Posted by
Decapitated Dan
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Andrew E.C. Gaska talks Frenzy
Decapitated Dan: Hey Drew thanks for taking time to talk with me about FRENZY. First of all lets talk about you. Who are you and what do you do?
Drew Gaska: I’m Andrew E.C. Gaska, (my friends know me as Drew Gaska on Facebook). I’m the author of the illustrated novel Conspiracy of the Planet of the Apes, the graphic novels SPACE: 1999 Aftershock and Awe and Classic SPACE: 1999 To Everything That Was, and the creator of the graphic novel series Critical Millennium.
DD: How did you find yourself getting into writing?
DG: I would have to say the genesis of me creating stories started at a very young age with my Star Wars figures. While other kids would play games which often ended in the dismemberment of main characters, I would insist on the continuity between playtime, the movies and the published comic books.
It got worse when I discovered Dungeons and Dragons in the 5th grade. I played a few times and quickly became frustrated with the hack and slash “storytelling” of the game masters I was playing with. It wasn’t long before I became the game master myself, crafting stories and putting the other players through their own personal hells. When I got to college (which I went to for art), I was trained in comics writing by the legendary Denny O’Neil, responsible for some of the most important Batman, Green Lantern and Question stories ever. Denny made me realize that writing is where my future lay and the rest is history!
DD: So what can you tell me about Frenzy?
DG: In the early 1970s, off the North Eastern seaboard of the United States, an army amasses. This army doesn’t use guns, or bombs, or even knives. Instead its weapons are speed, stealth, size, and rows of flesh-tearing teeth. They gather each year at the same location to eat and mate, then break up again to traverse the oceans until the next cycle.This army poses no danger to those who stay out of its way. They make no organized attacks, lead no incursions into new territories… That is, unless they have leaders.
Now, they have three.
As a group or researchers, wealthy teenagers, and Vietnam veterans make their way up the coast, the army of great white sharks gathers to feed on seals. The sharks, however, soon find themselves besieged by ruthless predators. As the sharks attempt to flee, three of their kind; bigger, deadlier, and more cunning than the rest, rise to the occasion, whipping this pack of great whites into a feeding… FRENZY!
DD: What’s it all about?
DG: FRENZY is about a pack of great white sharks that turn deadly when humans interfere with their environment.
DD: Who are the main characters?
DG: While there are many human characters in this story, the “heroes” of the book are the sharks!
DD: Where did this idea come from?
DG: When I was three years-old, my parents wanted to go see JAWS at a drive-in theatre. They couldn’t find a babysitter that night so they took me along, figuring I was too young to understand what I was watching.
I watched the entire film in silence, until the shark was killed at the end. I immediately started bawling my eyes out, and my mother asked me what was wrong. I told her, “The shark was just trying to eat. He was hungry!”
I had seen Bambi previous this film, and as Bambi was the name of the deer, I identified him as the central character. Since this movie was called JAWS, an obvious reference to the shark even for a three-year-old, I thought we were supposed to be on the shark’s side!
With the heightened understanding of our environment that we have today, it’s obvious that sharks are more victim to man than the other way around. The time seemed right for a shark horror/thriller adventure that would take their side of the conflict.
DG: It would have to be R, (although if it came out in the 1970’s it would be rated G with the same amount of blood). The reason for this is that shark attacks are not pretty. Conversely, what man does to sharks is pretty brutal as well. This book will be both gruesome and poignant in the details!
DD: What are you hoping readers can take away from this story?
DG: First and foremost, a terrifyingly fun read! Secondly, and in the end more importantly, the message that man is more monstrous than the largest predators in the sea.
DD: Is this a book that we can expect more from in the future?
DG: Absolutely! While this story has a definite ending, there are threads left which could be picked up for a sequel. One of the things I think that Hollywood has mostly gotten wrong about sequels is that they can be used to tell a bigger story, building off the original instead of simply rehashing it. It perplexes me that rehashed sequels still exist in this day and age. Back before people had access to the films in their home on a regular basis (before the 80’s), the concept of the rehash sequel made more sense as it had been a few years since viewers had gotten to see their favorite film. Essentially giving the audience the same thing again would keep their fever for it alive.
Today I have my favorite films on DVD, Blu-ray, Netflix and Amazon Instant. I can purchase a digital copy to sit on my iPad, in my PS3... I can even stream the damned thing from my phone. If a sequel for a property-- be it movie, book, or comic-- comes out and doesn’t expand the mythos, it will always be considered secondary to the original, instead of being it’s own thing. At its core, doing this correctly is called ‘transmedia’, something that my production company, BLAM! Ventures, excels at. Keeping all that in mind, if the demand is there, and there is a FRENZY sequel, expect it to broaden the horizons of what’s in the original.
DD: Why go Illustrated Prose over Comic Book for this one?
DG: This isn’t my first illustrated prose book. Previously, I wrote Conspiracy of the Planet of the Apes. I am currently working on it’s sequel, as well as the Buck Rogers in the 25th century illustrated novel series.
This format dates back to the pulps and is actually a precursor to comics. It’s a fun format that is seldom used nowadays and one that I feel blends the best of both worlds. In a novel, I can get into a character’s head and discuss minute details that would make a comic seem long and drawn out. Also, the format affords me the opportunity to work with many talented and renowned artists on the same project, as various paintings in the book are done by various top talent. It’s fun and insures that every image in the book is the same quality as the most beautifully painted comic book cover could ever be.
DD: Who are the other talent working on this book with you?
DG: You want artists? Have we got artists! Dave Dorman, Bob Eggleton, menton3, Erik Gist, Steve White, Chandra Free, Aaron Miller, Dan Dussault, Marina Bekeshko, Miki, JK Woodward and more will all have illustrations in FRENZY!
We’ve also got beautiful and popular cosplay models Kit Quinn (www.facebook.com/misskitquinn) and Joanie Mars (www.facebook.com/Ms.Mars.Cosplay) onboard, as well as BLAM! Ventures own Katie Delz and Ella Laytham, as the artists’ models for the women in the book!
Beautiful art by beautiful artists of beautiful models being eaten by beautiful sharks!
DD: So where can readers find out more about this book and jump in on the Kickstarter?
DG: Our Kickstarter page can be found at this link -http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1867085351/frenzy-an-illustrated-novel
Or by simply searching ‘FRENZY’ on Kickstarter.com. Alternatively, we have a Facebook page, (https://www.facebook.com/frenzynovel), where we post updates and have spotlights of the artists and models that will be featured in the book itself.
DD:And where can readers find out more about you and your awesome writing skills?
DG: You can visit blamventures.com to find out more information about current and upcoming projects. You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/andrew.gaska), and my author page on amazon.com (http://www.amazon.com/Andrew-E.-C.-Gaska/e/B004FYZPD4)
DD: So in summary give me a quick recap on Frenzy and why fans should give it a try.
DG:Sharks = heroes. Story = gruesome, minute details. Pulps. Environmentally conscious horror. Beautiful women. Adventure. The 1970’s.
Plus, we’ve got some awesome incentives for those who pledge, including BEING IN THE BOOK and going shark diving with me!
Oh... and did I mention sharks?
DD: Thanks so much for your time Drew
DG:Thank you, AND your decapitated head, Dan!
