Michael Bradley is the author of DEAD AIR, a thriller with the intriguing tagline of “Three can keep a secret. But only if two are dead.” Michael is a fellow author at CamCat Books.
Can you pinpoint when in your life you decided to be a writer?
I started creative writing when I was in high school, dabbling a little in poetry and a lot in science fiction. To be honest, my poetry was pretty atrocious, but then so was all of my writing back then. I knew nothing about technique, dialogue, description, or plot. Usually, my characters ended up being my friends, with me as the hero. I realize this will sound creepy, but I usually wrote in the girl who I had a crush on as my hero’s love interest in my stories. A few years ago, I found some of my old stories, still printed on old dot-matrix paper. You know the kind with the small holes down each side. I was shocked at how bad my writing was back then. Seriously, it was bad with a capital B.
Who are your favorite authors?
I have some eclectic tastes when it comes to authors that I favor. I’m a huge fan of the classics like Arthur Conan Doyle, H. G. Wells, and Jules Verne. Ian Fleming with his James Bond novels rank up there as some of my favs as well. I don’t usually read fantasy, but when I do it is definitely Terry Pratchett. His Discworld series is always entertaining. From the thriller/crime genre, I lean toward Lisa Unger, Sandra Brannan, P. D. James, J. L. Delozier, and Ian Rankin. But my favorite author is Leslie Charteris with his Saint series. I fell in love with his character Simon Templar years ago and still get a thrill anytime I read one of his books. I can’t quite explain why I am so enamored by The Saint series. Those books are just fun adventure through and through.
What’s a piece of advice you’d give to aspiring authors?
Don’t stop. That’s it. Do not stop writing. I did a lot of writing when I was in high school and stopped shortly after I graduated. It was almost twenty-five years before I’d start writing again. I now consider that to be the biggest mistake in my life. All those potential words, stories, and characters are lost.
What inspired you to write this book?
DEAD AIR was inspired by two things. The first being a place and the second being a song. I’ll start with the place. In rural southern New Jersey, there is a farm. On this farm, near the interstate, there is a small lake. It is a picturesque scene, complete with a dock stretching out into the water and a pavilion along the shore. It is hard to see during the summer months if you don’t know where to look. A line of trees between the interstate and the lake partially obscure it from view. But, in the fall and winter, you can see clear through the lake in all its splendor through the leafless foliage.
I’ve driven past this lake more times than I can count. It always looks like a quiet, tranquil place where childhood memories are made of summertime swims and winter ice skating. A few years ago, it struck me that this lake, with its visions of innocence, may also hold ominous secrets. Hence began my fascination with this lake and its dark waters.
The song—REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling”—was the other inspiration. I’ve never been overly fond of the song. I used to call it “dreaded love mush.” One day, a few years ago, it came on the radio and I started to listen to the lyrics and realized that the song had a very “stalkerish” quality to it. That began to merge with my ideas about the lake, and the end result was DEAD AIR.
Which character is your favorite?
I think—from DEAD AIR—my favorite character is Kaitlyn Ashe, my protagonist. Even though she is female, I found her to be an easy character to write. To be honest, I’m a bit jealous of her. She has the broadcasting career that I always wanted. Kaitlyn is at the top of her field in the radio market in which I grew up. I had a great time putting her through the most horrible situations, which probably sounds really twisted. That the beauty of being a writer. You can take a character you absolutely love and do the most terrible things to them just to see how they come out on the other side. God, I must sound like a psycho.
What’s your favorite scene in the book?
This will be difficult to explain without giving too much away, but I’ll give it a try. There is a scene in which my antagonist murders a character in the book. The scene is written from my antagonist’s point of view, so you get to see how far over the edge he/she has gone. Although it is a horrific death scene, it is also extremely intimate as the reader gets deep into the head of a killer. It is a poignant moment for my antagonist, kind of like a turning point. There is no turning back after this scene, and the reader gets to see and feel that transition through the eyes of my antagonist. It was a scene that took me a long time to get right, but when it was done, I absolutely loved it.
Do you hide any secrets in the book that only a few people will find?
In every book I write, I place an obscure reference to a television show. It’s my way of paying homage to some of my favorite shows. For DEAD AIR, I included a reference to the PBS Masterpiece Mystery show, Inspector Lewis. It is probably something that readers would completely miss if they didn’t know to look for it. The reference, although obscure, does play an important part in the book itself. I’ll give you a hint. Although the reference is scattered throughout the book, the first time it is mentioned is in chapter two.
What is your writing process?
I’m what you might call a “seat of the pants outliner.” Before I start writing, I often will develop an outline. But my outlines are usually very short. About one to two sentences per chapter. There is never much detail in my outlines, just enough for me to have a general idea of where I am going with the story. All of the detail gets made up as I go along. The finished book usually aligns with my about 70% of my outline. There are two things that I always MUST know before I start writing. I need to know what my first scene is, and how the book will end. If I don’t know those two things, I won’t start writing.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on my fourth novel, which will be the first in a new series that I’m planning to write. The book is called THE SIN EATER and was inspired by a 16th/17th century religious superstition called “sin eating.” In the book, a series of murders draws elements from this ancient ritual, and it is up to a small-town journalist and a faithless Episcopal minister to unravel the clues to stop a killer.
What’s your favorite personal quote or motto?
I think my favorite quote comes from the late Douglas Adams. He once said, “I love deadlines. I love the whooshing noise they make as they go by.” It really speaks to how my writing has gone over the years. I set a deadline for when I want to finish my next novel. Then I set another when the first one has passed, and then I set a new new one . . . I think you get the idea.
And finally, where can readers find you on social media?
Twitter: @mjbradley88
Facebook: facebook.com/mjbradley88
Website/Blog: www.mbradleyonline.com
Thank you for your time today, Michael. I look forward to reading your next novel!
Synopsis of DEAD AIR:
Three can keep a secret, but only if two are dead.
No one knows that better than Kaitlyn Ashe, who has been running from a childhood secret her whole life. Until now. Crowned the top-rated radio DJ in Philadelphia, she is finally ready to settle down with her fiancé and new friends who know nothing about her past. When a sudden flood of anonymous letters threatens her seemingly charmed life, she realizes that someone out there knows. But who? As the threatening letters escalate, Kaitlyn’s life spirals toward a reunion in the one place she’d hoped to never visit again: The Shallows. Isn’t her secret buried with the dead?
From the Philadelphia skyline to the rural suburbs of New Jersey, Dead Air weaves a suspenseful tale of past misdeeds and present malice as Kaitlyn plays a deadly game of cat and mouse with a mysterious killer who will stop at nothing to get revenge.