Project Threshold: Season 2: Team Riker by Craig Crawford

5/4/2025

Multi-volume, multi-genre author Craig Crawford introduces us to the second book in the second season of the Project Threshold series, “Team Riker”:
Hannah and McCoy lost two of their closest friends during the confrontation with the genocidal Alaskan entity and they’re not sure how to move on. Kurt and Cass bolster their ranks but Kurt struggles against his Alaskan curse. Riker continues hunting the monster that killed her parents while trying to stop an entity killing those who trespass on its domain, and they enter the most dangerous house in Alaska . . .

I am digging this series so much! The construction of the stories are wonderful. We get to read only the good stuff. Most of the boring and in-transit material has been left out. The character lineup changes in each story with the main characters present most of the time. Some of their discussions and reactions when faced with the weird and usually dangerous critters are quite enjoyable. I am glad they are on the job because I am not sure I could handle it.
4.9 stars because I am picky about certain things.

You can buy this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Project-Threshold-Season-Team-Riker-ebook
https://www.goodreads.com/-project-threshold-season-2-team-riker
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/project-threshold-season-2-craig-crawford

You can connect with the author:
https://x.com/CRAIGLCrawford
https://www.facebook.com/CraigLCrawfordWriter
https://craiglcrawfordbooks.com
https://projectthreshold.com

I reviewed the first book in this series here:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/p-t-team-berger
I reviewed the second book in the series here:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/p-t-team-talise
I have reviewed the third book in this series:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/team-riker-by-craig-crawford
I have reviewed the fourth book in the Project Threshold series, “Finale”:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/project-threshold-finale
I have reviewed the fifth book in the Project Threshold series, Season Two: "Team Berger": www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/p-t-season-2-team-berger
I have reviewed another book by the author:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/the-beginners-guide-to-being-evil-by-craig-crawford
I have reviewed another book by the author:
https://www.wordrefiner.com/book-reviews/zombunny-by-craig-crawford

Copyright © 2025 Mark L. Schultz except for the author’s introduction

51 Comments

Craig Crawford link

5/4/2025 10:34:52 pm

Hi Mark,

Here we are again :) I guess it's the double edged sword of writing a serial as opposed to just one novel :) Still, I'm happy to be back chatting again. I love the process of writing and dissecting it without peeking too far past the curtain...

Mark

5/5/2025 08:50:38 am

Welcome back, Craig. I always enjoy our chat. Your experiences offer insight to other authors.

A note to our visitors. This is the continuation of the interview we had in Project Threshold: Season two: Team Berger. I think I have interviewed Craig in most of the promotions of his books, if not all.

First question. You have answered this before quite a while ago. It will help our new visitors get caught up.

Why did you choose this genre, or do you feel the genre chose you?

5/5/2025 11:55:47 am

I believe we've chatted on all the books I've published and I enjoy digging deeper into the writing processes.

As for Project Threshold...I've always enjoyed horror--reading, listening to and watching so it's not a surprise to me that it's one of the genres I write in. However, my roots in writing started in fantasy and some science fiction. It was many years before I actively attempted writing horror but it seems I have a knack for it.

It took a while for my muse to talk me into it, I guess.

5/5/2025 01:55:03 pm

Thanks for clarifying about chatting in all of the books we have promoted here.

There are horrific things and events that impact us in one way or another. Writing and reading horror stories must be therapeutic in some fashion because so many of us do it.

New question.

How many drafts did your book go through before publishing?

5/5/2025 04:15:41 pm

While I don't do an actual head count, I go through lots. I'll read through it and edit, rest, then again. And again, each time through looking for edits. Until I get a read through that has very few edits. Even then I always miss something. I'll hand it off to beta readers and then edit again based on their edits. Still, I like outside eyes on everything I write.

5/5/2025 04:21:05 pm

Fresh eyes are necessary to catch pesky spelling errors, typos and other problems in a manuscript. You are operating smartly.

Shameless plug here. My latest blog may be useful for you here is the copy-and-paste link or hit the search box below: https://www.wordrefiner.com/blog-words-for-thought/wye-is-it-sew-hard-too-proofreed-youre-own-work

New question.

Is there anything unconventional about your writing technique? Why is that?

5/5/2025 05:05:26 pm

Thanks Mark! I'm more than happy to look for new ways to catch errors!

I am a pantser and I trust that writing style implicitly. I may make a few notes here and there but I am content letting my creative side take the reins when Im working on a story.

For Riker's stories I knew I wanted to dive into Kurt and Hannah's relationship but I didn't know where it was headed in the beginning. It was a surprise to me when I realized the root cause of Kurt's Alaska affliction and did not see that coming until I started writing those stories.

Im working on Riker's stories for the third season and I got hit sideways by another development that just happened while writing her first story. It was a "whoa!" moment I didnt see and I think it's why I love the pantser style. I get wowed by plot developments just like a reader as I'm writing and I love it.

5/5/2025 07:21:49 pm

There are many pantsers out there writing by the seat of their pants, without benefit of an outline. I heard of one pantser who outlined each chapter when he finished it, Reverse outlining can be helpful in a large book or a series.

Kurt's Alaska affliction was strange to me. Unanswered questions can be unsettling. You handled it well. Resolution is always a comfort.

Season 3! Yahoo! Your fans are going to be happy about more to come.

New question.

What inspired you to use the word season in this round of titles?

5/5/2025 07:48:33 pm

I knew Kurt had issues up north and originally I was thinking it was just his sensitivity to the electromagnetic energy up there but it didn't quite fit so I let it go until this season...and as I was typing away, I realized the there was more to it.

That's how my pantsing works. I don't always understand everything going on but I trust my muse/my creative side/my brain pan has it all worked out and just reveals to me as much as I need as the story unfolds.

It's the craziest part of writing and my favorite aspect to it. I know there's something bigger going on behind the scenes and I'm content to let it be so, trusting that the story knows what it's doing. Honestly, most days I feel like all I'm doing is chronicling what's going on behind my eyes as it unfolds.

As to your question, with Project Threshold being a serial, and coming out in multiple books, referring to each set of books as "seasons" just kind of fits. Almost like a TV series. A variety of "episodes" take place throughout the books so seasons sum it up in a good context. I'd be ecstatic if someday I could get enough notoriety to be able to take the series to that level and make it an actual TV series with seasons...

5/6/2025 09:07:36 am

You have echoed what many other pantsers have said in one form or another. The only comment you didn't make was you write to quiet the voices in your head.

Your concept of the seasons is perfect. I was thinking the same thing. With special effects as advanced as they are, your stories would be relatively easy to make well.

New questions.

Were the character names difficult to develop?

How did you choose them?

5/6/2025 09:46:48 am

I will admit I get nagged by stories when I don't write them but I welcome those voices. It means I've got more writing to do.

As to character names it depends. Sometimes they just pop. I'll be thinking about the nature and personality of a character and their name will just show up. For Harris Berger I knew I wanted the veteran leader and an appropriate name. Harris hit me first and I just started saying different sounds with surnames until Berger...popped into my head.

For Talise Randall I had her face and background in my head and used google to scroll through name options. I discovered Talise, realized it was perfect and again played with last names until I found one that fit.

Riker--I used a version of that name in my fantasy novel and I like the strong feel to it. I picked Hannah as her first name because I wanted a hint that there might be a softer side to her in there somewhere...or there was at one time. 😉

5/6/2025 11:32:18 am

The truth is out! Your fans are very happy that you listen to the voices. Names are important. They provide a richness and identity to a character. We need the names. Your name-picking skill is superb.

In late 2019, I promoted a book by C. P. Aiden, "The Good Audit". He didn't use any names in his hilarious book only generic job titles. I laughed so hard! Not something that most authors can get away with.

New question.

Which did you publish first, short stories or novels?

5/6/2025 01:21:49 pm

Sounds very cool. I love how different authors can take an idea and spin it on its head.

I was writing novels first. I'd tried a few short stories but just never felt comfortable with them. So, for a long time I just wrote books. The short stories came more recently. However, I published neither first. My first two publications were indexes for a gaming company called Palladium Books, Inc. for their Rifts RPG.

I played the game and saw a need, then created one for me. A buddy suggested I show it to them and they bought it plus hired me for a follow up. Go figure.

Ironically, my first fiction publication was a short story: Don't Mess With Bunnies, published by Mannison Press. I was listening to a lot of horror and then discovered there were lots of horror presses out there and tried my hand at short stories again. I discovered I have a better understanding of them.

5/6/2025 03:51:43 pm

"Zombunny" proved that you shouldn't mess with the bunny. That is the cutest horror story I have ever read.

For our visitors, the link for the promotion "Zombunny" is above the interview or you can hit the search box below.

I forgot about the role-playing game (RPG). That must have been a boon for the players. The gaming company knew talent when they saw it.

New questions.

Have you done any ghostwriting?

If not, would you try it if someone wanted to hire you?

5/6/2025 07:50:18 pm

Thanks Mark--I appreciate you sharing the link. I happened into the bunny theme but it keeps coming back up in my writing now. I'm sure , with the publication of DMWB it mentally reinforced the theme but I've found it's fun working bunnies into horror stories. I have a series going called The Adventures of Darby X which is two and a half books in now and bunnies worked their way into those stories too. It's funny how your life is shaped by experiences.

The Rifts Indexes my first lucky break in the publishing arena and they gave me that carrot to keep me writing and striving for more.

Ghost writing. I have not done it yet and I don't know how I feel about it. It would be strange to me to write a story for someone else but not get publication credit for it. I don't even know what the money is like for such work--whether it's a flat rate or a percentage of the profits. I haven't sought that out but if I was ever approached, it would depend on the parameters of the contract.

I will say that if it was for a story line I was over the moon about, I might consider it. I have mentioned before that I've read two series where the author died that I adored and still am annoyed those authors left before they were done :) :)

The first is the Black Oak Series by Charles L. Grant. He was a prolific horror writer and I stumbled across him late in his career. The Black Oak series was excellent and I wish he'd been able to finish it.

The second is by my favorite author: Roger Zelazny. He wrote two books, one called The Changeling and the other, Madwand. It was his full descent into fantasy and I LOVED how he handled magic in those books. I was waiting for #3 to finish when he died. Worse, it was on a cliffhanger and I still gnash my teeth over that one.

If ever there was an opportunity to ghost write, I'd go all in on writing the end to that, especially if he left notes on where he was going with it. For that one, I'd do it for a pittance just to be able to flesh out the ending and get answers to some of the loose ends.

Aside from that, I do not know how well I'd do at mimicking the style of other authors.

5/7/2025 07:43:59 am

I have a Ghost Writer category in my list of people who provide services to writers.

Writing in the style of another author would be an interesting exercise. I think fan fiction could be more popular name for that. I don't think most fan fiction gets published due to copyright issues, but it does get shared among friends.

New questions.

Is there a different genre you would like to explore?

If so, what genre are you thinking of?

5/7/2025 08:45:59 am

Personally, ghost writing has never wandered into my writing world. Yet 😇

Early on I played around with picture books aimed at very young children. I worked in childcare for over 20 years and was always reading them to kids. I studied the format and even put together a few manuscripts. Not horror of course. ;)

I cannot draw worth a darn and I never did get anywhere with the handful I do have but I do love picture books still for their complex simplicity.

My favorite was King Bidgood's In The Bathtub by Don and Audrey Wood. Among others.

5/7/2025 11:00:57 am

Some sort of art is necessary in picture books. No question about that. There are many lovely books in the market for young children that are purchased by parents, grandparents and other friends of the family.

My mother loved to read and I'm sure her reading to me when I was very young is the reason I love to read and have all of my life.

New question.

Setting picture books aside, are there any other genres you would like to play around with whether you published them or not?

5/7/2025 12:50:18 pm

I think historical fantasy or steampunk. I really want to start reading steampunk but just haven't quite gotten there yet. I've read a couple of historical fantasy/horror and I could see getting into it with a twist on the ancient worlds.

I'm assuming once I start reading steampunk it will spark ideas...

5/7/2025 03:25:32 pm

Steampunk is a great choice! There are many sub-genres and some have zombies. I think you will have a good time in that area!

New question.

What do you think of the current controversy regarding AI, Artificial Intelligence and books? That field is sure changing rapidly!

5/7/2025 06:10:55 pm

AI is the buzzword in the writing world right now. Every press and publication has a statement now about not accepting stories created with AI and also checking to make sure they're not AI generated.

I do agree--if you have to use AI to create your stories, then why are you wasting your time writing? I write because I love the process and getting caught up in the stories I write. I neither need nor want help writing my stories with that kind of help.

There are a lot of people who hate even the concept of AI. I happen to work in a department where my supervisor is working directly with AI--using headsets for classes, running demonstrations and testing new products using AI. I have been checking out the capabilities too.

This is how I see AI: it's a tool like anything else. I am not fearful of it getting sentient and taking over the known world. From how I see it and have seen it in action, it's like a Google search engine on steroids. Whereas Google gives you mostly ads when you try to search for something, AI programs like ChatGPT and others scour the entire internet in order to answer your question as quickly and as thoroughly as it can.

For research, I love AI. We went to the UK last fall and I got on ChatGPT to ask how to prepare for our trip and in less than two minutes it spat out 8 relevant pages of information. It included the weather, travel suggestions, power adapters to account for the UK's different wall outlets--more things than I ever could have thought to ask. It was brilliant.

In terms of being an author, I have been using ChatGPT for my marketing. From Twitter and even my email, it must be getting around that I'm an author because I get more and more groups and companies and individuals messaging me or emailing about how they can help me market my books. I am using ChatGPT to search to see if these groups are legitimate or possible scammers instead of googling them myself and digging past the ads.

I am planning on advertising on horror podcasts and yesterday I asked ChatGPT if there were other similar podcasts (using Intothefrayradio.com as my test podcast) and it came back with another half dozen places to contact about advertising. And while I have a few other horror podcasts I know of, the AI came up with six other avenues I didn't even know existed.

Last year I wanted to build a video ad to promote Project Threshold and my supervisor gave me a couple of sites where you could do similar things. While trying those out I happened across one called InVideo and for $25 a month (I ended up paying for two months worth) I was able to build 2 30 second videos, with movie level animations, a narrator, music and and a script. The first took me about 3 hours start to finish and the second only took me an hour. And I'll build more. And once I downloaded them, they are mine legally to use how I will.

There are some caveats to AI, however. It is not perfect. You do have to cross check information you get from AI because occasionally it will get things wrong. Also, it is a tool that people will misuse but for certain aspects of the writing arena.

On the other hand, I think it can give Indie writers an edge. For marketing, advertising, even book covers, I think it can save Indie and self publishing authors money, but also time to get back to what they want to do: writing.

One aspect of AI most people do not realize is that most likely everyone else is already using it. Predictive text is a primitive form of AI. So is spell and grammar checking in Word and Grammarly. Yet, everyone relies on those.

And really, the bottom line is, AI is not going away. That Pandora's box is wide open, for good or ill, and it's here to stay. The focus should be on using it positively in ways to help cut our least favorite work down so we can concentrate on what really matters: creating our stories.

5/7/2025 08:01:08 pm

Last year, Amazon required authors to disclose if they used AI to write their book. I have searched for books written by AI and didn't find much beyond humor and how to do it. I think it was earlier this year, Amazon capped the number of books uploaded to only three books per day from the same author. I wonder if the authors disclosed the use of AI? I don't know how to find out.

Yes, AI is here to stay and can be useful to the good guys and the bad guys.

AI has been trained on all kinds of written material from the web. That material, books and everything else is full of spelling errors and grammar errors. I don't expect anything written by AI to be free of errors.

Somewhere, there is a website that you can train an AI to sound like you and then create audio books from your books that will sound like you.

New questions.

Have you encountered a troll reviewing one of your books?

How did you handle it?

5/7/2025 08:37:08 pm

AI is an interesting dilemma for the 21st century. Most companies are turning to its use for all kinds of reasons and it's also now something universities watch for as students hand in homework and take tests. And there is very little legislation on its use for now. We will have to wait and see how it all unfolds.

As for trolls, I have not come across any on reviews yet--I think I am still relatively unknown in the larger literature world. Hopefully, that will change in the coming years ;)

However, having said that, I teamed up with a Youtuber last year named Nigel Watson who has a channel called T-AI-lesFromTheCryptkeeper (ironic considering the last question), and he narrated 3 of my Project Threshold stories. He narrated Talise Randall's story, It Walks. I thought he did a great job with these stories and they're worth checking out because they have images along with an AI narration of the story.

Nigel also did trailers for each episode and someone got online and made derogatory comments about the story solely based on Talise's race. I talked to Nigel and he led the response telling the person discrimination was not tolerated and that he should go find other channels. The person was just looking to stir things up, but really the best policy is not to engage at all.

I haven't run into too much of that on social media though every now and again someone will slide into a conversation just to bait me or others. When I do come up against it, depending on the comment I may give a single chance for them to pull back. Otherwise I immediately block. I have no time to waste on that and I'm not giving trolls impressions by trying to argue with them.

5/8/2025 08:16:27 am

The wisdom regarding trolls is not to engage. Most of the time, a troll's review is obvious to readers, and I think readers will ignore those reviews. You are on the right track. I have heard from authors who perseverate about a bad review. I tell them it proves that the reviews are not coming solely from their mom's bridge club.

I am glad you found Nigel. I hope the audiobooks are doing well.

New question.

What was the first paying job you worked as a kid and how old were you?

5/8/2025 11:16:19 am

Another rite of passage for authors for good or ill.

I mowed lawns a lot because it was easy money and a quick paycheck. I also had a simple paper route--no collecting subscriptions just delivering an advertiser once a week. I don't remember which job I actually started first 😇

5/8/2025 02:16:00 pm

Two common jobs for young kids into the teen years. I lived in a rural area I babysat the neighbor's 3 younger children, and I picked berries and beans as a new teen in the summer.

New questions.

Have you entered any writing contests?

Have you won awards of any kind for your writing?

5/8/2025 10:07:34 pm

I think as kids we all did a lot of odd jobs for spending money. It's good for us :)

Contests....hahahhahaa...funny you should ask.

At the end of January I entered one--a "First Thousand Words" thing and it had to be from a published work so I sent the first 1000 words from Project Threshold Season 1.

I just got an email last night--I won. Huh. I should be ecstatic and excited right? Except. I started reading the parameters of the contest--in the beginning there weren't a lot of details beyond the guidelines. However, in the email I didn't really like the wording and the kicker at the very bottom, was a line about how "interacting with this email in any form or fashion" meant agreeing to their terms and conditions.

That set off a red flag for me so I hunted down this place--in Georgia. Now they do have a website and I did find those terms and did not further like what I read. Yes, there is a prize but it includes $$ toward their other services. Furthermore, if you do work with them, and submit work to them or create work while working with them, they have access to that work and can alter it and use it without repercussions or compensation.

That is nothing I've wanted any part of. So I am ignoring the email and moving on. Sad but safe.

I haven't done a whole lot of contests and this experience doesn't endear me to them. I will be wary from here on out and I should stick to more well known contests.

I did throw together a short 350 word story based off of a picture for Inky Bones Press in a flash fiction contest and was one of six winners. I was pretty proud of what I came up with on the fly. The prize was a free book and I count it as a win.

As to awards and accolades, not yet. I should start submitting my published stories for recognition and such but it's just one of those things I haven't had time to run down yet.

5/9/2025 08:13:01 am

Good job on listening to your gut. We have to be so cautious these days. There are so many scammers out there.

I have recommended to writers that short story writing contests, especially those that provide feedback from the judges, can help a writer improve their writing skills. I do have a warning, there are a lot of shady contests out there. Some want to extract as much as they can from your wallet, others want to steal your intellectual property. Here is a copy-and-paste link about those things: Beware Bogus Writing Contests! Look for These 8 Red Flags. https://annerallen.com/2019/05/beware-bogus-writing-contests. You can also use the search box below to find the link. There are other blogs I have links for on my Highly Regarded Blogs page.

New question.

Among present or past family members and friends how many are or have been writers or authors?

5/9/2025 08:25:20 am

Yes I'm very leery of contests--especially those requiring fees. Thanks for the link! I'll check that one out too.

As for other writers, I don't think so. My dad played guitar and was in a band but I dont have any songs he wrote that I could find. Mom was a creative--she could draw well, but wasn't much for writing. I have an aunt who paints, plays piano and is great with pottery and creative designs so my family line does have some creative genes in there.

5/9/2025 12:02:49 pm

It's nice to have artistic people in the family. My mother was quite creative. During her life she painted with acrylics and watercolors, she did pottery and a lot of needlecraft.

New question.

Is there anyone you know who might claim you as their inspiration for writing?

5/9/2025 12:56:33 pm

Not that I am aware of. Maybe some day if I can really "wow" some one with my stories.

I have definitely been inspired by many authors over time and I have those who I keep as a carrot to push my writing skills to their level. In the comtemporary world I am a huge fan of an authoress named Christina Henry. She writes very dark stories dealing with troubling real world issues but she is amazing at telling a story.

5/9/2025 02:52:24 pm

Someday, someone is going to tell you that you are their favorite author and they were inspired to write by your stories.

New question.

As a teenager, what posters were on your bedroom walls?

5/9/2025 03:31:54 pm

Honestly I was not a poster guy. Wasnt my thing. However I liked collectibles and toys. I had the old Godzilla glue-together model, plus shelves of Dungeon & Dragons miniatures. I did like t-shirts so Id wear Scooby Doo and even band shirts like Billy Idol and U2. No celebrity girl crush posters...thoughI had my girl crushes 🥰

5/9/2025 05:04:52 pm

I had a map of Tolkien's Middle Earth. I loved the LOTR. I also had a map of Jerusalem in gold and black from El Al Airlines. I still have those which is likely why I recall them. I had others but they have disappeared in the mists of time. Books, all of my shelves were filled with books. I also had a beautiful, laminated, wood propeller.

New question.

What is your favorite food and beverage?

5/9/2025 09:12:17 pm

Books, yes. I guess I took books for granted. I was a voracious reader at the end of elementary school and all through high school. I had trouble reading when I first started school but I got a great teacher in second grade who worked with me and got me up to speed. I am always grateful and thankful for Mrs. Graham.

Favorite food...I love eggs benedict, always have. If we go to a breafasty type restaurant I always order it. I've made it at home but the hollandaise sauce is tricky :) As for beverages, I drink tea instead of coffee but go for the caffeine. I found a salted caramel that is my go-to but also chai teas. And I do love trying different beers. The darker the better though not too sweet. We have a few breweries around town to sate me.

5/10/2025 08:28:31 am

Reading is a difficult process. It requires several steps in the mind to translate the squiggles on the page to clarity and understanding whether verbal or mental.

I love breakfast also! eggs benedict is something I enjoy and it's my wife's favorite! My favorite is scrambled eggs with biscuits and sausage gravy on everything. Extra points if they have hot sauce. At home, I eat oatmeal with dried tropical fruit and honey every day so I can eat the other when we go out. Coffee. I cold brew my coffee at home and I drink it hot. The cold brewing process eliminates most of the acids and oils in the cup when the coffee is hot brewed. The acids are harsh on the tongue and the oils are hard on the stomach. The caffeine content is higher also.

Let's flip the question now.

What is your least favorite food and beverage?

5/10/2025 09:43:19 am

That all sounds good. I'm noticing, as I get older, that I cannot eat all the same fiery foods I used to. I do like spicy but jalapenos do not sit well with me any more. Fortunately, the Asian peppers like Szechuan do not seem to bother me in the same way. Szechuan is also a favorite dish.

For least favorite foods, I'm a quirky one :) I think it is textures and the mouth feel I don't like. Not a fan of guacamole or hummus. Just can't do them.

I'm also a compartmental eater. Growing up, my dad used to shovel everything onto his plate and just eat it all down, mixing flavors at will. I can't do that. I like each taste separate from the others so I wouldn't eat a lot of the combinations of things you see on cooking shows. I like it simple :) I also don't like mixing certain foods--I like keeping sweet and savory separate. I don't mix fruits and vegetables, like say, in a salad.

Tomatoes are one of those foods I'm extremely picky about. I won't eat a tomato. Don't like the straight taste. However, puree it and make salsa or marinara sauce and I am just fine. I love salsa but I suspect it's because the tomato taste is masked by all the spices. And I do not like chunks of tomato in salsa, marinara or pizza sauce. I'll pick them out. I love chili, but I'll puree the tomato sauce/juice down and again, with that, the tomato taste is subdued by the cumin and chili powder and others.

Told you I'm quirky :) My friends pick on me when we meet at restaurants because I'll order a sandwich or burger and leave off the tomato but get extra salsa for nachos :) :) :)

5/10/2025 12:57:37 pm

My SIL is a lot like you. He doesn't eat tomatoes. Salsa is yes, also marinara and ketchup. Tomatoes are verboten on pizza, sandwiches and salads.

I am like your father, I will eat anything set in front of me. Except for one thing. I cannot eat any part of a scoop of cottage cheese with needing to hurl. In jello, lasagna or any other dish I am fine, as long as I can't taste it. I can still eat jalapenos on sandwiches and latin food. My tolerance for extreme heat is dropping. I am an adventurous eater.

New question.

Have you considered self-publishing?

5/10/2025 02:17:33 pm

I can't do blue cheese, and frankly a lot of cheeses because they smell "bad" to me. I do think smell has a lot to do with our food tastes.

For self publishing, I have considered it. I think the rest of this year is going to be a proving ground for me in advertising. If I can make a go of it and get some positives on getting my name out there, it will lead the way to exactly that. I do not mind working with presses and publishers, however. So far I have had good experiences overall.

However, if I were to reach a point I had a large following of my stories, I would put out something independently. I have two artists I would hire in a heartbeat to build covers (shamelessly plugging @ursus_art1 and fantasy_art_Z on X), and I would hire out editing--I know a guy here ;)

I am down on the big publishers right now because they do not really seem to care much about their authors beyond a paycheck. Everything I read and hear does not give me confidence in them. They're only real worth is distribution and I'm even reading they don't have much reach there anymore either because they still depend on bookstores and haven't properly transitioned to online and mailing lists.

Still, I do like the idea of being the commander of my own ship, at least on some projects. We'll see how the rest of the year goes...

5/10/2025 04:30:39 pm

Cheese is an interesting subject! So much variety. You're right about smells; they do impact taste a great deal. They can also trigger memories, good or bad.

You are right about the publishers, most of them are on the ropes and cannot afford to have a book fail to sell well. There are only four or five big publishers left. That is why they don't take chances on indie authors very often. The advance payouts are tiny for the same reason. An advance must be paid back to the publisher by selling books. The unknown-author factor scares them.

There are quite a few successful, indie authors out there.

New question.

What is your publisher doing to market your book?

5/10/2025 04:48:57 pm

RedCape has been very helpful. They've run some ads of their own in the UK and use their channels to get the word out. They also take my books to conventions and shows to sell. There are two bookstores that carry my Project Threshold books also--locally there.

In addition, we talk advertising options and I'll get feedback on what has worked for them and what hasn't. I am keeping them up on my efforts as well, getting feedback and ways to tweak what I'm doing.

I feel like we've got a good relationship and they help out with marketing as much as they are able.

5/11/2025 08:00:25 am

Red Cape is a notch or two above the average small press. Most publishers list a book on their website and that's as far as it goes. Congratulations on a good choice.

Here is a copy-and-paste link from Joanna Penn, one of my favorite bloggers, this might be useful: Create The Biggest Audience For Your Book https://www.thecreativepenn.com/2022/07/18/reach-readers-book-marketing
@thecreativepenn @beckyrbnsn

New question.

How do you think your book compares to a book published by a major publisher?

5/11/2025 11:03:20 am

I love working with them. I got to meet Peter last fall when we went to the UK. RedCape Publishing is in Brighton and I enjoyed my visit with him. He's very savvy and practical and I appreciate that.

And thanks for the links. I'll cue up the podcast later today!

As for my Project Threshold books, I think if I had the distribution, I could go toe-to-toe with what they put out. I love the covers that RedCape settled on--the case file motif fits perfectly with the stories and I think the snippet pictures on the covers are great teasers. As for the formatting, I think RedCape does a really decent job. I know we've got a couple of things here and there, but I've been watching some of the books the 5 are coming out with and they're cutting corners on editing.

I am discovering typos in their books and even mis-formats in places, which tells me they're cutting costs on the important things.

As far as content, I think my stories will appeal to horror readers and compete well. It's hard to get really detailed feedback from readers but I keep getting comments about how some of my stories freaked them out, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

It's funny but writing horror, I have a hard time gauging whether my own stories are creepy enough or unsettling enough for what I want to achieve. I think it's because I've read and watched so much myself, and it's hard to decide with my own work. Maybe it's some of that "imposter syndrome" working on me too...

5/11/2025 08:00:32 pm

Going to Red Cape Publishing had to be very cool. We are so accustomed to doing everything on the web. Face to face is a wonderful change.

Publishers are on the ropes, I have been saying this for years. They are probably hoping AI can solve their editing problems. They might be in for a rude shock. 95% of books published have spelling errors. The rest have grammatical or punctuation errors.

You probably are suffering from a little imposter syndrome. It seems like we all do. I say ignore the inner liar. It wants you to fail.

New question.

Have you ever seen a ghost or had some other type of supernatural experience?

5/11/2025 11:44:39 pm

RedCape has been a developing relationship over time. Early on, around 2020 I published a story with them called Waiting For Daylight, about a decimated mining town down to the last three survivors. On an island, they mined into an unknown area and loosed something that started killing people. I still really like that story and RedCape picked it up. Later that year they also picked up a variation on the genie in a bottle story called Eyes In The Water, so I had a history with them when Project Threshold came along. They have supported my writing very well and I am ever grateful to them.

Yes, imposter syndrome is one of those crosses I think all creative bear. I think it does serve a positive purpose in keeping you from getting too cocky, but also I think it does serve to keep you pushing your skills to get better and better. It still doesn't keep you from doubting yourself but I'm trying to find the positives of it :)

My love of cryptids and horror and the fringe side of things is probably prompted by many experiences I've had throughout my life. I've had one cryptid sighting and two other possible audio encounters. For the supernatural and ghosts, yes.

I worked in a childcare center that had a lot of activity. Twice I saw things. The first was in one of the rooms. I looked up and saw a woman standing in the corner. She hung there for a few seconds then disappeared. The really odd thing was that I told our director about my incident, describing the woman who was very distinct, and her eyes got wide. She'd seen that exact woman in another part of the building. I had another encounter there where a shimmering humanoid shape passed in front of a doorway.

My son and I had a shared experience--including Henry, while out on a nightly walk two Octobers ago. It was odd but we all saw a woman who we thought was walking behind us. We turned to cross the street and she cut right behind us, barely missing us, which was odd. Henry reacted to her and kept looking back as we crossed the street, but when we turned around, she was gone. There was no place a person could have hurried to and gotten out of sight.

It was strange indeed and there is an assisted living facility at the end of our block and up the road so who knows. I haven't seen her since and we still get out at night a couple nights a week, but I wrote down all the details.

Finally, I don't know if it's ghost, supernatural or natural phenomenon, but we have been to Joplin Missouri twice, standing out along a long, desolate road to catch glimpse of something they call the "Spook light." We saw and watched it repeatedly both times and it was strange, but not necessarily scary.

I've had all kinds of odd encounters and I seem to run into such things periodically. I think it does inspire some of my story telling and I can recall some of those raw emotions when you have brushes with unexplainable things.

5/12/2025 12:41:34 pm

Some people get overwhelmed by imposter syndrome. You do point out how it can serve a function to prompt a writer to want to improve.

Your spooky encounters are certainly spooky. Animals seem to be far more aware of these things than humans are.

New question.

There are many unethical practices in publishing, which one is the most unbearable in your mind?

5/12/2025 05:38:59 pm

Yes on all of that :)

As for unethical practices, I think my biggest complaint is all of the scammers and dubious accounts on social media. I'm mostly on Twitter so I'll use that as my frame of reference, but doing this current interview I've had more supposed authors and marketing people DMing me wanting to offer help.

So far, they've all been people trying to scam me. I've figured out ways to detect these kinds of contacts which I'm currently sharing on my blog on my personal site and will do so on Twitter too because it's so annoying. Being a writer is hard enough without the extra things to wade through.

I'm reaching a point where I won't talk to anyone in DM's unless I've known them for a while here.

I don't know about unethical perse because the top 5 publishers have been getting away with it for a long time, but I do not like the practice of signing over rights to your stories and characters for a period of time when you do sign with bigger publishers. I don't even understand what the rationale is. I created them, and a publishing house can print your books without taking ownership.

I'm doing it right now with my current press.

The fact that they try that gives me even further pause to sign with one of the 5. For me, that would be an entirely separate negotiation and for a lot more money :) Especially for what authors tend to get in return for their signing on.

:)

5/12/2025 07:09:49 pm

X is my preferred social media platform also. 99 % of the time. I don't have the time to cultivate other platforms. I see a lot of scammers also. I remove most of them as followers, I can smell them a mile away. A few get past the sniff test because they keep changing their tactics. Except for one thing, they jump into my DM box within minutes of me following them. I toy with them a bit, guilt them heavily and then drop the boom. I report them for spam and block them. Fairly satisfying but I hate wasting time.
Make sure you tag me in your post on X for that blog. I want to read it.

I am not a lawyer, nor do I play one on TV. My understanding is that the author grants the publisher a limited license to publish the book. Limited as defined in the contract can mean almost any length of time. Any author who doesn't hire their own attorney that is experienced in entertainment law is going to regret it most likely. A book is only one form of intellectual property. Hard covers, paperbacks, graphic novels, movies, streaming and deluxe editions, to name a few. I am sure I missed something. Yes. Foreign language editions and English editions sold in different countries.

Without the license, the publisher cannot make any changes to your book. Copyright protects the author there. Most publishers are in the business to make money and they want to make changes to maximize the number of copies sold. It's all about the money for everyone involved.

Some publishers are focused on the writer and others are focused on sales. Authors get little to nothing of an advance these days. The publishers are struggling to keep the doors open. Any advance is not free money. The advance has to be repaid to the publisher before the author sees a penny of royalties.

Last question.

Can you read a book for the pleasure of reading or do you find yourself analyzing everything you read now?

5/12/2025 08:42:45 pm

Yes, I am doing the same these days. Whenever someone slides into my DM's after a follow, it's pretty much a dead giveaway they're up to no good. They all have the same pattern of talking you up and then having this great idea of helping you out :) :)

I just nailed one person here. They slid in to my DM's this week after reposting and then tried to put me in touch with "their marketing rep." I did check out a website but none of the authors there had contacts on Twitter so I went to the actual author websites and contacted them to ask. Heard back twice today and one author's rep knew the scam was ongoing. They said they've shut down a few of them but more pop up as soon as they shut one down.

It's annoying. Eh, the easy way to stop it is to not to respond to DM's unless you have gotten to know the person over a long period of time.

I'll let you know when I blog again. I am wanting to devote some of my time to helping other authors by giving them checkbox tools to spot scammers and keep from being tricked.

I found an intellectual property rights lawyer here who has helped me with a variety of legal questions already. It can be expensive at times, but I am happy to have him on the payroll. And he explained things initially like you: each part of a book is something to be negotiated and is sellable. I have learned a lot about the industry just talking to him.

To get to your actual question....you know, despite the hundreds of movies and books I've read, and despite all the time I've spent perfecting my craft as a writer, I still am able to get lost in a story, written or on the screen. I've got a good buddy who writes but he is always analyzing movies and shows. And books. He starts dissecting as soon as the lights go down.

Me, I'm still along for the ride. I am content to be led down through the plot and enjoy it without thinking ahead. i remember watching the Sixth Sense for the first time. My wife's eyes widened about halfway through the movie, figuring out the big twist but I only looked at her shaking my head. It wasn't until the big reveal that I got it.

I love the ride of a story or movie. I like the magic of getting that ta-da moment when the author decides it's time. I hope I'll always be like that.

5/13/2025 08:03:00 am

Thank you. I look forward to your blog post.

The scammers keep us on our toes.

Like you, I enjoy the buildup the way the author intended. I seldom catch on like your wife did in The Sixth Sense. I was surprised as you were. I hope that we don't change.

Thank you for allowing me to help promote your books. I enjoy your writing and our chats have been fun.

Until next time, keep on writing.

5/13/2025 08:08:14 am

Thanks for everything, Mark. I do enjoy our chats. You're a gracious host and I appreciate the in depth discussions. I'll see you again here 😉

Project Threshold: Season 2: Team Riker by Craig Crawford

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