Chris Knight is a recently published author that operates out of New York City. His first novel is titled "Past and Pending", with another novel already on the way. Chris first started throwing words on paper when he was just a young little boy and while he has grown in age, his size has remained the same. It has been said that if Disney World were a person, that person would be Chris. RBK: Welcome to Knights of Ink, Mr. Knight! (To my readers, no, we aren't related.) Please tell us about yourself and your book! My name is Chris Knight and I have been writing for the majority of my life. Creating stories and words are what creativity is all about and I'm all about creativity. I have no dogs but wish I had thousands and I have thousands of birds outside that wake me up every day but I wish I had none. Past and Pending is my premiere novel, the first of many, which puts the main character Scott into a world of conspiracy and mystery as he tries to uncover the truth behind the death of his childhood friend. It is illustrated by Richard Harris. Not the one who died, a different one. RBK: I can relate to wanting a dog. I grew up with them and have decided they are awesome. Companions like that can be great inspiration. Who are some authors in your genre who have inspired you? It's mostly the authors outside my genre who inspire me the most. Daniel Handler, who wrote the Unfortunate Events series, is at the top of the list. He has inspired me the most a person can. JK Rowling is another author that is high on the totem pole. Others include Stephen King, Arthur Conan Doyle, Jules Verne, and Agatha Christie. RBK: A great list! I'm a big JK Rowling fan, too, though I'm not brave enough to pick up a Stephen King book, haha! So what are you working on now? Right now I'm working on more than a few things. My second novel, titled The Standard, is coming late this year/early next year. RBK: I'm sure it's going to be great. It's been my experience that (unlike millions of movies) every author's second book is better than the first. It sounds like you have a LOT of projects going on, too, which denotes a love for your craft. What is your favorite part of the writing process? Finishing! Being able to run through a story a million times in your head and then finally typing "the end" at the finish line is what it's all about. RBK: I don't know if there's a more satisfying feeling than typing those two words. Although I get a little nervous, too, since it marks the start of the *shudder* editing process. Getting to that point can be a challenge in and of itself, though. How do you get through hiccups like writer's block? Writer's block is a real jerk but when it does hit me in the face, I eat. I eat so much food when I can't think straight enough for long enough to be able to write. I also often go on drives with all of the windows down, no matter the season or the weather, to help clear my head and refresh my batteries. RBK: It's so fun to see all these different methods of coping with the dragons of writer's block. I know I'd hit it pretty often if I didn't love the genre I was writing. What about you? Do you stick to a particular genre or are you still exploring? Mr. Knight's Writing SpaceA lot of my writing is in just one genre but I’ve been branching out and exploring more and more options. I’ve been experimenting with cross genres a lot. For instance, I’m working on a Mystery/Romance that I think might belong in a garbage. RBK: I think a lot of us can relate to that. I know I wrote a book once that, when I read it afterwards, I immediately deleted the file, it was so bad. I believe only the books we absolutely love make it to publication. So if a genie granted you three wishes relating to the success of Past and Pending, what would you wish for? My first wish would be that every store in the world stocked the book; it’s the greatest thing to have on a resume. “Book stocked in EVERY STORE IN THE WORLD!” My second wish would be that it was successful enough for the people I idolize to read it. I would wish that Daniel Handler or John Lasseter would be browsing in their local Barnes & Noble, see my book, and decide to buy it because they want to read it. I had a little bit of trouble thinking of a third wish so I have referred to the man who illustrated the book, Richard Harris, to see what his wish would be. His wish: “I would wish that this book opens more doors for me to stretch my creative legs. I would love to be able to work in a big game company or somewhere like Pixar.” RBK: Those are some great wishes. Speaking of wishes and Pixar, let's say your book was being made into a movie. Who would you cast as the lead roles? This one took some serious time but after sitting down with the illustrator, we have decided: RBK: Wow! Looks like a movie I'd watch. I'm a big Anna Kendrick fan, she's done some great work. If I'm not mistaken, I think Cillian Murphy gave a Scarecrow performance that got swept under the rug in the Batman trilogy, which was a shame.
Our next question is going to be tricky: What is a little-known fact about you? A little-known fact about me is that I favor villains and bad guys in almost every and any story. The general consensus of stories is that the good guys always need to win in the end and I'm a little more than sick about it. Go bad or go home. RBK: An interesting take. Everyone loves a good villain, for sure. Just look at the popularity of Loki in the Marvel Universe! Thank you for taking time to answer my questions and letting everyone get to know you better, Chris! Any nuggets of wisdom you'd like to leave our new authors out there? Read every day and write twice as much as you read. Edit your manuscript with the chapters out of order. Don't worry or be too self conscious about sharing your work with the world. Honestly, there's way too much advice, ideas, and suggestions I have. For those interested in purchasing Mr. Knight's book, Past and Pending, click the image below! Relate to any of Mr. Knight's methods or experiences? Tell us your story! Love to you all! Now get to work and Forge YOUR Legend!
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