Author: Richard Satterlie, Ph.D.
ISBN: 1593745702
The following interview with Richard Satterlie was conducted by: NORM GOLDMAN: Editor of Bookpleasures.com.
Today, Norm Goldman, editor of Bookpleasures.com, is pleased to have Richard Satterlie, Ph.D, author of Phoenix, as his guest. Richard was a professor of biology at Arizona State University and is now the Frank Hawkins Kenan Distinguished Professor of Marine Biology at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.
Good morning Richard and thank you for agreeing to participate in our interview.
Standard:
Where did you grow up and have reading and writing always been a part of your life?
Richard:
Thank you, Norm.
I was born and raised in Vallejo, California, about 35 miles north of San Francisco, on the San Pablo Bay. Back then, I wanted to play basketball in the NBA, so reading wasn’t high on my list. Same with writing. As my career plans changed (out of necessity), writing became more and more important. Because of the need for so much specific science reading and writing, I didn’t have much time to read or write fiction. I eventually found time, then I made time, but I still don’t read as much fiction as I’d like. I do most of my writing at night, after the kids go to bed.
Standard:
Why do you write and what inspired you to write Phoenix?
Richard:
I guess the short answer to the first part of the question is that I like an intellectual challenge, and after so much technical writing, fiction was a major challenge. Also, I like the idea of being able to create situations and turn these situations into stories, all from my imagination. The source for Phoenix came from a book on the history of the Black Canyon area of Arizona and the gold and silver mines that operated there for a time. What allowed the spring to become a stream was a simple observation from that book. Wagon and stage robber performers were being affected by the development of the railways. But in the heyday of gold and silver mining in Black Canyon, stagecoaches and wagons were still used to transport payroll and ore. Any reasonable thief would migrate to the easy marks, so this part of Arizona brought in more of the bad guys. The interesting thing is that this stream plays a very secondary role in the story, which speaks of how fiction finds its own channel.
Standard:
How long did it take you to write Phoenix and what did you learn from writing this book, since I think this is your first work of fiction?
Richard:
It took about six months to write it. I wrote a story before Phoenix, about 90,000 words, but about 89,999 of those words were horrible. I didn’t know how to write fiction, so I just told a story. Fortunately, I received an extremely harsh evaluation of this job, which increased the challenge for me. With good advice and several books on how to write fiction, Phoenix was my answer. Most of what I know about writing fiction came from working with Phoenix. I learned the basics of the trade. I learned that the plot evolves as the characters develop, and that this evolution should not be resisted. I learned that I am still playing hide-and-seek with the niceties of the trade. And I learned that this last part will probably never change for any serious writer.
Standard:
How did you go about recreating the character of John William (Jack) Swilling, who was actually a real person? Did you plan it or did it evolve while you were writing the book? Did you leave out things you had found out about him?
Richard:
I was lucky enough to have three references that gave a basic account of Jack Swilling’s life, but also presented slightly different versions of some of the more notorious aspects of his personality. This allowed me to use the former as guides to the story while also being able to let my own extrapolations set the paths between the guides. Since Swilling was not my leading man, but this new mentor, I felt he had more leeway to play him. In real life, he was a rich personality. It was fun to play with it.
Standard:
Do you agree, as Philip Gerard asserts in Writing a Book That Makes a Difference, that if you want to write a good story or novel you need to create struggles of powerful descriptive individuals and not just problems? Through your achievements and work, do we understand the problems a lot? If you agree, how does this apply in Phoenix?
Richard:
Absolutely. The best plot in the world isn’t worth much unless there are interesting and flawed characters to portray it, in my opinion. A fiction book makes a horrible soap box. But every good fiction book should whip up some foam. It is the characters who give the lashes. Putting themes above characters exposes too much of the author, who should be invisible. In Phoenix, I feel like the issues (to me, the themes) are secondary to the story, and if I did it right, they should surprise the reader. I hope readers get into the shoes of the protagonist and experience the themes instead of being assaulted by them.
Standard:
What challenges or obstacles did you encounter while writing your book? How did she overcome these challenges?
Richard:
The main obstacle was time. I have a wonderful and rewarding occupation, and I give it all the attention it deserves. The way I got through this challenge: I don’t sleep much. The second hurdle is one that all new authors face. Writing is a lot of fun for me, but I also want it to be just as fun for the readers. There is constant uncertainty about that. The third challenge is convincing friends and family that writing isn’t just “another one of those hobbies that flies by.” Finally, in historical fiction, it’s all too easy to slip contemporary phrases into the dialogue and use terms that are inappropriate for the times. Fortunately, my wife is good at catching these things.
Standard:
Can you explain some of your research techniques and how you found sources for your book?
Richard:
The Phoenix investigation was pretty easy. The story begins in Minnesota. My mother and father grew up in Minnesota and some of my relatives are still starving there. I learned about Norwegian customs (good and bad) from my father. His father was a first-generation Norwegian-American like the lead in Phoenix. Most of the story takes place in the Arizona Territory. I lived in the Phoenix Valley for twenty-four years and became familiar with the area and its history. The references to Jack Swilling and his time period were extremely helpful.
Standard:
How did you create Sievert Olafson in your book?
Richard:
This is answered in the first part of my previous answer. One of my heroes was my father’s brother, my Uncle Sid. Although he lived his life as a very successful farmer in Minnesota, unlike Sievert, his outlook on life and his personal values impressed me. My father had those same values, but you may know as well as I do that it’s hard to look at our own father and really see him as a normal person.
Standard:
What do you hope to achieve with your first novel, and what do you hope readers will take away after reading the book? Is there an underlying message in Phoenix?
Richard:
I would like Phoenix to entertain his readers. There are a couple of underlying messages that I hope will get through. Things like the importance of family, and my favorite, developed in the book, about how our path from birth to death is not straight, but winding, sometimes for better and sometimes for worse. But in the end, it is the smooth slope of the trajectory that is important. Do you lean towards the good or the bad? I suspect that different readers will get different things out of the book. Reading fiction is a very personal thing. If it is written correctly, the reader will be so involved that his own experience will flavor what he takes away from it.
Standard:
So far you have written non-fiction, how easy or difficult was it for you to write a work of fiction?
Richard:
It was quite easy for me. Looking back, I’ve always dreamed of full scenes. I can remember playing with my little cars and construction sets, and always had a story going, complete with interactive characters and dialogue. Everything is in the imagination. I’ve always been able to do the imagination thing. Too much, sometimes.
Standard:
How much of Richard Satterlie is there in the character of Sievert Olafson?
Richard:
There is very little of me in Sievert, although my family may disagree. However, the only common point that I can pinpoint with certainty was a springboard for this story. When I decided to go to graduate school, several family members tried to talk me out of it. “What will you do with an advanced degree in biology?” was the question I remember to this day.
Standard:
Is there anything else you’d like to share with us and what’s next for Richard Satterlie?
Richard:
I have three other novels finished (mystery, psychological suspense, and supernatural suspense), and a fourth in the works (back to mystery). I’m also contemplating a sequel to Phoenix. Perhaps the readers will help me decide if Sievert Olafson should come back to us.
Thanks once again and good luck with all your future projects.
Thanks for the great questions!
