Q: What is The Matt Zander Journals?
A: The Matt Zander Journals is a fictional novel. It's the story of Matt Zander, an under-achieving supermarket clerk, who wakes in a downtown Toronto hospital after he was shot during a bungled robbery of his boss’ luxurious home. More...
Q: Who is the novel targeted at?
A: The novel has a lot of different elements, themes and layers to it, all of which will appeal to different people for different reasons. But anyone who wants an entertaining, easy-to-read and well-flowing story that offers both humour and sharp observation on everyday life from Zander's unique perspective and style will dig the book. Anyone who can relate to the quest to truly find themselves and their true meaning in life, however frustrating that can sometimes be. And of course, anyone who loves a road-trip, and wants to escape their own little world for a while and enjoy the ride.
If Zander was a film it'd probably be R-rated. There’s coarse language, sex and even some good-'ol violence. Everything a good book has to have ;)
Q: Why'd you write a book about death?
A: I didn’t - I wrote a book about life. A life-changing near-death experience is one-third (Part 1) of the story - the setup, if you will. The real meat and bones (and what was my favourite part to write) was the aftermath of the character coming back from the ‘other side’, and being able to see life in a whole new perspective to the rest of us. Ambitious as it sounds, I wanted to write a novel with a good dose of social commentary and observation of everything going on around us. This celebrity-worshipping, money-hungry, pill-for-everything, dumbed-down, psychobabble society of ours, that never seems to stop to think what it’s doing or where it’s going.
Q: How long did it take to write?
A: Too long... I stuck at this thing for years, wanting to make every single sentence, paragraph and chapter, perfect. The first ideas I had for this story were back in 2001. It was a much different story back then, but the base premise has remained unchanged all this time, and is still what forms the bulk of the book. Even prior to 2001, I’d written a separate novel with a near-death/afterlife component (which remains unpublished) and so it could even be said that the first ideas for this novel came about ten years ago, as I used some of those unpublished ideas for this novel. Nevertheless, it’s safe to say it’s taken several years of my life to complete The Matt Zander Journals. More...
Q: Why is The Matt Zander Journals (Part 1) free?
A: Have you ever bought a novel after being sold on the premise or back-cover blurb, thinking it'll be a great read, only to start reading it and think, “WTF is this?”. I know I have. Too many times. So I decided to make Part 1 of The Matt Zander Journals free for download, to give readers the opportunity of test driving the novel without the worry of thinking they've wasted $$$ on an unknown. By downloading Part 1 - a complete one-third of the book - you can judge for yourself. And what's more, by doing this, I can let the novel speak for itself.
Q: What's The Matt Zander Journals (Part 1) all about?
Part 1 introduces the reader to Matt Zander, and tells the story of how Matt gets into the sticky situation of being shot during a bungled robbery of his boss' luxurious home. Part 1 reveals Matt's life-changing near-death experience in its entirety - everything that happened whilst he was clinically dead and on the 'other side'. It's a complete story, too. There's no cliff-hanger ending or sneaky way to get you to continue to read the rest of the novel. But of course, it is only part of Matt Zander's journey, and he has so much more to say once he returns from his NDE.
Q: How many parts are there? How long is the whole thing?
A: There are 3 parts to The Matt Zander Journals. In the complete novel, rather than each part being a clearly defined, separate story, each part blends seamlessly into one complete series of journals totalling well-over 400 pages.
Q: I'd like to buy the entire novel as a digital download. Can I?
A: Not quite yet :( But I hope sometime to get an eBook version of the novel available. Stay tuned, or drop me a line and I'll let you know the latest.
Q: Did some stuff in the novel actually happen?
A: Oh yeah... it did. If I had to guess, I’d say about half of the novel’s ideas or events have been taken directly from things that have either happened to me personally, or to friends and acquaintances. No matter how good our imaginations are, sometimes real life comes up with the best material.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I’m going to start writing the screenplay for The Matt Zander Journals. It’s going to be a pretty straight-down-the-line adaptation of the novel for when the time arises that I, or someone else wants to get a Zander film project in the works. As for any new novels, I have a load of great ideas, but nothing started. As I'm still in a Zander state-of-mind, I'm probably going to get the script done before looking at any new projects.
Q: Could there ever be a sequel or prequel to The Matt Zander Journals?
A: Absolutely. Both. I have the base outline for both a prequel and sequel to the book. I guess it will depend on reader demand to want to know more of Zander’s story, or his beginnings, as to whether I ever write them.
Q: I can’t think of anything else to ask, what should I do now?
A: First, if you think of anything else you wanna ask, you can reach me here. Second, grab Zander Part 1, sit back in a comfy chair, and start the journey. It's perfect for when you're stuck at an airport, or when the world becomes a waiting room.
Enjoy the ride...
