If you were a fan of 2009's Breathers: A Zombie's Lament, I've got some great news for you: its sequel, I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus, comes out tomorrow! And you want to know the best part? It's every bit as good as the original, equally touching and funny and satirical, with plenty of zombie action! I devoured this book in two days; I could not put it down because it was so much fun.I was lucky enough to speak with S.G. Browne, the author of both of these great books, about the sequel, the status of the Breathers film, the popularity of zombies, and his five favorite zombie movies.
Hi Scott! How's it going today?
I'm in Del Mar visiting a close friend and getting ready to go play Smash Ball on the beach, so I'd say today is looking good.
I loved I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus! It is hilarious, touching, and the perfect sequel to Breathers. What made you decide to write about Andy Warner again?
I'd never planned on continuing Andy's story unless I could come up with something fresh. The last thing I wanted to do was regurgitate the same ideas from the first novel. While I had a seed of an idea for a sequel, it didn't start to germinate until my publisher asked me if I was interested in writing a Christmas themed zombie novella. Add a little water and sunshine and some zombie compost and two months later, the idea bloomed into I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus.
I Saw Zombies Eating Santa Claus moves from horror to comedy to emotional scenes. Which is the hardest for you to write? What comes the most natural for you?
To be honest, I don't think too much about moving from one to the other while I'm writing. The different scenes are just a part of the story and if I'm telling it honestly, then the horror and comedy and emotion all come out feeling natural. So none of them are any harder to write than the others. But I do pay attention to make sure the emotional scenes don't get too sappy. I'm a sucker for It's A Wonderful Life.
