You know what really grinds my gears? Especially as every day, my hair thins and fades and retires from my head? Seeing Joe and they’re posts about waking up with ‘mad scientist’ hair and ‘oh, hey, just me and my crazy hair’ posts! hahahaah! Friggin’ disrespectful I tell’s ya!

Anyways, enough of my own problems, let’s er ah… no, that’s a horrible segue into Joe’s intro! Baha! Really losing it today, yeah!!

Today’s guest is a phenomenal writer, phenomenal human and someone who I’ve loved seeing create and unleash new and horrible reads on unsuspecting readers!

Please do welcome, Joe!

Steve: What does your writing time look like? Do you try to write at the same time each day? Do you have a word count you attempt to hit?

Joe: I’ve been asked this many times and the answer keeps changing. I think it’s because my writing process changes with the type of project I’m working on and the character or mood of the piece. In general, I write every day, preferably in the morning and afternoon. I often spend so much of my time thinking about a project that it feels like I’m always writing even when I’m not typing. I have to get up and move a lot. In a very subjective intuitive way, I generally know when I need to wait for an idea to ripen before I hit the keyboard and when I’m being lazy and need to push myself to get down to business, but that time of day or night can be quite random.

For a first draft, I try for 500-1000 words a day. A long time ago I saw Betty Rocksteady mention 500 words a day was all she wrote, and that helped me relax and feel okay about being a slow writer. (Thanks, Betty!) I did the math and found you’ll finish a short story pretty fast that way and get a novella finished in a little over a month, and let’s face it, when the words are flowing it’s easy to exceed the daily goal. Giving myself a low word count goal allows more time crafting the first draft, which I like to do much more than slamming words on the page. I edit very slowly, generally going through at least three drafts, and a good first draft keeps that process from being too painfully slow.

Steve: If you started a series and for some reason had to have another author finish it, who would you choose?

Joe: This is a terrible question to ask because I’m a total control freak about my writing! Although, come to think of it, I’ve done three successful collaborations with great authors and been delighted with the results, so maybe I’m speaking too soon. Oh, gosh; I’d have to choose someone who understood that particular project and understood the meaning of the series arc, both emotionally, structurally, and creatively. It’s hard to answer without knowing the specifics. The collaborations I’ve done were each tailored to the strengths of the different co-authors and to what different strengths I brought to the table. Our differences are what made the pieces work, in fact.

Okay, so I think at this point I’m going to pick Kyle Winkler to finish the imaginary series. He’s a good choice because we intend to do a collaboration one day but haven’t gotten around to it yet, because he has a playful mind and weird poetic way with words that suggests he could satisfy someone who wants a “Joe story,” and because if I knew he’d have to finish the series I’d have fun going all out setting up impossible problems for him to resolve, ha ha. That’s not mere cruelty; I set up my stories that way for myself, to keep things interesting and see how hard I can push myself. Woe to anyone tasked with completing unfinished work after my death.

Steve: Tell me about your newest release (novel/story/poem/novella) and why someone should read it!

Joe: My new collection CONVULSIVE came out in April and sold out right away, to my surprise. You should read it because the stories are more like experiences than everyday stories in the way language is employed poetically, surrealistically, and emotionally. They deal with issues of gender, religion, abuse, and autonomy, and these seem to be the issues constantly in the news these days, don’t they? Don’t get me wrong; there’s no simple message or preaching in my stories. Rather I present issues as complexes (in the Jungian sense) and mix the themes with references to art history, alternative music, my love of gardening, and anything else that resonates to make a sort of waking dream for the reader to consider. I’m told the final effect is a creeping dread that sticks with you for a long time.

Steve: Bonus Question! If they made a movie about your life, what actor or actress would you suggest they get to play you?

Joe: Sam Neill would be perfect. I bet he’d be a good sport and wouldn’t mind wearing a dress for the earlier years, too.

Great choice! And I feel like he would!

Thank you again, Joe!

To find more of Joe’s work – you know what to do!

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Joe-Koch/e/B079TTBTSG

Twitter: https://twitter.com/horrorsong

Website: https://horrorsong.blog/