I came up with an idea to turn the cliché inside out: instead of humans threatened by zombies, what if a sympathetic zombie was threatened by humans?

The handwritten pages make for fun giveaways. If someone reviews one of my books online, like on Amazon or Goodreads, they can notify me through my web site, and I'll send them an original page. They can see my creative process in all its scribbly glory.

I included receipts, faxes, newspaper clippings, all sorts of things. I've read novels composed entirely of emails or letters, but not assembled across this kind of mix of materials. I wanted to create the feeling of a detective going through a box of clues.

I need paper and pen to release my imagination. I can't create on a machine.

I'm going to slow down a little bit, but I won't stop creating. I can't!

I like a strange, wide range of stuff. I like classical music and industrial noise bands. John Waters films and Peanuts cartoons. Barry Manilow and GG Allin. I should have my head examined.

I think many of us live in a rut. Stuck in a groove we can't get out of, whether it's our job, family drama or the little frustrations of everyday life.