Anthony Izzo is the author of 18 thrillers, among them The Dead Land Trilogy and The Damage Factory. He enjoys writing tales of mayhem involving anything from zombies to psycho killers to murderous shapeshifters. Anthony has also served as a judge for the Buffalo Dreams Film Festival screenplay competition. Anthony holds a B.A. in English from D’Youville College in Buffalo, NY. When not writing, he likes playing loud guitar, drawing, and spending time with family. He makes his home in the Buffalo, NY area.
KR: Coffee?
KR: Could you tell me a little about yourself please?
I’ve been writing for over twenty years. I had three novels traditionally published by Kensington/Pinnacle books before deciding to go independent. I’ve written 18 novels, all thrillers and horror.
KR: What do you like to do when not writing?
I enjoy playing guitar, drawing, and reading.
KR: What is your favourite childhood book?
James and the Giant Peach. Our fourth-grade teacher read a little bit of it to our class each day. I remember getting the book out of the library and reading the whole thing ahead of the class.
KR: What is your favourite album, and does music play any role in your writing?
Led Zeppelin II would probably be my favorite. I’ll occasionally put music on when I write. Some writers compile playlists around the book that they’re writing. I might experiment with that at some point.
KR: Do you have a favourite horror movie/director?
I’d say the original Halloween. John Carpenter is one of my favorites.
KR: What are you reading now?
The Strain, by Chuck Hogan and Guillermo Del Toro.
KR: Who were the authors that inspired you to write?
Stephen King, Dean Koontz, Elmore Leonard, Don Winslow, Robert McCammon, and a ton of others.
KR: Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer to just see where an idea takes you?
I write a loose set of notes and ideas for possible scenes in the book. I revise them as I go. I find I can’t write from a rigid outline. I like to be surprised as I write.
KR: What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?
I usually research as I go, reading a number of articles on a topic to make sure I get things right.
KR: Describe your usual writing day?
I work a day job, so my writing is usually broken into small sessions. Most days I’ll write a page or two before work, a page on lunch break, and write some more in the evening.
KR: Do you have a favourite story/short that you’ve written (published or not)?
“Outpost” is my favorite. It was my first venture into Military Sci-Fi and was published in an anthology.
KR: Do you read your book reviews?
I do read some of them. I try not to dwell on them too much, whether they are positive or negative.
KR: Any advice for a fledgling author?
Write consistently, several days a week, if not every day. Read a lot. Don’t quit.
KR: What scares you?
The thought of harm coming to my family. Not crazy about the woods or being out on open water. I also hate looking out the window once it’s dark. For some reason that freaks me out. I always expect something to be looking back at me. I guess that’s the horror writer’s mindset at work.
KR: E-Book, Paperback or Hardback?
Mostly e-book, but I still read some paperbacks.
KR: Can you tell me about your latest release please?
My latest is a horror novel called Enter the Night. The premise is that six contestants on a ghost hunting show explore an abandoned asylum. What they don’t know is that four killers who escaped the asylum years ago are still on the mountain. The ghost hunting show quickly becomes a fight to survive the killers.
KR: What are you working on now?
Right now, I’m working on The Last Ride. It’s a post-apocalyptic story. It’s about the survivors of a flu epidemic riding an armored bus across a hostile land to safety.
KR: You find yourself on a desert island, which three people would you wish to be deserted with you and why?
You can choose…
- One fictional character from your writing
John Childress, from Beat the Devil. He’s an ex-Navy SEAL, so he’d have survival skills.
- One fictional character from any other book
Roland of Gilead, from The Dark Tower
- One real life person that is not a family member or friend
Stephen King
KR: Thank you very much Anthony.
You can find out more about Anthony by visiting his official website www.anthonyizzo.com
Follow Anthony on Twitter @AIzzo
Anthony’s author page can be found here
They came to the mountain to hunt ghosts. They ended up as prey. The Iron Mountain Asylum once housed the criminally insane. The worst of the worst. Four men escaped the asylum and were never caught. The legends grew. Some said they lived on the mountain, killing anyone who crossed their path. The contestants on a reality show called Enter the Night are about to find out if the legends are real. Six people. Non-stop filming. A week exploring the abandoned asylum and a military base near the mountain. The contestants will discover that there are things far more frightening on the mountain than ghosts.
You can buy Enter The Night from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Part one of the terrifying Dead Land Trilogy begins.
It looked like a flu. Until the first patient woke up. Violent. Hungry for flesh and blood.
People in the small town of Anderson are saying the military let loose a bioweapon.
Soon the hospital and town will be overrun with the undead.
Emma Ross is the sheriff in Anderson. She will lead a band of townspeople in a desperate fight to survive against the horde of newly risen that threaten to overtake the town. And spread the Infection.
You can buy Infected from Amazon UK & Amazon US
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