Interview With Indie Author Andrew Domonkos "Zara's Curse"

Vampire Review is very glad to have author Adnrew Domonkos visiting today. I've asked him a few questions to introduce us to his first book, after sharing what his experiences as a writer of vampire fiction is about. His second novel will come out in November 2013.

Author Andrew Domonkos

TAMI JACKSON'S QUESTION: What are your qualifications as a novelist? (Meaning: what is your writing background.)


ANDREW DOMONKOS' RESPONSE: I suppose my interest in writing fiction began sometime in that blurred void of my twenties.  During that period I was moving around a lot, from one cubicle-sized apartment to the next. I was trying to live as wildly as I could before adulthood snapped a collar on me.

At that time, the only writing I jotting down ideas and pieces of stories.  I was traveling a lot so I wrote about my experiences.
I (like so many others) found myself taken by the idea of being a writer.  I wasn’t much concerned with the life of a writer as much as I wanted to experience how great, wild, writers lived with reckless abandon.  I wanted to live on a boat and drink manhattans.
  
It took a while for me to realize that writing took work.  Before the shark-hunting excursions and elegant toasts came - there had to be exhausting toil.
  
By age 30 I stopped writing altogether and just read.  I read constantly.  I became a hermit and wouldn’t surface socially unless I was truly gasping for air.  It was my dad who told me that, “Yeah, that’s good, but you still have to write.”

So I got back to it.  You can spend your life watching tennis and never quite learn how to hit the ball. Yet to be successful, you have to get out on the court and get a feel for the sport.
  
These days I’m writing every day.  It’s a struggle, but a fun one.  It’s not as bad as coal mining.   

TAMI: What inspired you to write in the vampire genre?

ANDREW: I’ve always been fascinated with vampires. I had read quite a few novels in the genre, and wanted to try to throw my own hat into the ring. Writing well is a huge challenge. I didn’t want to just rehash Twilight. I wanted to create a vampire story that was dark and yet humorous, something different.  At first it was just a whim, but it quickly snowballed into an obsession.  
There are a lot of rules to follow when writing in the traditional vampire genre. People expect a certain amount of acknowledgement to these rules. You can bend them a bit, but not so much that you alienate the fans of the genre. You don’t want to be redundant about what other's have written either. Writing about vampires proves tricky at times, but that’s what I like about doing it - that challenge.

TAMI: Lots of comedians say their humor comes from pain. What do you attribute your desire to write humor to?
ANDREW: I think that is an accurate statement.  Without pain and disappointment the field of comedy would be fairly barren. No comedy is victimless as the conventional wisdom goes. Struggle seems to sire humor. My own tendencies toward humor probably stem from this dark recess, or maybe it’s just the Irish in me.

TAMI: Some really uptight and anal-retentive people assume that humor has no place in vampire lore. How do you respond to them? 

ANDREW: No matter what genre you’re writing in, you’re going to be confronted by purists who want you to adhere to a traditional motif. I would argue that comedy has always had its place alongside tragedy, which is essentially what most vampire books are about. I think that most stories have their own lore.  If they persisted I would point these sticklers in Christopher Moore’s or MaryJanice Davidson’s direction. I’m sure they have a much better defense prepared.
My first book, Zara’s Curse, is humorous, but it’s also quite dark.  If readers take a chance on it, I think they will be surprised by how the story shifts and evolves.  It’s really a story about betrayal and morality.   The characters Twig and Zara are anti-heroes. They are deeply flawed and conflicted by more than just the supernatural.  They are displaced and desperate for something they can’t quite place.  

QUESTION: Please list all of the places where your book is on sale.
ANDREW: The first book of the series is found on Amazon.com and my second book is coming out in November 2013.

To contact the author, you may email him at domonkoswriting@yahoo.com