Our SPFBOX interviews continue with Ben Schenkman, author of My Boss is the Devil.
SPFBO (the Self-Published Fantasy Blog Off) is a free online contest run by author Mark Lawrence. 300 authors compete across ten judging teams to see who will be the winner! You can read more about the contest here.
INTERVIEW WITH BEN SCHENKMAN
Tell us a little about yourself and let our readers know which blog you’ve been assigned to for SPFBOX!
I’m a contemporary/urban fantasy author! I’m also going to be a debut audiobook narrator/producer as I work on the audiobook editions of my series. I live with my partner, my eight year old son, and three cats. I was assigned to the Critiquing Chemist.
What inspired you to write this book?
I was working a fairly dead end job myself at the time, and wondered what it would be like if someone got the chance to work for the Devil. I was, and am, a bit of an optimist and challenged the usual “deal with the devil” concept with what I wanted to do at the time. I had a lot of feelings around “how to make a difference” and added that into the book as I wrote it.
Can you tell us a little bit about your writing or editing process? What’s most exciting to you about writing or editing?
I’m a pantser with an outline. I don’t do extensive plotting, but let the story flow organically. Luckily it also flows pretty linearly, and I’m not doing a lot of editing afterward to make the timeline make sense.
Editing-wise, I do a couple self-editing passes (including a Word macro that highlights junk, filler, and filter words to review), then after my beta readers have a whack at it, I send it to my editor.
The most exciting part about writing is feeling the story come out of your fingertips and onto the page. I love the energy that comes when you’re writing a scene that just “works” and suddenly you’re 2,000 words in. My favorite part of editing is…being done with editing.
I hope people laugh, first and foremost. We need that these days. Other than that, I hope readers take away a more balanced view of good and evil. What we think is bad may not be so, and what we think of as good might be suspect.
Who or what have been your major literary influences?
I’ve read a lot of urban fantasy, and one of my favorites is Charles de Lint. His work really helped me see that the supernatural can be worked into a setting as natural without it being a bunch of spell slinging. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, I enjoy the more action packed type of UF as well. It’s just that my books fit more with the ambient “magic just exists in the background” books.
What makes your SPFBOX book unique?
My book isn’t the only one with dark humor, but there are certainly a lot of dark, grimdark, or serious fantasy books. Additionally, I think my book challenges the standard tropes of the “deal with a devil” variety, and will leave the readers questioning good and evil rather than just playing into “sexy devil” favorites.
Do you have a favourite character from your SPFBOX entry? Tell us about them!
My MC, Nick, is my favorite character. He’s an altruist without a budget, being a poor college dropout. A lot of the story is giving him the resources to actually enjoy his life. It’s a bit of wish fulfillment for people, but it’s an adult coming-of-age story for someone escaping the poverty line. Second to that, there’s a one-eyed cat modeled after my own Maine coon cat.
The most exciting part about writing is feeling the story come out of your fingertips and onto the page. I love the energy that comes when you’re writing a scene that just “works” and suddenly you’re 2,000 words in.
How does your work fit into (or challenge) its genre?
My Boss is the Devil fits the genre because it’s supernatural things taking place in an urban setting, and that setting is crucial to the story working. Otherwise it’s not entirely genre, because it’s much less magic/supernatural heavy. You’ll find that it’s on the cozier side of UF, simply because the stakes aren’t world-ending. There are stakes, don’t get me wrong, it’s just personal ones.
What do you hope readers take away from your SPFBOX entry?
What are you currently working on?
I’m currently editing (ugh) the third book in the series! The second just released at the end of June, and I’ll be working on turning books one and two into audiobooks as well!
My Boss is the Devil
What’s better than being a college dropout twenty-something working as a barista in New Haven, CT? Just about anything.
Nick would give anything to escape the dead-end life he’s made for himself. He gets the offer of a lifetime from Lucifer himself, to trade his apron for a suit. Should he really consider becoming an agent of the Devil? With the way things are going for Nick, of course he should.
Lucifer wants to give Nick a chance to do what he always wanted, to help people, wielding power and influence to make their dreams come true. He would have to sell his soul, but the Devil is a gambling man and lets Nick experience his new life before he has to sign on the dotted line. Can he use the Devil’s power for good, and make his mark on the world, or will he fall victim to his own desires and lose his humanity?
As if that wasn’t enough, the very friend that made the meeting with Lucifer possible turns on Nick, and he needs to do some quick thinking to come out on top. Maybe the ends justify the means, but there are no easy answers.
Finding the balance between good and evil is about to require a lot of coffee.
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Ben Schenkman likes many things in life: his 20-pound Maine coon cat, his family, his coffee, and his eclectic hobbies—not necessarily in that order.
Ben also likes to play devil’s advocate in his urban fantasy books by exploring the gray areas of good and evil with questions like, “Does the end really justify the means? Or is it all simply black and white?” Ben leaves these questions lingering in the ether to challenge readers’ conventional thinking and delve into the complexities of moral dilemmas.
As a native of Connecticut, Ben draws inspiration from his upbringing and college years in New Haven, where his novels take place. When he wants to escape being a writer, he’s a massive foodie who goes on gastronomic adventures, an overachiever who collects degrees in Theater, Nuclear Engineering, and an MBA, or the manager/performer of the fire dance troupe, HVBRIS—you know, the basics. No big deal.
Want to know more about his work, or talk about coffee and cats? He loves hearing from readers!
