All Pens Blazing - A Heavy Metal Writer’s Handbook
by Neil Daniels
(Foreword by Martin Popoff)
Publication Date: 18 August 2009
I was getting so much good feedback about the Interviews With Writers archive on this very site that I decided to compile a bunch of them (65 to be precise) for a book collection. Most of them are exclusive to APB and some of the ones that had already been included on this site have been updated…so I’m not ripping you off! It’s a huge paperback at 350 pages!
Basically, All Pens Blazing is a forum for writers to share their experiences and to offer advice to aspiring rock journos and authors. All Pens Blazing also gives a potted history of the metal magazine industry in the UK and abroad. There’s a cool foreword by Martin Popoff and a detailed intro by me. Most of the interviews are about heavy metal but there are also detailed answers/thoughts on Goth, death metal, alt rock, grunge and nu-metal et al. It is an interesting historical document as well as an entertaining read. I’d love there to be a volume two so please buy a copy for your mates too! It is my first print on demand book through a company called Authors Online. It seems as though POD is the way to go for rock scribes during the recession.
Check out www.authorsonline.co.uk.You can also buy it from Amazon and other good online book stores.
“…Neil’s got folks who can put the brushstroke hither and thither, talking up regional stuff, the ins and outs of the Internet, mag publishing, book publishing… all useful and interesting for those who want to partake of this world.”
- Martin Popoff from his foreword
Featuring Original Interviews With:
Jeff Apter
Lonn Friend
Daniela Pilic
Gavin Baddeley
Joe Geesin
Martin Popoff
Bailey Brothers
Ian Gittins
Greg Prato
Geoff Barton
Ian Glasper
Dave Reynolds
Carl Begai
Tim Henderson
Steven Rosen
Mark Blake
Mark Hoaksey
Xavier Russell
Jerry Bloom
Seb Hunter
Jonathan Selzer
Dante Bonutto
Neil Jeffries
Joe Shooman
Paul Brannigan
Howard Johnson
Brian Slagel
Louise Brown
Tim Jones
Joseph Stannard
Garry Bushell
Dom Lawson
Paul Suter
Brett Callwood
Dave Lewis
Adem Tepedelen
Steffan Chirazi
Dave Ling
Everett True
Ian Christe
Peter Makowski
John Tucker
Carol Clerk
Matthias Madder
Tommy Udo
Dave Dickson
Joe Matera
Clinton Walker
Malcolm Dome
Joel McIver
Chris Welch
John Doran
Bruce Mee
Stirling Whitaker
Paul Elliott
Mick Mercer
Rich Wilson
Jerry Ewing
Alexander Milas
Jeb Wright
Mike Exley
Ben Myers
Henry Yates
Dave Ferris
What the critics said:
Magazine Reviews
“Neil Daniels’ latest book is a very simple idea but a very entertaining one – to interview a lot of the writers who moulded our listening habits and publish those interviews in this book...the content is great and it’s ideal for just dipping in if you have a few minutes to spare as you can read it in any order you wish – and probably will!”
Phil Ashcroft - Fireworks
“Ever wondered how Metal Hammer’s and Classic Rock’s contributors go their jobs? Most of them reveal the truth behind the art of the music hack in this collection of over 60 interviews with the world’s best-known rock writers.”
Joel McIver – Metal Hammer
"...just about everyone who has written about heavy metal at some stage seems to be included. For anyone in the business, it turns out to be a surprisingly enjoyable read."
Jerry Bloom - More Black Than Purple
"All the major rock mags are covered here, with no scribe outstaying their welcome. Read this because you remember these great writers from happier days, read this because you want an insight into what drives them..."
Steve Swift - Powerrplay
"Now this was a good idea...Don't even think about becoming a music journalist until you've read this."
Ryson Dahl - Record Collector
"...a fascinating compilation of interviews with a variety of rock journalists..."
Dave Lewis - Tight But Loose
Online Reviews
“A combination of music history, war stories, the metal scene and practical advice, All Pens Blazing is a great compendium about heavy metal writers and writing. Whether you’re a current or aspiring metal writer, a music historian, or just a fan of metal, there’s something here for you.”
Chad Bower – About.Com: Heavy Metal http://heavymetal.about.com
“...the aggregate of this book is an at minimum interesting and at max fascinating read for any rock fan, ‘cos you get the whole deal, the history of Sounds, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, BW&BK, all the mags, plus the mechanics of book writing, and more mainstream, who’s a good interview and bad plus proof, crazy road stories... friggin’ well all of this would be interesting to any rocker. Period.”
Martin Popoff – Bravewords.com www.bravewords.com
“This latest work is a novel approach to heavy metal and helps dissect the genre from a journalistic point of view and will no doubt raise the pangs of nostalgia amongst readers…Neil Daniels, with his evident enthusiasm and industry in compilation has done us good service. And, like the best rock writing, this book does make for strangely compulsive reading.”
David Randall – Get Ready To Rock www.getreadytorock.com
"Every interview is published in the same way: a short introduction by Neil Daniels, followed by a certain number of Q & A. I enjoyed this book very much...There good news is that there will be a part 2."
Chris Lambert - Rock Report www.rockreport.be
“There is plenty here to delve into and this is a book that will be read in one sitting and revisited many times. Whilst some interviewees are more guarded the majority willingly recall their on the road stories when travelling with the major bands of the 80's and beyond. Daniels has done a fine job in pulling everything together in an easily digestible format and this is one of the most original rock and metal books I have read this year.”
Dean Pedley – Sea Of Tranquility www.seaoftranquility.org
Other Reviews
“Brought back a lot of memories of my own time working on one of the less-celebrated eras of Metal Hammer, and music-industry stuff I remember getting a little taste of, if not quite being at the epicenter of... Not to mention the reminder of how much I used to pour over every issue of Kerrang as a reader in those pre-internet days, soaking up as much information as a single photograph could convey. It's a little scary to realize how long ago that is now, but I hope you do find an audience of like-minded 40-somethings for your book. Nice work.”
Mark Day – ex-Metal Hammer scribe
“It has good honest stuff from Steffan Chirazi, Pete Makowski and Dante Bonutto, whose interview reminded me of being young and working on Kerrang!. I recommend it.”
Ross Halfin – www.rosshalfin.com
“It’s a fascinating glimpse into the psyche of the writers who have chronicled the genre for nigh on forty years- from biographers, long standing freelancers, fanzine writers etc. The whole book reads like a history of rock publishing with countless behind the scenes anecdotes of life in Sounds, Kerrang, Raw, Classic Rock etc.”
Dave Lewis – www.tightbutloose.co.uk
“Top of the list is, Neil Daniels’ book, All Pens Blazing: A Heavy Metal Writer’s Handbook, which collates interviews with an impressive list of more than 60 fellow music writers, most of whom are friends and/or colleagues past ‘n’ present.”
Dave Ling – www.daveling.co.uk
Check out Amazon for more details on All Pens Blazing
