This week, The Writers' Lens is
honored to bring its readers a master--a legend--of the thriller and mystery
genre: John Lutz.
"If I've scared
somebody enough to disturb their sleep--that's good."--John Lutz
The Writers' Lens: When you are
starting to work on a new novel, what do you find brings the story into focus
for you? A Character? A setting? Something else?
John Lutz: Almost always the
characters, and something of their relationship with each other. The interplay
between the characters is as important as the characters themselves.
WL: How did you learn to write
suspenseful thrillers?
JL: By writing and writing and writing. I think
the more you write, the more you learn, and the better you write. Also I enjoy
reading suspense novels; especially if they are set in New York City, such as Lawrence Sanders’
“Deadly Sin” series, published in the seventies. New York is a great place to set a novel.
WL: What key things make your
thrillers work?
JL: I would like to think they
work because of the characters. They have to be real enough for the reader to
identify with them and on a certain level feel what they are feeling and share
in their experience.
"As a writer
you're getting inside the skin of your character in your book in the same way
an actor gets inside the skin of a character he plays on stage."-- John
Lutz
WL: What was the hardest part of
writing thrillers and suspense?
JL: It’s more difficult and time consuming to
write a long, multiple viewpoint novel than to write a linear detective novel
or conventional whodunit. There are more plates to keep spinning.
WL: You are currently writing
about serial killers. When you write
their scenes, do you ever scare yourself?
JL: Nope. I’m too wrapped up in
technique, and wondering if what I’m doing is working, to feel what I hope the
reader will feel. It’s gratifying to receive e-mails from women thanking me for
having scared them. Makes me think I’m on the right track.
WL: How do you sharpen your
suspenseful scenes and when do you know, as the writer, that you have it the
way you want it?
JL: When I believe I’ve revised
enough, I set aside what I’ve written and come back to it later with a fresh
perspective. If it still feels to me that I’ve nailed a scene or story, I’m
satisfied.
WL: What themes in your fiction
writing seem to drive you the most?
JL: I like my fiction to convey
the notion that there are patterns and
real cause and effect in life (which is for the most part pretty random) and that once we discern what’s
happening, we have the ability to cope with it, or at least learn to accept it.
WL: Do you work on multiple novels
at once? If so, how many?
JL: I take it one book at a time,
though if I’m between phases, such as a finished first draft, or a second, I
might work on another project. I’m probably giving the impression that I revise
a lot. I do.
WL: How easy was it to take the
leap of faith to become a serious writer and chase this career? What did you
find that you had to do to take the step?
JL: When I received a surprisingly large advance
for a novel, it became apparent to me that this was my most marketable skill. I
knew I could combine what I very much enjoyed doing (writing) with obtaining
what I very much needed (money). A liberating moment.
WL: In years past, new writers
would battle their way in the pulp magazines to build their readerships and
their careers. Do you think that is still the case in the explosion of
electronic readers, blogs, e-zines, and other like media? Who do you see as the
current gatekeeper of the good writers and those who are still developing?
JL: A comprehensive answer would
take several pages, and then it might be far wrong. Maybe the most interesting
thing about book-biz these days is that no one knows for sure where it is
headed. Where we’ve been, and where we are, might be much different from where
we’re going. There seems to be no gatekeeper, and the gate is wide open.
WL: When you plot your novels,
from whose point of view do you plot from? The protagonist’s? The antagonist’s?
The narrator’s? Some one else?
JL: In a thriller I write from
several alternating points of view. I
also like to write more linear PI novels from the protagonist’s POV, and in
third person.
WL: Arthur C. Clarke once wrote
that when science catches up with the science fiction writer, the science
fiction writer needs to make a leap forward.
With fictional shows like CSI and reality TV shows like Killer Instinct,
do you feel that you have had to take a leap forward as a thriller writer to
stay atop of the changes in the science of criminal investigation? How do you
stay ahead of the game?
JL: Definitely we have to leap, or
at least crawl, forward to keep up. DNA alone has forced many changes. Cell
phones mean everyone can be in touch with everyone else. The Internet provides
information it took fictional detectives not so long ago weeks (or chapters) to
obtain. The more sophisticated cell phones become, the more we crime writers
have to adapt, because almost everyone now has a cell phone, which is also a
camera, which is also a GPS system, which is also a research library, which is
also a newspaper morgue, which is also a recorder, which is also…
WL: What novels, books, articles,
magazines or other media most useful when you are researching serial killers
and criminal investigation?
JL: See above. Google is probably my main source
of research material.
WL: You are a master and a legend
in the genres of suspense and mystery. What
was your biggest fear when you decided to first be published as a
novelist? Do you still have those fears with each new book or are there
other fears that come up?
JL: Like most of the writers I
knew when I was starting out, my biggest fear was that I wouldn’t sell enough
copies to prompt the sale of another book. Fewer fears now. I’m more confident
that if I take the time and trouble to revise, I can make whatever it is I’m
writing work, Unlike many writers, I really do enjoy revising, so that’s not
much of a problem. It’s meticulous work, but it’s what lends the fiction life. To paraphrase Mark Twain: “The difference
between the adequate word and the precise word is the difference between the
lightning bug and the lightning.”
WL: What is your writing schedule
like?
JL: I usually work in the morning,
then after lunch revise what I’ve written.
In both morning and afternoon, before starting to work I check e-mail,
Facebook, Twitter, to make sure nothing requires immediate attention.
WL: If you could have coffee (or
drink of your choice) with four other authors from any time period, who would
you choose and why?
JL: Shakespeare, to see if I could
get an honest answer out of him.; H.H. Munro (Saki) to see if I could figure
out how he did what no one else has been able to do; Joseph Conrad, to see if
he talks as rhythmically as he writes; Edgar Allan Poe, to see if I could cheer
him up.
WL: How could my readers learn
more about you?
Here are some additional videos on
YouTube about John Lutz and his stories:
How do you win a free signed copy of this novel? To enter the contest, simply leave a
comment or question on the Writers'Lens blog between now (April 9th) and midnight
April 14, 2012. Please include your email so we can reach you if you win.
The more comments you leave, the greater your chance of winning the contest.
If you refer others to The Writer's Lens who mention your name in their comments, I'll enter your name again in
our random number generator along with theirs, also increasing your chances at
winning! The winner will be chosen after midnight on Saturday, April 14
and the announcement made on Sunday, April 15, Good luck and comment often.
Good luck!
Thank you for reading and please visit
www.davidalanlucas.com and
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@TheWritersLens. Fiction is the world where the philosopher is the most free in
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