Interview with fiction writer Diane Hatz

Today’s special guest is novelist Diane Hatz to chat about her new humorous contemporary novel, Rock Gods & Messy Monsters.

During her virtual book tour, Diane will be giving away a $20 Amazon or Barnes and Noble (winner’s choice) gift card to a lucky randomly drawn winner. To be entered for your chance to win, use the form below. To increase your chances of winning, feel free to visit her other tour stops and enter there, too!

Bio:
Diane Hatz worked at major and indie record companies, managed a band, and freelanced as a music publicist. She is co-founder of The Relay, a fanzine on The Who, which is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She’s attended thousands of concerts.

Diane has a master’s in creative writing and is currently focused on writing fiction. Her book Rock Gods & Messy Monsters is currently available from most online retailers. Her substack “Next Draft with Diane Hatz” is a newsletter for creatives looking inward. And some writing stuff.

During her sometimes-surreal career, Diane founded the nonprofit Change Food, worked to shut down factory farms, organized & spoke at major TED/TEDx events, and executive produced The Meatrix, a Webby Award winner. She has studied with many spiritual teachers, including The Dalai Lama.

In late 2020, after 30 years living in downtown Manhattan and the East Village, Diane moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. When not at her computer creating, you can find her hiking, road tripping, or breathing in all the beauty the Southwest has to offer.

Welcome, Diane. Please tell us a bit about your new release.
Rock Gods & Messy Monsters is one woman’s search for self among the dangling body parts, blood vessel explosions and alien hatching within a 1990s record company. It’s humorous, absurdist and pop culture fiction.

What inspired you to write this book?
I worked in the music industry for about ten years. My goal was to write fiction books while working in music – until, of course, I was making enough money from my writing to write full time. I found the corporate music industry to be surreal and, to be honest, crazy – so the book came out of my experiences in that field.

Excerpt from Rock Gods & Messy Monsters:
DiMachio looked up and saw a large black leather briefcase with the engraved initials BH and pick proof, industrial strength, combination security locks suspended in midair. Steam escaped his ears as he realized something had gone wrong with their plan. Something foreign, something unforeseen, something despicable, unethical and relentless had slimed its way into his office.

It was Bret Horowitz, entertainment lawyer, one of the most powerful figures in the music business and certainly one of the most feared. He represented some of the biggest names in music, from superstar musicians and bands to producers and songwriters, as well as other ultra-famous entertainers and music industry moguls. He had his own law firm, Horowitz, Gillett, Goss, and Gardner, with twelve partners and over forty lawyers working for him. He was ruthless and would stop at nothing short of grossly illegal to get what he wanted.

DiMachio leaned back in his throne and watched as the black leather briefcase hung suspended in midair and slowly edged its way toward him. The Deity had to smirk over the twisted irony of what stood before him. Bret Horowitz, entertainment lawyer, had not only found a way to represent Big, DiMachio’s most valuable and important artist, the lawyer was also DiMachio’s personal business lawyer. Bret Horowitz, e.l., was under contract with Deity DiMachio to negotiate DiMachio’s business dealings with Acht and to represent him on all miscellaneous legal business matters. Conflict of interest?  Not in the music industry, a field where the few not only rule but also make up the rules.

The two-dimensional entertainment lawyer turned toward DiMachio, his fat, balding head and short stumpy body becoming visible.

What exciting story are you working on next?
I learned so much about indie publishing that I’m currently working on a book to help others independently publish and promote their own work. I’m hoping I can help a few people avoid the many mistakes I made along the way.

When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I’ve wanted to write since I was a child. I started keeping a journal at about age eight or nine. When I was a teenager, I published a fanzine on the rock band The Who. I got a master’s in creative writing in the 1980s. Even with all that, I didn’t consider myself a writer until I first published Rock Gods of Acht (the first edition of the current book) in 2008.

Today, I would say when you consistently write, you are a writer.

Do you write full-time? If so, what’s your work day like? If not, what do you do other than write and how do you find time to write?
I’m fortunate that I’m able to take a couple years off to focus on full-time fiction writing. My workday is usually getting up early, meditating, making a pot of tea, and getting to my desk (or whatever space I’m called to that day) to write. During the week, I often join a women’s writing group at noon until about three in the afternoon. We all meet up on zoom and write – I find that extremely helpful because it keeps me accountable. I add exercise in after my morning write or after I finish my writing group. I then tend to do errands, catch up on emails, and do other non-writing things on my To Do list.

I used to write or edit in the evening, but I’ve found that as I’ve gotten older, I don’t have the same concentration at night, so that’s become my free time.

What would you say is your interesting writing quirk?
When I write pen to paper, I must use a specific blue pen. I was beyond distraught when I moved from New York City (sea level) to Santa Fe (7,200 feet) a couple years ago and discovered all my pens exploded during the move. We’re talking over a hundred razorpoint pens all over everything. It was a mess, but worse than that was not knowing what to write with. It took months, but I found a pen that won’t explode on planes and can handle the altitude at my new home. If you’re wondering, it’s an Energel Liquid Gel Ink .5 Needle Tip blue pen.

As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be a philosopher or a writer. My mother told me I’d wash dishes for the rest of my life, so I was “encouraged” to get a business degree. It’s taken decades, but I’m finally doing what I wanted to do at age fifteen.

Anything additional you want to share with the readers?
I’m writing an article or so a month in my Substack Next Draft with Diane Hatz and am going through the scenes in Rock Gods & Messy Monsters to explain the symbolism and meaning behind the writing. Please join me if you’d like to know more about the book or are interested in learning more about the craft of indie publishing and promotion. (It’s free.)

Links:
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