Independent Paranormal: Interview with Athanasios, author of Mad Gods

Greetings! Today, we have an interview with Athanasios, author of Mad Gods. Check out the blurb:

For fans of Dan Brown, Joseph Campbell & Elaine Pagels, the Omen & the Exorcist...

Bible Revelation is metaphorically crucified when the Antichrist refuses his destiny and makes an apocalyptic escape from Satanists, Templars, Dark Nobility & the Catholic Church.

Kostadino Paleologos searches the entire world for a codex that is rumored to catalogue the Antichrist's past lives and finding it, throws prophecy into chaos.

He kidnaps and raises the infant Antichrist: calls him Adam and teaches what he learned in his search for the Idammah-Gan Codex. He shows Adam that the truth to which every faith aspires cannot be seen because we who comprise these faiths: are flawed. We see, hear, smell, taste and touch with inadequate tools. Even our intellect, on that which we rely to understand is limited; unable to comprehend the totality of truth. Truth is too large -or too small- to absorb; it transcends everything.

In the end the Antichrist sees that religion i.e. faith is outside reason, but whatever solace we get is lost in the translation.

Find out how to buy the book at the end of the interview.

Welcome to Independent Paranormal, Athanasios. It’s great to have you here. Tell us a bit about the inspiration for Mad Gods.

Religion in general. I grew up being scared out of my wits by the Exorcist & the Omen. They were released in theatres in 73 & 76 respectively, which made me 9 & 12. This was in my formative years before I began thinking for myself & got out from my traditional Greek parents beliefs. I wanted to go past those fears & began looking into whatever was known about the two characters therein: Satan & his darling son. The further I looked into it the more scared I became so I left it alone for a while. I didn't even consider it apart from giving myself the willies every couple of months when I gave both some thought. The idea as to how much fear they caused stayed with me. I didn't like it but I knew it was powerful.

So, this concept, or at least a spark of it, has been with you for quite some time. That’s very interesting. Was there a specific moment that made you want to be a writer or did it just happen over time?

I've been creative all my life and have always striven for outlets to express it. I've tried strict Fine Arts, including drawing, painting and sculpture. I've tried graphic arts, illustration and animation, and I've had a measure of success in all of them.

The one form of expression I feel the most comfortable and immersed in is writing. I want to tell this story. I know there are many writers who do write in different genres and have a facility in imparting a narrative for an audience of readers, but I'm not that guy. I want to tell this story, I'm currently not interested in telling another. There are many themes and beliefs in Mad Gods I am compelled to get out.

I can honestly say that I’ve never heard in an interview before the author has no interest in telling another story! That’s a first, but I definitely respect that. What are your writing patterns like? Do you set aside a large chunk of the day for writing or is it more spaced out?

I write primarily in the morning from 5AM to just before I have to catch the train at 8AM to get to regular work. Once on the train I can continue on my iPad.

I try to find time during the day at work because I bring everything with me either on the iPad or on a USB stick. I'm lucky that I have a job where it's lax in specifically working as opposed to getting your work finished; i.e. if you get your stuff done and are caught up they don't care if it takes you 2 hours or 20. Just get it done on time and well. Then on my train ride home I work for another hour or so. I try to average 3-8 hours of writing each day. I occasionally write at night too but not that often, as I like for my mind to be fresh like in the morning or after I finish my meditation after work.

Would you be friends/associate with the characters in Mad Gods? Why or why not?

I would be friends with the two main characters in my book because they have different facets of my own personality. The two main characters are Kostadino Paleologos and the Antichrist who Kosta names Adam. Kosta is a descendant of Byzantine Emperors and for most of his life he has done what was expected of him. I would be friends with him because I grew up hearing the stories of how Kostadinoupoli fell to the Turks and how it would one day return to Greek control. Total rubbish I know but it's a very romantic and doomed wish. Adam learns from Kostadino to control his own destiny and not be a slave to it. Adam realizes it's not easy, it is one of the most difficult tasks anybody can attempt, because you must fight every force known and unknown trying to wrest this control back. Adam has this huge weight on his shoulders of being the Antichrist but all he wants to do is live his life being entertained by television, movies, music and books. I think Adam and I would get along just fine, he's a geek after my own heart.

A geeky Antichrist. I am sold! Anyway, to move to books in general now: ebook or paperback? Why?

Ebook because it's wwwaaaayyyyy more cool. In many ways I'm a regular guy and I love my toys and gadgets. So reading whatever book I want, anytime I want on my iPad is awesome.

Do you read the same kinds of books you write? If there are any differences between the two, what are they?

Not any more. I used to read Michael Moorcock, Robert E. Howard & L. Sprague de Camp in my teens. In my later years I loved Stephen King, Clive Barker, Anne Rice, Malachi Martin & Dan Brown. I also love Mary Renault, Charles Bukowski, Nicolas Cage, Nikos Kazantzakis and MANY comic book creators. Listing just a few: Frank Miller, Garth Ennis, Alan Moore and Matt Wagner. Now I read mostly academics and watch many documentaries about the subjects I write about. My biggest distraction would be Joseph Campbell. His Hero With a Thousand Faces and all his documentaries and lectures are staples in my brain fodder. I’ve watched his Sukhavati and The Power of Myth countless times and have found different things in them every time. Another would be David Icke, Michael Tsarion and Alex Jones who have tackled alternate histories with a fervour and belief that is breathtaking.

So, tell us what you think is alluring about Mad Gods? Why should someone pick it up?

First of all I don't think it can comfortably fit into any one genre. So far in my reviews I've gotten horror, occult, action adventure, dark fantasy, historical fiction, paranormal, supernatural.

It is certainly not for children or the faint of heart, timid or dogmatically religious. The fact that it doesn't fall into a predetermined genre is the biggest reason why it's different from most books.

More to the point of what sets it it apart from most other books that it could be compared to is that it takes the paranormal or occult theme of the Antichrist and reverses it bringing the duality of man, & woman, to its final evolution: Good/Evil - Christ/Antichrist or as I like to write it Xos/AntiXos.

At its core Mad Gods is about responsibility. At one point Adam states it outright: "It's everybody's fault; nobody is innocent. Everybody grow the fuck up! We're no longer infants or children who believe that muscular men control the weather or that strong women have dominion over fucking or crops. We're not adolescents who need white-haired geriatrics and horned, cloven foot throwbacks to clash with each other, leaving us in the middle of their fight. We are all responsible for our own actions, both individually and collectively. There is only one golden rule: Do onto others as you would have them do onto you." This might denote that Mad Gods tries to prove that there are no such things as deities. On the contrary, they exist because we made them, for we don't want the responsibility of destiny we want to give it over to our leaders, whether they are politicians, philosophers, priests, or gods.

I want people to think. An early review of Mad Gods, by Patrick D said it best: "The author also has a unique perspective on world and life events. His writing is very thought provoking and there were several times I paused in introspection because of what this author wrote." I can't get any better than that. Mission accomplished.

Damn, that’s how you sell a book, haha! I bought Mad Gods a while back, and I really can’t wait to read it. Do you find music inspirational when writing? If so, what kind of music inspired the book you're promoting today?

No music is very distracting when I write, I will have none of it anywhere near me.

What is your greatest marketing tip for any struggling authors out there?

Believe in yourself and don't turn ANYTHING I mean marketing or promo wise down. Do ANYTHING & EVERYTHING to bring your work to public attention.

Absolutely! Take what you can get! If you can tell us, what is it you're working on now?

Mad Gods is only the first of a series titled Predatory Ethics. Mad Gods deals with my first experiences with religion: contemporary Christianity with its champion the Catholic Church, and its opposite with its favourite Luciferian or Satanism. Sequels will have Adam as the now universal saviour, deal with Paganism, Buddhism, Islam, Hindu, Shinto and throughout there will always be the Illuminati and Dark Nobility.

And finally, everyone is so gaga over the idea of vampires vs werewolves. What two supernatural beings do you want to see do battle?

I did it at the end of Mad Gods. I didn't piddle around with mere supernatural pissants like vampires and werewolves I had Satan squaring off with his darling baby boy, Adam, the Antichrist/AntiXos.

Satan shows up to force Adam to do as he's told and stop fooling about with entertainment and peace on earth. Intrigued? See what happens.

I love the term “supernatural pissant”. I also love it when someone answers this question with, “Well, I have that battle in my book!” It means we actually can witness a throwdown.Well, thank you so much for stopping by, and I wish you all the best with your writing. And if you, dear reader, are looking to buy Mad Gods, here is where you can:

AMAZON

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REDUX http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004QOA768

MadGods-Volume I http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TSIV0U

MadGods-Volume II http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004TSCH2I

MadGods-Volume III http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004ULWSAK

MadGods-Volume IV http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004V51D24

MadGods-Volume V http://www.amazon.com/dp/B004W3FX76

B&N-NOOK

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REDUX http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Mad-Gods-Redux/Athanasios-Galanis/e/2940011286919

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