Michael O'Donnell is the author of the new novel Concert Black. He also has written the novel Above the Fire. Also a book critic and an attorney, he lives in the Chicago area.
Q: What inspired you to write Concert Black, and how did you create your characters Ellen Wroe and Cecil Woodbridge?
A: Long before I started writing books, I wrote about books. I have been a book critic for over 20 years, and biographies are my favorite.
I have read countless stories about the tension that often arises between a biographer and a subject. The biographer wants to tell the whole story—particularly the juicy bits. The subject wants to shape a legacy and present their best side.
John Le Carré’s biographer Adam Sisman went so far as to publish a second book after Le Carré died, filled with all the things he wasn’t allowed to say while the famous novelist was alive.
It seemed to me that the relationship between biographer and subject provided a perfect opportunity for drama. But I decided to raise the stakes somewhat, beyond the prickly tango that ordinarily exists.
Instead of the usual questions of legacy and competing agendas, I gave my character a secret. And not just any secret, but something that would ruin him if his biographer discovered it and put it in her book.
To create the conductor Cecil Woodbridge, I drew on my years as a music student and the huge egos and personalities I encountered in the conservatory setting.
To create the biographer Ellen Wroe, I worked in some of my own habits as a writer—the drive and self-discipline that this job requires—and also drew on some of the fierce and powerful women in my life.
Q: How would you describe the dynamic between the two?
A: Tense. The opening scene between them, as Wroe seeks to win Woodbridge’s blessing for the project, establishes their relationship. They trade the initiative back and forth.
Both are formidable—Woodbridge in a showy, ostentatious way, and Wroe in a manner that is less demonstrative but equally forceful. She is at the height of her powers, whereas his are waning, at the end of a long and successful career. Neither suffers fools.
Each makes the mistake of underestimating the other at various points in the story. By the end of the novel, they’ve fully got each other’s number.
Q: The Booklist review of the novel called it a “compelling, beautifully crafted story of the human costs of ruthless ambition and flawed genius.” What do you think of that description?
A: It is a flattering endorsement and I’m grateful for it. I do think the emphasis on ruthless ambition is right—that’s a key theme of the book.
I once heard Trent Reznor, the creative force behind Nine Inch Nails and now a highly regarded film composer, give a really thoughtful interview about the anxiety and regret that comes with achievement.
In order to get to the top of a field or art form, sometimes you step on others along the way. Looking back, Reznor said, you ask: was it worth it? Then again, you might think, would I be here if I hadn’t been a little ruthless?
Readers will apply those questions to both Wroe and Woodbridge and come to their own conclusions.
Q: How did you research the novel, and did you learn anything that especially surprised you?
A: My favorite part of the research was a trip to the Royal Academy of Music in London, where Woodbridge studies the cello as a young man. The staff there helpfully showed me around the parts of the beautiful facility that existed during the postwar years.
Being there gave me countless details that made their way into the book. For example, my eye caught the tilework on the floor in the building’s lobby, which a character traces with the toe of his shoe while waiting for his date.
I also spent some time across the street at St. Marylebone Parish Church, which was bombed and partially destroyed during the blitz.
One of the themes of the novel is the value of art and how much we should be willing to sacrifice in its pursuit. Seeing the church and reading about its five-year restoration helped cast that issue into stark relief.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I am working on a new novel, and the writing is going well. It’s not quite ready for prime time, and I don’t want to jinx it by discussing it before it is fully formed. But I will be excited to share it with readers soon!
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: There is a fantastic audiobook of Concert Black narrated by the great Simon Vance. As you know, the novel has American characters, as well as British, Irish, Scottish, and Hungarian ones. The demands on a narrator are therefore considerable in terms of character accents.
But, true to his reputation as one of the best narrators in the business, Simon did an outstanding job. His performance is urbane, suave, funny, heartbreaking, and—at the right moments—full of delicious poison. For those who love audiobooks, this one is a real treat.
And finally, thank you, Deborah, for all you do to spotlight your fellow writers and help us connect with readers! Your author Q&As are fantastic, and I’m proud to participate.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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