John Aubrey Anderson in black and white. He's bold.
Fiction character you would most like to be or most identify with and why?
I would want to be me . . . with the heart of Reepicheep, the valiant mouse in The Chronicles of Narnia. Reep is the personification of chivalry; fear will never whisper to his decision-making process; and he is unalterably and unabashedly devoted to the King and His cause.
If you could change something in any novel, what would you change about it and why?
Is it okay to change two?
I'd change THE SHOOTIST to conform to the movie. I read the book because I liked the movie and I didn't like the written version at all.
And in John Grisham's THE PARTNER, I'd have the protagonist get a little better deal at the end . . . but I'm a sap.
Favorite turn of phrase or word picture, in literature or movie.
The Lt. Sam Weinberg character in "A Few Good Men" said, "I have no responsibility here whatsoever." I quote him often.
If you were assured of writing a best-seller, what genre would it be? Give us a sliver of information, a characteristic or glimpse of a scene.
I'd write action/suspense.
My protagonist would find himself in a bloody confrontation . . . in a hostile environment, surrounded by an overwhelming enemy force . . . he's weakened, exhausted and disheartened, stripped of hope . . . his survival is dependent upon whether or not he can muster the tenacity of purpose to take him beyond that point where normal men would surrender. And he may die there.
What would you write if there were no rules or barriers? (epic
novels about characters in the Bible, poetry, greeting cards, plays, movies, instruction manuals, etc.)
God has given the gift of writing in the genre that gives me energy.
I want to write intense suspense/thriller fiction that rivets truth to the hearts of men, women, boys, and girls.
Where would you most like to travel ----- moon, north pole, deep seas, deserted island, the holy land or back to a place from your childhood, somewhere else? – and why.
I flew for an airline for almost twenty-nine years, and I've been
lots of places, but I'm a dud in the travel department. From Bangor to Seattle, the California cities . . . they all have a lot to offer, I guess, but I always ended up on the same familiar streets . . . strolling, drinking coffee, and watching people. Years ago it was Bangkok, Madrid, London, Hong Kong, London, Rome, Athens . . . same streets and people, different accents.
Favorite season and why?
The one I'm in at the moment. Seasons pass pretty fast at my age . . . I like to enjoy them all.
Which compliment related to your writing has meant the most and why?
I have to bend the rules because this is not exactly a
compliment . . . and I didn't hear it firsthand.
When I went to my first-ever writers' conference, we were allowed to mail two proposals in ahead of time and chose which editors we wanted to have take a look at our work.
As it happened, the guy I had my sights set on ended up being inundated with proposals. While he was pouring over non-fiction proposals, his wife was rummaging around in his fiction slush pile. After reading my work, she walked into the room where he was working and held up my packet.
"This is the one."
The next day the editor and I sat down and talked. That was in the spring of 2003 . . . and he and I are talking about book four now.
What criticism has cut the deepest and why?
I know criticism is on the way, but so far it's been jot and tittle
stuff. There will come a day when someone will come down hard on my work, but unless their comments are supported by people I trust, I'll probably ignore them. If their words have merit, I hope I'll profit from what they have to say.
Favorite chore - Why?
I like taking care of our cars . . . keeping them clean and changing the oil. One of the worst things about being so busy for the last four years is . . . my car has only been washed about three times. I've kept the oil changed, but the interior looks like I've been using it to host styrofoam fights.
Thanks, John
Happy weekend, everyone.
