Renee Miller lives in Tweed, Ontario. She writes in multiple genres, but prefers dark fiction with strong elements of horror, erotica and/or comedy. Renee’s new novel Eat The Rich is released July 13th via Hindered Souls Press. An alien invasion novel with a twist of which author C.M. Saunders said ‘If you like your horror twisted, dark, sharp, perverse, and rounded out with just a touch of the absurd, you need to get acquainted with Renee Miller’s Eat the Rich. It will blow your mind.‘
Coffee?
KR: Could you tell me a little about yourself please?
I never know what to say here. This time I’ll assume you want to know the non-writing stuff. I have three teenagers (two daughters and a stepson) and two dogs and two cats. When I’m not writing, I’m battling a mountain of pet hair and the disgusting crud that keeps appearing in our bathroom sink upstairs. Seriously, it’s becoming a problem. At first I thought it was just toothpaste the girls hadn’t rinsed down the sink, but no. It’s something else. I hate it.
Because I’m not rich and famous yet, I work in the deli and bakery departments of our local grocery store. (There’s only one grocery store, because Tweed is very small) Most people here know I write, but I think they believe it’s a cute little hobby, because why would I have a job if I was a serious writer? (sarcasm)
KR: What do you like to do when not writing?
When I’m not writing or working, I’m either watching Netflix, sweeping pet hair, reading, or sleeping. Yes, I’m super exciting.
KR: What is your favourite childhood book?
When I was really young, I memorized Cinderella, and would beg my mom to read it, but then I’d recite the story along with her. I don’t know if I had any other favorites as a small child. When I was a teenager, I picked up A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving, and that was a favorite for a long time.
KR: What is your favourite album, and does music play any role in your writing?
My favorite albums are mostly eighties movie soundtracks, like Dirty Dancing, Cocktail and Footloose. Hey, it was a time when life was sweet for me, so listening to them puts me in a good mood.
Music does play a role in my writing. I have to have noise, and if no one is home, that’s how I make it. The kind of music depends on the mood I want to achieve, so I listen to almost every genre.
KR: Do you have a favourite horror movie/director?
I really liked Cabin in the Woods, and most Stephen King movies. I have a hard time picking a favorite of anything I enjoy, and I do love movies. I guess the Halloween, Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street movies would be my all-time favorites. They helped inspire me to write some of the stories included in Splish, Slash, Takin’ a Bloodbath. I know nothing of directors, so I might have a favorite and don’t know it.
KR: What are you reading now?
Working on Stephen and Owen King’s Sleeping Beauties, as well as Itch, by A.A. Medina and The Sea Was A Fair Master by Calvin Demmer.
KR: Who were the authors that inspired you to write?
I’m going to be cliché and say Stephen King first. He’s the spark for my love of horror. I have many authors I’ve admired for a long time, though, and a few of my early favorites, V.C. Andrews, Margaret Atwood, John Irving, Anne Rice and Dennis Lehane, helped fan the flames of my desire to write.
KR: Do you work to an outline or plot or do you prefer to just see where an idea takes you?
A little of both. Depends on the story. Sometimes I just write and somehow come up with something worth reading. Often, I’ll have an idea, but it hasn’t really grabbed me yet, and outlining helps boost my motivation to see it through to the end.
KR: What kind of research do you do, and how long do you spend researching before beginning a book?
Research depends on the story. If it’s something I’m familiar with, I don’t do much. Otherwise, I research until I’m confident I know what I’m writing about. This can take a couple of days, or it can take months, lasting as long as it takes me to finish the story.
KR: Describe your usual writing day?
I don’t have a usual writing day. No routine or “process.” My writing time depends on how much time I have, how much focus I’m able to give, and how tired I am. Most often, I’ll write in the early morning hours, because no one is awake and I won’t be interrupted.
KR: Do you have a favourite story/short that you’ve written (published or not)?
I love them all for different reasons. Right now, one that sticks out is The Cartel, which is a military horror/comedy I wrote for a submission call last year. I had a ton of fun with it, and it still makes me laugh. It was accepted for the anthology, but the publisher shut down. (They’ve since reopened, but I haven’t sent it again) I love this story, but it’s a little long for most markets and the elements were specifically written for the theme of the call, so it’s been really hard to find a new home for it.
KR: Do you read your book reviews?
Aside from the first reviews of a new book, I try not to, but in weak moments, I’ve been known to scour the internet for everything about me and I regret it almost instantly. Once I stop hating myself, I try to take the words of my reviewers and use them to improve the next one.
KR: Any advice for a fledgling author?
Trust your instincts. It’s really the only piece of writing advice that works for everyone.
KR: What scares you?
People scare me. This world scares me. I sit back now and then, and I think about the world my kids are about to go into, compared to the world I lived in at their ages, and it terrifies me. “What have we become?” is a question I ask a lot. Oh, shit. Am I old now?
KR: E-Book, Paperback or Hardback?
Doesn’t matter. A book is a book for me. All have their pros and cons.
KR: Can you tell me about your latest release please?
I released Cats Like Cream with Unnerving Magazine in April. It’s about a real estate agent who uses cameras to spy on his clients. Of course, it goes too far. On July 13th, Hindered Souls Press will release Eat the Rich, a weird horror novel about aliens and money. Yes, I’m going for one of those bad book/movie synopses we see on Twitter.
KR: What are you working on now?
Many things. I’m editing a couple of novels. One is about a migraine headache epidemic that is caused by something not of this world, and another is a bizarro piece where a man dies, or thinks he dies, in a tornado, and finds himself in an alternate dimension. Sort of like Wizard of Oz, but funnier and with sex. Oh, and no munchkins or flying monkeys. There are witches and strange beasts, though.
KR: You find yourself on a desert island, which three people would you wish to be deserted with you and why?
You can choose…
a) One fictional character from your writing.
b) One fictional character from any other book.
c) One real life person that is not a family member or friend.
This is a tough one. I think I’d like to be stranded with Milo Smalls from my books Mad and Smalls’ Soldiers, because he’s hilarious and would make practical decisions. I’d just freak out and prepare to die. I’d also pick Eric Northman from Charlaine Harris’s Sookie Stackhouse books. He would represent an alternative, because he’s a vampire who has no problem changing people. Yes, I’d choose vampire over death. Also, he’s pretty.
Finally, a real life person that is not a family member or a friend… Clive Owen. A girl has needs.
KR: Thank you very much Renee.
You can follow Renee on Twitter @ReneeMJ
To find out more about Renee please visit her official blog www.authorreneemiller.com
You can check out Renee’s author page here
When Ed Anderson discards his life to become a homeless person, he has no idea of the shit storm about to happen. Almost overnight, the city’s homeless population spikes.
~
So does the murder rate.
~
Ed learns that aliens posing as homeless people are eating the city’s wealthiest residents. He tries to warn the police, but they think he’s crazy.
~
The situation is worse than Ed describes, though.
~
He’s right about the aliens. They’re here to free humans from wealth and poverty. The flesh of the rich is just a tasty reward for their hard work. And if humans refuse to embrace the utopia imagined for them, there is a plan B:
~
KILL EVERYONE.
You can buy Eat The Rich from Amazon UK & Amazon US
It’s okay to watch. Watching hurts no one, as long as you don’t touch.
Elwin likes to watch. His position as star employee at a real estate agency gives him plenty of access to the homes of his clients. A camera or two hidden where no one will find it, and he can watch as often as he pleases.
No one knows. No one gets hurt.
But it’s hard to look without touching. Touching leads to bad things. Elwin knows this, but allows himself a moment of weakness.
And then another.
Soon, watching isn’t an option anymore. Not if Elwin wants his secrets to remain buried.
You can buy Cats Like Cream from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Eighteen gruesome, blood-dripping, gape-wounded tales of slashers, predators, final girls, perverts, cannibals, and otherworldly nasties from authors Mark Allan Gunnells (Companions in Ruin and Flowers in a Dumpster), Renee Miller (Church and Smolder), and Eddie Generous (editor of Hardened Hearts).
From the classroom to the campfire to the cemetery, Splish, Slash, Takin’ a Bloodbath offers an outside view of what should be inside a body, be prepared to scream!
You can buy Splish, Splash, Takin’ a Bloodbath from Amazon UK & Amazon US
Ray is a Christian, but he loves a woman who follows a god called Zabir. Determined to save her from eternal damnation, he joins her church. Ray doesn’t realize that indoctrination into the Zabian way is a process that not only breaks a man physically, it strips his identity and shatters his mind. He holds onto his faith at first, but as his prayers for mercy go unanswered, and the pain inflicted on him becomes too much to bear, the void of nothingness promises relief, and tempts Ray to do the unthinkable, even if leaves his soul as damned as the one he tried to save.
You can buy Church from Amazon UK & Amazon US
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