Interview by Peter Syslo
Infernal Dreams:When did you begin writing and who/what are some of your influences? What drew you to the horror genre?
G.L. Giles:I began writing my own poetry and songs as a child. My parents really encouraged me in the creative writing arena, and I'm still appreciative of that! I won poetry contests with monetary prizes around eleven and twelve years old, so that really encouraged me to keep on writing?. Also, my father had published a book of his poetry in the sixties entitled Bitter, Sweet and Whimsy, and I was motivated by his talent. I seriously doubted I'd ever be able to write as well as he did, but I kept on trying anyway. I was an English major at the College of Charleston, so I had the opportunity to read and study a lot of writers and their works. However, I was particularly drawn to the 19th century Romantic writers like Hawthorne, Keats, Shelley, Poe, etc. In fact, I wrote my Bachelor's Essay on Hawthorne, so I studied him and his works at great length. So, I know that Hawthorne has had a big influence on me and my writing in one way or another. As far as being drawn to the horror genre, I'm still not entirely able to figure it out. Strangely enough, much like those who love watching horror films, it just makes me feel better sometimes to write horrific scenes. I have said before that I like to purge the horror on my pages, so I won't have to live it subconsciously in "real" life I suppose. ***Cue Dr. Freud's entrance now...LOL***
ID:What are some of your vampire influences (film, literary,etc.)? What is it, specifically, that interests you about the vampire?
GLG:I'll start with film influences. To this day, The Hunger remains one of my favorite vamp films for a number of reasons. I love the storyline; I love the casting; I love the music; I love female vamps as the lead characters. I could go on...Other vamp films from the eighties also standing out as influential to me, as far as piquing my interest in the vampire mystique, are the relatively well-known The Lost Boys and the not-so-well-known Near Dark. I like the modern, nongoth settings in both as well as the great casts, etc. Along the same lines novels-wise, as far as modern, nongothic settings go, I really like what I've read by Charlaine Harris and MaryJanice Davidson. There are many more novels, books, films and television series I could mention but then I'd be writing another book. I know that many people are drawn to fictional vampires because of the immortality angle, but that's not really what did it for me. I personally believe that we are all immortal in a sense as energy is neither created nor destroyed, so we all go on...most likely in a different form, however?. I was attracted to vampires because I got my first case of skin cancer at twenty-three years old, so while all my friends were soaking up the rays at nearby beaches, I was frequently at home with my "sickness." So, I empathized with the supernatural vamps who also couldn't go out in the sun, subconsciously at first I suppose.
ID:In your author's platform, you stated that you are openly a Hedge Witch and a Vamp. Could you explain both? Also, could you tell us a little about being religious/spiritual in the G.L. Giles way? Where and how did you gain your knowledge in religion and spirituality?
GLG:I'll start with the way I consider myself a Solitary Psi-Vamp or Psychic Vampyre (but not the kind LaVey talked about?). I'm solitary because I don't belong to any household or coven. Therefore, I would consider myself what's sometimes called a Ronin. I'm an energy worker that acknowledges receiving as well as giving. It's no more like a supernatural vampire than a real witch is like a supernatural witch who flies through the air on her broomstick. In my case, I naturally absorb what I call spin off energy from people in crowds generally. For instance, at book signings I generally get hyper active towards the end of a signing because of taking so much energy in, pretty much without realizing it till I'm barely able to sit still and sign. In the giving arena, I'm certified in Reiki Level One. I'm definitely not a Sanguine Vampyre because I don't feed on the energy contained in blood; in fact, I've been a Vegetarian for almost two years now. That's the short story anyway. There are other ways one can be a Psi-Vamp, but, again, I don't want to write another book here.
As far as being a Hedge Witch goes, I can really only speak for myself and my own definition of it, as one who is self-taught and not initiated by another. Fortunately for me, formerly esoteric knowledge has become exoteric to a great degree thanks to the internet, books, etc. Furthermore, I believe that experience itself is still the best teacher. In a nutshell, I consider myself much like a Nature-loving Green Witch with a perhaps more prickly twist. I definitely am one for "Live and let live" and have a problem with any religion that says theirs is the only way to Spiritual Disney Land. I believe there are many paths to connection with Source Energy, Spirit, Inner Being, Goddess/God...I also respect my Satanist, Atheist, Agnostic, etc. friends. This is the Path I've chosen for myself, respecting all others , except those who try to force their way of thinking on me or think that theirs is the only way (as I said before?). Generally Hedge Witches live near Nature if we can. It could be a physical hedge that separates Hedge Witches from the rest of the world, but it is frequently more of a metaphysical boundary that only those invited in can cross. Hedge Witches practice what is called "low magic" meaning we aren't engaging in complicated rituals. And, although some HedgeWitches don't consider themselves as practicing any rituals, I would say that I definitely do myself as far as sometimes repeating the same simple ceremonies. And, like my practices as a Solitary Psi-Vamp, my practices as a HedgeWitch are also solitary. For more information, check out my article "Hedgewitchery My Way" in the latest issue of Psychic Times International, at http://www.voicesfrombeyond7.com/PsychicTimesWelcome.html (it's a free download).
ID:As you described in the preface to V3: THE VAMPIRE VIGNETTES REVAMPED, the novel is a re-working of your first two vampire novels. What made you decide to rewrite/add to the story?
GLG:My novella, The Vampire Vignettes, went out-of-print about three years ago, so I saw that as an opportunity to re-write it, this time leaving out my own Napoleon Dynamite-like illustrations?. I realized shortly after reworking The Vampire Vignettes that I should really rework its prequel, V2:B4 (The Vampire Vignettes Prequel), even though it is still in print because I still had some of my own illustrations in it and because I wanted to make some plot and character changes, too.
ID: In V3, all paths (vampyre, vampire, and human) seem to intersect at a fair in South Carolina. Actually, the fair is almost like a separate character itself. Why did you choose this setting for the story?
GLG:You're the first person to pick up on the fact that the Fair is indeed somewhat personified. Kudos for that!! Funny that you mention it, too, because I'm currently writing a Compendium for Alexandrian Archives (of all three of my vamp books to date: The Vampire Vignettes [first time it will have been reprinted], V2:B4 and V3), and, in making some changes to V3, I've decided to capitalize the Fair throughout. Like it's the first name of someone almost, as it also hopefully conjures up a sense of intimacy as well. I have always loved going to the Fair!! It's probably my love of it that caused me to make it one of my characters in a sense. Also, it afforded me a large enough setting to have all my characters from the separate storylines pretty much all interact with one another, either directly or indirectly via the Fair.
ID:I like the fact that you do preserve some of the "classic" ideas about the vampire, in V3. However, you do bring some new and interesting ideas to the character, such as the ideas of anti-matter/matter and the whole vampyre/vampire divisions of the "species". How did you develop these unique ideas about the character?
GLG:It's been a lot of fun coming up with my vampyre/vampire differentiations. So, it was enjoyable to create my Water Vamps which resulted from Vampyres mating with Sirens, etc. I was born and grew up in Charleston, South Carolina which is a peninsular city. I was always around water, so Water Vamps seemed like a logical creation to me. Furthermore, in many ways I wanted the divisions within the vampy(i)res to parallel some class divisions that some humans still have, so it's a social commentary in a sense as well. Throwing in matter and anti-matter was really a nod to science simply put.
ID:Regarding the human characters in V3, the wicked do seem to be punished and the good seem to prevail. Did you intend it to be a tale with moral underpinnings or did it just develop that way as you wrote the story?
GLG:In rewriting V3 somewhat now for the Compendium which I mentioned that Alexandrian Archives is publishing, I realized I formerly had too many "moral underpinnings" in a sense; my own critique with V3 in now rewriting it a bit, is that it might have formerly come across as a bit didactic, so fortunately I have the opportunity to change that now for the Compendium. I'm a big believer in utilizing composite characters, so I'll generally take the traits of say three or more people I encountered in my real life to create one villain/villainess and/or heroine/hero or anti-heroine (in the case of Vladina?). I think that's why most readers can readily identify with my fictional characters: they are rooted in reality, so they have that emotional charge necessary to cause the reader to feel for them, hopefully.
ID:DAYS AND NIGHTS IN SUMMERVILLE and MIND YOUR Ps AND Qs are both collections of poetry, short stories, etc. I really like the fact that you don't limit yourself to one format; the main point is that you honestly express yourself. When you are creating, what directs you to turn an idea into a short story, a poem, an article, or a single-line quote?
GLG:It's easiest for me to generally create a poem. The creation process usually goes something like this: I'll generally be thinking about something I've read, experienced, heard, etc. because it's something that stands out for one reason or another. Then I'll generally ponder it for a while, sometimes days, sometimes weeks as I try to figure out why it has my attention. In the case of poetry, I'll oftentimes hear a rhyme in my head as I figure out in my own words why it captivated my attention. Then, I'll generally put the rhyme, or Aha! moment, on paper. Then, I'll either work on other lines or ideas after having the initial ones written down or just leave it be. It depends on what I feel I should do at the time. With some poems it's been years before I've gone back and tweaked them. One of my chapters in the novel I'm also writing now, V4, started out as a delightfully frightful and vivid dream that I had. I started with the dream and am building a novel around it; I've never done this before, so it's been an ongoing excitingly different process altogether. My other books, short stories and quotes have mostly started out from my imagination and/or similar real life situations I experienced.
ID:You write about your cats, which I thoroughly enjoy. What (do you feel) is it about cats that makes them such special companions? What do you think about the concept of Familiars?
GLG:I believe that cats are natural healers. They've been proven to help people lower their blood pressure, ward off depression, etc. I frequently somewhat jokingly say that I must have needed lots of healing because I have five cats: Eclipse, Luna, Nova, Vega and Anubis Star. And one kitten: Comet. Either that or I'm already a crazy cat lady. I like the concept of Familiars, and I consider my cats my Familiars >^.^<
ID:Do you have any upcoming book signings or appearances? Where can we find out more about your work?
GLG:The best way to find out more about my books is to head to http://www.xlibris.com/GLGiles.html where my books can be ordered and you're able to read sample pages from each book. Also, you can head to http://www.myspace.com/thevampirevignettesrevamp to read more reviews, etc. (Be sure to "fiend" request me as well if you'd like?). My books are nationally distributed through both Ingram and Baker & Taylor, so any bookstore in the United States should be able to order them, if they aren't already on the shelves. Also, they are available online at www.amazon.com, www.barnesandnoble.com, www.bamm.com, etc. Or, show up to one of my signings, if you're nearby. I'm signing at:
~~~Barnes & Noble, Northwoods Marketplace, 7620 Rivers Avenue, North Charleston, South Carolina, 843-572-2322 on Friday, February 20, 2009 from 5-9 PM
~~~Barnes & Noble, Northwoods Marketplace, 7620 Rivers Avenue, North Charleston, S.C. on Saturday, March 7, 2009 from 1-6 PM
~~~Waldenbooks, 24 Shelter Cove Lane, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, 843-785-4301 from 2-6 PM on Saturday, April 4, 2009
~~~Waldenbooks, Hilton Head, S.C. from 2-6 PM on Saturday, April 18, 2009
~~~Waldenbooks, Jessamine Mall, 1057 Broad Street, Sumter, South Carolina from 1-4 PM on Saturday, May 2, 2009
~~~Barnes & Noble, Northwoods Marketplace, 7620 Rivers Avenue, North Charleston, South Carolina from 5-9 PM on Friday, May 15, 2009
~~~Waldenbooks, Jessamine Mall, Sumter, S.C. from 1-4 Pm on Saturday, June 6, 2009 ~~~Barnes & Noble, Northwoods Marketplace, N. Charleston, S.C. from 5-9 PM on Friday, June 12, 2009
~~~Waldenbooks, Hilton Head, S.C. from 1-6 PM on Saturday, August 1, 2009
~~~Barnes & Noble, Northwoods Marketplace, from 1-6 PM on Saturday, August 15, 2009
~~~Waldenbooks, Hilton Head, S.C. from 1-6 PM on Saturday, September 12, 2009
ID:What's next for G.L. Giles in 2009?
GLG:I'm going to be traditionally published through Alexandrian Archives; they have accepted three of my novels. At least two of them should be published in 2009. Also, I'll continue being a regular contributor to MetaCreative Magazine (it's a free download at http://metacreativemagazine.com so check it out) and I'll also regularly contribute to Psychic Times International at http://www.voicesfrombeyond7.com/PsychicTimesWelcome.html Other than that, I'll be found volunteering at the SPCA.