| ISBN: 1593745702 | | | | like the issues (to me the themes) are secondary |
| The following interview with Richard Satterlie was | | | | to the story, and if I did it right, they should |
| conducted by: NORM GOLDMAN: Editor of | | | | sneak up on the reader. I'm hoping the readers |
| Today, Norm Goldman, Editor of is excited to | | | | will climb in the protagonist's skin and experience |
| have as our guest,Richard Satterlie, Ph.D,author of | | | | the themes rather than being assaulted by them. |
| Phoenix. Richard was Professor of Biology at | | | | Norm: |
| Arizona State University and he is now the Frank | | | | What challenges or obstacles did you encounter |
| Hawkins Kenan Distinguished Professor of Marine | | | | while writing your book? How did you overcome |
| Biology at the University of North Carolina | | | | these challenges? |
| Wilmington. | | | | Richard: |
| Good day Richard and thanks for agreeing to | | | | The primary obstacle was time. I have a |
| participate in our interview. | | | | wonderful, rewarding occupation, and I give it the |
| Norm: | | | | full attention it deserves. The way I've overcome |
| Where did you grow up and have reading and | | | | this challenge--I don't sleep much. The second |
| writing always been a part of your life? | | | | obstacle is one all new authors face. Writing is |
| Richard: | | | | great fun for me, but I also want it to be just as |
| Thank you, Norm. | | | | much fun for the readers. There is constant |
| I was born and raised in Vallejo, California--about | | | | uncertainty about that one. The third challenge is |
| 35 miles north of San Francisco, on San Pablo | | | | convincing friends and family that writing is not |
| Bay. Way back then, I wanted to play basketball | | | | just "another of those fly-by-night hobbies." Finally, |
| in the NBA, so reading wasn't high on my list. | | | | in historical fiction, it's very easy to slip |
| Same with writing. As my career plans changed | | | | contemporary phrases into the dialogue, and to |
| (out of necessity), writing became more and | | | | use period-inappropriate terms. Fortunately, my |
| more important. Due to the need for so much | | | | wife is good at catching these things. |
| science-specific reading and writing, I didn't have | | | | Norm: |
| much time to read fiction, and no time to write it. | | | | Can you explain some of your research |
| Eventually I found time, then I made time, but still | | | | techniques, and how you found sources for your |
| I don't read as much fiction as I'd like. I do most | | | | book? |
| of my writing at night, after the kids go to bed. | | | | Richard: |
| Norm: | | | | Research for Phoenix was fairly easy. The story |
| Why do you write and what inspired you to write | | | | starts in Minnesota. My mother and father both |
| Phoenix? | | | | grew up in Minnesota, and some of my relatives |
| Richard: | | | | are still faming there. I learned about Norwegian |
| I guess the short answer to the first part of the | | | | ways (good and bad) from my father. His father |
| question is I like intellectual challenges, and after so | | | | was a first generation Norwegian-American like |
| much technical writing, fiction was a significant | | | | the protagonist in Phoenix. The majority of the |
| challenge. Also, I like the idea of being able to | | | | story takes place in the Arizona Territory. I lived |
| create situations, and build these situations into | | | | in the Phoenix Valley for twenty-four years, and I |
| stories, all from my imagination. The wellspring for | | | | became familiar with the area and its history. The |
| Phoenix came from a book on the history of the | | | | references on Jack Swilling and his time period |
| Black Canyon area of Arizona, and the gold and | | | | were extremely helpful. |
| silver mines that operated there for a time. What | | | | Norm: |
| allowed the wellspring to grow into a creek was a | | | | How did you create Sievert Olafson in your book? |
| simple observation from that book. Stage and | | | | Richard: |
| wagon hold-up artists were being pinched by the | | | | This is answered in the first part of my previous |
| development of railroads. But in the heyday of | | | | answer. One of my heroes was my father's |
| gold and silver mining in Black Canyon, | | | | brother, my Uncle Sid. Although he lived his life as |
| stagecoaches and wagons were still used to carry | | | | a very successful farmer in Minnesota, unlike |
| payrolls and ore. Any reasonable robber would | | | | Sievert, his outlook on life and his personal values |
| migrate toward the easy marks, so this part of | | | | made an impression on me. My father held those |
| Arizona collected more than its fair share of bad | | | | same values, but you may know as well as I do |
| guys. What's interesting is this creek plays a very | | | | that it's difficult to look at our own father and |
| minor role in the story, which speaks to how | | | | really see him as a regular person. |
| fiction finds it own streambed. | | | | Norm: |
| Norm: | | | | What do you hope to achieve with your first |
| How long did it take you to write Phoenix and | | | | novel and what do you hope readers will take |
| what did you learn from writing this book, as I | | | | away after reading the book? Is there an |
| believe this is your first work of fiction? | | | | underlying message in Phoenix? |
| Richard: | | | | Richard: |
| It took about six months to write it. I did write | | | | I would like Phoenix to entertain its readers. There |
| one story before Phoenix, around 90,000 words, | | | | are a couple of underlying messages that, I hope, |
| but about 89,999 of those words were horrible. I | | | | come across. Things like the importance of family, |
| didn't know how to write fiction, so I just told a | | | | and my favorite, developed in the book, about |
| story. Fortunately, I received an extremely harsh | | | | how our trajectory from birth to death is not a |
| evaluation of this work, which upped the challenge | | | | straight one, but meanders--sometimes to the |
| for me. With good advice and several books on | | | | good and sometimes to the bad. But in the end, it |
| how to write fiction, Phoenix was my response. | | | | is the smoothed slope of the trajectory that is |
| Most of what I know about writing fiction came | | | | important. Does it lean to the good or to the bad? |
| from working through Phoenix. I learned the | | | | I suspect different readers will take away |
| basics of the craft. I learned that the plot evolves | | | | different things from the book. Reading fiction is a |
| as the characters develop, and that this evolution | | | | very personal thing. If it is written correctly, the |
| shouldn't be resisted. I learned that I am still | | | | reader will get so involved, his/her own |
| playing hide-and-seek with the subtleties of the | | | | experience will flavor what they take away from |
| craft. And, I learned that this last part probably will | | | | it. |
| never change for any serious writer. | | | | Norm: |
| Norm: | | | | Up to now you have written non-fiction, how |
| How did you approach recreating the character of | | | | easy or difficult was it for you to write a work of |
| John William (Jack) Swilling who in fact was a real | | | | fiction? |
| person. Did you plan him out or did he evolve as | | | | Richard: |
| you wrote the book? Did you leave things out | | | | It was fairly easy for me. Looking back, I have |
| that you had discovered about him? | | | | always dreamed in complete scenes. I can |
| Richard: | | | | remember playing with my small cars and building |
| I was fortunate to have three references that | | | | sets, and I always had a story going, complete |
| gave a basic account of Jack Swilling's life, but | | | | with interacting characters and dialogue. It's all in |
| they also presented slightly different versions of | | | | the imagination. I've always been able to do the |
| some of the more notorious aspects of his | | | | imagination thing. Too much, sometimes. |
| personality. This allowed me to use the former as | | | | Norm: |
| guideposts for the story at the same time I could | | | | How much of Richard Satterlie is in the character |
| let my own extrapolations set the paths between | | | | of Sievert Olafson? |
| the guideposts. Since Swilling wasn't my | | | | Richard: |
| protagonist, but rather this new mentor, I felt I | | | | There is very little of me in Sievert, although my |
| had more leeway in how I portrayed him. In real | | | | family may disagree. The one commonality I can |
| life, he was a rich personality. It was fun to play | | | | point to with certainty was a springboard for this |
| with that. | | | | story, though. When I decided to go to graduate |
| Norm: | | | | school, several family members tried to talk me |
| Do you agree, as Philip Gerard states in Writing a | | | | out of it. "What will you do with an advanced |
| Book that makes a Difference, that if you want | | | | degree in Biology?" was the question I remember |
| to write a good story or novel you need to | | | | to this day. |
| create struggles of powerful descriptive individuals | | | | Norm: |
| and not just issues. Through their | | | | Is there anything else you'd like to share with us |
| accomplishments and travail, we very much | | | | and what is next for Richard Satterlie? |
| comprehend the issues? If you do agree, how is | | | | Richard: |
| this applicable in Phoenix? | | | | I do have three other completed novels |
| Richard: | | | | (mystery, psychological suspense and supernatural |
| Absolutely. The best plot in the world isn't worth | | | | suspense), and a fourth in progress (back to |
| much unless there are interesting, imperfect | | | | mystery). I'm also contemplating a sequel to |
| characters to act it out, in my opinion. A book of | | | | Phoenix. Perhaps readers will help me decide if |
| fiction makes a horrible soapbox. But every good | | | | Sievert Olafson should come back to us. |
| book of fiction should whip up a few suds. It's the | | | | Thanks once again and good luck with all of your |
| characters who do the whipping. Putting the issues | | | | future endeavors. |
| above the characters exposes too much of the | | | | Thank you for the great questions! |
| author, who should be invisible. In Phoenix, I feel | | | | |