Welcome to Jeff Fuell!
Tell us about yourself—you know, all that stuff that makes you interesting!
Hello, my name is Jeff Fuell and I am a writer. I am originally from Texas and currently live on the West Coast. For fun, I like to read, write and collect books. I am also an actor with a pretty large resume of theater credits. Some of my other interests are music, fitness and going to movies.
I would have to say that Stephen King is my favorite writer. He is certainly my single biggest book collection under one name. Besides reading almost all genres of fiction at one time or another, I also like to read biographies on my favorite actors and musical artists.
Some of my favorite television shows are The Sopranos, Nip/Tuck, Dexter, The Following, Dallas, Bates Motel and Hannibal. I have a variety of favorite movies, but the top of the list is One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, which is also a play that I have wanted to do for years.
I haven’t been able to read King since Cojo, but that’s a long story! (Shivers down spine, here) When and why did you begin writing?
I began writing when I was around nineteen. Although, I discovered some small stories that I had written and illustrated years ago when I was in grade school. They were all involving a super hero I created called Captain Avenger. Ironically, my next book is about a super hero that I created, which was a lot of fun. I started to write in general when I was nineteen after I discovered Stephen King. I wrote a good deal of short stories and started attending a writer’s group that was in my neighborhood. If I was not in rehearsal for a play then I was always there whenever they met.
What is your genre?
I really do not have a certain one. My past books are in genres such as science-fiction, time travel, adventure, romance, thriller, paranormal and young adult/coming of age.
Are you an organized outliner or more of a seat of pants writer?
I would say seat of pants writer. I have a general idea and take it from there. I think outlining a story and sticking to that storyboard limits you in some ways instead of relying on inspiration that could carry you further than what may already be planned out.
What other writer inspires you? Your work?
Stephen King is at the top of the list. Besides being a master storyteller, I also like the way he puts a lot of humor in his work. I have read so many other people throughout the years that it is pretty much a blur. I always appreciate humor because I think it is very important no matter what genre.
What is your favorite work by you? And why is it your fav?
That’s a very tough question to answer and I really do not have an answer. All of my books are special to me and it really is hard to decide which is better than the other. It would be like a father trying to pick which child he likes best.
Where does your character inspiration come from?
Most of the time it is just my imagination. Other times a character could be based on somebody I once knew or met briefly. Some of the characters that I have based on real people I have known are not very flattering. There is a character that is in my latest book that is based on a character that just about everyone in the city I live in despises. It was a lot of fun writing him. I altered the name, but anyone in my area reading the passage would know who I am talking about. However, there are some characters in my book “The Goatman” that I remember from my childhood that are rather comical.
What’s your best/worst experience as a writer?
So far my worst experience as a writer would probably be what every writer faces – marketing and trying to find an audience. Marketing is very time consuming and I cannot say that I like it, but it is a necessary evil.
Share the best/worst writing advice you ever got.
I have never really gotten any bad advice, at least none that I remember. Sometimes when I am talking with somebody and they have just read something I wrote, I will get a “Why did you…? Why didn’t you….? You should have….,” and so forth. That can be very annoying. I am sure that every writer has gone through that type of thing because everyone is a critic.
Ugh! We do get those, don’t we? What is your latest published work?
My latest book is called “Transference”. Here is the promo spot that I wrote for it:
Michael Potters is caught in a dilemma. He is attempting to solve his own murder and trying to do so in the form of a little boy whose body he now inhabits. While doing so, he not only has to keep the secret from his own son, but from the new family that he is now living with. To add even more to his troubles he is having to once more attend grade school, something which was frustrating enough the first time. He has no idea why all of this is happening to him, nor how much time he has left to find out why. All he can do is race the clock to try to discover who was responsible for murdering him before his time runs out. From the author: Like most people, I have often wondered what it would be like to be a kid again, but to retain the experience and wisdom that I have as an adult. This is a good deal about what this story is about. It is also a bit of a culture clash as the main character of this book experiences being a kid again in a whole new world that is different from his own. I suppose every generation looks at the one coming up and asks “Is this what our future is? We’re doomed!” Michael Potters is actually having to face this experience firsthand not because he wants to, but because he has no alternative.
Do you have another work in progress? If yes, tell us about it.
I am always working. At the moment I am working on another collection of short stories. Whenever I write short stories I feel compelled to write horror. I also like to make them humorous, which is fun.
What do you want your fans to know about you and your work?
That they are all available and ready to read! Seriously, I write in a variety of genres so I think that out of the seven books that I have had published so far, there will be something for everybody.
Tell us something about yourself that your readers don’t already know.
I have a massive comic book collection, somewhere over one hundred and thirty thousand and constantly growing. Most of them are Marvel.
Shades of “Big Bang”, heh? Where can readers find out more about you and your work?
My books are available on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.
They can read about me in my bio and on Facebook.
Thanks for joining us today, Jeff. We appreciate the time out of your busy schedule to let us get to know you! So, okay, I won’t be reading any horror any time soon (I am SUCH a chicken), but I do appreciate the hard work you put into it. So maybe a romance?
Linda Rae Blair, Author 