in which authors submit their mighty works to The House of Kruse for comments. This month, the lovely Lori Stone tells us about the background to The Black Squall.
BB. "Could you share with us some of your background?"
LS. "Where do I start? I had a fairly normal childhood (if there is such a thing) in a home filled with books, music and dogs. I learned to ride horses at an early age, took up snorkeling, canoeing, fishing and camping, and played the guitar for a while. College was a challenge, so I switched schools and majors more than once, earning degrees in English and Education. I have traveled widely, climbed volcanoes, rafted Class IV rapids, frolicked with stingrays and delivered babies."
BB. "A lot of writers have had an unusual variety of jobs before settling to writing for a career. Does this apply to you?"
LS. "Oh, yes! I have had more than my share of disparate employment. I have babysat, scooped ice cream, waited tables, greeted guests at a theme park, driven a forklift, slaved as a short-order cook, taught at University, edited professional journals, administered government programs, and worked in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit; all of which comes in handy when writing novels."
BB. "Have you done any writing before?"
LS. "It is hard to remember a time when I wasn't writing. I was bitten by the literary bug in high school, and have been putting pen to paper ever since. I always have a pad and pencil close by; in the car, on the refrigerator, even beside the bed. Like most writers I have an attic filled with journals, a number of manuscripts collecting dust on the closet floor, and I have published my share of technical articles and such."
BB. "With The Black Squall, you've written a chick flick. Fair comment?"
LS. "I wouldn't call that an unfair comment, but I hope that The Black Squall enjoys a somewhat wider readership. I set out to write a book in which difficult situations evolve realistically, and where females are portrayed as intelligent, multifaceted women rather than as cardboard cutouts. If you think that the book has a fresh, feminine feel, then I have been successful in that regard at least. But beyond the obvious whiff of estrogen there is a deeper feline truth. Throughout The Black Squall Jean and Delsie are faced with enormously complex and dangerous challenges - the kind of conundrums that are usually reserved for masculine heroes - and they confront those perils successfully, on their own terms, as strong, vibrant women. If early reviews can be trusted, female readers seem to embrace Jean and Delsie as competent sisters, while men find them appealing, so The Black Squall seems to strike a balance between intellect, camaraderie and sex appeal. For me, at least, that doesn't sound too "chic flicky."
BB. "Did you have to research the nautical/financial details for the novel, or was most of it already familiar to you?"
LS. "Much of the nautical and financial data in the novel were familiar ground, but a great deal of research was required to ensure accuracy. Readers are intelligent, informed and discerning people. They will tear a book to pieces if Wisteria are said to bloom in the fall, or if a character serves merlot with scampi (Well Hey! - BB). Therefore, it is incumbent upon me to check every possible detail. That is why I do my utmost to visit every location, sample every foodstuff, drive every vehicle, fire every gun and interview every kind of professional before including those details in my books. I will undoubtedly make errors, as do all writers, but not through lack of effort or attention to detail."
BB. "Who is the girl portrayed on the cover - not yourself?"
LS. (laughing) "No, I am not the girl on the cover; but isnt she perfect? I asked the jacket designer for a specific look, a certain aura, and s/he struck the target dead center. However, the model who posed for the cover is as much a mystery to me as you."
BB."Have you ever lived on a houseboat yourself?"
LS."No; not on a houseboat. But I have spent time crewing a sloop around the Caribbean."
BB."From which name does "Bud" derive as in "Uncle Bud"?
LS."I have a brother-in-law who calls everyone "Buddy." It is a familiar, friendly appellation, with playfully male undertones. I like the simplicity of it, so I adopted its abbreviated form to underscore the intimate nature of Jean's relationship with her uncle. Then again, it may be an allusion to someone's favorite American beer."
BB."Now for the Internet rumours. Riddle me this; name a fictional character who lived on a houseboat in Bahia Mar, had a next door neighbour who was a wiz with financial matters, would have been around his mid-sixties, had grey eyes, was a known adventurer, served in Korea, had a brother, had a daughter called Jean he didn't know about till late in life, played football for a while and, most unusually of all, had a secret closet behind the seven foot mirror in his house boat. Oh, oh, ...it's on the tip of my tongue.... help me out here!"
LS."Gee, there are a lot of clues there, so if you can't figure that one out on your own I'm certainly not going to help you! Nevertheless, you raise an interesting point. The Black Squall is a mystery-thriller, complete unto itself, and should appeal to readers on that level alone. But beneath the surface it is also filled with references to numerous other writers and their fictional characters. As one critic has suggested, "there may be a merry game of spot the allusion to be had here." I hope that devotees of murder mysteries and detective novels will have fun with this, and that they will make good sport of discovering who Jean Pearson really is. The answer, as they say, is out there."
BB."Are *you* Jean Pearson?"
LS."No. Jean grew up a virtual orphan, and I was raised in a traditional nuclear family. Jean is a Midwesterner, while I hail from the South. But Jean and I have our commonalities. We both love to ride horses, we are both crack shots with a pistol, we both love good food, and we have both poured our father's ashes from the stern of a drifting vessel."
BB"I see you've already begun the 2nd novel, Dead Issue. Is there a specific number of books you have in mind, or are you going to simply go with the flow?"
LS."Actually, Dead Issue has been completed, edited, and awaits publication. It is the second installment in the Jean Pearson series of mystery-thrillers, and will be released once The Black Squall reaches its proper position in the market. A third Jean Pearson novel is being written right now, and two more have been outlined. Jean leads a very exciting life, and I will continue to chronicle her adventures as long as she chooses to confide in me."
BB."It struck me reading Squall that it would lend itself well to the big screen. Are there any plans to make a film of it?"
LS."There are no specific plans as yet. However, The Black Squall was written with conversion to screenplay in mind because good books sell movies, and good movies sell books. I suppose that a television series is also possible, but those decisions lie down the road a bit. For the moment I am quite busy promoting The Black Squall, and writing additional books in the Jean Pearson series. Nevertheless, wouldn't a big screen production be fabulous?"
BB."Lori Stone, author of The Black Squall, thanks very much."
LS."It's been a pleasure, Big Bill. Thanks for the opportunity."
And let's not forget this page's former incumbent, Jeff Greenwald with Future Perfect.
Travel writer and Star Trek fan, Jeff boldly goes in search of the world's Trekkers to find out what makes them Trek. His 7 month mission has him voyaging to the backwoods of Germany on the one hand and to darkest India on the other, mixed in with trips to London's famous Pages Bar (where I must admit I've never been despite living only a few miles away), and on set in LA with the cast and crew. We meet the Star Trek fans in such outposts as India and Poland, from full-on German Klingons to His Holiness the Dalai Lama himself. Also interviewed are writers Ron Moore and Brannon Braga, actors Jonathan Frakes, Patrick Stewart, Gates McFadden, Michael Dorn and Leonard Nimoy, producer Rick Berman, plus celebrated author Kurt Vonnegut and the legendary Arthur C. Clarke. In the first few pages, Jeff tells us that he had a friend read the first few chapters and she came back to him with the view that it was a book about longing. I couldn't agree more. The one thread that binds we fans is our wish for a better world, a brighter tomorrow. Star Trek would seem to be an aspiration more than a TV program, one that encapsulates our hopes and desires for the future. Feel the same? Discover the astonishing cross-section of peoples from all societies in whose hearts burn the same flames. A book for all true believers.
The Jeff Greenwald Interview
BB. "Brannon Braga; Saint or Sinner?"
JG. "I don't think it's fair or accurate to view Braga as some kind of a cardboard cut-out. Granted, he's saint AND sinner. But who among us isn't? I consider Brannon a brilliant, complex individual with more talent in his little finger than most people have in both arms. He's great fun to hang out with, and we've stayed up all hours pissing ourselves laughing. Sure, I've seen Brannon misbehave in ways I found sometimes decadent, sometimes enviable. He can be cagey, self-involved and probably ruthless (welcome to Hollywood). And I'm admittedly grateful that I've never had to deal with him as either a Star Trek staff writer or romantic interest. But my overriding impression, is of his humor, intelligence and generosity. "And I'm not just saying that" (to borrow his phrase), "to blow smoke up his arse."
BB. "Tell us a little about yourself. Age, background etc. Your book's blurb is conspicuously short on detail."
JG. "I'm 45, and I've been writing travel and science for nearly 30 years. Trained in psyche, but never used it. Spent most of my college years making art: graphics, sculpture, graffiti. My first travel writing gig was covering the launch of Apollo 17 -- the last Moon shot -- in 1972, but I didn't start making a living writing until 1983. Those who are interested can check out some recent stories on Salon.com; just plug my name into their search engine. My weirdest job of all time came just last month, when I wrote the speech that Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin gave at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.. To access a full bio, visit my website (see below)."
BB. "There is no Christmas in Star Trek. Discuss."
JG. "There's no Ramadan, either. Or Passover. Or Jehovah's Witnesses (can you imagine?). I sense that Starfleet members celebrate their holidays in private, or with friends. Worf certainly does; as did Spock, Kira, and various other characters. I'm not one of these people who believes spirituality has been eliminated on Star Trek -- that will always be a central part of peoples' lives -- but I do think Roddenberry anticipated an era when religion was a private matter, and diverse views were respected. One funny, quasi-religious moment in my book: when a Tibetan monk suggests Star Trek is a vision of Shambala, the mythic Buddhist paradise -- and the Dalai Lama shoots him down."
BB. "Do you read the Nitpicker Guides? Any comment on why you do or you don't?"
JG. "I've never even seen one. As anyone who reads my books will know, I'm not a trivia hound. I watch Star Trek because I enjoy it on a story-telling level; I don't record the batting averages and box scores."
BB. "Your fave episode of TNG seems to be The Inner Light. Would you like to share with us a description of the episode and why you are so profoundly affected by it?"
JG. "I've studied Buddhism for many years, and The Inner Light seems to be a wonderful, compact teaching; sort of like a Zen koan. That one marvelous line that Picard delivers to his "wife" as he searches the skies for his lost ship and vaguely-recalled life: "It was as real as this." Isn't that the way it's going to be when we leave this world, this frame of consciousness? We'll be astonished by how convinced we were by this realm of illusion. By the way, I also love "Yestersday's Enterprise," "Measure of a Man," "Darmok," and about twenty other well-crafted episodes...."
BB. "What was it that first inspired you to write the book? Could you take us non-literary types through the book's development, from concept to the store?"
JG. "I'd already written two Trek pieces: one for Wired (issue 4.01) and one for Details. During that process I was seduced by the soundstages, the glamour, the rush of being involved with a show I'd been following for 30 years. So I wrote a book proposal for a book called "Planet Star Trek" (Viking's lawyers ultimately killed that far-superior name), and my agent sold it for a reasonable sum. It took nine months research, and nine months' writing to complete. My budget for travel was about $7,000 -- one trip covered the U.K. and Europe, the other Japan and Central Asia. I also hired a researcher and private editor."
BB. "What works do you have in the pipeline? Any more Trek-oriented material?"
JG. "I just returned from Iran, where I reported on the eclipse (and the country) for Salon.com and (very briefly) New Scientist. In October I'll be going to Bhutan to write a travel piece for National Geographic Adventure."
BB. "And of course if we want to keep up with your writings you regularly contribute to?"
JG. "The best place to find recent work is Salon.com. I'll also be doing a number of features for New Scientist. My website --www.jeffgreenwald.com -- is good for finding out what's up and coming."
BB. "Would you serve on the Enterprise?"
JG. "Probably not. I don't think I could tolerate the quasi-military training. I'd rather be out there on my own, Solo-like, piloting a rude scow of my own design, meddling with whatever societies and space vixens I encountered."
BB. "Which Sci-Fi authors do you read?"
JG. "Recently? Greg Baer, Greg Egan, Gregory Benford, Clarke, Asimov, Vernor Vinge, U. K. LeGuin's anthro stuff, J.G. Ballard, Michael Blumlein, Nancy Kress... And every year I plow faithfully through Garder Dozois' "Year's Best Science Fiction."
BB. "Jeff Greenwald, thank you very much".
This week showcasing Rites of Passage by William (Lord of the Flies) Golding. (Not to be confused with Marathon Man ["Is it safe?"]/Princess Bride William Goldman - different fella). Ahem. Observations upon a gentleman of the cloth who may not have gained our hero's entire approval: "But this Colley has been dealt with by Nature with the utmost economy. Nature has pitched - no, the verb is too active.Well then, on some corner of Time's beach, or on the muddy rim of one of her more insignificant rivulets, there have been washed together casually and indifferently a number of features that Nature had tossed away as of no use to any of her creations. Some vital spark that might have gone to the animation of a sheep assumed the collection. The result is this fledgling of the church". It takes a while to get into this tale told, as it is, by a narrator who is himself something of an innocent abroad, but once firmly ensconced one find's one's attention absorbed by a presentation of sustained brilliance. Great stuff and I recommend it..
and showcasing Journal of a Diary by John Steinbeck. I waded through this book like I was swimming through sand. If it didn't have the Steinbeck marque I'd have given up on it in three or four pages. And here, I was going to quote a passage and tell you where you'll find it. But then I'd ruin it for you, wouldn't I? So you'll have to take my word for it, I'm glad I struggled on.