Apex Book Company

Interview with Jeremy C. Shipp
interviewed by Jodi Lee

Author Jeremy C. Shipp has been published in ChiZine, The Harrow, Flesh and Blood, and many other publications. While preparing for the forthcoming collapse of civilization, he enjoys living in a moderately haunted Victorian farmhouse in Southern California. His first novel, Vacation, was recently added to the Stoker Preliminary Nomination list and was ranked third before voting closed in the Preditors & Editors Reader’s Choice Poll. Results for both awards are forthcoming.

I recently had the opportunity to ask Jeremy some questions. I’m quite sure it was Jeremy, and not the gnome, who answered. He is definitely one of the funniest new writers I’ve had the pleasure to speak with.

Jodi Lee: For a first published novel, how has the success of Vacation affected your views of the publishing world?

Jeremy C. Shipp: Back when I was a schoolboy-wearing sailor suits and eating giant lollipops-I thought the publishing world was a magical place, where writers, readers, publishers, editors, and all the rest danced together in the Mystical Forest of Literary Ecstasy. Eventually, this romanticized ideal shattered, as romanticized ideals tend to do.

So before my novel was published, I feared that there wasn’t room for a book like mine in the world. I wasn’t sure it would ever get published. And if it was, I wasn’t sure if anyone would connect with it.

Thankfully, that fear-based reality wasn’t the one that engulfed me. Instead, I learned about the Bizarro literary movement. And I’ve received much support and feedback from readers, reviewers, writers who I’ve respected for years, and many other slinkster cool folks. What this all boils down to, I suppose, is that I discovered it’s OK to be myself after all. Sorry if that’s too after school specialesque…

JL: In 9 years of speaking with authors, interviewing authors and reading promotional materials, I have to say you are one of the most approachable - if not *the* most approachable I’ve spoken to. How do you think this has helped with Vacation? Has it hindered the success at all - i.e.: has anyone given you grief over promotional tactics?

JCS: Before my book was published, I dreaded the idea of promoting my work. Then I realized I could have fun with it. So I spend a few hours every day having (usually strange) conversations with people, coming up with silly contests, writing weird interviews with insane grocery bags, etc.

And most people seem to really enjoy the weirdness and the fun. The only problem I’ve had is that some people just don’t get my brand of strangeness. But I’m OK with that.

JL: I enjoyed Vacation immensely, although I was warned it was sometimes a bit hard to follow. I was one of ‘those’ teenagers though, so the acid flashback-weirdness was relatively easy to navigate; what influenced you to write such a bizarre, yet oddly believable novel?

JCS: You know, it’s interesting how some read the book and say, “This isn’t so weird that I didn’t understand it,” and others says, “Whaaaa?”

This book spawned from a passionate place inside me; my love for life; my disgust toward various social systems. My goal with this novel was to maintain certain boundaries-like psychological and emotional feasibility. At the same time, in regard to other aspects of the book, I gave my imagination as much freedom as possible.

JL: How much research went into the novel?

JCS: Lots. I researched more for Vacation than any other book I’ve ever written. And I was surprised at how much I enjoyed the researching. I recently graduated from college when I started Vacation, so “research” was still a slightly traumatic word. I’d never researched for myself before. So it was a nice change. I definitely started learning a lot more after I finished school than when I was in the system.

JL: Tell me your reactions to all the fantastic blurbing Vacation has received - have you secretly been bribing anyone? Have any of your literary heroes come out to give nod to Vacation?

JCS: No bribing-although I did wish on a few shooting stars (which may have been planes…I wasn’t wearing my glasses). I’m extremely honored by the blurbage that my novel has been blessed with. Piers Anthony, Jack Ketchum, and many others. I never thought they’d read my novel, let alone like it. I’m as giddy as a schoolboy. I even put on the sailor suit every once in a while, for old times’ sake.

JL: You’re not just a novel author, you have several shorts out in the world as well. After a fairly lengthy search in our submissions area, I could only find one submission (which you had to pull due to acceptance elsewhere) for our wonderful magazine. Can we expect anything from you, soon?

JCS: Definitely, yes. I love Apex. I’ve been focusing on my new novel “Cursed” for a while, but I’ll write some more shorts soon, and Apex will be the next publication I submit to.

JL: Any way all this success is going to go to your head?

JCS: I had a layer of parsnip implanted in my head to protect me from that. Parsnips, of course, repel ego (and also powdered tang, for some reason).

JL: Any whispers or nudges in the direction of a film based on Vacation? I mean, that would be the absolute in bizarreality. Can we hope?

JCS: The only whispers I’ve heard lately are from the yard gnome who lives under my bed. He likes to freak me out when I’m trying to fall asleep. But if Vacation were made into a film someday, that’d be awesome. I do have a short film I wrote in production right now, called EGG. And I have a few other screenplays in the works. Maybe one day, there’ll be a movie called Vacation. Well…besides the one that already exists…

JL: And of course, I must ask - after the year you’ve had with Vacation, do you have any in-depth advice for those of us still waiting in the wings?

JCS: Oh no, I feel my After School Special-ness acting up again. This probably isn’t very in depth, but I think it’s important to have as much fun as possible, whatever you’re doing.

JL: For my last question, I have to ask the question that’s been on my mind for months - when does Jeremy C. Shipp get to take a vacation? I swear it seems like you’ve been promoting in one form or another since early last year. Are you tired of it all yet?

JCS: Maybe I will take a vacation one of these days, but for now, I’m having a blast. This promotion stuff is really just another excuse for me to be silly. Now I gotta go feed the gnome under my bed some powdered tang. I can’t really drink it anymore.