Q&A Jon Langione BAT: The Taninger Vampire @VampyreLangione

BAT: The Taninger Vampire

Jon Langione

@VampyreLangione 

 

I decided it was time for a change and when I ran across my guest today I knew instantly I had found someone I wanted to interview. Not only because of being an author, but also for the life experiences he has been through. The number of books he has put out is impressive. Today we’re going to obviously talk about his interest in vampires and a certain book in particular but I cannot imagine anyone having as varied a catalog as my guest. So let’s meet . . .

Jon Langione

 

RW: Where are you from?

JON: I grew up in the little burg of Hellam, Pennsylvania. But I had a twenty-two year army career and lived all over the world. I am a Viet Nam and Desert Storm veteran. I was a paratrooper and a helicopter pilot, as well as serving in intelligence and air operations. I describe myself as being from Eastern Pennsylvania by way of Brooklyn.

RW: Who are your favorite authors?

JON:

Ayn Rand

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Michael Lewis,

and recently, Teresa Hawk

RW: What is your favorite beverage to drink, any kind?

JON: Bold K-cup coffee.

RW: What is your escape from writing when you at that about to explode point?

JON: I really don’t have that as I write 11 to 15 pages a day. This is why I can pump out so many books. I have a book go on amazon.com about every four to five weeks. I do watch a lot of evening news.

RW: What is your favorite word?

JON: Counter-productive.

RW: What is your background in writing, what makes you a writer?

JON: I started out writing for the Fort Wolters, Texas post newspaper. I have quite a few op-eds under my belt. I wrote for the US Army’s Aviation Digest. I hold the 4th  Estate Award for military writing. I was also a special correspondent to Gannett for the Kosovo operation.

I wrote a book about my wiseguy uncle and my wife suggested we go to print with it. Since then Cathey and I have written in several genres. She designs all the covers.

 

RW: What is the title of your book and why did you choose that name?

JON: BAT, The Taninger Vampire. I have started a new series known as the BAT Series. Bria Anne Tedesco is the vampire. In the first she is involved with a star chamber making hits on shady brokers and hedge fund managers. The star chamber is called the Taninger Chamber. That book is on the market. I am almost finished with BAT, The Delgado Vampire which takes place in Arizona. The story involves BAT with the drug cartels. The third one in the series is already titled BAT, The Covert Vampire where she gets mixed up with a government agency that uses vampires.

RW: What genre does your book fall into?

JON: The Avi Asher Series (II thru VII) and the BAT series are all about vampires.

RW: Why do you write in the genre that you do?

JON: They used to be called Penny Dreadfuls, then Dime Novels, and now Pulp Fiction. I wrote enough finance material and want to have fun with the vampires.

 

RW: Tell us a little about your book.

JON: BAT, The Taninger Vampire is about BAT (Bria Anne Tesdeco) being used on missions to exact retribution against corrupt financiers.

RW: What inspired the book?

JON: I felt after the seven books of the Avi Asher Series it was becoming derivative. So, I went on to a stand-alone series with the main character being BAT and only one character other than her as a carry-over for the next book only.

RW: What inspired the book?

JON: I thought vampire books were a sellable commodity. They are fun to write and you can get as implausible as you wish. I have been inspired by Russell Blake. He wrote ten thrillers before he sold one. He keeps pumping them out, once writing a book in fifteen days. He has sold over 400k to date. I am going to keep writing as I am retired and treat this as a second career. After all vampires never die. And really they are pot-boilers and a fun read. I keep them to 210 to 260 pages.

RW: Tell us about your main characters and what you think will connect them to readers.

JON: In the Avi Asher Series he was a vampire hunter with a PhD and was an Assistant District Attorney. Thus, law enforcement got involved. However, there were some vampires he could not track down and the on-going story allowed the reader to either take the side of the hunter or the vampires.

In the BAT Series the people BAT takes out are due for a come-uppance. But, there are hunters out to stop her and her string of partners. BAT is vicious and an arch-criminal.

RW: Who would play your main characters in a movie?

JON:

Avi Asher – Lou Diamond Phillips (Jon went to school with him! I am geeking, dudes.)

BAT – Noomi Rapace or Rooney Mara (both of ‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ fame)

 

RW: What message do you think your book delivers to the readers?

JON: Just sit back and have a fun read.

RW: What did you learn about yourself from writing this book?

JON: Not to look at the sales data and keep on keepin’ on.

RW: Describe your book in one word.

JON: Nightfall

RW: Where can we get your book(s) now?

JON: On amazon.com, Kindle, and Barnes & Noble.

RW: What other books do you have to share with us and can you tell us a little about them?

JON:

Canzio: A Sal Luca Gig – The story of a wiseguy with Sal Luca as a Philadelphia reporter.

Santa Is Out There, Christmas Tales From The Edge – twelve holiday short stories written with my wife Cathey that are a little off center.

Helel, the Nephilim, and Beyond – a biblical fiction with Sal Luca back as the reporter; the angel Helel is keynote in the story.

manic mind – written in all lower case with ellipses’ and no other punctuation. It is about my Bi-Polar experiences. And, again, Sal Luca is the reporter. He is fictional, but I gave him author credit as a twist.

Credit Card, A Personal Debt Crisis. This book is taken from by MBA thesis which was written in story form.

Student Loans, Credit Cards, and the National Debt Crisis is a DVD about the subjects of overwhelming debt.

The Avi Asher Series: Deceitful (a political thriller) and the six vampire books of the series: Vampire Elona, Vampire Edvard, Vampire Gothic, Vampire Wiseguy, Vampire Vice, and Vampire Elizabeth.

RW: How do people connect with you through all forms of social media?

JON: I am on Twitter @VampyreLangione. I have no plans to go on Facebook. On my twitter site is my website address jonlangione.com. On the website the reader can get a description of the vampire books and see a photo of the cover.

RW: Do, you currently have representation? If so who, and if not describe what qualities you would like in an agent and what you would bring to the relationship.

JON: Through my experience with agents I have collected a pile of rejection form letters. So, I decided to go to amazon and Barnes and Noble via Createspace. I price my books and Kindle books very low at what I feel is an equitable price. I self-promote the books via Twitter. As far as what I could do for an agent is meet a deadline.

RW: What are you working on right now?

JON: I am 163 pages into the second of the BAT Series – BAT, The Delgado Vampire.

RW: What book are you reading at this time?

JON: ‘Are We Rome’ by Cullen Murphy

RW: What is your biggest tip for someone to getting published?

JON: Go to Createspace.

RW: If you could have written any book that exists, other than your own, what would it be and why?

JON: ‘Atlas Shrugged’ by Ayn Rand. Atlas Shrugged has more depth and history for the future than any book written. She captured conservative business and progressive welfare better than anyone. Atlas Shrugged is second in US sales to one book – The Bible.

 

Well, everyone, I told you the man had a varied catalog. Next time believe me. I of course want to thank Jon again for the interview and I must say that his approach to writing his genre is interesting. He seems to have found a genre he is really enthusiastic about. Buy his books, check out his site, follow him on Twitter, and did I mention buy his books? And when you do, make sure to write a review.

Much Respect

Ronovan

 

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