Author Interview: Ford Forkum

Even though my writing has featured
horror stalwarts like zombies, vampires, and aliens, I generally avoid
the horror genre. I enjoy it sparingly, as there’s a threshold where it
ceases to be entertaining and is just disturbing. I prefer humor because
it’s a way of transforming the stresses of life (confusion, anger,
disappointment, etc.) into something enjoyable. In a way, it’s the
opposite of horror because the goal of horror is to create and amplify
stress for enjoyment.  

Which dark fictional characters (not your own) have resonated with you, and why?

The
type of dark character that really gets to me is best represented by
Tolkien’s Gollum. He stumbled on the ring of power and it turned him
into a villain. He was despised and made to suffer repeatedly for what
the ring did to him. At no point did it occur to anyone that poor
Smeagol just needed an intervention and ring rehabilitation counseling.
He was a scapegoat, and that kind of character reveals the darkness of
the world it occupies, which is more disturbing than the character
itself. 

Which of your own characters intrigues you the most, and why?

My
character who intrigues me the most is a synthetic, yet sentient
giraffe named Woobles. The creature was created by mistake when the
spirit of a seventeenth-century anatomist from Denmark was attempting to
“think” a microwave oven into existence. The anatomist became
distracted by a conversation about giraffes and his train of thought
wandered. Woobles intrigues me the most because he’s essentially the
first character I created for what would become “Beers In Heaven.”   

What scary situation do you hope to never find yourself in? Do you have a plan in case it ever happens?

The
scariest situation I can think of is being forced to judge a beauty
pageant for six-year old girls. If it ever happens, I plan on feigning
death.

Ford Forkum is a writer and media maker from The Great Northeast. His
unbridled imagination and humor resonate with readers who have a taste
for subtle sarcasm, mockery of popular culture, and absurdity that
ventures to the hazy outskirts of reality. His first book, the comedic science fiction short story, Alien
Invasion of the Zombie Apocalypse made Amazon.com’s top ten bestseller
list in the satire category, and was nominated for the eFestival of
Words Independent Author Awards in the science fiction category.

Connect with Ford: Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Twitter

Grab your copy of Beers in Heaven  | Read an excerpt