Blog Tour: Pandora’s Succession – Author Interview
Today I’m proud to offer my blog up to Russell Brooks, author of Pandora’s Succession!
His book is action-packed, fantastically researched and written extremely well. My review will be posted tomorrow, but today Russell was kind enough to answer some of my interview questions! Enjoy!
1) I always like to start my interviews with a challenge! If your book was set to become a movie, what would your tagline be?
Where will you hide when The Succession begins?
2) This is your debut thriller novel correct? What inspired you to write a thriller?
Yes. As every story idea that came to mind, it started with a subject. This subject being the conspiracy to gain control of an ancient microbe which may have been the world’s oldest biological weapon. The thought that there would be people within the pharmaceutical industry and the government that want to gain control of such a dangerous biological entity for their own selfish reasons is bad enough for most people. If it ever became public knowledge that something of this nature was kept secret from the general public for years, it would create mass hysteria. For this reason, writing it as a thriller was the most suitable option.
3) There are a lot of very vivid scenes in this book. What type of research went into your writing?
I had to research weapons, locations, and brush up on my biology. It wasn’t enough for me to write an entertaining story, but also one that borders on reality. Therefore it was important to be sure, since this is an international thriller, that my characters are driving on the right side of the street and that they’re not overdressed or underdressed for a particular climate, considering that Pandora’s Succession takes place in seven different countries.
4) Is there a history behind how Fox was created, or did he just flow onto the page with the story?
A bit of both. Fox was loosely based on a former track and field teammate from high school. I imagined him with a clandestine military background and the rest developed on its own the further that I got into the book.
5) Would you say that you are a fan of thriller movies, or do you just love to write it?
I love all types of movies, not just thrillers. I’ll watch almost anything that is well written. To help me write better, I read great books and watch great movies (and TV shows) and study them critically. I try to catch errors in order to learn what was done right and what was not done right. I tend to catch errors more often with TV shows and movies than I do with books.
6) Where is your ideal place to write?
I have a laptop so I’m not restricted. I may write at home in my office or I may go to my favourite coffee shop.
7) Is there any advice you would give to those aspiring authors out there?
Never give up. Get your book professionally edited and if you’re writing outside of your field of expertise, don’t hesitate to contact professionals. Whether it’s a retired police officer, doctors, lawyers, or scientists. You’ll be surprised at how many of them are open-minded and willing to help anyone who’s ambitious. What I do is anyone that helps me, in addition to adding them to the acknowledgements, with their permission, I’ll make them a character in a future novel, even if it’s a very minor part.
8) Are there any future books in the works?
I have a mystery/adventure I’m finishing up that will hopefully be ready by Winter 2011, maybe before depending how things go. I’m also working on the sequel to Pandora’s Succession.
Check back tomorrow for my review, as well as a giveaway!
