E. Curtis Interview

Have you ever had an imaginary friend?

I have not. I grew up in a large family with two older brothers, who I spent much effort to keep up with. My childhood friend Sadie and her sisters, Deirdre and Agatha the Wise, were not imaginary. Though otherworldly entities, they were most certainly real. They looked after me when my siblings were sent off to school. Our past adventures and current reunion are the inspiration for my third novel, The Twilight State of Copenhagen, currently in process.

Do you have any phobias?

Spiders, ants, anything creepy-crawly or flying stinging things.

Do you listen to music when you're writing?

Always. Music is my drug. It lifts my mind and sends it adrift, sparking many a vision. My tastes are eclectic, but I tend toward alternative, dark-wave, ambient, or older new-wave artists. I don’t get hung up on the words but listen for a more holistic and transportive experience. Music pulls me from the mundane of my day-to-day life and opens the door to the ether, where creativity knows no limits.

Do you ever read your stories out loud?

Only with my read-aloud edit late in the revision game.

Tell us about your main character and who inspired him/her.

Edmond Curtis is a troubled soul who sees things in the dark and regrets past decisions. Intrigued by and dabbling in the occult, he becomes too familiar, too aware of the dark aspects of our existence. Gifted or cursed with abilities few possessed, he spent the nights of his youth training in the underworld to become an Illumined. Seeming noble on the outside, Edmond discovers on this journey that he is far from what he thought himself to be, as he comes to terms with this forgotten half-life spent under the earth.

Edmond is based on experiences of my misguided past and my innate awareness of the otherworldly. I’ve always possessed this awareness, sensing more than just our world, but also those who exist in and about it. Never able to explain to others what I knew, I felt compelled to document the visions and experiences that haunted me. This natural exposition of darkness about me adds a level of truth to the fiction.