Q: When did you write your first novel? What was it about?
For my first novel I had the luck to go to an old farmhouse in Poland, far away from the next dwelling.
The key I got from a friend, she ran a used and new books store. The place had no electricity or running water, a magic time. I wrote a horror novel there. It was never published, but it was an amazing experience.
Q: How many other books have you published since then?
In total 14 novels are published, traditionally and self-published.
Q: Tell us, readers, about your latest novel, Grolar.
The main character, Jon, lost his job in Vancouver and finds work at a small gold mining camp. His
wife and his young son join him. When the toddler shows them what he had found near the tree line,
they know, there is something dark waiting for them. It is a grolar, half grizzly bear, half polar bear, and
this one grew bigger than either one. Grolar I wrote at a paid writers’ residency in Denmark, H.A.L.D.
Q: What genre do you mostly find yourself writing about?
I am comfortable writing in any genre, except lawyer and spy novels. But over the years I seem always to come back to the horror genre and its sub genres.
Q: How difficult is it to balance both a full-time writing and musical career?
Both are balancing me! Writing is a rather static activity, although I use speech recognition a lot, what allows me to stand up or lay down while writing. Music is more physical, it also trains the ear, an important often underrated sense in novels. With music my body is more active, standing up playing guitar or singing, and it caters to all the poetry and lyrics that I write whenever and wherever I am—impossible with novels, for me at least, I can only write them in a room. A poem or a lyric can happen literally anywhere, give me 20 minutes for a first draft and I am all in. Music is also more playful, more experimental, I can try new stuff easier.
Q: You have just released a new music album, Brothers for a While. What was the inspiration?
Brothers for a While is an ode to my friends, to all the best friends in the world. I feel that’s how it is:
when you find a good friend, it is like having a brother for a while—if you don’t have siblings, which I
didn’t. I kept it biographical, concrete, the friends know who I am talking about, and they deserve it. I
wouldn’t have this interview without them, I would not be the artist and the person I am now, would I
have never met them. That deserves at least a song. Friendship is special, it is not blood, two or more
people choose to trust another, with their secrets, their hopes and dreams. Brothers for a While is May album of my 1 EP a month series.
Q: Which do you enjoy more writing stories or creating music?
Most I enjoy the freedom to be able to choose the medium that fits best: an idea, the storytelling and
my mood.
Q: What is your advice for aspiring writers and musicians in your field areas?
Nobody told me this when I was young, but I knew one thing back then (I don’t know why): I don’t
want to create for money, I want to create to express what I need to say. At the age of 23, I decided for a lifestyle: I sold my car, I started buying 2nd hand clothes, and the money I saved in doing so I invested in time, my lifetime, time to write, to grow my skill, to grow me as storyteller. It is an illusion to think to make a living as an artist, but it can happen when you are you. A simpler lifestyle shouldn’t be a sacrifice, it should feel natural, otherwise it would hurt. I never missed anything; I never regretted my decision.
Q: What other projects are you currently working on?
I received a literary grant from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts to write a dystopian novel, and I am
about to finish it. Then I have to look for an agent or a publishing house. Parallel to that I record 1 EP a
month.
Q: What themes can be found in your novel, Grolar?
You’ll find Good vs. Evil, Courage, Survival and the Love of a father to his boy and his wife in Grolar.
Q: Which top three songs from your latest album do you love the most?
It is an EP with 4 songs. I always record 5 or 6, but during mixing and mastering I boil it down to 4 that
I love equally, because they also jive with each other and in that order.
Q: Where can readers and fans find you, your books, and music albums online?
My books are on Amazon (Grolar here: https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00COMVBIW/ my audio books (like Grolar fantastically narrated by Chuck Buell) on audible www.audible.ca/pd/Grolar-Audiobook/B07CZPQ48S and my music on www.nesch.bandcamp.com and on all streaming platforms (like Spotify, apple iTunes etc. under my name Thorsten Nesch. www.thorstennesch.com is my homepage.
Urban Book Reviews 