Interview with dark fiction author Larry Kerr

Dark fiction author Larry C. Kerr is here today to talk about his new release from Damnation Books, By the Light of the Moon.

Bio:
Larry C. Kerr is a former newspaper reporter and is now a web programmer for a state agency in Pennsylvania. Originally from western Pennsylvania, he has lived in the south central portion of the state since 1988. He has one son.

Larry graduated from Butler Area High School and Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania. He attended graduate school at Penn State University.

An avid runner, Larry has been running for more than thirty years. In 2007, he participated in the National Senior Games.

Always interested in fiction, Larry began writing in earnest in 2004. He has won honorable mention in local short story contests and published a short story in an anthology in 2010.

He has completed a historical fiction manuscript, an action adventure manuscript, and a short story collection. He can be reached via e-mail at larryk929@yahoo.com.

Larry, please tell us about your current release, By the Light of the Moon.
Small town America. A baseball game on a warm July morning. A boy is running through the outfield. Suddenly, he slips and falls in a cascade of red. After he slides to a stop in a pool of blood and gore, he finds himself looking at a human head. He screams. The terror in tiny Blacksville, Pennsylvania, has begun.

Can newspaper reporter John Reynolds discover who, or what, is killing the people of Blacksville? Will he be able to overcome the effects of his nervous breakdown? Can he trust those around him? Will they trust him? Has he found love in the little town? Will the killer take her? What Reynolds finds in reality is more terrifying than anything he imagined in his darkest moments. Will he survive?

What inspired you to write this book?
I’ve been a horror fan for a long time. I’m not sure exactly what got me interested, although one of my influences in my childhood was horror movies. They were far less bloody and gory than the current offerings, which is probably a good thing.

As far as this book specifically, I was working on another novel when this idea came into my head. I don’t recall a specific event that triggered the idea.

What exciting story are you working on next?
I have several manuscripts in various stages of completion and recently began submitting again my first manuscript, which is historical fiction. I have submitted two short stories this year and am working on a third.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
There were two times. Getting my book accepted was one and the other was when I had some success with short stories in contests. Both times I felt someone had validated what I was doing.

Do you write full-time? If so, what's your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I work full-time as a web programmer for a state agency in Pennsylvania. I write in the evenings after dinner and during the weekends. My son is older and doesn’t need me to entertain him anymore, so I have more free time now.

However, now that the book has been published, finding the time to write is more of a challenge. I think if you’re going to sell your book you have to push it and you can’t be shy about it. Since there are only so many hours in the day and since I do work full-time, I do have to make a choice between promoting and writing.

While some might not agree with that, you have to be practical.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I had various ideas at different stages in my life and remember expressing myself in writing as a child.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
Don’t be afraid to try writing, but if you do you’ve got to be persistent.

Thanks for visiting today, Larry. Best of luck with your writing projects.