I’ve been running a series of interviews with authors that are releasing new books. I hope you’ll take the time to check out their work. Today, please welcome author, Keith Gouveia.

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To start, can you tell me a little about yourself.

I am a Mechanical Engineer who writes fiction in his spare time. I live in Orlando, FL with my wife Lisa, our dog Murphy, our parrot Marley, and two rabbits, Scooby and Lilo. My writing bounces back and forth from Horror and Fantasy, but no matter which genre I'm in, you can bet I'll startle you at some point.

How long have you been writing and how did you get to this point in your career?

I've been writing seriously for ten years now. My first book was self-published and I learned the ropes the hard way. It has taken me many years, and tens-of-thousands of words to overcome that hurdle, but today, my writing is stronger than ever and I receive a fraction of the rejection letters that dissuaded me from traditional publishing what seems like a lifetime ago.

Tell me what inspired you to write this particular novel?

My latest book, Animal Behavior and Other Tales of Lycanthropy came to be from a challenge laid down by fellow author AP Fuchs. He had asked if I had enough werewolf material, without duplicating too many ideas, to fill a book. At the time, I had two short stories and four months later, I had eleven stories and one poem. He, like many others since, believe I answered that challenge.

I have a keen interest in dark fiction. Tell me how you would classify this book and what’s dark about it?

Within the stories of Animal Behavior and Other Tales of Lycanthropy we explore the human condition by focusing on the beast lying dormant in all of us. Some go to extreme measures to protect others from the beast's cruelty, while others unleash it. I believe these tales are a fine example of the Horror Genre with enough blood and guts to satiate the jadest of fans.

Sometimes we have to be ruthless in writing/editing. We cut scenes, eliminate characters or even kill them off. Tell me what was the hardest of these in this book.

That's a tough question to answer for me. When I sit down to write, I start with a single thought and I explore that thought as I write. I do not outline so for me, the story's conclusion is a surprise and a natural occurrence. I have no predefined boundaries I have to force myself to change or meet. By the time I'm done, that's the story my heart wanted to tell, and I'm true to that.

This blog is called Random Musings, so give me a random quote from the book – something you’re particularly fond of.

From the opening tale, The Beast of Garden Row, in Animal Behavior and Other Tales of Lycanthropy:

The next night, under the light of the full moon, Jim transformed into the monster that had taken everything away from him. As the beast, he had full knowledge of its actions, but control was lost. After a hundred years he had learned to influence the beast, but in the end, it was a wild animal whose actions were unpredictable. As a former man of the cloth, he would never gamble with an innocent life so he chose this existence. To live among the dead and allow the beast to release its destructive impulses on those it could not harm.

What can we expect from you next?

Multiple projects actually. The reading period for The Snuff Syndicate is over and stories have been selected for this Serial Killer themed anthology, edited by yours truly. Final product should be out late this year, or early 2011. I have completed The General and the Puppeteer, part two of my Death Puppet trilogy, which Coscom Entertainment will be publishing soon. The first part, Revolt of the Dead, published by Coscom Entertainment is currently available. I have several short stories due to be published in various anthologies and I am currently writing a Vampire novel with fellow author Giovanna Lagana. I also have a secret project going with Coscom Entertainment and I hope to be able to share details on that soon.

Where can we find you on the internet?

Though I'm terrible with updates, you can always find me on the web here: http://www.keithgouveia.com or you can join me on Facebook where I frequent the most.

Any final comments or thoughts?

Just a thank you, David, for allowing me this opportunity and to your readers: Regardless of your dreams, never let anyone stand in your way.

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My pleasure, Keith! And that’s a great motto about your dreams – I totally agree!!

Thanks for the interview and best of luck with Animal Behavior and Other Tales of Lycanthropy and your other upcoming works. I look forward to your secret project with Coscom entertainment! Be sure to come back and fill us in!

Purchasing information:

Amazon – Kindle
Smashwords