Behind the Screams #22: Clyde Wrenn.

A 'From Pitch to Published' Q&A.

This instalment of Behind the Screams includes a nice throw back to earlier editions as we welcome indie writer and musician Clyde Wrenn into the fold. Creator of the Pulpland series, Clyde resides on the East side of America and chats lyrical about all things pulp:

Clyde and his Pulpland series

1. Pitch me Pulpland in one sentence.

   What we have here is an ensemble cast of distinctive characters, thrust into fast-paced, high-energy adventure stories, set in the 1930’s.

2. What came first, the idea or the title?

   The concept for this series was swimming around in my mind for a few years before I finally started it. The title came much later.

3. Where did the idea originate from?

   I’ve heard it said we ought to write the book we want to read but cannot find. I grew up on Marvel and Image comic books, Indiana Jones and The X-Files. This sort of thing was what excited me and fired up my imagination. Once I was ready to sit down and write books, this is what bubbled up first.

4. How long did it take to write?

   My first book, PULPLAND: ONE FOR COWBOY, took about six months to finish. The one I’m working on now, the fourth of the Pulpland series, has been in-process for over a year.

5. Are you a plotter or pantser?

   I start a book knowing how it begins and ends. Drawing a line from the beginning to the end is largely an exercise in pantsing.

6. Paper or screen?

   Screen.

7. Edit as you go or at the end?

   Most of the editing comes after completion of a first draft.

8. Do you beta?

   I do have a couple of people who beta read for me. I usually send them installments of about 10,000 words, as the first draft is being written. They have proven helpful in helping me be sure I am on a coherent, engaging path. A confident writer writes more, writes better.

9. How did you approach your publisher?

   I am indie in the purest sense of independent. I am, essentially, self-published.

10. Who designed the cover art?

    My old friend Alex Seal has helped me with all of the covers. He’s a graphic designer who shares many of my sensibilities.

11. How many times was the book rejected?

    I queried ONE FOR COWBOY to over a hundred agents before determining that the traditional publishing world was not interested in what I do. By deciding to continue with the series, I pretty much guaranteed not having any of the other books be accepted. They want you before anyone sees you, it seems. If there are earlier, self-published volumes in a series, the books after that in the series don’t have much of a chance.

12. Recommend another indie writer who doesn’t get enough love.

    Coy Hall is great, though I imagine he gets a fair amount of attention. His talent is impossible to ignore. In terms of pure entertainment, the action books from Point of Impact are the most delicious literary junk food. Clint Reno and R.J. Calder are two of their authors. In horror, Kelsey Kupitz is another writer who made a lasting impression on me. Her novella, “The Right Thing,” is a good place to start with her.

    It’s nice to see other authors reference those that have been featured before; it must mean we’re doing something right!

If this interview has got you wanting to read more from Clyde, you can find his books on Amazon Unlimited. Try here for UK and here for US. On socials, search for @clydewrenn.