Action Pulp!

By Adam Messer

“I think I always knew I wanted to tell stories in some fashion. I can’t pinpoint exactly when, but as far as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to entertain people. It’s a noble endeavor, I think, to distract folks from their own mortality for a few minutes, hours, or days.” – Dustin Mills.

Please introduce yourself.

I’m Dustin Mills. I’m one of those dreadful jacks of all trades. I’m an animator, a filmmaker, an illustrator of sorts, and recently an author. I’m originally from rural Indiana, but now I live with my wife, Erica, and our dog, Fletcher, in Bowling Green, Ohio.

What genres do you write and why?

I’ve written horror in the past, but my first novel, “Pigiron,” is a mythic animal fantasy with the pulp of Howard’s Conan stories and the warmth of Jacques’s Redwall books. I don’t have an answer as to why. It’s just what felt right. I reckon I will eventually dabble in other genres and subgenres.

What is your earliest memory of reading?

I recall spending many summer vacations devouring the Goosebumps, Fear Street, and Shanarrah books on my bedroom floor. Jurassic Park was also in regular rotation, over and over again. Reading was my escape from an otherwise troubled and overstimulated mind. Books and movies gave my brain something to distract it from eating itself. They still do, to be honest.

When did you know you wanted to write? How did it happen?

I think I always knew I wanted to tell stories in some fashion. I can’t pinpoint exactly when, but as far as I can remember, I’ve always wanted to entertain people. It’s a noble endeavor, I think, to distract folks from their own mortality for a few minutes, hours, or days. And the best storytellers can do that while guiding folks through fears, hatreds, and sadnesses they might not otherwise know how to navigate.

What’s one of your favorite scenes in one of your books?

There is a chapter in “Pigiron II” (releasing this summer) that I think is, perhaps, the finest thing I have ever written. I’m very glad that it ended up in a Pigiron book because the series means a great deal to me.

What makes a good character? A bad one?

I think a good character is a human one. Or, rather, one that is cursed with humanity. They should have desires, prejudices, talents, tastes, and fears. A good character has personality and, in a book, the reader should be able to tell when they’re speaking even without a dialogue tag.

Bad characters? I’m not sure, but I know one when I see it. I think maybe a good indicator that a character isn’t well executed is when they only react to the plot and rarely make decisions. Or when all of their thoughts and actions bend whichever way the plot directs them. They don’t feel like people then. They’re more like furniture. 

What moves the story for you?

The characters. Always. Especially when they make a bad decision or a plan fails. The plot is the plot, but for me, the story always grows out of keeping the characters true to themselves and allowing them to act honestly. Frankly, I care very little about the plot proper. I’m much more concerned with what lives behind it and who the characters become as they try to navigate it. That’s the story.

What is your favorite book and why?

This is a very difficult question, but I will give you examples of books I love.
Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury, Circe by Madeline Miller, any of the Conan stories by Robert E. Howard, The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson, The Thief of Always by Clive Barker, The House on the Borderland by William Hope Hodgson and The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro.

What do you want to say to your audience?

“Pigiron” is my first book and I self-published it. So I guess I would say to my audience, “Please exist.”

What advice do you have for new writers?

I’m new myself. So, I am ill-qualified to dole out advice. However, I will say this to any artist: Keep going.

Do you have anything else you would like to add?

Nothing except to thank you, Adam, for taking the time to interview me.

Website: www.pigironbooks.com