Ryan Steck
Out for Blood
DOSSIER update 6/4/2024:
I’d like to thank Ryan for all of his help and guidance over the past few years and congratulate him on the release of his third Matthew Redd novel. His advice has been a tremendous help in navigating this business.
DOSSIER: As The Real Book Spy, how many books do you have and what are your two favorites not written by Ryan Steck?
STECK: I get, on average, 3-4 books per day, and that’s just the physical copies––whether it be galley copies or finished hardcovers––so, yeah. I have a lot of books. I actually took out a storage unit a couple of years ago because I’ve been getting that many books a day since 2014. Then I had to get a second storage unit. We moved in 2020, and the new house has a big basement, so I have a whole room dedicated to housing all of my books, most of which are kept in tubs. I’m not sure how many there are total, because I also buy books and had a collection well before launching The Real Book Spy and having so many sent to me, but it’s definitely in the thousands.
Two favorites? Two? That is so hard. I think either Transfer of Power or American Assassin by Vince Flynn, maybe Storm Watch by C.J. Box.
DOSSIER: What’s the best thing about your book series?
STECK: I’m not sure I’m the right person to ask this question to LOL. I mean, to me, the best part is that I’m paid to do what I love, which is write and create stories––a job I’ve wanted for as long as I can remember. Content-wise, I really do think my series is unlike anything else out there right now. There’s certainly a C.J. Box-like vibe to it in some ways, but whereas his hero is a game warden, mine is a former Marine Raider who stands 6’3″ and 265 pounds of muscle. There are plenty of other modern Westerns on the market, but none have a hero quite like mine.
DOSSIER: Your character, Matthew Redd, walks into a bar with Mitch Rapp, Pike Logan, and Jack Reacher. They start arguing over who the best thriller writer is. Based on the meat-to-shirt-size ratio, who walks out?
STECK: I think they eventually all walk out the best of friends after a few pints. They might be all battered and bruised but after they destroyed the inside of the bar by throwing each other through walls and tables, they’d eventually become friends . . . and then the bad guys would really be in trouble.
DOSSIER: When and where do you write, and what kind of environment do you prefer? (Music/silence/closet?)
STECK: When writing my first two books, Fields of Fire and Lethal Range, I primarily wrote at night after my kids were in bed. That had more to do with the fact that I was still working full-time as a freelance editor and a Book Spy. However, these days, I’m doing a lot less editing, and that means I have time to write during the day. I’m learning how to do that. I loved writing at night because I had all day to work out the scene in my head, and then once I could see it––almost like a movie playing in my head––I was able to write it.
Now, I usually get up by 5 am and shower, then head to Starbucks. I drive a big, tricked-out Tahoe (it was my one guilty-pleasure purchase when I signed my first book deal) fitted with a $6,000 sound system. It bumps! I like to create a playlist specific to each book I start writing. So, every single morning, usually seven days a week, I put on the playlist for the book I’m hammering away on, which right now is Redd #4, and let my speakers bleed as I drive. That helps me get into the right mindset to write. Plus, the music helps me imagine scenes. By the time I get home, coffee in hand and neighbors thoroughly annoyed by my music––Hardy, Morgan Wallen, Luke Combs, and Dierks Bentley are a few faves right now––I’m ready and excited to start writing.
DOSSIER: We all love the big names, Carr, Greaney, Thor, etc. Who are some of the other writers out there that people need to start reading today?
STECK: Claire Isenthal is a new author I am super excited about. She’s the sweetest person I’ve ever met, and I loved her debut, which comes out in October. Jack Stewart is another one. He and I have become fast friends, and I’m a fan of his stuff for sure. I don’t love flying, so I’m trying to get Mr. fighter pilot to take me down to Houston for a top-secret event we may be doing with another later this year!
Website: The Real Book Spy | Amazon page
Jeff Circle 