CODY MCFADYEN TALKS TO SHOTS EZINE ABOUT WRITING HIS DEBUT THRILLER, SHADOW MAN

   I was inspired to write Shadow Man, first and foremost, by the desire to write. I know that's kind of a 'I walk because I can' type of answer, but it's the honest truth. I'd put off writing for far too long in order to live my life; now it is time for life to work around my writing.

As far as the story of Shadow Man itself, I always knew I'd write something in the thriller genre. It's the genre I read. I love the suspense, the emotion, the twists and turns.

I always knew that I wanted a female heroine. Something about a strong woman character has always appealed to me, and truthfully, there was never a chance that it would go any other way. Smoky was Smoky, from the first word on the first page, period. It's a visceral, somewhat unexplainable thing. She sprang from my pen, fully formed.

Thematically, I wanted to do a few things: I wanted to include a love story (Smoky with her dead husband and child) that would emphasize her loss, and thereby, her incredible strength of character. I also wanted to ensure that the look at evil was an unflinching one. Not so much in terms of the graphic, but in not glossing over the consequences.

When people are murdered - it matters. Evil leaves a footprint on the lives of normal people, and it's a bloody one. I wanted the reader to feel that, to the bone.

I suppose, in my writing, I hope to make the reader feel something, and not half-way. I don't want them to sniffle a little - I want them to cry. I don't want them to smile - I want them to laugh. And when it comes to the evil side of things - I don't want them to recoil - I want them to go 'Oh my God', and spend a moment staring off into the distance, dazed.

I wanted the book to leave a mark, a little bit of a bruise, without ever making the reader regret taking the ride. I hope I achieved that balance, so that by the end of it, the reader feels wrung out but happy for the experience.

Smoky will be an ongoing character - I'm well into the second book featuring her.

As far as how I feel about the impending publication... list out every synonym for 'ecstatic' that you can find, multiply that by 100, and carry it to the 10th power, and you'll get an idea of just how happy I am to become a published author!

© 2006 CODY MCFADYEN

Read the Review of SHADOW MAN http://archive.shotsmag.co.uk/reviews2006/reviews0506/shadowman.html

Shots Ezine would like to thank Kerry Hood and Eleni Fostiropoulos for organising this article. SHADOW MAN is published by Hodder & Stoughton Hbk £10.00 ISBN: 0340840056