Koontz proves horrifyingly prolific

INTERVIEW
	Dean Koontz Author/Screenwriter of "Phantoms"

What do you when you've written more than 60 books and sold more than 200 million copies of your work worldwide? Just keep doing the same thing, because you know you've got it right.

That's what novelist/screenwriter Dean Koontz has done, perfecting the genre of horror novels that has become his trademark. But he doesn't like to apply the label "horror" to his writing.

"I don't like to use the word 'horror' with my work," Dean Koontz said. "What it really contains is a contemporary setting with a science fiction story. My books tend to be a mix of thriller, love story and comedy. I think 'Phantoms' has been able to maintain some of those aspects."

"Phantoms," his latest novel to be adapted for the big screen, is the story of the mysterious disappearance of a town's inhabitants. Peter O'Toole, Rose McGowan and Ben Affleck star in the film, for which Koontz wrote the screenplay and executive produced.

"It's the story of a town doctor who comes back to find that the whole population of his town has disappeared," Koontz said. "It ties in to Mayan archeological evidence that shows 600,000 Mayans disappeared overnight. There have been these kinds of disappearance stories throughout human history. For example: how did the dinosaurs disappear?"

Koontz's books have been popular fodder for filmmakers in the past, with many television and theatrical adaptations to date. Koontz's Hollywood success does not stop him from being critical of the movies based on his novels. He will be the first to admit that his previous works have been badly botched when transferred to film.

Koontz now refuses movie offers which do not give him control over production. His involvement in the making of "Phantoms" has finally given him satisfaction.

"I'm very happy with how the movie turned out," Koontz said. "I was involved in every aspect of the film. The movie is pretty close to the book since I wrote the screenplay. For this project, I had to sign off on every page of the scripts and any changes the filmmakers wanted to make."

Koontz's readers appreciate his prolific writing. Averaging a book a year means that Koontz fans never have long to wait for more of his work. Devoted would probably characterize the nature of the author's many fans. Koontz receives more than 12,000 letters each year from admirers.

"I get letters from kids as young as 11," Koontz said. "Just the other day, I heard from a 92-year-old couple who said they had read all of my books and were planning to live to be 100 years old just so that they could read my next eight novels."

Koontz is a perfectionist at heart. He writes one page at a time, revising each page at least 40 times and moving only when he is satisfied that it meets his standard.

"When I first started writing, I used to outline a book," Koontz said. "I quickly dumped that approach. What I like to do now is get a premise, it can be fairly simple, and then get a character. Then, I let the character drive the story."

According to Koontz, he starts writing his stories at 7:30 a.m. and stops at dinnertime. What drives him to get up so early and work so long when financial and professional success are firmly in his grasp?

"This is what I love to do," Koontz said. "At this point, the money doesn't matter. Writing helps keep me off the streets and out of trouble with the cops."

01-23-98