Featured Interview With Ari Sims
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I was born and raised in Neptune, NJ. I’m still here, living at the same place I grew up. I live 8 blocks from the beach so it’s no coincidence that there’s a beach scene in all of my fiction books. New Jersey is okay but I think I’m getting ready to see the world. I even made one of my character’s dialogue in my upcoming book, “Jersey can be a lonely place.”
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
My grandfather used to read to me every night. My grandparents raised me and without them I’d have nothing nor would I be the person I am today. I have to credit my grandfather for getting me into reading and writing. I started writing in the second grade. My first “story” was written on one of those old waxy, ruled-line papers and there was one period at the end. I wish I still had it. I forget what it was about. But on my second grade report card, which my mother still has, my teacher wrote on it “Encourage Ari to keep writing.” That was in 1997.
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I grew up loving RL Stine. Given the nature of my books I don’t think that’s a surprise. I’ve read some mainstream stuff, like Harry Potter and I enjoyed A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snickett (Again, no surprise given the nature of my work). Lately, though, I’ve been reading a lot of work by fellow indie authors. These days I’m into urban, romance, street-life kind of stuff. My grandfather compares me to Stephen King. As he put it, I take “normal, everyday people” and throw them into twisted events.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
The Gulick House, my first self-published book and one that I’ve been promoting for a while, is…well, it’s something else. It’s not for everyone, let’s put it that way. It’s about a man who is so desperate for love that he’ll do anything and just when you think he’s got his life together, he just snaps and does the unspeakable. I’m working on another full-feature novel called Abandoned and it’s so weird because it’s JUST like The Gulick House but the premise is so different. Basically, both books go like this: Sketchy guy meets innocent girl who is too young for him on a Jersey Shore beach. Everything goes great for a while until everyone starts revealing their secrets. An ex comes along to ruin everything and then the big grand finale that leaves everyone with a pit in their stomach occurs.
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