Kathy: What first drew you to mysteries, thrillers, and horror? Do you have a favorite of the three?
JR: Good Question. I was eight years old and went (well forced) to go to the movies and watch “Halloween”. I was scared to death, but then realized that I love the horror genre. Then I watch “Amityville Horror” and read the book and was hooked. I started reading Stephen King, but then went off and started reading mysteries, especially Agatha Christie. Stephen King, Brad Thor and Dean Koontz would be my three favorite authors.
Kathy: How did the idea of the magazine come about?
JR: My wife is a huge reader and we would visit the library and Barnes & Noble probably once a week. We kept seeing the same authors in the front of store all the time. She wanted to find new authors, so I told her that I would search around and see if someone covered the genre. To my surprise it wasn’t covered that well at all. That is when I decided to start one myself.
Kathy: Tell us about your magazine.
JR: Suspense Magazine is all about the author. We wanted to give a place where every author, regardless of sales, had a place to showcase their work. We have industry news, articles on writing, author interviews and features, excerpts from books, short stories, and over 20 pages of book reviews. But each magazine is a little different, so no two are alike.
Kathy: You also have a radio network with 5 different shows. How did you get involved with radio?
JR: When we found out that the magazine was just not large enough to cover all the emails we got for features on authors, I thought it would be a good idea to have them on the radio. Authors can be very funny and interesting, something that you really don’t get within their writing at times. By expanding to the radio we are able to give fans more authors, more stories and more exposure to the genre.
Kathy: Would you share your most memorable article? What made it so special?
JR: I don’t have one article, but I do have one interview. That was when I was able to interview Stephen King. We were a no name magazine, just starting out and I messaged him on his website and was contacted by his assistant who said he would be delighted to be in the magazine. That was when I knew we had something here and that what we were doing was something very important for authors.
Kathy: If you could have a dinner party and invite 4 authors, living or dead, in any genre, who would you invite?
JR: Stephen King, Edgar Allen Poe, Agatha Christie and Plato. (shocked you with that one didn’t I)
Kathy: What are you currently reading?
JR: Right now I’m actually reading for fun. I’ve read so many books for review that I decided to read some of the Star Wars books. I did finish two recent Star Wars ones, Heir to the Jedi and Lords of the Sith, they fit in great with the Star Wars universe.
Kathy: Will you share any of your hobbies or interests with us?
JR: Sports (Football, Baseball, Soccer, Basketball and Hockey), playing Golf, hiking, sitting on the beach and reading while watching the waves, studying history and music (I’m a huge fan of 80’s music and heavy metal).
Kathy: Name 4 items you always have in your fridge or pantry.
JR: Diet coke, anything chocolate, fruit and peanut butter.
Kathy: What's your favorite thing about being a magazine editor?
JR: The fact that I can help out so many people. It is great to get an email from an author saying thank you so much for including me in the magazine, or a couple of years ago hearing from an author that said because we included her book as one of the best of the year, her publisher signed her to two more books. Our magazine is not money motivated. I know that sounds strange in today’s world, but if money was our motivation we would have stopped doing this years ago. We have met so many wonderful people that have become good friends now. We are just so pleased that we can reach out and give fans a platform to show off their work.
Suspense Magazine
by John Raab
on Tour June 2015
Suspense Magazine is an all digital magazine that was founded in 2007. We publish short stories, interviews, exclusive excerpts, articles and more. We have also in the past published alternate endings to very popular books, IE: Sara Paretsky's book "Critical Mass".
"Suspense Magazine is chock full of stunning artwork, intriguing fiction, and interviews It's a winner!"
—Tess Gerritsen, International Bestselling Author
More About John:
John Raab founded Suspense Magazine in 2007. Also the host of three radio shows on Suspense Radio Network (Inside Edition, One on One and Beyond The Cover) also the producer for two more shows, Crime and Science Radio and The Story Blender.
The CEO / Publisher of Suspense Publishing a book publisher that publishes #1 NY Times Bestselling Author Paul Kemprecos, along with several other authors.
Terrific interview! Thanks for introducing us to the publisher of Suspense Magazine, a great resource for all fans of mysteries and thrillers.
ReplyDelete