Interview with Lee Taylor
Author of BEDBUGS (Can you see them?) - an alien, man-eating insect story
Hi, everyone - my name is Lee Andrew Taylor, author of 4 horror-style novels & 9 movie scripts. I tend to write what I see, so my stories read like movies playing out inside my mind. I wanted to get non-readers back into reading. Most of us are watchers now, so I've combined the two. A lot of my readers have said they saw themselves inside my story as they read it, and the characters were like people they knew. It's always great to hear someone say they've visited one of my imaginary worlds.
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Quick description of the book for a new reader - what should they expect?
- A lot of silliness, especially from 2 of the characters. A lot of horror scenes & alien creatures.
What was your inspiration for this book?
- As a child, my mother would say - night, night, sleep tight & don't let the bedbugs bite - those words scared me so much that I would sleep underneath my bedcovers in fear that the bedbugs would bite me.
Which authors do you admire? How have they influenced your writing style?
- I read James Herbert as a child. His rats' novels inspired me to write one of my own.
Can you tell us a little about the locations in your book?
- I don't go for real destinations. Just countries. I want the reader to imagine it for themselves, to create a world as they read my stories.
What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
- Writers write. No matter the outcome. Money doesn't come into it. We just keep creating new ideas, and new worlds to live in. If you wake up every day with an idea tapping at your brain then jot it down. Some of my stories were written 20 years after the idea was jotted down.
Could you talk a little about your writing process?
- I wish I had a strict process like most writers, but, with my health condition, I tend to write when I am feeling up to it. I can't stick to the - I need to write a certain amount of words per day - thing. If it happens then great. I try to flesh out the basic idea. Usually, the beginning & the end are jotted down first, then I fill in the gaps to create the middle. I never stick to my plan though, as the stories seem to write themselves. The person I was meant to give a few pages to or kill off, ends up being one of my main characters.
Which character has had the greatest impact on readers?
- There are 6 main characters in this story, all with different traits, but it's the chief of police who gets the readers talking. They say he's kind, polite, and a people-person, so want to follow his journey.
If the book were to be adapted for TV or film, who would you see in the lead role? Who did you have in your mind’s eye ?
- I write movie scripts as well. Had 2 scripts optioned in 2021, so I'm always thinking of actors to play roles. This story has had a lot of interest from movie producers, with a few wanting their own actors to play the lead role, but I would look for established actors who maybe would need a break to get back into the movie world. Actors like Josh Hartnett or Stephen Dorff.
How have readers responded ?
- When I released the novel back in 2020, my first review was a 1* rating. Not because the story was rubbish, but because it had italic words in. The reader didn't like italic words for some reason. I've read novels from the 1970s & they have italic words. It was frustrating to see, but the reviews have been mostly 4 & 5* ratings since.
Where next? What are you working on now?
- I released part 2 of my zombie story in 2022 & it boosted the sales of part 1, so maybe I will write part 3. I jotted notes down for that in 2008 when my zombie novel was just 1 book, so I could go back to that. But right now I am writing a ghost story movie script based on the start of the Covid lockdown.
