Ben Rose is the author of the young adult novel The Long Game. His other books include Bury Me Upside Down. He lives in Florida.
Q: What inspired you to write The Long Game, and how did you create your characters Vinnie and Steph?
A: There are several riffs and beats that came together and comingled, which together created this jazz. First of all, I had written a novel titled Everybody But Us. Vinnie was what might be termed a secondary character in that work, albeit a supremely integral second character.
The Vinnie that came together in that work was stitched and woven from four or five cats I’ve dug over the decades. Each of the gentlemen had their own journey to recovery and their own path a-winding. A couple of them had a “Steph.”
The readers clamored for and at times demanded that Vinnie be given his own novel. There were some readers who wrote me fan emails indicating their love for the character and an interest in knowing his backstory.
In creating him, I needed to flesh out some areas and I turned inward for that. Steph was created, in part, from what some of the gents told me about their experiences. She was likewise, in part, created from some ladies I met through earlier action in my journeys.
Domestic violence has been, and remains, a stain on human society. There are those who help the victims of such. Sometimes that help operates outside the formalities of law and order, and in many ways, Steph, Caroline, and Heather Baker are a microcosm of a macrocosm. Likewise, the shelter they enter, and the brief discussion of their journey is a microcosm of a macrocosm.
I have had questions about my writing a novel describing Steph’s journey behind the scenes of The Long Game. This, unfortunately, will not be forthcoming. There is some knowledge that it would be unwise to impart and disseminate on a grander level.
Q: Did you need to do any research to write the novel, and if so, did you learn anything that especially surprised you?
A: Let’s just say that I did a fair amount of research over many years for this work. I was surprised in a number of ways with that particular research.
There are other areas where the research was different. The naming of several minor characters required becoming familiar with certain lists. I was surprised, in this research, at how questionable humanity truly can be.
I did speak to a few retired military persons who read a synopsis of Vinnie and allowed that such a man might not be wholly suited for the SpecOps community…were he to exist.
The novel is picaresque, and Vinnie is an antihero. In constructing the work, I read much in the true crime genre. I sought to discover the human and decent qualities behind those who may have been bad actors through necessity.
Q: Did you know how the story would end before you started writing it, or did you make many changes along the way?
A: There were numerous changes along the way. One was that I had to tone down considerably certain prurient and libidinous behaviors on the part of some characters. Especially since Vinnie is at times more randy than a three-balled tomcat.
The end was never clear until it ended. However, there was a general concept that it should be neither happily ever after nor happily for now. I deal in realism, and life is rarely either of those things.
The path an individual takes will, of necessity, lead to a certain point. There is always a long trail a-winding beyond that point fraught with pitfalls and potholes. Life would be exceedingly boring were it not so.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the book?
A: I hope that young adult readers will come to understand that love is a complicated affair. Or several complicated affairs. We are at our essence humans, and there is no inherent good or evil in us.
One can behave in a questionably extralegal manner for the most altruistic of reasons. This neither ameliorates nor excuses the misbehavior. Likewise, it does not reflect poorly on the altruism.
Beyond that, it may become increasingly necessary for all of us to improvise in order to exist in what is coming down the pike for society. In some ways that has already become necessary. I cannot in good conscience recommend many of Vinnie’s actions nor those of his family and friends.
However, should one find oneself without a permanent residence, or on a transient flip, there is something to be said for thinking outside the box. One can live large with limited means.
In terms of all the above, never lose your moral compass. Figure out who you are and keep that as a beacon to guide you home.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: After the release of The Long Game, I wrote a third novel titled Bury Me Upside Down. It has seen success similar to the first two novels. However, it was more of a historical fiction, punk rock novel circa 1993.
At present, I have completed a fourth novel, Found Family, which will release in late September. This is perhaps my most raw, and semi-autobiographical novel yet. As with my previous three, this will release through Oracle BookArt Publishing.
Beyond that, I am working on five other novels, several short stories, a memoir, and a movie script. The life of an author is never uninteresting, and rarely allows for rest.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: If you wish to find me on social media, or otherwise, here is how you might do so:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BenRoseAuthor/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/benroseauthor/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/benroseauthor.bsky.social
Newsletter: https://benrauthor.substack.com/p/the-beat-on-the-street-is
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
No comments:
Post a Comment