SUNDAY SPECIAL: Brian Moreland
Sunday, October 18th, 2009I had the pleasure of interviewing Brian Moreland about his paranormal drama Shadows in the Mist, set in WWII Germany. We talked about this unique blend of history and fiction, and the work that went into building his story. Brian also shared with me how he helps writers accomplish their goals, and what he can do for you.
LT: Tell our readers a little bit about your novel, Shadows in the Mist.
BM: Shadows in the Mist is a supernatural horror novel set during World War II. It is part suspense thriller, part war story. It starts off in present day, when war hero Jack Chambers asks his grandson to deliver a war diary to a general at a U.S. Army base in Germany. The diary reveals a secret burial ground of U.S. soldiers who went missing in action back in Germany sixty years ago. Also buried in the graveyard is a Nazi relic that Chambers doesn’t want to fall into the wrong hands. Most of the novel takes place in October, 1944, where we relive the nightmares Lt. Chambers and his platoon faced when they crossed into Germany on a top-secret mission with a rag-tag squad of O.S.S. soldiers. Lt. Chambers and his men soon discover that something evil in the foggy woods is slaughtering both German and Allied soldiers. As the platoon is being stalked, they take refuge in an abandoned church and discover a Nazi bunker where the horror was unleashed. The thriller is based on the Nazis’ true fascination with the Occult. In 2007, Shadows in the Mist won a gold medal for Best Horror Novel in an international contest.
LT: There’s definitely enough meat to this story to have been two separate books; one horror, and the other historical. How did you come up with the idea to combine the two?
BM: My novel originally started as a short story I wrote in college called “The Refuge.” It was a horror story from the beginning about four U.S. soldiers running from something in the fog that just wiped out their entire platoon. When I expanded the story into a novel, the horror mystery was the main driving force of the plot. At the time, I had just seen Saving Private Ryan and was deeply moved. I decided that I wanted my novel to also be a war story where you care about Lt. Chambers and his platoon. I wanted to capture the emotion of men fighting in the war, and I strived to make the characters feel like real people. So I interviewed both American and German soldiers who fought in World War II and got their personal stories. Incorporating actual historical events, like the battle of the Hürtgen Forest along the border of Belgium and Germany, gave the horror novel a sense that two stories are happening simultaneously, a war story and a supernatural mystery.
LT: How long did your research take, and what was the most difficult part of it? What was the most rewarding?
BM: I researched for about three years. When I started out, my knowledge of World War II was very broad, mostly what I learned in high school history class and from watching movies. Writing a novel set during that era gave me an opportunity to delve deeper into why we were fighting the war and to learn about the specific battles. The most difficult part was that every aspect of my book had to be accurate. The soldiers’ uniforms, guns, vehicles, battle locations, dates, and slang had to ring true to satisfy all those readers out there who know a lot about World War II. I read several history books, watched WWII documentaries, and cross-checked every detail for historical accuracy. What was most rewarding was meeting World War II veterans and hearing their war stories. They were very personal to me, because my grandfather is war hero. Also, I went over to Germany and walked the battle fields where my story takes place. I really enjoyed reading about the Nazis and the Occult and learning they had a secret science division that studied the Occult and sought to find mythical relics like the Holy Grail, just like the Nazis in the Indiana Jones movies. In the case of the Nazis and their bizarre research, fact is more exciting than fiction.
LT: What parts of this book creeped you out?
BM: One part is when the platoon is maneuvering through the foggy woods and comes across an abandoned town. Soldiers start to go missing, as if the fog itself were snatching them one by one. Next, is when the platoon takes refuge in a war-battered church. As they are hiding out, they venture down into the undercroft beneath the church, and that’s when the story shifts from war story to all-out creep fest.
LT: You offer services to writers. What kinds of coaching do you provide?
BM: I offer one-on-one coaching by phone to all writers looking to be more successful. My coaching is very customized to fit the writer. Every writer is at a different stage. Some need motivation to finish a manuscript. Others need to advice on how they should go about getting their book published. Authors who already have a book published may need a sounding board on how to better market their books. My specialty is helping writers get clarity on their goals, identify and remove obstacles, and feel motivated to take action. As writers, we can get caught up in life’s distractions and our writing gets put on hold. I find that having a coach helps writers stay on track and accomplish their goals faster. I also offer consulting about the business of publishing. Before I landed a literary agent and mass paperback deal with Berkley/Penguin, I originally self-published Shadows in the Mist. To writers looking to publish, I offer the experience of self-publishing and working with a traditional publisher based out of New York. Anyone interested in coaching can reach me at Brian@BrianMoreland.com. I also write an advice blog, “Coaching for Writers.” http://www.CoachingforWriters.blogspot.com
LT: What is the one thing you wish every writer could avoid?
BM: Procrastination. And this can occur at all stages. A first-time writer might talk about writing their book for years, but never actually sit down and write it. Other writers may get stuck in the middle of a manuscript and then let distractions keep them from finishing the book. I’ve also met writers who are perfectionists. They keep writing and re-writing, editing and revising, never feeling like their manuscript is good enough to submit to agents or let anyone read it. I’d like to see more writers reach their goal of completing their books and feeling a wonderful sense of accomplishment.
LT: I have heard talk of this book being turned into a screenplay. Are there any firm plans?
BM: I started to write the screenplay myself. Wrote about 60 pages and then decided to leave screenwriting to the pros and focus on writing my next novel. Shadows in the Mist has been shopped to some movie producers, but for now, nothing’s firm. Any day now, a Hollywood producer could call me and tell me he wants to option the book. I’m preparing myself for that. I’ve already developed my celebration dance that I’ll do around my living room the day I get the news. As a huge movie buff, I look forward to the day that I can sit in a movie theater with a bucket of popcorn and watch Shadows in the Mist on the big screen.
LT: What’s the hardest part of executing a story idea?
BM: The hardest part is taking my hero on an emotional journey that will force him to change and become a different person by the ending. A protagonist (hero) must go through a metamorphosis from the beginning of the story to the end. That’s easier said than done. It takes really knowing who your main character is at the beginning and giving him flaws. And these flaws become his internal obstacles throughout the story while he faces external obstacles, often in the form of an antagonist (villain), a character who tries to stop the protagonist from getting what he wants. The other difficult part of executing a story is getting all my subplots to converge at the end of the book for an exciting climax. For instance the novel I just completed, Dead of Winter, has six key characters who each have their own subplot that drives a very complex mystery. This novel is much more of an epic story than my first. It took me over a year to figure out how to conclude each of the subplots at the end of the book, while keeping the story taut and fast-paced. Stories that involve three characters or less are much easier to choreograph.
LT: What’s the single most common mistake you see amongst new writers?
BM: They write cliché stories with two-dimensional characters. They focus more on a plot device rather than writing a character-driven story. There are really less than ten plot devices and they’ve all been done a million times over. A writing teacher once told me that “plot equals character and character equals plot.” An engaging story is all about the main character. I prefer writers to create an original hero and take me on a journey that only that character would take. What makes a story fresh is a dynamic character who is complex, human, has goals and ideals and many flaws. I love characters who have multiple qualities, especially when they contrast. For instance in 3:10 Yuma Russell Crow plays a villain who leads a gang of thieves, he kills people, and he also sketches drawings of things he admires, like a beautiful woman. The contrast gives his character depth. When I was writing my main character Lt. Jack Chambers and his six platoon members who call themselves “The Lucky Seven,” I had the challenge of distinguishing these characters from one another. I had to make sure they didn’t look like the same cardboard soldiers we’ve seen war movies. To accomplish giving each character some depth I wrote bios of each soldier, giving them specific qualities and family backgrounds. I even had each write letters to their loved ones at home. Not all of this made it into the story, but by the time I wrote the scenes, I knew my characters and they came to life right before my eyes. One of my favorite characters is Sgt. Buck Parker—a tobacco-chewing West Texas rancher who was also a pitcher for the Cardinals before entering the war. He carries his lucky baseball and wears a blue bandana his father gave him. As the platoon’s sniper, Buck can shoot the buttons off a German soldier’s coat. Each of my characters have details about them that make them unique. So my advice to new writers is spend some extra time developing your characters and have their personalities drive the plot. The more “real” you make your characters, the less the story will read like a cliché.
LT: Who are your favorite authors right now?
BM: Brian Keene, James, Rollins, Richard Laymon, and David Wellington. I recently picked up a couple of zombie novels that I’m looking forward to reading: Kim Paffenroth’s Dying to Live and Joe McKinney’s City of the Dead. Also, Gabrielle Faust’s vampire series Eternal Vigilance.
LT: Is there anything you’d like to add?
BM: I love hearing from readers and fellow writers. I invite people to send me a friend request on Facebook. Just look up “Author Brian Moreland.” I also have two groups on Facebook “Horror Author Brian Moreland” and “Coaching for Writers.” My official website is http://www.BrianMoreland.com My email is Brian@BrianMoreland.com .
©2009 Lori Titus
