Check Out My Recent Interview With ProSe Productions

(Earlier this month, I was fortunate enough to participate in a Facebook interview for ProSe Productions. For those who aren't on Facebook but follow my fiction writing, you might find this...interesting, to say the least. And don't forget to spread the word about the August 2nd bellydancing/fire spinning fundraiser at Uptown Underground)

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THREE WITH A BULLET - PRO SE INTERVIEWS!

Author - Gordon Dymowski

What have you written for Pro Se, either published or to be published?

I’ve been very lucky to have several short stories published by Pro Se Productions, including “Crossing McCausland” in Tall Pulp and “Cowboy of the Dakotas” in Pulpternative (both nominated for Pulp Factory Awards); Other writings like “Blank Page”, an essay in the benefit anthology When the Shadow Sees the Sun; “All Roads Lead to Rome” in The Adventures of Moose & Skwirl, and the Pro Se Thriller of the Week novella AKA THE SINNER: Cover of Night. 

More recently, I’ve seen “In the Frame” (featuring the crime-busting duo of Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd) published in Hollywood Mystery and “Knights of the Silver Cross” appear in the recent 1950s Western Roundup.

But I’m really excited about what’s coming out from Pro Se later this year – in fact, I’m proud to announce that my novel, The Black Bat – The Politics of Murder will be released in late September. Think of it as “two-gun avenger has a Leverage-style backup team” and you have a great idea of what to expect. 

Yes, it’s the classic character done in modern times. Yes, it stays true to the spirit of the original pulps. But its plot – focusing on how a racial incident leads to the revelation of political corruption – has its roots in the 21st century. I’m proud to take the lead on such a character, and yes, we will see Tony Quinn and his aides take on more adventures!

I’m also eagerly anticipating my short story, “The Adventure of the Master Logician” in the Madness of Dr. Nikola anthology. If you know your Victorian literature, Doctor Nikola is the proto-supervillain creation of Guy Boothby. My story relates of his final battle with Roderick Sharpe of the Vermillion Branch of Her Majesty’s Government. One of the combatants has a plan to prevent world war; the other wants to build a global empire. But which person is the hero, and which one’s the villain?

Pick up to three of the titles you've written and tell the story behind it. Influences, inspirations, etc.

When I’m writing stories, I include various influences by a variety of sources. For example, AKA THE SINNER: Cover of Night has a slight Leslie Charteris/The Saint vibe, but it was also influenced by last year’s events at Charlottesville as well as various Twitter threads about the lack of Asian actors and representation in media. (Two of my friends had posted articles that definitely influenced this novella, and yes, I owe them both a debt of gratitude. And baked goods.). “Cowboy of the Dakotas” came from a little-known event in Theodore Roosevelt’s life that, in my tale, took a slightly darker turn. Even “Crossing McCausland” was as much influenced by memories of my grandparents’ life (they were first-generation immigrants from Eastern Europe) as it was from television shows like The Fugitive or The Incredible Hulk.

Why Pro Se? Why write for them?

Pro Se’s flexibility and openness around stories and genres are why I love writing for the company. Much of classic pulp literature has often had a wildness of spirit from Norvell Page’s feverish prose for The Spider to the flat-out apocalyptic tone of Operator 5’s Purple Invasion. Pro Se Productions has a great philosophy of encouraging the “out-there” idea while staying grounded in traditional storytelling techniques, and it has provided an exceptional canvas for me to work