First things first, I want to thank Tyrus Books so much for giving me this opportunity. As an author still trying to find his footing in the world of publishing and getting noticed, it’s nice to be featured so prominently with Tyrus, a publisher whose output has been consistently great.
I guess I’ve always been a writer, because I can’t really point to a specific moment that made me decide to pick up the pen and paper (or, more realistically, sit down at a computer) and begin writing. I remember scribbling down dreadful poetry in middle school and high school, but trust me, that wasn’t writing. My whole life, I’ve had the itch to write things, to tell stories, and that obsession has taken a number of forms. I’ve written screenplays, comic books, the aforementioned horrendous poetry, and finally I’ve settled into writing prose. There’s just something about the singular pursuit of writing a novel that appeals so much to me. With screenplays, with comic books, you need at least one other person to realize your vision, but with novels, it’s just you and the page, you’re responsible completely for its content, for better or worse. Maybe I just enjoy putting that kind of pressure on myself.
My writing has more or less revolved around crime my entire life. I don’t really know why…I haven’t had much first-hand experience with crime (I was once almost mugged in NYC and in a separate incident somebody was shot about thirty feet away from me, but I don’t really think those count as first hand experiences), but even without being extensively exposed to crime, there’s something about crime stories and noir compels me in a way other stories don’t. I think it might be about extremes, seeing people at their limit of what they are capable to tolerate and what they would do to just keep going for a few more hours, days, or even a few more seconds. Crime tests a person’s mettle in a way that nothing else really does, and when people get to those extreme moments in their lives, you can find out what kind of a person they really are. I guess that’s why I gravitate toward writing crime and noir instead of bodice-ripping romances or far-flung fantasies starring a cast of hundreds. Nothing against those types of novels, they’re just not me.
With this in mind, I’d like to direct you to a collection of short stories I’ve just published called Crimewave. Inside its pages are thirteen stories of people at their wits end, at those extreme points in their lives, showing them making decisions that will have an impact on the rest of their life. It’s good stuff, if I must say so myself, and I’d urge you to check it out.
If you like what you’ve seen here, be sure to check me out on twitter where I go by @seanmay, and also check out my website seanmay.net
After the publication of Crimewave, I’m moving into a little bit of new territory, with a cyberpunk novel that is thoroughly grounded in noir mystery. It’s been fun to write so far, and hopefully it’ll see the light of day before too long.