Hi George M. Moser! Thank you for taking the time to interview with me today! I just finished reading Nine Lives and it was very good, I love and am fascinated with Egyptian lore. Can you tell the readers a little something about the story?
>>GMM:Nine Lives is the story of a young man who leads a picturesque type of life. He is happily married to a beautiful woman with a child and a wonderful home. He grew up dreaming of looking at the stars with his dad. Recently, his dad died leaving him with with an old car and a message to dream. It was always his dream to look at the stars but now he finds himslef being responsible in his life.
One Day, he comes home and accidentally runs over a cat with his dad's old car. Unbeknownst to him, the cat is an ancient being bent on taking it's revenge on Michael. The cat comes back in a series of increasingly serious incidents threatening everything in Michael's life .
The novel potrays the twin fears of a man who is haunted by his own psychological demos as well as demons from beyond. Evil manifests itself as terrifying feline beasts as well as more familiar incarnations such as denial, self-doubt, dishonety and greed.
What or who inspired you to write this story?
>>GMM:This Particular story is actually based on a true story. I came home from work one day and my wife told me about a small cat stuck under our back porch. Just like the story, my dog and I chased it around the house and it ran up inside my car. Unfortunately, the cat had the same fate as the one in the story.
What I didn't realize was that stories take on a life of their own. This story actually has much deeper meaning than just a cat coming back for revenge. I found during my writing. that I was actually comparing his life to what I was going through in my real life. Michael Morino struggles with the idea of doing what makes him happy in life and doing what he feels he should be doing. I believe all of us have a choice in life to do what truly makes us happy. We feel obligated to do something else because it is expected of us. Hopefully, when people read this, the message comes out that we all need to do what makes us happy in life. We all have more than one life to live.
Did you do a lot of research on Egyptian lore get the basis for this story?
>>GMM: I traveled to Egypt and thought it was one of the most amazing places in the world. There is so much there that no one has been able to explain. one of them is the sphinx. It's older that the pyramids, which are one of the most incredible things I have ever seen in my life. No one talks about the sphinx. No one knows who built it, how old it is or how it eroded. Many now believe it was water that eroded the Sphinx. That means there was water there in the Sahara desert which is pretty incredible.
I wanted a background story for the cat. I thought that the Egyptian lore was perfect for my story. I did do quite a bit of research on past history of Egypt and their beliefs about the stars. Most of it, I used from my own experience but I followed up with facts in my research.
What attracted you to the genre of horror versus other genres?
>>GMM: I always wanted to write. I just never really believed it would happen. As a kid, I loved JRR Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings. I wanted to write a story like that but it was too daunting to even think about making a world like he did. Later in life, I discovered Stephen King. I am not necessarily a horro fan but he writes so well that I became a huge fan of his. I am actually more of a fan of the thrillers and that's how I wante my books to be. I like to think of them more like Michael Crichton.
I have collected ideas fro stories over the years. I discovered thay all had a theme. I have always been a fan of being scared, I loved old horror movies. I decied to write horror stories but I didn't want the gruesome stories. i wanted my stories to be different, more of a thriller. I wanted happy stories or at least ones with happy endings. I wanted stories that Made People Laugh and there was a lesson to be learned.
Who are your literay icons?
>>GMM: Stephen king is a huge influence on my writing. It's not just teh stories but the way that he writes. Another influence on my writing is Michael Crichton. You can see his influence with th Egyptian parts of my story. I am also a fan of Mark Twain and Shakespeare. I would love to be able to tell a story as good as any of them.
Are there any future books in the works? If so, are they going to be in the horror genre as well?
>>GMM: I am finishing my second novel now called The Bartello. It's of the Horror genre about an old movie theatre with something ancient living in it. The book is related to my first one, though I am not going to come out and tell people that I am writing a series. I like to be a little cryptic about my writing. If readers liked my first book, they're definitely going to like my second book. It is also more of a thriller keeping the reader on the edge of their seat.
Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
>>GMM:Keep writing. I found the more I write, the more vivid my stories became. Other writers are often quoted about reading and writing as well. I think thats an easy answer and probably the most obvious but there is one important element missing. Take time off and dream a little. That's where the true stories are born. In fact, that's one of the main themes in my story, Nine Lives. Dream.
How can the readers find you online?
>>GMM:I have a website at http://www.gmmoser.com/ which has updates for my books and all future books plus links to places to purchase the book. The best place to buy it now would be amazon.com. Just type in Nine Lives or my name.I also have a blog http://georgemmoser.blogspot.com/
I loved your book Nine Lives and I found it very scary and I did catch the fact that the main character was tormented by his personal demons while dealing with a real to life demon. I also wanted to let the readers know about my crazy coincidence I had the night I finished your book. I was laying in my room when i heard a cat howling which sounded a lot like a babies cry so I got up to check on my son and he was asleep then I heard it again so I went out to the living room and could finally hear that it was a cat so I opened the door and the cat arched it's back as it hissed at me, then ran off . It was a crazy coincidence. Don't forget to check out my Review for Nine Lives.Thank you again for taking the time to interview with me today! Best of luck on your future works.
>>GMM:Thank you so much Mers for having me!
About The Author
George M. Moser graduated from St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa with a degree in Business Finance. He enjoyed a successful career in real estate in the Chicago Area and became an active and upstanding member of the community, making charitable donations to local hospitals, churches and community projects. He lives with his wife and children just outside Chicago and spends his free time writing. nine Lives is his first novel and he is currently working on a further two titles.
