An Interview With R. B. Wood on ‘Winter in the City’ and More!

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Winter in the City

An interview with R. B. Wood

By Sarah Elliott

 

It feels like winter is coming. Long nights herald the chills: physical, psychological and perhaps emotional. For some, it may already be here. That time of hibernation. Time to retreat to the safety of the sofa and lose yourself in a book, choosing total immersion in the words of others. Winter in the City is the first anthology to be published by Ruadán books, run by R.B. Wood. Want to know more? Read on.

R. B. Wood bio: Former technologist, entrepreneur, world traveler, and author/editor R. B. Wood is an MFA graduate from Emerson College and the founder of Ruadán Books. The newest publishing house continues to uplift and amplify marginalized voices. Its mission is to welcome new authors, inspire them, and tell unique stories from a worldwide perspective. As a dark speculative storyteller, Wood has had novels and short stories published online and traditionally. His thriller Bayou Whispers blends the horrors of everyday life with that of the supernatural. It tells the story of a strong female survivor, with plot twists, dark mystery, and voodoo magic. R.B. and his wife Tina adore animals and are self-professed “crazy cat people.”

Find him on the Internet:

Website | Twitter (X) | Facebook | Instagram | BlueSky | Amazon’s R.B. Wood page

But R.B. had help. Here’s a little about Anna:

Anna Koon bio: Boston-based artist and writer, Anna Koon has published articles for a variety of periodicals, one poem, two screenplays and a children’s book entitled: Willamina, Queen of the Worms. She is the founder and director of an educational series presented to various arts organizations throughout Massachusetts. Additionally, she works as a creative coach and editor.

Anna lives at the top of what was once the women’s quarters of a Victorian mental institution with her husband and two whippets, Zeta Puppis and Nimble Nimbus.

Learn more about her @ www.a2n2.net

 

And we’re off, talking with R.B.

Sarah: Give us the elevator pitch for Winter in the City.

R.B.: Winter in the City is a collection of speculative fiction tales set in cities around the world during those long months of winter. From Paris to Brooklyn, Manila to Jerusalem, stories unfold examining the darker side of humanity.

 

Sarah: “An eclectic travelogue with words of warning. “People love to visit here, but none of its real y’know?” (Kirkus reviews)  Did you have any particular cities in mind when collating stories for the anthology Winter in the City?

R.B.: I knew we wanted to collect stories from all over the world. I spent over 30 years traveling globally for work and I wanted stories that would make the reader feel as though they visited those places. Storytelling is a magical experience that transports the reader into the imagination of the writer, and I really wanted a collection of stories that went deep into the darkness within us all while experiencing different settings and cultures. And I think we’ve achieved that.

 

Sarah: “Stories to remind us that sometimes the things that haunt us most, aren’t people, but places, frozen in time.” (Kirkus reviews) How do you make settings a character in a story?

R.B.: Breathing life into a place is a daunting challenge for any writer. A sense of familiarity needs to be conveyed to the reader, and use of ALL our senses can achieve that goal. What does Snow near the Temple Mount feel like? What does a rave sound like in a neighborhood in Queens? How does Karjalanpiirakka taste like in Helsinki? How does the frozen-over Seine look when being chased by spirits of the mind? These are all questions one must take into account when bringing a city to life.

 

Sarah: The anthology spans a range of different genres. Do you personally have a preferred genre to read or write?

R.B.: I do…I love to write speculative thrillers. But I also have learned to appreciate so many other genres. A good story will take the reader from their own life and place them in a different world, and I feel it is so important to hear and read as many different stories (and types of stories) as we can in this life. Story is how we define who we are and discover our purpose in life, and I think the explorations in Winter in the City is a unique collection of views, cultures, and, of course, cities.

 

Sarah: What led you to decide to open a publishing house? What are your greatest challenges and triumphs so far?

R.B.: With Ruadán Books, I aim to build a platform to publish stories from diverse peoples from different cultures while maintaining a high standard of story entertainment for our readers. I think it is important to expand one’s horizons and knowledge, and I’m delighted with the responses for our open calls to date. I’ve already met so many talented storytellers from dozens of countries! The challenges with starting a new small press are dwarfed by the relationships I’m building.

 

Sarah: How do you intend to reach new authors? And marginalized voices?

R.B.: We are experimenting with online reaches now to see how we fare. Getting the word out via social media and other avenues is difficult when so many different voices exist. We are trying multiple methods to reach as many people as we can within the limitations of budget and time. Trust must be built on both sides, and that is (out of necessity) a time-consuming process.

 

Sarah: What advice can you offer authors when they submit to you?

R.B.: Be Genuine. Follow the guidelines and send us your best work. And don’t stop writing….ever!

 

Sarah: What’s next for you? Anything else you want to share?

R.B.: We currently have two open calls—one for novels and the other for our second “In The City” anthology, “Spring in the City.” Spring is a time of renewal and rebirth—and what comes to life during the season might not be the beauty that we all envision that time of year!

We also have our next to-be-published anthology, 120 Murders, edited by Nick Mamatas (available for preorder now at our site ruadanbooks.com), and our first novel to be published, a reimagining of Mike Allen’s Black Fire Concerto with the never-before-published sequel following soon after.

 

“The anthology, Winter in the City is set to be released on December 10th, 2024. Pre-orders are available now at www.ruadanbooks.com. Co-edited by Boston-based R. B. Wood and Anna Koon, the anthology explores dark tales set in cities around the world and brings to life eighteen unique stories from new and veteran writers. The rare collection will explore 18 different cities with story concepts that range from paranormal, fantasy to horror, and psychological themes. 

Winter in the City’s thought-provoking stories combine old and new voices to tell different tales that explore what it means to be human in the darkest corners of metropolitan enclaves—and the unique personalities of the cities in which the stories are set.

This is the first of four books by newest publisher Ruadán Books. This new publishing house created by entrepreneur, author, and editor R.B. Wood is the publishing house inspiring and elevating unique voices in the space of dark speculative fiction and crime noir. Ruadán (pronounced ROO-ah-dawn) Books derives its name from the Irish god of Mystery and Espionage. Ruadán Books’ mission is to welcome new authors and inspire and tell unique stories from authors worldwide.”

 

 

 

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