME! (Boy, what a silly question!) Okay, so honestly I always think this is a bit of a loaded question. Every author brings their own unique perspective, voice, and nuance to any story they tell. A good deal of what comes from me is likely my sense of humor, which ranges from deconstructive to just plain goofy. There’s less of it in The New Aeneid Cycle, as those are serious novels (though certain characters within them have a sense of humor that’s informed by my own), but the humor nozzle is on full blast for Zeus is Dead. I had so much fun writing it.
I’ve also found that I have a thing for the concept of memory and of Greek mythology…
Why do I write what I do?
Some writers write to give voice to their deepest yearnings, strongest opinions, or universal truths they feel cannot be expressed in any other form. While such things do find their way into my writing, my primary motivation is simply to tell a good story. I write to entertain, both myself and my readers. I love to grab a reader’s emotions, pull them to the edge of their seat with excitement, laughter, or intrigue, and keep them there for as long as I can.
I confess I also take a special delight in making a reader curse me at the end of a chapter because they just can’t help but turn the page. (If a beta-reader wants to beat me over the head because they just finished a chapter and I haven’t yet written the next one, I consider it a success.)
How does my writing process work?

Dramatization. May not have happened.
Heh. “Writing process.” Like it’s so organized. …Well, okay, so it kind of is. I tend to front-load the work in the sense that I prefer to plan things out ahead of time:
- I get my premise, which can often take a long while as I search for an idea that excites me enough to keep me interested the entire time it will take me to write a novel.
- Sketch the main characters, create a “step sheet”/outline that shows the flow of both character arcs and plot progression, and a general bunch of notes about the setting itself to help inform the writing.
- Actually write, using the step sheet and character sketches as a guide. This does NOT mean such things are inviolate. On multiple occasions I might come up with new ideas as I go (and certain parts of my outline might simply say “whatever seems to make sense for the characters at this point”), change directions, or even discover that the characters themselves have tapped me on the shoulder (or punched me in the face) to say they’d do things differently.
- Edit, revise, agonize, improvise, and probably eat some pizza.
Next on the tour…
Rachel Frost: An author, artist AND musician, Rachel is in the midst of writing a sequel to her first NA novel (Tsirash), in between a multitude of art and music projects. Nevertheless, she still has the good taste to play lots of video games.
Mary Lynne Gibbs: A former city-dweller now ensconced in Kentucky farmland, Mary is both an author and an actress. Her interests lie in fantasy, scifi, paranormal, and adventure fiction (so hey, she’s got excellent taste), and in creating worlds with strong female characters.
J. Edward Neill: J. Edward is a dark fantasy writer living in the southeastern United States. Among his inspirations are Dan Simmons’ characters, Shakespeare’s truths, and Tolkien’s wordiness. You’ll find no elves or dwarves in his writing, but epic tales written for adults with sharp (and slightly twisted) minds.
Gareth S. Young: Gareth is a lover of all the stuff and most of the things (that’s a direct quote), as well as a watcher, listener, thinker, and dreamer (that’s another direct quote). His psychological thriller Monsters, with a 4.4 rating on Amazon, is set in my own backyard in the shadow of Mt. Rainier (that’s a sentence I mostly wrote myself).
Look for their contributions on May 19th!
Interview with Self-Publisher’s Showcase
Another interview! This time from Self-Publisher’s Showcase:
Self-Publisher’s Showcase: Today we are joined by award-winning speculative fiction author Michael G. Munz.Welcome to the Showcase Lounge, Michael. Do make yourself at home.
Michael G. Munz: Thanks! (Though do you really want me to leave unfolded laundry on the chairs and writing notes scattered about the lounge?)
My Author Interview on One Thousand Worlds
I’ve been interviewed by Richie Earl at his book blog, One Thousand Worlds in One Thousand Words:
What are the most important attributes to remaining sane as a writer?
Wait, what? Remaining sane? I think I have to be just a little insane to spend my free time toiling away at fictional worlds, so I think actual sanity would only be a hindrance. Besides, insanity is far more inspiring and fun!
[Read the full interview here.]