Welcome to this instalment of my Author Spotlight series of interviews, which aim to give an overview of each author’s background and approach to writing, and a slightly more detailed look at one of their new releases in particular. In this instalment I spoke to Marc Collins about his background, influences and route to writing for Black Library, his new story Cold Cases – included in the upcoming anthology No Good Men (which goes up for pre-order this weekend) – and his thoughts on the Warhammer Crime imprint as a whole.
Without further ado, let’s get straight into the interview.
Track of Words: Tell us a little about yourself as an author – who you are, where you’re from, what you like to write, etc.
Marc Collins: I live and work in Glasgow, Scotland, as a Biomedical Scientist with the NHS. I’ve been writing for myself for almost as long as I can remember, but have only made professional inroads in the last few years. I’ve written for League of Legends, a small press anthology for tdotSpec, and since April 2019 for Black Library.
I love writing sci-fi, especially when it comes to themes of transhumanism – and I have a terrible weakness for zealots. Which explains how 40k got its claws into me.
ToW: Can you remember a defining moment when you were growing up, or a particular book or author, that steered you towards science fiction and/or fantasy?
MC: As a kid I went through a number of phases, but I think the one that stuck with me the most was mythology. I was really heavily into Greek, Egyptian and Norse mythology. A lot of horror as well: going from Goosebumps and Point Horror up to James Herbert and Stephen King.
I think the two authors who’ve most steered me towards sci-fi and fantasy have been Iain M. Banks and Neil Gaiman.
Marc’s story A Thing Called Duty is featured in the Imps & Minions anthology from tdotSpec
ToW: What would you say your strengths are as a writer? Alternatively, what do you enjoy writing the most?
MC: I used to think that I was strong when it came to description, but maybe a little overly flowery at points? I’ve managed to rein that in a bit and control the chaos. I like dialogue, and think I’m good with it, especially when it comes to writing ornate or ritually significant dialogue. The sort of thing you get in droves with the Mechanicus, for example.
ToW: Did you start working with Black Library via one of the open submissions windows? Could you talk a bit about your experience with that process?
MC: I had been applying to the Open Submissions window for years (including submitting a novel pitch in the last year you were able to do that) and had resolved to try and send one solid AoS and one 40k pitch to the 2018 window.
When it came down to it though, I had three pitches and couldn’t kill my darlings. I submitted a Stormcast vs Death tomb crawl, a Death Guard reverse heist story, and a much lonelier version of what became Ghosts of Iron. Seven months later, just around the time of that year’s Weekender, I heard back that the editors wanted to see more of Ghosts of Iron. I submitted a 1,000 word writing sample and a full page synopsis. There were some changes to be made but from there I started to write the full story.
ToW: Can you share any insight into what you’ve learned since then, whether in terms of pitching, writing or generally just working with editors, as advice for anyone wanting to write professionally?
MC: Pitching has not gotten easier, but I do feel more sure of my ideas when I’m doing it. Sometimes it’s not the idea that you’re rooting for that gets the attention of your editor, but you’ve got to be invested in every pitch that you have. I try to find the layers in anything that I’m asked to submit, and to play to the various strengths of the factions.
The writing itself has mostly been identifying any areas that I can improve. The feedback has been immensely constructive and the editors I’ve worked with have been great. Very clear on what needs to be fixed or tweaked. Complimentary and supportive when they see something that they like.
Working with editors is a collaboration, especially in tie-in fiction, and so you cannot be overly precious. You take their advice and their recommendations and you work to meet those expectations to the best of your ability. Especially in the pitching phase, where they offer guidance or seek clarity or sometimes ask the Studio for more information.
So definitely listen to your editors, don’t be afraid of critique, and always find what you love in what you’re writing/pitching.
ToW: Can you talk a little bit about your first few Black Library stories and what readers can expect from them?
MC: Ghosts of Iron is a bleak question of survival and redemption set on a fallen Forge World, with a Magos Domina and her last loyal skitarii. Harried by hereteks, they take shelter in the dormant battle-titan they’ve been seeking and throw one last roll of the dice to try and fight back.
Champions, All looks at the Emperor’s Champion, Cenric, of the Black Templars as he’s forced by circumstances to team up with a lone Sister Repentia to defeat an ork warboss. It looks at the dichotomy of Imperial faith; the sacred and the spurned, and what they both bring to each other in the midst of their arduous quest.
Respite’s End [featured in Inferno! Volume 5] could really have had better timing. Set on a productive and peaceful Imperial medical production world, it concerns the Medicae Primus Arlen Cedano as he battles an unfolding horrific pandemic. Dark secrets abound on both sides of the conflict as we find out what he’s done to ensure the world stays healthy, and what he’ll do in order to save it.
ToW: Your next release for Black Library is a short story in the first ever Warhammer Crime anthology, No Good Men – so that’s a pretty high-profile release! How would you describe your story in the anthology?
MC: My story, Cold Cases, is the hunt for a serial killer unfolding in a dark, cold, southern district of Varangantua. It was an utter joy to write, though undoubtedly one of the most difficult things I’ve had to work on.
ToW: Without spoiling anything, who are the main characters and what do we need to know about them?
MC: The story mostly centres around Quillon Drask, who is a probator [roughly analogous to a detective] with the Varangantuan enforcers. Unfortunately the years, and his ailing career, have not been kind to him. He’s down on his luck, shunned by many of his fellow officers, and caught in a self-perpetuating cycle of only ever getting the ‘weird cases’.
ToW: Warhammer Crime stories are all set in the same vast city. Can you talk a bit about Varangantua, and what sort of setting it provides?
MC: Varangantua is fantastic. It’s so utterly familiar and yet vibrant and new. The nooks and crannies that we’ve seen in other ‘domestic 40k’ stories are levered wide open, and we get to see life on an Imperial world that isn’t constantly at war. Full of secrets and vices, it has this corroded cyberpunk chic amidst the faded grandeur we’re used to.
Given that it spans a continent it offers up a lot of variety and a lot of different ‘ins’. You get this immediate sense of character for the city – like Necromunda or Terra – and so there’s a sense that no matter where you go, you’re still within the confines of the Imprint and the wider universe.
ToW: What does the Warhammer Crime label mean, for you as an author and for Black Library fans in general?
MC: For me, as an author, it’s a fantastic opportunity to watch the setting develop and to help it grow. After Warhammer Horror I think that the crime imprint was inevitable in a lot of ways. People kept asking for ‘domestic 40k’ and this delivers in spades. Building on the much earlier foundations of stories like Eisenhorn, but also on stories like Chris Wraight’s Vaults of Terra novels.
I’m sure it’s going to give the fans an outlook they might not have considered before and another dynamic corner of the setting to fall in love with.
ToW: Why this story? Of all the possible crime stories you could have written, what made you go for this one?
MC: I love a good serial killer story. I wanted to approach it from an angle that played into the madness and darkness of 40k, the elements that have a chance to work their way in and change the basics, subvert some of the expectations.
ToW: What do you hope 40k fans will get out of this by the time they’ve finished it?
MC: I hope that it will show a slice of life in Varangantua, and that it brings something complementary to the other stories in the anthology.
ToW: You’ve now had two stories released as e-shorts and two in anthologies – firstly Inferno! Volume 5, and now No Good Men. What has it been like seeing your work in print and out there for fans to read?
MC: It has been quite surreal seeing things in print. Especially with Inferno! as each story has the little introductory blurb. In terms of reception, the community has been so very supportive and a lot of the feedback has been good. It’s been really great to have people message and say that they enjoyed a particular story or that they can’t wait to see more stuff.
ToW: What else can you tell us about what you’re working on, or what you’ve got coming out over the coming months?
MC: I do have a few other shorts coming out in the next few months. I’m fairly sure it’s been posted somewhere that I have a story coming out in Nexus & Other Stories. There are other releases that I can’t quite talk about yet, but suffice to say there will be a good few more before the end of the year.
While I can’t discuss any particulars I am currently working on my second longer form project – and I can’t wait to discuss them both in the future.
ToW: When you’re not writing, what might we find you getting up to?
MC: As I mentioned above my day job is working in a Pathology lab for the NHS. When I’m not doing that I enjoy reading (as you might expect!), enjoying the occasional dram of whisky, supporting the local cabaret scene, and a bit of walking and climbing.
ToW: If someone wants to keep up with what you’re doing, how’s best to do that?
MC: I mostly announce things through Twitter, which is @Malkydel. In addition to that I have a Facebook page which is Marc Collins – Author. Most stuff to do with releases and the like will be posted there!
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I’d like to say a massive thanks to Marc for taking the time to do this interview! If you haven’t already, make sure you check out some of Marc’s Black Library stories, and if you’re on Twitter head over there and follow him to keep up to date with all his writing news! Make sure you have a read of my reviews of Ghosts of Iron and Champions, All, and keep an eye out for reviews of more of Marc’s stories coming soon.
