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Beyond the Page: Why We Root for Villains with Danno E. Cabeza
Description
In this episode of Beyond the Page, Steve welcomes author, Army veteran, and podcast host Danno E. Cabeza to discuss his upcoming novel, The Return of Doctor Necropolis, a superhero crime-noir story about a brilliant but deeply flawed supervillain.
Danno shares how an experimental writing project unexpectedly became a novel that took nearly ten years to complete. We explore what makes morally questionable protagonists compelling, the relationship between identity and personal responsibility, and why readers can sympathize with characters who repeatedly make terrible decisions.
We also discuss the challenges of returning to a manuscript after a decade, incorporating military experience into superhero fiction, writing believable relationships, and creating a world where the government has nationalized superheroes.
Danno talks about his love of X-Men comics, the influence of crime fiction, his experiences reviewing comics professionally, and why he ultimately chose prose rather than a graphic novel for this story.
We also get into independent publishing, the realities of running a successful Army football podcast, his terrifying experience at airborne school, unusual food combinations, and the lessons he's learned from teaching people to swim.
Join us for a conversation about supervillains, storytelling, comics, creativity, and why the most interesting fictional characters aren't always the good guys.
Find Danno: https://www.asforfootball.com/
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