Comedy/Fantasy/Mythical Realism/Fiction
Date Published: 02-07-2023
Publisher: Balkon Media
Internationally published bestselling author Jon Smith makes his adult debut with The Fifth Horseman, a modern comic fantasy that rides roughshod over established mythology and the rules of life… and death.
The Fifth Horseman is a darkly comic tale of two thirty-somethings caught between our world and the afterlife, who must embrace their role as reapers to prevent the End Times. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy meets Father Ted, perfect for fans of Ben Aaronovitch, Terry Pratchett, and Neil Gaiman.
Death is just a day job you can’t quit…
Emma and Mark had a bad day. The worst part of it was dying. But, according to Death, the Rider on the Pale Horse and first horseman of the apocalypse, things aren’t that simple. Turns out the sand in their hourglass is stuck in place. Somewhere between life and death, they’re put to work as Death’s assistants, reaping the souls of the living until it’s time for their final clock out…
To compound matters, despite their omnipotence, the four horsemen are facing an existential threat – one they’re ill-equipped and ill-prepared to combat.
Emma and Mark must reap like their afterlives depend on it, to help prevent the End Times – even if it means scuppering the one opportunity they have at being granted a second chance at life.
Filled with humour, romantic tension, and suspense, Jon Smith utilises a witty, lightly sarcastic ensemble of flawed but loveable characters. It will appeal to mainstream fantasy readers and hopeless romantics, as well as those who enjoy a good story and a good laugh.
Is There a Message in Your Novel That You Want Readers to Grasp?
I hope readers come to the conclusion (if they
haven’t done so already) that we don’t have long on this mortal coil and
therefore it’s important to do the things you want to do, say the things you
want to say, and to do all the shuffling you can until a certain Reaper comes
to visit. I use fictional writing to explore the big questions but usually in a
contained environment – so rather than telling the story of the all-powerful
ruler who commands others, I prefer to focus on the scullery maid or the stable
hand and try to make sense of the world through their eyes. As I have three girls
I tend to write stories that have a strong female lead character who can face
challenges and ultimately overcome all that life throws at her. In the case of The
Fifth Horseman we follow Emma and Mark on their journey to the afterlife
and I hope readers enjoy their shenanigans. The theme I tend to return to
often, especially in my YA books, relates to belonging and otherness. I’m drawn
to characters who don’t feel they fit in and then I tend to put them in difficult
situations where their differences (perceived or otherwise) often become their
strength.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
My line editor would say I
find the rules regarding semi-colon use a challenge!
I’d say every stage of the
writing process comes with challenges. Whether its trying to dig yourself out
of a plot hole, or rewriting a problematic chapter for the tenth time, or realizing
after completing the entire first draft that the story would be much better
told from another character’s perspective (that’s happened twice!), I think it’s
a question of whether you want to let the difficulty or complexity of the
problem beat you, or if you’re able to persevere and find the solution. More
often than not I come out the victor in this battle of wills with my fictional
characters, but there have been a few partially completed manuscripts that have
won the battle if not the war and have been banished to the vault, until it’s
their time rise once again and be completed.
Writing is not easy,
despite how authors may present on social media. It’s a lonely slog with a very
real chance of a/the book never seeing the light of day or b/being published but
not finding an audience. Despite this, we continue, because we are compelled
to.
How many books have you written and which is your favorite?
The Fifth Horseman is my fourteenth published
book, however it’s my debut adult novel. Prior to writing this book I wrote
non-fiction (a mixture of business books, digital marketing-related books and
my Bloke’s Guide… series which focused on pregnancy and early-years
childcare) and one Middle Grade novel.
The Fifth Horseman is my favorite because I
had the chance to get to know the characters as my readers will, and after
sharing their trials and tribulations they kind of became friends.
If You had the chance to cast your main character from Hollywood today, who would you pick and why?
As this is both Emma and
Mark’s story, I’d love to see Emily Blunt and Kit Harington in the lead roles.
I think they’re both incredibly talented actors but also they tend to be known
for playing ‘serious’ characters. I think they would add to the humor of the
story and could deliver the one-liners deadpan.
Maybe it’s just me, but I
had a vision in my mind of the characters when I was writing the book and both
Blunt and Harington look an awful lot like the characters I shared last year
with.
When did you begin writing?
I talked about
writing for years. All through sixth form college and then University I told
anyone who would listen that I was going to be an author. When they asked what
I’d written, or what sort of stuff I wrote, I mumbled something about being
late for a lecture and wandered off… because the truth of the matter was I wasn’t
doing any actual writing… it took the birth of my first daughter to be the
catalyst for actually putting pen to paper (or more accurately, fingers to
keyboard) and I wrote The Bloke’s Guide To Pregnancy. That was back in
2004. In 2009 I completed a Masters degree in Screenwriting and began to write
screenplays for film and TV together with musical theatre scripts. Although I’ve
done a lot of writing and this is my fourteenth published book, The Fifth
Horseman is my debut novel for adults.
How long did it take to complete your first book?
I should clarify that my
first published book was non-fiction. It’s typical to approach publishers with
a book proposal rather than a finished manuscript. I had a killer idea for a
book aimed at dads-to-be whose partners were pregnant and sent it off to a publisher
to test the water. They loved it and a week later, after one meeting in London,
I had a book contract on my desk. Due to a very tight deadline imposed by the
publisher and the fact that I may have exaggerated how much of the book had already
been written when I signed the contract, I wrote it in a month. That said, I
had already conducted about nine months of research through detailed interviews
with just over one hundred ‘expectant’ fathers, so I had a wealth of material
and anecdotes to guide me.
Did you have an author who inspired you to become a writer?
Oooof. So many. I was an avid reader from a very early age and so I
would like to think every book I read contributed in some part to my love of
books and opened the possibility of becoming a writer.
But there was a damascene moment when someone at sixth form college
introduced me to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson
and Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. I had never read books like
them. I didn’t know it was possible to read (and therefore write) stories like
this. They were so different, so thought-provoking and just so crazy in comparison
to the much more classic British literature and genre fiction I had been reading.
I promptly decided that this was what I wanted to study, and possibly emulate
in the future, and I changed my University application from Journalism to American
Studies, specializing in Literature which also gave me the opportunity to study
in the States for a year of my degree course.
What is your favorite part of the writing process?
Nothing quite beats typing
‘The End’!
I enjoy discovering the characters
who are going to inhabit the world and then the challenge of planning a story
that will both try to prevent them from achieving their goals and help them
grow as the story progresses.
I particularly enjoy
writing dialogue – although I can agonize for an hour over one quip or response
which can be frustrating.
Describe your latest book in 4 words.
Humor in unlikely places
Can you share a little bit about your current work or what is in the
future for your writing?
The future, hopefully, will involve writing a lot more stories. Some
will be screenplays, some will be novels. I really enjoy the entire process
– from initial ideation through to the sometimes agonizing final edit. I can’t
imagine a scenario in which I’m not writing whether it’s for pleasure or publication.
About the Author
Jon Smith is the bestselling author of 14 books for children, teens, and adults. His books have sold more than 500,000 copies and are published in seven languages.
In addition to writing books, Jon is an award-winning screenwriter and musical theatre lyricist and librettist with productions at the Birmingham Hippodrome, Belfast Waterfront and London’s Park & Waterloo East theatres.
Jon enjoyed a happy childhood—making daisy chains, holidays in the sun and an obsessive interest in all things fantasy. No brace, few spots and only one broken bone and one broken heart (not his). It all went swimmingly.
Father of four, he lives near Liverpool with his wife, Mrs. Smith, and their two school-age children. When he grows up he’d like to be a librarian.
Contact Links
Purchase Links
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Posts
0 Comments