Interview with Soudade Kaadan

Nezouh was released in 2024 and screened at Cannes, a film from Syria about the upheaval of 

Nezouh was in every sense of the word, a ground-breaking film. A wonderful mixture of magical realism and harsh realities of 

Ms. Kaadan kindly took time out of her busy schedule to talk to me about the film, ahead of a special screening of the film at Garden Cinema on Saturday 13th December at 8pm as part of the Arab Film Club. Tickets are still available.

Interview

What was the genesis of the film? 

It started with a photograph from a besieged area — an image of a building destroyed by regime bombing. There was a huge hole in the roof where the shell had hit. But through all the dust and rubble, a beam of light was coming in. It looked almost magical. That moment stayed with me. Even in the heart of destruction, there was light. Even in war, there was still hope. That’s when I began writing. I wanted to speak about the moments people never saw in the news — not just the violence, but the resilience, the humour, the small joys that helped us carry on. You need that hope to keep resisting, especially in a war that’s gone on for more than 15 years

How much of you is within the film and your family history?

All my films have something of me in them — isn’t that true for most filmmakers? Maybe it also comes from my background in documentary. Most of the characters are real people I met in life, and often I even keep their real names. I feel that changing them might somehow jinx them. But when I left Syria, I was in my thirties. So it’s part reality, part personal experience, and part metaphor — elevated by fiction.

What was the production like?

Gruelling. We were shooting in August in Gaziantep, in 40°C heat (104°F), in abandoned areas so neglected they looked like they’d already been through a war. Technically, it was also a very challenging film to make — with complex camera movements, cranes, holes in the ceiling, and a cast that included both amateur child actors and some of the biggest stars from our region, all working together. I was especially careful with the kids. Even after three engineers assured me it was safe for them to film on the roof — which had three holes in it — I insisted the production build another set, on location, where the roof was only one floor high. So the shots looking down through the holes were filmed in a different location from the apartment scenes.

On top of that, this was a small independent production, and most of our actors were Syrians from the diaspora — we had to cast them from all over the world. It was a huge challenge for a film with such a limited budget, and it couldn’t have been done without a passionate team who went the extra mile with me to make everything feel as authentic as possible.

Did you rehearse with your cast?

Yes, I rehearsed — especially with the kids. I started with a group of children rehearsing for a week, and at the end of that week, we found our lead actress, Hala, who played Zeina. She was 12 years old, and this was her first time acting.

For a whole month, we invited the kids and their parents for rehearsals — but we didn’t begin with the script. Instead, we focused on vocal exercises, improvisation, climbing and fishing games, and general fitness. The parents were happy — it felt more like a summer camp than a traditional rehearsal. During that time, I worked a lot on improvisation, and would often adapt the dialogue based on how the kids naturally expressed themselves. Only in the final week did we start working with the script, and even then, I didn’t want them to memorize it fully. From my previous experience, I knew that once children memorize lines a certain way, it can be difficult to redirect them emotionally.

By the time we arrived on set, the kids were incredible — they even surprised the professional actors with their presence and confidence.  And yes, I also worked with a talented storyboard artist based in the UK, Hasan Raza.

What were your film influences?

I think all the films we watch, the books we read, they influence our work, even in ways we don’t always realise. But for Nezouh, Life is Beautiful and The Bicycle Thief were key — neorealist films that deal with heavy themes through a gentle, almost magical lens. That balance between harsh reality and emotional poetry really resonated with me. Also, The Hole by Tsai Ming-liang surprised me — the way it also explores isolation and human connection through a hole in the ceiling, though in a completely different context. That unexpected parallel stayed with me.

Its been 18 months since the film was released, has your opinion altered of it since then?

Always — with every film I make. Over time, your relationship to the work changes. You begin to see what you could have done differently, or what you still didn’t manage to say. But maybe that’s what keeps me going in this very difficult industry — the feeling that I haven’t yet said everything I need to say, and the constant desire to explore something new.

Helene Louvart, is a rising cinematography star, what was your relationship like?

Hélène is simply awesome. She was a dynamo for the entire team — able to adapt in any country, with any crew, and always supporting your vision sincerely and without ego. Working with her, I discovered that the more experienced and talented a person is, the more humble, passionate, and generous they tend to be.

She’s especially supportive of women filmmakers, and once she’s on set, she brings this beautiful energy. She’s the last person standing, always smiling, at the end of a long shoot day, as if this battlefield of filmmaking were just a walk on the beach for her. She’s really cool.

There are moments of levity running throughout the film, do you think it's important to laugh through trauma and bad times?

I believe we laugh with people we feel equal to. And I wanted the audience to watch the film and see us not only as victims, but as human — to see the characters as friends they can laugh with, cry with, understand, and even criticise. Just like anyone else. 

What are you working on at the moment?

I'm working on several projects right now, all still in development — and getting a film made is never easy. But I’m excited, because these new projects are different in style and genre, which brings new challenges and new energy. Hopefully, we’ll be able to share them with audiences soon.

What was the last good thing you saw?

This year, I was really moved by Palestine 36 by Annemarie Jacir and All That’s Left of You by Cherien Dabis — both stunning films. It’s powerful to see two Palestinian women directors competing for the Oscars. Die, My Love by Lynne Ramsay was breathtaking — a beautiful, out-of-the-box film. It almost feels like an essay, and to see that kind of approach pulled off with Hollywood stars is rare. And I also loved Sorry Baby by Eva Victor — a subtle, delicate film. So yes, it’s a good year for cinema, because many of the films I loved were made by women directors. A hopeful one.

Ken Lussey Interview

The debut novel by Ken Lussey EYES TURNED SKYWARDS the gripping WW2 novel published by Fledgling Press

My review of the book can be found here, and the author granted me the opportunity for an interview with him, for which I am very grateful.

How did the character Bob Sutherland come to you?

I needed someone who I could maintain interest in and enthusiasm about to carry out the investigation at the core of the book. Bob Sutherland evolved as an ex-fighter pilot no longer able to do what he really wants to do because of an injury sustained right at the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940.

I based his career up until that point – though not his life - on that of a real Scottish Battle of Britain ace who was sadly killed on the day that Bob Sutherland was injured.

To my mind it’s slightly ironic that although Bob is the character I started with and who I ought to be able to associate with most closely, my favourite character in the book is Monique Dubois, the MI5 agent with an exceptionally dark story. Hers is also an incredibly improbable story, until you know she was closely based on a real woman who disappeared during the war after the two German spies she landed with in Scotland were executed.

 

What was the genesis of Eyes Turned Skywards?

I’ve always been fascinated by the way that World War Two had an impact on Scotland and I’ve always been interested in military aviation. Reading about an incident late in the war at an airfield in Aberdeenshire led me to think there was the basis of a “truth is stranger than fiction” novel in it.

Then I realised that writing a novel set in late 1944 might be rather limiting if, as I hoped, it became the first of a series. I’d only have a few months of the war left to mine for material and settings.

I therefore began to look for intriguing real-life stories from earlier in the war. When I came across an account of the crash of a flying boat in Caithness in August 1942 in which the Duke of Kent, the younger brother of King George VI, was killed, I knew I had my starting point.

 

Your first book was a guide to Great Britain, and you are a non-fiction writer; so how was the transition to historical fiction?

Why the long gap from 1983 to publish your next book?

Writing ‘A Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to Great Britain’, published by Penguin in 1983, seemed a natural thing to do after mis-spending my student days hitch-hiking around Great Britain. But factual writing, though a skill in its own right, was not what I really wanted to do. Meanwhile, the real world had intervened, and I had become a civil servant, doing lots of factual writing!

I always wanted to become a novelist and made a couple of abortive attempts to write ‘the great novel’ over next few decades. When 'Eyes Turned Skywards' was published, 35 years and 5 days after 'A Hitch-Hiker’s Guide to Great Britain', I did wonder whether it might be some sort of record for the gap between first and second books by an author. Not a chance. It took Harper Lee 55 years to publish her second book, and there are a few other very long gaps too.

As for the choice between historical and contemporary fiction, it was simply a case of finding an idea that really appealed to me; and that led me in a historical direction.

 

How much research did it involve?

More than I could ever have believed possible. These days, there’s a huge amount available online, from websites setting out conspiracy theories about the Duke of Kent’s death through to Google Earth and Street View. But to my mind there’s no substitute for actually going and walking the ground your characters walked and looking at what they were looking at.

That becomes tricky, of course, when your characters were seeing the very different world of 1942. Then it becomes necessary, for example, to visit and work out what the road at the bottom of Berriedale Braes in Caithness looked like before several later generations of road realignments. And it was equally important to make a winter yomp across boggy moorland to find the memorials at the site of the air crash. Sometimes local knowledge is the only way forwards. For example, I had to ask local experts whether Wick had a municipal electricity supply at the time. The need to guard against assumptions about people, about places, and even about the use of language nearly eight decades ago is vital to get the sense of realism I am looking for.

One moment stands out as sending chills up and down my spine. The official account of the cause of the crash that killed the Duke of Kent was given in a written answer to a parliamentary question on 7 October 1942. I’d realised early in the research that the online version of Hansard showed that the answer gave the date of the crash as 15 August 1942 instead of 25 August 1942, but I’d put this down to an error that arose when the records were digitised. It was only when I visited the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh that I realised that the wrong date was given in the original written record, which is truly remarkable given it was about what would have been at the time a very recent and very high-profile event.

 

 

 

What comes easier, the dialogue or the action?

I enjoy both, though perhaps dialogue flows more easily. I set my characters up in a situation and let them have the conversation I want them to have. I hear their voices in my head and simply transcribe what they are saying. I always have an idea of where the conversation is meant to go, but my characters will often surprise me by adding detail or heading off in unexpected tangents. For me this gives a sense of discovery and is one of the joys of writing.

 

Can you describe the area of Scotland the action takes place, it sounds wondrous and vast?

Scotland is indeed wondrous, and it is pretty vast. I used a number of different areas of the country in ‘Eyes Turned Skywards’. The action moves from Oban in Argyll on the west coast to the east side of the far north of Scotland. Scenes are set on the coast of Caithness at the fictional Sarclet Castle and inland at the real Loch More, and pretty much all the way down the coast to Inverness.

 

Did you want to do a sequel?

The sequel to ‘Eyes Turned Skywards’, called ‘The Danger of Life’, has also been published by Fledgling Press. It again features Bob and Monique as its two central characters and its central strand takes place at and around the Commando Basic Training Centre in Lochaber.

Book 3, set mainly in Orkney at the end of 1942, was completed last year and Book 4, set mainly in Stockholm early in 1943, was finished a few months ago. But like everything else, the answer to the question of how they will emerge into the light of day will have to await the world's return to something a little closer to normality.

 

How long can you write about Bob for?

There’s two years of World War Two left after the as yet unpublished Book 4 in the series, so Bob and Monique have plenty of mileage left in them. I’ve even got the opening few pages written of a book that would see them visiting Soviet central Asia in 1972, when they are both 60.  

 

As someone with a long career and long gap in publications, what advice would you offer

Keep on trying. At the end of the day, all you need is one person – the right person – to believe in what you have written as much as you do.

Eyes Turned Skywards is out now from Fledgling Press now on all formats

 

Doomshakalaka/Paul Rafferty interview

The debut album by Doomshakalaka is out next Friday 5th June.

Here is an exclusive interview with Paul Rafferty

• Following the break-up of Hot Club de Paris, what have you been up to?
  

I've been touring with other people, did a punk band for a while (called Bad Meds), have been composing music for film and TV, tinkering with the Doomshakalaka record in between bouts of existential dread brought on by the onslaught of late capitalism.

 

• What is genesis of Doomshakalaka as a band/moniker and a concept?
  

When Hot Club de Paris ceased to be I just wanted to make a record where I was in control of all the aspects of being in a band. I didn't want to write to please a label, I didn't want to have to compromise on ideas, I wanted full control over the production aesthetic and so on. It wasn't necessarily a response to being in HCdP as being in that band was a total blast for a long time, I just wanted to make music for the sake of doing something fun and good. I soon realised however that the best thing about being in a band is the fact that you get to share all of those aspects and that compromise is a very valuable asset in the writing process, especially in terms of getting stuff done quickly. I also realised that it's quite hard to have fun on your own, so was kind of instantly burdened with this responsibility towards a record that only I cared about. The name Doomshakalaka probably describes this process quite well; a fun word changed to describe a tough time.

 

 

• Was there a reluctance to branch out on your own?
  

Not really. It becomes quite difficult to do bands with your friends when you hit your 30s because everyone's responsibilities change quite suddenly. Being in a band (at least in my experience) is to enthusiastically pour all of your money down the drain and convince yourself that doing so is worthwhile. That outlook isn't particularly compatible with real life. You could say I'm branching out on my own because my friends are less stupid than I am.

 

• You have gone back to a lot of old material, and this album focuses on memory – is there a tinge of regret in not releasing this music sooner or is the time right now?
  

No regrets. The album was ready when it was ready so there's no point wishing it was any different. I learned a lot making it and feel like I've developed a good stamina for all the processes involved in making a record. I've nearly written a new record already, so perhaps I'm catching up on all that time I spent on procrastination. 

 

• You are from Liverpool? Was it either football or music for you? 
  

I've lived in Liverpool for 20 years but I grew up in a small town in Cheshire. I stopped liking football in about 1992 when I discovered Guns n' Roses so I guess it was a kind of binary choice for me. A lot of my music friends love football too, though.

 

• What have you learnt about yourself in producing this record?
  

That I hate the sound of my own voice and that Instagram is the enemy of all progress.

 

• What expectations do you have for the album?
  

I'm not sure I have any! I'd be happy if some people liked it but it's not a requirement. The important thing for me was to make it as good as I could at the time so everything here on in is just sort of admin. 

 

• How have you coped with the Covid-19 crisis? And where do you see the music industry going?
  

I still have access to my studio so I've just continued to make music alone, which is what I do in my life day to day anyway. I'm not too sure where the industry is going other than continuing to shave off more percentage points for the actual people who make the product, but that was happening anyway. I'm probably not helping by self-financing my own record and happily proceeding in the knowledge that I'll make no money, but that's the reality of the indie labels and bands. 

 

• What is next for you?
  

Breakfast.

Doomshakalaka is out from Moshi Moshi Records on 5th June on all formats.

Brian McGilloway Q&A

Last week I reviewed the new release from Brian McGilloway, the New York Times Bestselling author, with his new thriller The Last Crossing. A stand alone novel that looks at how actions can have ever lasting consequences.

After excitedly reading the book, the author granted me the pleasure of an interview which I can share with you now.

What was the genesis of The Last Crossing following your series of books, why a standalone novel now?

With each book, I simply write the story I want to tell. Usually, that fits in to one of the two series, but with this book it didn’t. I liked the idea of looking at 3 ordinary people who do something terrible for what they all believe to be justified reasons and who have to face that again 30 years later. I was interested in how each would have changed, how what they had done would have changed them, and the manner in which each had attempted or failed to reconcile themselves with what they had done. From the beginning, I knew this wasn’t going to be a police procedural, nor did I want it to be.

How easy was it to juggle the two timelines was it like writing two stories at same time or separately then edited?

No, I wrote one straight into the next using concatenation where the final phrase of one chapter opens the next. It was to create continuity between past and present and also to link the two more closely. It’s a technique used in a medieval poem called The Pearl which I’ve tried to use a few times before – most obviously in Little Girl Lost where I had two narratives connected in this way in the first draft. After hitting a block about three quarters of the way through, I realised it wasn’t working for that book and removed both it and the entire second narrative. I’ve been wanting to use it since and thankfully, in this book, the technique suited the structure and theme more obviously and finally worked for me. I found using it helped create impetus in the actual writing of the novel.

You are from Londonderry, the Troubles was more a way of life than a snapshot, was it easy to write about from memory having been born there?

I love Derry and am very proud to have grown up there. It suffered a lot through the years of violence to the extent that its personality and sense of identity have been changed by it in some ways. That reflects the way in which all of us who grew up through it were similarly changed by it in ways – some more obviously than others. The book, I hope, reflects the various gradations of impact the violence had on the various characters.

The story is about looking back at life's regrets do you have any?

I suppose we all have moments of wondering ‘what if?’ – the Road Not Taken moments. With the story between Tony and Karen, I’d say the influence of Tom Waits’ Martha is there – someone looking back on how their life’s course has gone in a completely different course from the one they’d expected and how we react when faced with that realisation as we meet someone we once loved. Larkin’s Dockery and Son deals with a similar moment of terrible clarity. My own regrets tend to focus on friendships lost more than choices not made – we all make our choices and live with them after all. I’m very lucky and blessed in so many ways, it would be churlish to regret.

What are your hopes for the book? 

It’s a book of which I’m quite protective. I just hope it finds any kind of readership and finds kindred souls to whom it speaks. It’s a challenge to get people reading Northern Irish fiction, so finding someone who’d not ordinarily have read fiction from here would be a bonus!

Did the speed and economy of the book come from editing or down to the jumping back and forth of timelines to induce this whip crack nature of looking back and forward ?

I suspect it’s a reflection of how I write. The book was written very quickly once I got started – and benefitted from the support of a number of friends and crime writing peers who read it and encouraged me along the way. I tend to write in short bursts – maybe an hour or so per day – and aim to keep things moving. I get bored with slow narratives myself, if I’m honest.

Do you miss teaching full time?

No – I still teach full time. I took a sabbatical for two years when my kids were younger to help look after them but have been back teaching for 5 years now. I still love it – though it does make writing a book a year almost impossible for me at least, thus the longer break between books. The characterisation of the younger character in the novel who drives the other three around was informed by great advice from a group of my former students who’ve all kept in contact with each other and me. It’s a privilege to introduce young minds to great literature for the first time and to spend your days talking about books you love.

What advice would you give to any would be authors?

Trust your instincts. Read widely, but don’t try to guess the market or write for the market – instead produce a work of which you are proud and can stand over and it’ll find a readership eventually. Writing is about connecting with a reader – the size of the readership will vary from book to book, but the essential connection stays the same and that’s the important bit.

How have you coped with self-isolation?

We’ve four kids so with six of us in the house altogether it’s been pretty busy. Plus I’m still teaching remotely, so the days pass quickly enough. I’ve great plans to get another book written and to read loads: I’m chipping away slowly at both…

My thanks to Dome Press for the review opportunity.

Andy De Emmony Q&A

My Q&A with director, Andy De Emmony, back in 2011. De Emmony is directing now THE NEST on BBC One starring Martin Compston and Sophie Rundle.

1. What firstly drew you to the film?

 I loved 'East is East', and found it quite daunting but on this occasion you get a more three dimensional character of George and it serves as a bookend to the first film. Ayub wanted to complete after the first film and it felt fresh even though it is the same family but on a different journey.

2. What do you remember of the original, 'East is East'?

I remember being drawn to the family aspect, and that generational gap within a family and where do you fit in.  But also the use of comedy as a release valve for the emotion presnt.

3. What was your working relationship with Ayub Khan Din?

We had a very good working relationship with Ayub, they came to me to collaborate after Damien O'Donnell did not chose to be involved.  And in spite of the autobiographical content he did not see it as a biopic, and instead lets just make the film work which gave us a lot of freedom.

4. What were the pros and cons of shooting in a foreign country?

 I found it quite daunting to work in India, but a pro was the manpower which allowed you flexibility (The house built by George in the film was built in 5 days by this manpower) and the long days allowed us to shoot longer in the days in comparison to England.  A pro would be the language barrier, as about 20% of the script is in Punjab and in the end it came down to reading looks of actors, and even some of the actors who spoke Punjab in the film had to have voice coaches for certain scenes. 

5.What happened to Jimi Mistry's role? And were you impressed by the debutant Aqib Khan

Jimi Mistry's role was written bigger, but the focus was on Sajid the youngest, his story and journey.  And Aqib was brilliant, he had a temperament that fitted the character and he was helped by the components and good actors we put around him.

6. Is there going to be a third film?

The producer, Leslee Udwin, has always seen the film as a possible trilogy and there is a proposal in place if people connect to this film like they did 'East is East'

7. How do you react to criticism of the film being 'quaint' or 'too much like a sitcom'.

I think when you make a film about a family it is hard to contain it and I hope the audience can reconnect and new audiences connect with these characters and laugh with them.  I felt if we had made a sweeping political statement about Pakistan, the family story and emotional bond would have been lost in the mix.

8. What have you been up to recently and what is next?

I have been shooting commericals in Australia, but we are waiting for funding [like most people in Britain] for a film written by William Boyd ('Chaplin', 'Any Human Heart') called 'The Galapagos Affair', based on John Treherne's novel, which we hope we start shooting soon.

FACS Interview

FACS release their third album on 27th March from Trouble in Mind records, I had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Case, guitarist of the band and a Chicago native. Read my review of VOID MOMENTS here

• What is the history of FACS and what is he MO of the group?

FACS formed out of the ashes of Disappears, no real trajectory or mission in mind just wanted to continue making music in relatively the same direction we were headed with Disappears. In that regard, there was no real MO other than letting things play out as they happen and not forcing any ideas into a certain box. That said, we like playing with limitations and having self-imposed constraints.

• How did the three of you come together?

We've all been friends for almost 20 years at this point, mostly through our various bands playing together over the years and community spaces like Empty Bottle and the Rainbo Club. We've all been working musicians that whole time so it was easy to connect and use our shared interests/experiences to make something together.

• How long was the recording process for this album?

Three days to track, I think it was about three days mixing as well but we weren't there for that part.

• Do you go in with an idea of what you want to record or does it come together when you start in the studio?

We try and leave room for both. It's nice to go in and get warmed up with what you know, ideas with some structure or familiarity, but we like to leave as much time to experiment and get uncomfortable or out of our zone. They're equally important in our process.

• What did you listen to when you were growing up?

It was just what I had access to, my parent's record collection, mostly radio. By the time I was a teenager I was almost exclusively listening to whatever Dischord Records was releasing, mixtapes by friends, The Smiths, Sonic Youth.

• What do you listen to nowadays?

It's all over the place, I'm as curious as ever but I'm still as much influenced by my initial sources as I ever was. Today I listened to Wayne Phoenix, Alternative TV, Shabaka and the Ancestors, The Native Cats, Alabaster Deplume, and Fugazi (so far).

• What is your hope for the album now the power of touring has been restricted?

I just want people to listen to it, hopefully in one sitting with no distractions. We don't really have an agenda other than making music and challenging what we think it is we do. Even touring, which we love, is not the priority, it's moving forward and making something unexpected or unknown.

• How do you see the music industry changing due to Covid-19? Are you worried as recording artists?

I'm hoping C-19 changes everything, the whole world. We all need to wake up and look at what we do day to day and figure out how to make things sustainable for the future. In this country there's a lot that needs to be broken down and rebuilt, the music industry included. I hope this forced self isolation is the first step in people looking outside of their own immediate field of vision for a way to move the world forward. We're the virus.

• Chicago Deep Pan or New York slice?

Chicago Deep Dish is trash, disgusting. New York slice is supreme. That said I will never live anywhere else, I firmly believe Chicago is the best city in the world, NYC being a close second.

Go seek out merch and material from FACS bandcamp page here.
Void Moments is out now on all formats

My thanks as always to One Beat PR for the review opportunity.

Jonathan Whitelaw - Interview

Exclusive interview with Jonathan Whitelaw, author of Hell Corp and The Man in the Dark, published by Urbane Publications

Jonathan Whitelaw is one of the most distinctive authors to appear in Britain in recent years, his utilisation of the Devil as his main protagonist in two books now has served up a richly black sort of humour that had this reader in hysterics and guffawing out loud by the climax.

By having such an iconic person at the thrust of the story can be both rewarding and daunting, after reading the book I took the opportunity to ask Mr. Whitelaw via social media about the possibility of answering a few questions. It is nice to say he did respond and here is my interview with Jonathan Whitelaw.

- What was the genesis of writing Hell Corp and writing about a character as universally known but misunderstood as The Devil?

I guess I had always wanted to write a crime novel - but I'd never thought I was clever enough! As a reader and reviewer yourself, you'll know that there are lots of great writers out there doing some fantastic work in the crime and thriller genres. But we've seen every type of antihero under the sun. If a cop isn't an alcoholic, they're a workaholic. If they don't see their family enough they see them too much. On and on it goes. 

So I got to thinking about writing an antihero like no other. And I started at the anti-part. Every culture on earth has an antagonist in their folklore and mythology. An embodiment of evil so awful that their mentions are usually the stuff of horror. So that, naturally, is where I started. 

I conjured up this image of The Devil as being somebody growing tired of being that bad guy, always being the villain. I figured if he wanted to go on holiday he'd still need all of his wicked ways to be carried out - hence the eponymous HellCorp. And from there, really, the story grew. 

I knew I needed a foil for The Devil and I suppose there really wasn't much choice - it had to be the Man Upstairs. Although sometimes its the Woman Upstairs of course! Having Him challenge The Devil to solve a murder mystery seemed like such a perfect medium and outlet for this Old Nick character I had created. And from there it all just grew arms and legs!



- Do you have a black humour yourself?

I think I do. I'm often told by my wife that the things I find funny I probably shouldn't. It's not my fault of course. I blame all the top-notch comedy on the BBC in the 90s when I was a kid growing up. Seriously, if I wasn't watching The Fast Show I was glued to the League of Gentlemen and Bottom. So blame all of those people!

When I'm not being a full-time writer I'm a full-time journalist. And I'm pretty sure its a pre-requisite to be a hack that you have a black sense of humour. My career has predominantly been in the digital world so you always get a lot of change and different types of stories across your desk. Being able to laugh in adversity and get on with your colleagues can actually be quite therapeutic. Especially if it's being a particularly brutal day. 

But yes, I'd say I have a black sense of humour. It clearly helps when you're writing about The Devil solving crimes!



- How long/How many drafts did this novel take and was it easier following the reception of the first book?

This is the first time I've ever written a sequel. So that was a big adjustment to my normal writing process. I sat down with a vague idea for The Man in the Dark and thought 'oh, here is a cast of characters that I already know - what fun, dangerous and thrilling situations can I put them through?'

It was a little strange at first. But one thing I enjoy about writing is getting to know the characters I'm creating. Dialogue is a big part of my work. Getting into the nitty-gritty, the psychology of a character is key to creating that dialogue. If you don't understand your characters then you won't be able to write what they would think, say and ultimately do. Having that already established in a way was quite liberating, even if it took me a while to get used to it. 

In terms of drafts, I'd say about 75% of my first draft of the book was cut. It suffered from what I call the 'Fast & Furious' effect. As a quick explainer - the first Fast and Furious movie is about street racers and stolen cars. The last one had international crime syndicates, nuclear submarines and a supercar jumping between skyscrapers in Dubai. In short, things got out of hand very quickly - spiraling way out of control. 

The very first draft of The Man in the Dark had helicopter chases and all kinds of other huge, mind-boggling madness. And as I wrote it I knew it was never going to fly - pun intended. So I finished the draft, all 80,000 words, before scrapping it. Writing can be like that. Sometimes you need a warm-up to get yourself going. You wouldn't run a marathon without prepping or getting in the right frame of mind. 

So yeah, I think the start and finish of the book on the shelves now survived The Great Purge. And ultimately it was for the best. The story I wanted to write wasn't the one I had written before. I needed to go through that process. It made for a better story in the end. And I'm extremely proud of The Man in the Dark. 



- You paint the Devil as a know all but powerful, this contrast of emotions and characteristics is it difficult to balance?

Balance has always been at the heart of the HellCorp novels. I've always loved authority figures who get cut down to size. And I love watching them still try to maintain that arrogant air and sophistication, even when there's metaphorical egg on their chin. 

That's a very artsy way of saying that I like to put my characters in situations I know they'll hate. The Devil in my books is all-powerful, all-knowing but also all too aware of his lot in the universe. He knows the proper way of doing things and, oddly, abides by the rules - he's made a lot of them up himself. He does, of course, get up to mischief and, like most authority figures, is always willing to stack the cards in his favour so that he wins. 

I like that about his character. I like that he's prone to mistakes and, while he would rarely, if at all, admit to them publically, he knows that he's just as prone to making them as everyone else. The difference being that if he drops the ball then there are huge ramifications and consequences. He's a realist and a pragmatist, a skeptic at heart in a world filled with the illogical, bizarre and downright strange. 



- Was it fun to write the good cop/bad cop scenes? The chemistry between the two is done well.

You're very, very kind. The fiver is in the post!

I love dialogue. And actually, it's always been a big part of my enjoyment of other literature, film and TV. Some of my fondest books and movies feature a strong relationship that's brought entirely to life through the dialogue. The Lethal Weapon movies always stick in my mind. It's clear on-screen that everyone involved in those movies, in front and behind the camera, had an absolute ball making them. And that only continues as the franchise went on. 

The dialogue is snappy, it flows, you're drawn into the world of these characters and the veil of fantasy completely envelopes you. It's not Mel Gibson and Danny Glover on there, it's two LA cops who've been through hell and high water together and have become family. 

I always strive for genuine interaction and dialogue with my characters - even if it's The Devil and God having an argument about the end of the world. It's something I like in work that I read and watch. So I always strive to make it come alive in my own. 



- What is next for the Man in the Dark?

Well he's been left in a bit of pickle by the end of the second book. So I supposed we should probably find out what happens shouldn't we?

Being all cryptic aside, the third novel in the series is with my publisher. Which is very exciting. 

And being the money-grabbing, starving author I am - I'm not giving away any more than that! You'll just have to read it and see!



- What is your writing process?

The million-dollar question! I get asked about my process quite a bit. And it's not normally until I'm asked about it do I actually give it a lot of thought.

I'm lucky in that I can write at any time, really anywhere. When my first novel, Morbid Relations, was written, I definitely had a process. I was working in Glasgow but living in Edinburgh so I had two hours commute every day to just sit and write. It was a pretty intense process but it worked for the story and the characters etc. 

Thankfully I don't have that commute anymore. And as such my writing isn't quite as focussed and distilled into those two hours a day. So some writing days now I can be going for hours and others I struggle to craft 50 that even make sense. 

One thing that's a must for any writer though is... actually writing. I was told by a very lovely tutor of mine at uni that you can't edit a blank page. And that still rings true today. If I'm asked about advice from anybody wanting to make a living from writing I always tell them that. You can have the greatest novel and story ever living inside your head. But if you don't get it out of there, in some way, shape or form, nobody is ever going to be able to enjoy it and share the experience and talent. 

It's a surprisingly motivating mantra actually. And it's one that's served me well in the five or so years I've been a professional author. 



- Can you speak about the partnership/relationship with Urbane Publications?

The amount of support, backing and general love I've had from my publisher has been nothing short of amazing. They have, quite literally, made my dreams come true by giving me a platform and outlet to tell my stories. I genuinely can't thank them enough. 

A good example was just before Christmas. The authors and staff of Urbane genuinely feel like a family - one that I've been welcomed in to with open arms. We all have a strong bond with each other - brothers and sisters in arms. That's why we were all so shocked last year at the sudden death of writer Dan Proops.

I wanted to do something, anything, really, to honour him. So I wrote a HellCorp short story - The Fright Before Christmas - with the intention of asking for donations for charity for anybody who wanted to give. But Matthew at Urbane went above and beyond. We got the short story published on Amazon as a special e-book - and all proceeds were being donated to The Samaritans. It was a really wonderful, special gesture that meant a great deal to me. A level of support and unwavering faith that, ultimately, meant we could make a difference and help a really worthy cause. 

The feedback we got was fantastic. And I am, truly, very grateful for the support that Urbane offered to me and my desire to help out. That and they let me write about The Devil solving crimes. I really couldn't ask for a better publisher!

The Man in the Dark is available now from Urbane Publications across all formats

Jack Gilden interview

Jack Gilden is the author of the brilliant new NFL book Collision of Wills about the tumultuous pairing of two behemoths of the Gridiron in Johnny Unitas - the first great Quarterback - and Don Shula, the Hall of Fame coach whose paths crossed together at the now defunct Baltimore Colts.

His novel is a look back at a very different NFL where running was key to success, games were won at the line of scrimmage and a quarterback was a game manager who rarely threw downfield and merely handed off to a tailback.

Gilden successfully weaves a narrative that has an abundance of characters and stories, and charts the changing climate of a sporting landscape going hand in hand with an ever changing socio-political context of the late 1960s in the shadow of foreign wars, political assassinations and freedom of expression.

I was lucky enough to gain some time with Jack Gilden, in the week leading up to the book's release to ask some questions about the book and his takeaways from it.

What was the idea for the book?

When I was a high school student I went to a conference for high school journalists put on by the old Baltimore Colts at their new facility near my school.  There was a famous (famous in Baltimore) old newspaperman there named John Steadman who was very close to the franchise and especially to the old Colts players.  He happened to mention that Unitas and Shula hated each other.  I thought to myself then, 'How interesting that the greatest player and the brilliant coach (he would later surpass George Halas as the biggest winner in league history) spent seven seasons together and never won a title.  Plus they didn't get along.  That's a great idea for a book.'  When I finally started the project (in my 40s) I discovered the discord between the men echoed their nation, which was also in deep conflict.  The men and their times, I felt, offered an origin story for America and professional football in the 21st Century.

- How much research was involved?

There was a great deal of research for this book.  I went back and talked to as many men (and a few women) as I could find who could shed light on the careers and personal lives of both men.  I read as many books as I could on the men, the Colts, football, and the 1960s in general.  I pored through periodicals and newspapers of the era for news that was contemporaneous to the events.  I watched as much film as I could that pertained to the old Colts and to football of the 1960s, including both raw game footage and documentaries so that I could describe the players and the events as I saw them through my own two eyes.

- What were your preconceptions of both Unitas and Shula going into the book?

When I started the book Johnny Unitas was my hero.  I played football in high school for four seasons.  I started off as a quarterback who was under 100 pounds (I was the smallest player on the field in every game in which I ever played).  Unitas's long shot story and rise to unprecedented success resonated with me then as it does now.  As a high schooler I read everything I could about him in order to learn the secrets of his success and apply them to my own game.  In general, however, by the time I entered high school both men were still living and still relatively young, but they were both already mythologized. At that time, they seemed to represent the American virtues:  Hard-nosed toughness prevailing over all, duty, and adherence to the chain of command (as opposed to later day players who seemed to upstage their coaches, their teams, and the game itself.)

- What are your conclusions of the men now?

I found that the men were quite different than what I, and many others had assumed about them.  Unitas was far from a dutiful and unquestioning warrior.  By the time he came under Shula's tutelage he was egotistical and felt he knew more than the coach.  Sometimes his actions were insubordinate, as when he would change or ignore plays that were sent in from the bench.  I also think the pressures of his position mounted on him and caused him to act out in certain ways.  Both men are considered among the biggest winners the game has ever seen, but they were forced to deal with crushing defeat during their time together.  They didn't always handle it well.  After researching them, my conclusions about them are that they were far more complex than the public knew.  They had big egos, and stunning vulnerabilities. They were very good men, incredibly driven to succeed, but at times their emotional weaknesses got the better of them.

- How different is the NFL now to then?

I believe that the NFL of the 1960s represents the apex of both the league and the game.  The sport hit its highest levels then with so many players and coaches considered among the greatest in history all active at the same time.  Unitas, Jim Brown, Dick Butkus, Paul Warfield, Jim Parker, Raymond Berry, Gino Marchetti, Bart Starr, Jim Taylor, Paul Hornung...the names go on and on.  In the coaching ranks, there was Lombardi, Shula, Paul Brown, George Halas, George Allen, Blanton Collier, Chuck Noll and Weeb Ewbank.  In the AFL there was Al Davis, Sid Gilman, Hank Stram, and others.  It was extremely hard to make the postseason then.  In '67 the Colts lost only a single game and had the best record in football and still did not make it.  So every game then was filled with great players and coaches, and every single game crackled with import.  The theatre of of it all was so compelling it propelled the sport past baseball as the number one game in America and it had people tuning in for special prime time games...the precursor of Monday Night Football.

- Why has Weeb Ewbank been lost to history, a man who never lost a Championship game winning 3?

Weeb isn't totally lost to history; he is in the Hall of Fame.  He was also the winning coach in the two most famous and important games in league history:  the '58 Championship Game, and Super Bowl III.  He is the only coach in history who does NOT have a losing record in head-to-head competition with Lombardi.  Even so, he clearly doesn't get his due.  I consider him to be the best football coach in history.  His low-key reputation comes from a couple of factors.  Number one, he was fired from the Colts.  In his era that was an ignominy, and after he left Baltimore no one in the NFL wanted to hire him.  He was forced to go to the supposedly inferior AFL.  To a certain extent, Weeb's strengths are precisely the things that overshadow him.  Number one, he was a superb team builder.  Unlike Lombardi and Shula who both walked into teams that had excellent players already on the roster, Weeb essentially inherited two bankrupt franchises and built both of them from the ground up.  Consequently his winning percentage is low even though his championships are high. He chose all the talent for both of his franchises, including finding and developing two of the games greatest-ever quarterbacks in Unitas and Namath.  His teams were slow to build but ultimately were brimming with depth.  Unfortunately, the charisma of his QB's overshadowed Ewbank.  Both Unitas and Namath were taught to be superb and autonomous play callers by Ewbank, so the public assumed that Weeb had less control of his teams and was less responsible for their successes than, say, Lombardi, who seemed to dominate with a (supposedly) mediocre quarterback in Bart Starr.  (In fact, Starr was superb and extraordinarily accurate.)  In other words, Lombardi was bigger than his teams, while Ewbank prepared his teams to be bigger than himself. 

- And for that matter Earl Morrall, four Super Bowl wins

Actually, Morrall went to four Super Bowls, but won three.  He lost Super Bowl III to the Jets.  Earl was the best player on one of the best teams in history, the '68 Colts.  Earl was MVP of the league that year.  He also quarterbacked the undefeated Dolphins to nine straight victories, more wins than Hall of Famer Bob Griese had that year.  Morrall is lost to history because his very poor showing in Super Bowl III swallows his entire legacy.  In fact, he was a heroic player with statistics that are similar to Joe Namath's.  He deserves to be in the Hall.

- The names that pass through the stories – Lombardi, Ryan, Noll, Namath for example – are amazing, it must have surprised you to see how far this coaching tree extended to current history of the NFL

It is a testament to how great the football was in the 1960s to see how the coaches, players and front-office personnel influenced the game over the next several decades.  Former Baltimore Colts employees dominated football in the seventies and eighties, showing how deep and great that franchise really was. 

- What is your NFL team?

Today I am a season ticket holder and fan of the Baltimore Ravens.  Nothing, however, can supplant the love I had for the Baltimore Colts.

- What are your opinions of the game now? What can be changed?

My opinion of today's game is that it has been watered down a great deal, making it less exciting and compelling than the game was in the 60s.  I think the quarterback position seems to be more important than ever, and yet the modern quarterback is diminished.  With the modern rules designed to protect the quarterback and improve his statistics the position seems less genuine. With so many plays coming from the sidelines quarterbacks are no longer the intellectual leaders of their franchises.  I'm not sure what can be done to change modern football to 'fix' it.  It's just a different game than it was, and not necessarily better.

- What are you working on currently?

I'm currently working on my second book.  Again, it examines the success/failure dynamic.  It is a horse racing story that uncovers issues of drug abuse, mistreatment of a child, and true stories that have never been told.


Collision of Wills is out now from University of Nebraska Press and available on all platforms.