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THE CHURNING

By Justin Edison

AVAILABLE ON AMAZON NOW!

Synopsis

In Justin Edison’s second novel, Persian-American soccer star Arman Hessabi wakes in chains in a house of enemies. Driven in part by an abusive older brother, the hero feels his life is complete with the glory, women and riches afforded by a Premier League striker’s lifestyle. But he meets his match in Fat Man, Captain, Huck and Kay—men who hold him in thrall somewhere in Europe. Through trials, Hessabi comes to question his own ego and position in life. But is it too late for a soccer star with no apparent power over his own fate?

Author Bio

Justin A. Edison has been Writing fiction and stories for twenty-odd years. A graduate of the Evansville and Hamline writing programs, he counts among his adventures a rocking semester at Harlaxton (in the British Midlands) and a tour of the Czech Republic. His pursuits include hiking, Web site design, trying to fix the world (in too many ways) and playing soccer (rather poorly). He lives in the Seattle area with his wife, two energetic kids and a vocal cat.

The Churning is his second novel.

Author Links

To contact the author: [email protected]

www.jedisonwriting.wordpress.com

https://www.facebook.com/ChurningBook?ref=hl

@jedisonbooks

BLOGGERS: REVIEW COPIES ARE AVAILABLE. PLEASE CONTACT THE AUTHOR.

The INTERVIEW

This is premiere. When I host fellow writers on my pages, and we agree on an interview, I use a set of questions that I collected in order to reveal the Writer and the person within the writer. It is a set of 50 questions and I ask writers to select at least ten so I could have material to write an interview out of their answers.

Well, Justin is the only one—as of today—who answered ALL OF THEM! I thought, wow, what to do now. Pick a few, forget about most of them? After some mulling I decided that no, this time I would not do any editing, any arranging the questions and their orders to create an original interview. I’m showing you the original of all originals, all 50 shades of questions in all their glory. Enjoy!

1) Tell us about your most recent release. “The Churning” is the story of an egomaniacal Persian-American football (soccer) star who gets kidnapped in Europe and is forced to examine his life. He endures a dark, scary trial with four disparate villains who don’t give a rip about fame or money, it would seem. Along the way, we learn about hero Arman Hessabi’s abusive older brother, his stressors, his lifestyle, and his missed opportunities (in love). We see what happens when you strip someone of the power they’re accustomed to.

2) What else do you have coming out? I have a thriller called “Tempest Road” in, I guess, draft status. I’m ready to let an editor take a crack at it. I’m finishing the draft for a war novel with the title of “Endgame.” They’re fun to work on.

3) Is there anything you want to make sure potential readers know?            I guess, whatever success comes from “The Churning” and so on—and I’m very lucky to be here—this has been a bit of a road. I just turned 40. My first novel, “Watching the World Fall,” endured nine years of mistakes and goofs before I completed a tale I was happy with.

4) What’s the most blatant lie you’ve ever told? Small fibs here and there. I’m a terrible liar. My wife says the last job I’d ever have is being some kind of spy.

5) What is the most demeaning thing said about you as a writer? In high school, a witchy classmate told me I wasn’t ‘that good’ of a writer. Nothing too damning. I think it actually spurred me to be better and try harder.

6) How do you react to a bad review of one of your books? This is new ground for me, so we’ll see. I took a class about taking criticism from Judith Katz, my polar opposite and a woman who’d endured plenty of it. We’ll see how well I handle it.

7) When are you going to write your autobiography? In 70 years, when I’ve really accomplished something.

8) What about the titles of your novels? I just go for something catchy and relevant. My first was called “Scream For Blood” for a long time—almost until I self-published it. It sounded too much like a war novel, whereas the title I picked touches on the spectator-vs-participant theme of the book. Maybe I’m trying for poetic or something.

9) Are there any occupational hazards to being a novelist? Sure. You have to accept your vices—hopefully they’re healthy (mine are coffee and soccer). And I think you have to embrace a certain amount of chaos in your schedule to do it. For most of the writers I know, this isn’t like a cubicle job. Ideas and inspiration can come any time, from the most mundane source. I take tons of notes.

10) What’s your favorite fruit? Honeycrisp apples, in a landslide.

11) How many people have you done away with over the course of your career? If you mean characters I’ve killed off, make it five through this book.

12) Ever dispatched someone and then regretted it? No, but I wouldn’t mind writing new stories/vignettes with some of these characters. I always try to render fun, realistic people.

13) Have you ever been in trouble with the police? No.

14) So when were you last involved in a real-life punch-up? Just a scuffle at my fraternity house, a long time ago.

15) If you were going to commit the perfect murder, how would you go about it? Good question. There are ways, of course. But first, for me, is I’d have to loathe someone (or something) so purely that killing them would be necessary. Only one person comes to mind right now, and I won’t mention his name.

16) What do you want to be when you grow up? An inventor, but that’s not really grown up. I work in Web sites, so maybe running a site firm.

17) What is your favorite bedtime drink? Just water. I’m rather dull.

18) Do you ever wish that you had an entirely uncreative job, like data entry or working in a factory? I can see myself being a technology analyst—they get paid pretty well. But ‘wish’ would be a strong word, there.

19) Do you believe in a deity? No. The idea is nice, but no.

20) Do you ever write naked? Nope.

21) Who would play you in a film of your life? Don Cheadle. Just kidding. Love his work, though.

22) What are the most important attributes to remaining sane as a writer? Persistence is key. It’s fine to wander from one thing to another, as long as you can (sometime) get back to your driving story or character. And I believe fresh air is vital, great for brainstorming. It’s not an attribute, but it’s on the recipe list.

23) Have you ever read or seen yourself as a character in a book or a movie? Only as a tired dad here and there.

24) What is the single most powerful challenge when it comes to writing a novel? Probably battling that wretched voice that says, ‘This is a colossal waste of time.’ Because writing a novel does take a lot of time, no doubt about it. “The Churning” has taken around 2,500 hours.

25) What do you consider your biggest failure? On the writing side, there have been 3,000 small ones. Non-writing side, it would be not settling on a (non-writing) career path earlier—even though it’s damned tough with young kids. Have to sleep sometime.

26) Do you research your novels? Sure. Soccer and (American) football, I know them pretty well. And I know a lot of the characters who fit into those worlds. For the rest, I read a lot and try to talk to the right people. Pulling “Endgame” together will be a challenge, though.

27) How much impact does your childhood have on your writing? There’s a lot of mixed memories, like anyone’s. I think I use those and my kids’ current activities and thoughts as a kind of reference book. Right now, I’m writing strictly about grownups, so it works.

28) What was the greatest thing you learned at school? Believe in your own story (if not your abilities) and keep going. You have to be super-persistent in this game.

29) Do you laugh at your own jokes? I try not to. But the other night I told a funny about my dad and it got the whole room rolling. Now if I could’ve just worked some of those into “The Churning.”

30) Do you admire your own work? Um, to the point that I always try to tell an engaging, interesting story. What I want to hear most from people is that they couldn’t put the book down.

31) What are books for? Escapism and learning. The Matsen and McGinty books on Piper Alpha took me right into that hellish inferno—and taught me everything I’d ever want to know about oil rig operations.

32) Are you fun to go on vacation with? I try to be. I get up early to work, and then let my family dictate the rest of the day.

33) How do you feel about being interviewed? Like this, it’s fine. In person, I’d probably be a nervous wreck. I’m not Mr. Smooth up at the podium.

34) Why do you think what you do matters? Well, in telling stories, we present a different world full of perspectives and conflicts. I like to think that’s adding a certain context to the history we’re living now—even through fiction. You could say Herbert’s “Dune” was just sci-fi, a story about people in another time on another planet. But how many people read that book and recognized much of the political backstabbing, needless war and human folly going on (here on Earth) when it was written—or now? Stories are very relevant.

35) Have you ever found true love? Sure—my wife, Luanne.

36) How many times a day do you think about death? Rarely, not as often as maybe I should. There’s too much life to live for.

37) Are you jealous of other writers? No, I’m happy for them. The staggering income of a select few—sure, that would be nice. But they’ve earned it. My time might come. It’s a little of that fantasy question: ‘If someone dropped $10 million in your lap, what would you do?’ Well, I wouldn’t buy a Ferrari.

38) What makes you cry? Things that remind me of loss. Music tends to do it more than anything.

39) What makes you laugh? British comedy.

40) What are you ashamed of? Not being a better person. Here and there, there were times I could’ve helped someone and didn’t. And those all stick with me.

41) What’s the loveliest thing you have ever seen? Probably the sun setting over mountains in England’s Lake District. I was nineteen and spending a semester at Harlaxton—a key point in my life.

42) Describe your writing process. When and where do you write? I get to it early at a small desk in our family room. I also do a fair amount in my car (waiting on kids’ piano lessons, etc.) and, yes, at nearby coffee shops. Those places offer energy and new people and sights. I just love that. I like being around other people.

43) Do you have any favorite books or authors? Too many. “Catch-22” and “Cuckoo’s Nest” and “In Cold Blood” and “Middle Passage.” I’ve read a lot of Andre Dubus (II) and Mark Bowden. I just finished Reiss’ “The Black Count” which made me want to cry. So much great material out there.

44) What are you planning on writing in the near future? Next is finishing my war novel. It is, to me, a completely credible tale set in unusual circumstances, so it has flowed really well. I just hope I can render the characters artfully.

45) What’s your drive for writing? I love being creative (Who doesn’t!?) and I love the idea of telling a story someone hasn’t told, yet. Hopefully, I’m accomplishing that. I guess it’s up to the readers.

46) What was the biggest challenge you faced writing this book and how did you overcome it? My biggest challenge was letting go of some material I really liked. The manuscript was originally close to 80k words. When my editor started trimming fat—even the repetitive stuff—I realized it was fat I couldn’t really use in another book. C’est la vie.

47) What advice would you give to aspiring writers? Believe in what you’re doing and (soccer-wise) go after it like a sweet through-ball. It’s just you and the keeper. If he blocks your shot, go after the ball again.

48) What is your favorite genre to read? Right now, I’d say engaging nonfiction. There’s just something about the anatomy of disaster, like “Into Thin Air” and “The Perfect Storm.”

49) How many books have you written, and which one is your absolute favorite? Working on my fifth, if you include the one I wrote for my master’s thesis. Someday I’ll get back to it. No favorites, so far, but I’m super-happy with the way “The Churning” has turned out.

50) Do you read reviews of your books? How do they affect you, whether positive or negative? This will be a first for me, so I hope they’re positive. The negative stuff is going to come. I’ll try to take it in stride.

51) Would you sign a big fat book contract, movie rights and all? Oh, I’d love to, though I haven’t earned it, yet. Maybe another ten years of this will do it.

 

Bio: Justin Edison is a married father of two kids. He plays soccer (poorly) and coaches on occasion and works in Web sites. He and his family live in Greater Seattle.

Links: www.jedisonwriting.wordpress.com

http://emeraldminds.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChurningBook/?ref=hl

Twitter: @jedisonbooks

 

Many thanks, M.M.!

Thanks to you, Justin

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