David Baldacci Interview

David Baldacci Interview 1) Your first books published were all standalone novels and now you have three different series running. What brought about the change of direction? I think it was a desire to bring certain characters back. First were the King & Maxwell stories where I had so much more to tell. Women especially love Michelle Maxwell. 2) You have different styles for each individual series with Shaw being just one man, King and Maxwell a duo and the Camel Club a whole team of people. Did you intentionally choose these character sets or was it just the way the books arose? It was the way things worked out for all the series. The Camel Club is an ensemble around Oliver Stone with each character having different skill sets. 3) You have also written some gentler almost literary novels such as One Summer and The Christmas Train. What is your opinion of the divide between crime fiction and literary novels? It’s a silly argument to have as readers read both styles / genres. The argument between the two helps neither camp. 4) In The Sixth Man which is your latest UK release you have Edgar Roy a character with a fantastic intellect who is used as a super analyst. Do such people exist in reality or is the whole premise your own creation. Some of it is my creation, but there really are people with an eidetic memory and I though what a really interesting idea for a character. 5) All of your books are intricately plotted and show clear evidence of lots of research. Do you have a clear outline of all the twist and turns before starting the novel or do you have a more relaxed approach and see where the novel takes you and how often do you tie yourself into knots working out the plots? I think it’s more by flying by the seat of my pants. The more information I have then the better I can write. If I can surprise myself then I can shock the reader. 6) With Hell’s Corner released on New Years Eve, The Sixth Man in June, One Summer in August and Zero Day due out in November you have to be one of the most prolific authors writing today. How do you manage to not only produce so many books so quickly but to maintain the high standards we readers associate with your work? I work really hard at it. I spend lots of time and energy on it. I guess I just love storytelling. Some writers I know take time off, whereas I just want to write the next one. 7) Of your many novels and characters are there any you hold in special affection above others? Oliver Stone who after 5 books I still find really intriguing and Jackson who was the killer from The Winner. I still get E-mails about Jackson 11 years after writing him. 8) Can you tell me what you are currently working on and what plans you have for future novels? I have just finished Zero day which features a former army ranger called John Puller and it has been the first time I knew from the start that the book I was writing would become a series. 9) What tips do you have for aspiring authors? Make sure that you are passionate about whatever you are writing as publishers can detect your passion in your writing. 10) Which authors do you regularly read yourself? Lee Child, Nelson DeMille, Michael Connolly, Patricia Cornwell and Sue Grafton among others. 11) Which are your favourite three books of all time and why? Sophie’s Choice by William Styron as I knew the author and the book stayed with me a long time. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee as I grew up in the South In Cold Blood by Truman capote which is the book that got me interested in crime fiction. .

Load more