The Dark Side: Frank Tuttle

The Dark Side aims to shed light on that deep, dark, mysterious side of an author, a face that he rarely, if ever, shows to the public. What secret is he hiding behind that enigmatic smile on his official photo (if any)? What juicy tidbit is he keeping from the world? What are some of the things that he liked, things we would never know, because it's not part of his bio? 

Today, we have with us FRANK TUTTLE, author of THE BANSHEE'S WALK, who regaled us in a previous post with some fun facts about his book and an exclusive excerpt.

Remember, think dark, dark, dark... 

Do you believe in ghosts and supernatural phenomenon? Have you ever had a close encounter? Do tell us about it.

I do in fact believe people have seen and experienced something.  Ghosts are as old as humanity.  Now, as to whether ghosts have any objective existence, or whether we see them because we’re wired that way somehow, I just don’t know.  I’ve never seen a ghost, but I have an interest in haunted places and people who believe they’re haunted.  In fact, I have an investigation scheduled for later this month.  Maybe I’ll finally come face to face with something science truly cannot explain.

Are you afraid of the dark? Why or why not?

I am not at all afraid of the dark.  It’s the same world it was when lit.  And yeah, parts of it are scary – but the dark just hides scary things.  It doesn’t create them, or make them any more dangerous than they were before.  Also, I have a big flashlight. :)

What did you learn from the dark time/s you’ve experienced? 

Life goes on, until it doesn’t anymore.  There’s an old Zen koan, I think it is, about a man who is chased by two tigers to the edge of a cliff.  He climbs down the cliff on a vine, only to find that the vine isn’t nearly long enough to reach to the bottom.  So he can’t go back up, or the tigers will eat him.  And he can’t go down, because the vine isn’t long enough.  He also can’t hang on forever.  He is clearly about to fall to his death or be eaten; there is no escape.  But then he looks at the cliff wall, and sees a strawberry plant growing there, loaded with red sweet ripe strawberries.  So he eats them, and enjoys them.  And that’s life, whether we realize it or not.  We all hang by threads, all the time.  But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t enjoy the good moments.  Does that make sense?  I’m heavily medicated, did I mention that?  Pretty colors…

What can you say to someone who is experiencing his/her own dark time now?
Muddle on.  When things get bad, contract.  By that, I mean pull back your focus.  Concentrate on the now.  Put one foot ahead of the other.  Experience one breath at a time.  Pull back your focus until you are literally experiencing your body in the moment.  No past.  No furutr.  There is only now.  Is your heart still beating?  Take a breath.  That is ultimately the essence of life.
 
What is the one thing fans wouldn’t know about you unless you tell them?
I’m a pretty good carpenter.  Seriously.  I’ve also built some good furniture.  I like building things, whether it’s an entertainment center or a complete house, and I’ve done both more than once.  Building a house from the foundations up is not something people expect of me, but I’ve done it!


Lightning Round. 

white or dark chocolate :  Dark! 
milk or coffee :  Coffee. 
night or day :  Night. 
coke or 7-up :  Coke. 
New York cheesecake or black forest cake :  New York cheesecake. 
vampire or werewolf :  Vampire. 
football game or candlelit dinner :  Candlelit dinner. 
ebook or print :  ebook. 
spring or autumn :  autumn. 
sweet or salty : Salty. 
kitten or puppy : Puppy. 

cook or take-out :  Take-out. 

Frank Tuttle's THE BANSHEE'S WALK is now available at Samhain Publishing (ebook). This title is also included in the list of giveaways for our ongoing contest.

Frank Tuttle's other titles:

Hold the Dark

The Cadaver Client