Author of the Week: RD Cervo

by Will Viharo

Happy Halloween! And if that spooky seasonal salutation fills you with ghoulish glee, have I got the right author for you!

Meet RD Cervo. He writes what could be described as extreme horror noir, but with such a distinctive voice, and with such a special agenda, that it's hard to describe. That's exactly the appeal. Trust me. 

This is a treat. Not a trick...

  

​Just because you’ve never heard of an author, or read his or her work, doesn’t mean they’re not worth knowing. Often it’s only a matter of marketing and luck, as opposed to talent and ambition. 

It's also true the most interesting people, with the most interesting life experiences, often make the most interesting writers.

Case in point: RD Cervo. Maybe you’ve read his work, maybe you haven’t. So far I've only read his incredibly effective novel Kali on a Rampage, but that was plenty for me to recommend it, at least to a particular target audience. I look forward to reading his latest, MOAB, which was only recently published.

Bottom line: if you enjoy uncompromising, graphic, compelling contemporary pulp fiction with a socially conscious edge, then you owe it to him, and to yourself, to delve into his dark world.

Here’s why…

Your style and imagery are very cinematic. Is this a conscious or subconscious effort when you write?

Great question! My first love is painting.  When writing, I try to put the visual images in my head into a narrative.  The plot line, characters, settings are all perceived in a cinematic manner.  Often in bed at night, I lay there picturing the entire story as live action.

Though you write grindhouse pulp, your work is infused with social commentary and reflections on the human condition? Please explain why this matters to you as an author.

With deep gratitude, I have had the ability to travel.  I have been to 36 countries.  In 2010, I went to Antarctica.  It was my goal to make it to all seven continents.  I have seen beautiful things and met some highly evolved people.  In contrast, I witnessed horrible poverty and tragedy.  My writing is a way to release at lot of pent up sadness and fear.  Kali on a Rampage and the Ghosts of Fentanyl are inspired by the heartbreaking opiate epidemic.  Pachyderm PTSD and Lonely Zika explores how human beings mistreat one another as well as animals.  JINN and MOAB are allegories about the rise of fanaticism and intolerance in the world.  Themes of karmic justice are important to me.

Is there a genre you would like to tackle that is completely different from your current body of work? If so, why?

Stories about redemption, compassion and breaking through the walls of ignorance.  I have written a lot about the “shadow self.”  In the future, I plan to let the light in.

What are your influences, literary or otherwise?

I turn on the news everyday and my fear and creativity are triggered.  History also has been a passion.  I read a lot of Thomas Cahill.

What’s next for you?

I am presently completing a three-part series titled, CONNECTICUT EXTREME HORROR.  I recently finished the novella, Charles Island and working on Dudley Town and Little People’s Village.  Last year I teamed up with Philip Brocklehurst, and we adapted KALI ON A RAMPAGE into a screenplay. We are presently looking to collaborate with indie filmmakers.  I would also like to team up with a theater group to turn KALI into a live experience.

Cheers!

Author Page Link: https://www.amazon.com/R.D.-Cervo/e/B01JHW1IQG

PHOTO: RD CERVO