Break You

by Blake Crouch

  His beard is six inches long.

  He is skin and bones.

  The slash he received eons ago is now nothing more than a raised scar across his abdomen, and he fingers it obsessively, constantly replaying the knife-fight like a piece of botched choreography.

  Every other day, his captor brings a pitcher of water and a plate of food.

  Several times, he was asleep when the food arrived and awoke to find a giant rat feasting on his meal.

  The first three times, he shooed it away.

  The fourth, he crushed it and ate it.

  His former life only visits him in dreams—bright, vivid, blue-sky dreams.

  He has long passed the point of wanting death and he couldn’t effectuate such a plan regardless. He is forced to wear a helmet to prevent braining himself. The few times he’s tried to starve himself or go without water has resulted in force-feeding. In one paining session, his teeth were removed so he couldn’t bleed himself to death.

  His captor has informed him that he intends to keep him alive for twenty years, and while he feels certain that his body will last, he wonders about his mind. Already, it is breaking down. To know and understand that you’re going crazy is perhaps the worst brand of torment he has ever withstood. He’d rather spend a year in the gurney.

  And so he is essentially a soul trapped in an earthbound body.

  His approach to living could almost be described as Zen.

  The ten square feet where he eats and sleeps and shits is his world.

  He has an intimate knowledge of the cracks and fissures in the concrete beneath him—studies their patterns like the word of God.

  The space beyond his length of chain has become as mysterious and unreachable as the universe.

  Occasionally, screams trickle down from the warehouse several floors above, but mostly, there is only silence and darkness.

  Recently, his captor brought down an antiquated typewriter and ten reams of paper.

  A sick joke, but more and more he’s considering writing if for nothing more than the diversion of something new to pass the hours.

  He talks to Orson all the time.

  He tells himself stories that he may one day write.

  In the strangest of them all, none of this is really happening. He’s just a character trapped in the twisted story of a semi-famous writer who lives on a lake in North Carolina. He keeps trying to finish the story. To write in some weakness in the chains, some error in judgment on the part of his captor that might allow him to escape, but nothing ever seems right.

  At last, on the story’s hundredth incarnation, he arrives upon the answer.

  A character returns unexpectedly to the warehouse and saves him.

  As the story closes, he’s lying in a luxurious bed, drifting in and out of sleep.

  He hears approaching footsteps and smiles.

  Because the covers are warm.

  Because he feels no pain.

  Because those footsteps belong to Violet.

  She’s coming to nurse him back to health.

  Momentarily, she’ll be through the door.

  And she’ll sit on the bed and feed him from a bowl of steaming soup, and when she’s finished, crawl into bed with him and run her fingers through his hair and whisper that he’s safe now. That the pain is behind him, behind them both, and in this warm, soft bed—everything that matters.

  Author’s Afterword

  So when can you expect the end of the Andrew Thomas/Luther Kite saga?

  I’m good friends with thriller author J.A. Konrath, and our writing has covered many of the same themes of good and evil. I love Joe’s Det. Jack Daniels Series, which showcases his own unique, disturbing take on the serial killer genre.

  In 2010, we wrote a novella together called SERIAL UNCUT, combining some of the characters from his work and my work, including Jack Daniels, Taylor (from AFRAID and TRAPPED, written under Joe’s pen name, Jack Kilborn), and Mr. K. It also features Orson Thomas and Luther Kite from DESERT PLACES and LOCKED DOORS.

  Joe approached me with a simple, yet unique, idea: Wouldn’t it be fun to have Jack and Luther square off in a full length novel that was also the conclusion to both of our series? I was all for it. That novel is STIRRED, which we’re currently writing, and it will be released at the end of 2011.

  If you’re new to my books, or Joe’s books, and want to get caught up on the entire history of these characters before reading STIRRED, here is the order they go in, along with the characters they spotlight:

  SHOT OF TEQUILA by JA Konrath (1991, Jack Daniels)

  DESERT PLACES by Blake Crouch (1996, Andy Thomas, Luther Kite)

  LOCKED DOORS by Blake Crouch (2003, Andy Thomas, Luther Kite)

  WHISKEY SOUR by JA Konrath (2004, Jack Daniels, Alex Kork)

  BREAK YOU by Blake Crouch (2004, Luther Kite, Andy Thomas)

  BLOODY MARY by JA Konrath (2005, Jack Daniels)

  RUSTY NAIL by JA Konrath (2006, Jack Daniels, Alex Kork)

  DIRTY MARTINI by JA Konrath (2007, Jack Daniels)

  SERIAL UNCUT by Blake Crouch, Jack Kilborn, and JA Konrath (1978-2010, Jack Daniels, Luther Kite, Taylor, Mr. K)

  KILLERS UNCUT by Blake Crouch and JA Konrath (1970s - 2010, Jack Daniels, Luther Kite, Alex Kork, Charles Kork, Lucy and Donaldson)

  AFRAID by Jack Kilborn (2008, Taylor)

  JACK DANIELS STORIES by JA Konrath (2004-2010, Jack Daniels)

  FUZZY NAVEL by JA Konrath (2008, Jack Daniels, Alex Kork)

  CHERRY BOMB by JA Konrath (2009, Jack Daniels, Alex Kork)

  TRAPPED by Jack Kilborn (2010, Taylor)

  SHAKEN by JA Konrath (2010, Jack Daniels, Mr. K, Luther Kite)

  STIRRED by Blake Crouch and JA Konrath (2011, Jack Daniels, Luther Kite)

  This may seem like a devious effort by us to get you to buy everything we’ve written. I swear it isn’t. If it was, I would have mentioned Joe’s novels ORIGIN, DISTURB, THE LIST, and ENDURANCE, and my novels ABANDON and SNOWBOUND.

  Seriously, though. It really isn’t necessary for you to read any of these previous novels to enjoy STIRRED.

  But we’d love you even more if you did. :)

  Blake Crouch

  February 8, 2011

  Durango, Colorado

  Read on for an interview with JA Konrath and Blake Crouch and excerpts of Desert Places, Locked Doors, and the 7th Jack Daniels novel, Shaken...

  Interview with Blake Crouch and J.A. Konrath

  Originally Published in Crimespree Magazine, January 2011

  J.A. Konrath has a lot going on right now. Besides the print release of his seventh Lt. Jacqueline "Jack" Daniels book, Shaken, he's also penned two sci-fi novels for Ace Berkley under the name Joe Kimball for release in 2011. Timecaster and Timecaster: Supersymmetry take place in Chicago 2064 and feature Jack's grandson as the hero. Konrath is currently working on several collaborations, including a few with Blake Crouch. His blog, “A Newbie's Guide to Publishing,” has become the hot spot for self-publishing information, fueled by Konrath's ebook sales, which have topped over 150,000 since 2009.

  Blake Crouch is the author of Desert Places, Locked Doors, Snowbound, and Abandon, which was an IndieBound Notable book last summer. He has frequently collaborated with J.A. Konrath on such projects as the 250,000-download smash-hit Serial which offended masses of people, Draculas (a collaboration with Konrath, F. Paul Wilson, and Jeff Strand), and the upcoming Stirred, conclusion to both Konrath’s Jack Daniels series and Blake’s Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite series. Blake’s short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies, Ellery Queen, and Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, where his novella, “The Pain of Others” has just been published.

  Blake: What's been your single, most satisfying moment as a writer?

  Joe: It's hard to top my first book deal, with Whiskey Sour. But the most sustainable satisfaction has been self-publishing over the last two years. I've sold over 100,000 ebooks, all on my own. It's been eye-opening, humbling, and has made
me a very happy man.

  Blake: Do you ever get sick and tired of talking about ebooks? It seems to take a lot of time away from writing.

  Joe: I never get sick of talking about something I enjoy so much.

  Blake: All time favorite book....don't think, just say it.

  Joe: The Judas Goat by Robert B. Parker. Awesome ending.

  Blake: What's the best writing experience you've ever had?

  Joe: Writing Serial with you remains a high point. That was too much fun, and it's probably why we've continued to collaborate on so many other projects: Draculas (with F. Paul Wilson and Jeff Strand), Serial Uncut, Killers Uncut, Stirred...

  Blake: Do you ever think of turning off "A Newbie's Guide to Publishing" so you can write more?

  Joe: I've pretty much stopped doing all self-promotion. I once was maniacal about visiting bookstores and libraries, and going to conventions. Now I'm a homebody. Blogging takes up very little time compared to travelling to 40 states and signing books in 1200 stores.

  Blake: Do you regret taking Endurance and Trapped back from your former publisher?

  Joe: Not at all. They wanted me to cut stuff I didn't want to cut, and integrity won out. Luckily, I've made more money, and will ultimately reach a wider audience, than I would have with Grand Central. It blows my mind, by the way, that a writer can achieve this outside of the traditional publishing world.

  Blake: At heart, are you a horror writer, a thriller writer, a sci-fi guy, a crime novelist, or what?

  Joe: At heart, I'm a storyteller. My goal is to entertain, and I'm lucky that I have enough diverse tastes that I can hop around in different genres.

  Blake: So you’d consider writing romance, erotica, or straight historical? Would you ever write something that didn’t contain suspense?

  Joe: I'd try erotica, but I'd need another pen name and I don't know if I'm allowed to have any more. Romance might be fun, if they were zombies or serial killers.

  Blake: Is there a book in the back of your mind you've been dying to write but haven't for some reason?

  Joe: I have six books in my head right now that I haven't slated time for. Yet. I'll get to them, eventually.

  Blake: In all seriousness, you've achieved a helluva lot. Are you satisfied? What's the dream writing scenario for you?

  Joe: The secret to success is to never be satisfied. But right now I'm living the dream writing scenario, and I'm pretty happy about it. Luckily, there's still a lot I want to accomplish.

  Blake: You've always pushed as hard at marketing yourself, decoding new platforms, etc., as you have at writing, but in a perfect world, wouldn't you love to just write and let corporate machines bring your work to the masses?

  Joe: Of course. In a perfect world, corporate machines would run smoothly and make good decisions.

  Blake: When I visited you in Chicago last month, we watched The Man From Earth. I think it's the best film of the last five years. Am I wrong?

  Joe: You are wrong. The best film of the last five years is Black Dynamite.

  Blake: Strange. I feel like we watched that movie, too, and yet I have so little memory of it.

  Joe: We'd been drinking. Watch it again clearheaded.

  Blake: You have the best innate sense of story and character arc of anyone I know (I'm not blowing smoke, and I'm not the only person who thinks this). You've helped me out of the woods on numerous projects. But having written several books with you, I happen to know you don't outline. So what's your process for working out stories, character arcs, etc.? Is it subconscious? Do stories come fully formed or what? It's uncanny.

  Joe: Thanks. You know how there are those weirdo savants who can multiply by fractions or recall what day of the week May 10, 1934 was?

  Blake: It was a Tuesday, but go ahead…

  Joe: It's kinda the same thing. I see story arcs in my head automatically, because I know what they're supposed to do. It's a lot like filling in the blanks, but in a way that allows for some variation. So the stories don't come fully formed, but they do make themselves obvious and pretty much write themselves. I'll often talk to writers who are stuck on a scene, and I'll explain they aren't actually stuck, all the elements are in place, and all they need to do is tie them together by doing X.

  Blake: So are you ever surprised by a story you’re writing, if you already know what’s supposed to happen?

  Joe: I always know. It's still fun, like watching a movie unfold in my head.

  Blake: Best piece of writing advice you got (and don't say "read a lot" - that's true but lame).

  Joe: Learn what works, and why. That applies to life as well. What do you like most about writing?

  Blake: I love when you have an idea of how the story plays out, but then characters surprise you and it goes in a completely new direction which was really where you should’ve been going all along. I guess what I’m saying is…I love the thrill of telling yourself a story that’s working and surprising you.

  Joe: What do you dislike most about writing?

  Blake: The difficult days when it’s like pulling teeth to get words on the page, and your sentences aren’t flowing like you want and your characters don’t want to talk to you (or anybody).

  Joe: Do Blake Crouch stories have a unifying, underlying theme?

  Blake: I think so, and it’s the idea of pushing regular people to their breaking point and beyond and watching how they respond. I’ve realized in the past year that I’m just not interested in writing about characters who aren’t at the end of their rope. And the rope is on fire.

  Joe: You got hosed by your publisher, and their many mistakes have hampered your career. Besides bad covers, poor distribution, lack of support, and the failure to release your last two books in paperback, there was also a long gap between your second and third books. What happened?

  Blake: Yeah, and sadly my experience is not unique. The gap between my 2nd and 3rd books was partly my fault. I was originally going to write Snowbound after Locked Doors. I started it but stopped when Abandon came calling. I submitted Abandon instead, and man were they pissed. So I wrote Snowbound, and they were still pissed. I changed editors, but stayed at the same publishing company, and my new editor loved both Abandon and Snowbound, but decided to publish Abandon first. All the interim bullshit took about two years and delayed the publication of my third novel.

  Joe: Where do you feel the publishing industry is headed?

  Blake: I don’t know. Adaptation is my hope. There are a lot of very smart people in publishing who I’m sure are making efforts to stay afloat. The problem is, when a royalty rate like Amazon’s comes along (70%) and a writer can make the same royalty on a $2.99 ebook as a $26 hardcover, it becomes a little less enticing to sign your rights away forever to a publisher who isn’t offering a large sum of money.

  Joe: What book has disturbed you the most? What movie?

  Blake: Book: Red Dragon. Movie: It’s not a movie, but the last 60 seconds of Episode 8 of Twin Peaks. I saw it when I saw 12, and it left me physically quaking. I’ve never recovered.

  Joe: Your books have some pretty intense scenes in them, and you don't shy away from putting violence on the page. Have you ever censored yourself?

  Blake: Not really, because usually, when I’m writing, I tend to know what lines I’m crossing, and I’m okay with it.

  Joe: The magazine cover photo was taken at BeerKon 2010. Best conference ever?

  Blake: Oh, no doubt. 2011 will be even better.

  Joe: We've collaborated on a bunch of stories, and are now doing a novel, Stirred, which will be the last Jack Daniels ebook, and also conclude your Andrew Z. Thomas/Luther Kite series. How do all of these books connect and intertwine with one another?

  Blake: One of our brilliant cover artists, Jeroen ten Berge, is currently working up a graphic on this. Essentially, Serial Uncut, soon to be expanded as Serial Killers Uncut, is the centerpiece of our universe—all our villains (from your Jack Daniels and Jack Kilborn series, from my Desert Places seri
es, Snowbound, Abandon, and others) in one novel-length work. The way these villains’ paths cross tangentially connects almost every one of our novels. For instance, Luther Kite is one of the bad guys from my Desert Places series. He shows up in my novella Bad Girl, which is a part of Serial Uncut, which sets him up to pursue Jack Daniels in Shaken, a battle which will be fully resolved in our collaboration novel Stirred. We’re essentially doing the same thing comics have been doing for years: creating a shared universe for our characters. It facilitates our collaborations, but more importantly, encourages readers who like one of our books, to try the other 20 which are connected in some way or another.

  Joe: How does your collaborative writing differ from your solo writing?

  Blake: My solo writing tends to be slower, more methodical. Not that this is a good thing or makes my writing any better, I just don’t have you breathing down my neck since you write about ten books a year.

  Joe: You're exaggerating. Last year I only wrote 7. How did the Draculas project come about?

  Blake: You had the basic premise and title and called me up and pitched it. I thought it sounded like a blast. We developed a cast of characters, a setting, and then contacted F. Paul Wilson and Jeff Strand to see if they wanted to be involved. Luckily, they did. We then gave Jeff and Paul first pick of which characters they wanted to write (they took all the cool ones that had weapons), and we were off.