I am very happy to have R. Scott Boyer here with me today. I have mentioned him many times in my blog. I have also reviewed his first book Bobby Ether and The Academy here. Scott has been a wonderful friend and mentor to me and I am so happy that he agreed to sit down to do this interview with me.
1. Per your biography, you did not start out as a writer. Tell me how it came to be that you are now working on the third book in the Bobby Ether series?
First of all, I want to thank you, Mollydee, not just for your interest in interviewing me, but for your support, and friendship as I have traveled down the path of publishing and promoting my first book. I also want to say that, as a special present for your readers, I am giving away a free digital copy (mobi or epub) of Bobby Ether and the Academy to anyone who wants one. Just have them send me an email at scoby27@yahoo.com with the type of file they want, and I will be happy to send it.
To answer your question: My path to being a writer started roughly six years ago with a conversation about one of the most impactful books in my life, The Celestine Prophecy, by James Redfield. I remember telling my friend how much I loved the spiritual core of the book, but thought that the flow and action could have been better. That got me thinking about all the fantasy novels I read growing up, and how much I loved all the action and excitement.
The idea hit me then, that someone should write a book that blends new-age/spiritual fiction with YA fantasy. I had no idea at the time that that person would be me. For months after that, ideas kept coming to me: names for characters, plot twists, partial scenes, family dynamics, etc. I couldn't stop thinking about it.
Eventually I started writing notes on my phone just to get the ideas out of my head. Before long I had a first chapter, then twenty pages, then fifty. Things really took off when I took a writing class through UCLA Extension and got some professional instruction.
Needless to say, by the time the first draft of The Academy was complete, I was hooked on writing. I plunged head first into number two, The Temple of Eternity, which has led me to number three, The Great Sphinx.
2. Bobby is a very smart character, as well as likable, friendly, and funny. Is he based on anyone that you know?
Yes and no. They say that all characters come from a mix of three sources: yourself, someone you know, and someone you imagine. Some of Bobby’s best characteristics (such as his ingenuity, wit, and concern for his friends), are traits I would love to say come directly from me. The truth, however, is that they come more from my ideal self rather than from my true self. They are traits that I wish I had, and so I gave them to Bobby so that he could be good at all the things I want to improve about myself. That especially goes for his sense of humor. It’s much easier to be funny when you have lots of time to think about (and rewrite) what your character is going to say.
3. Bobby was kind of an outcast at The Academy. Did you think of letting him go through the Academy by himself at all or did you always have a group of misfit friends that were going to be Bobby's friends?
Like so many times in the creative process, Bobby’s friendships at the Academy revealed themselves as I wrote, and evolved over time, more than they were planned in advance. I knew Bobby needed to struggle, and that doing so would set him against Ashley, but I had no idea that a whole cast of characters would show up to support him. The instant I started writing Lily’s character, I knew I liked her and that she and Bobby would become good friends. Trevor just sort of appeared during that first scene in the dining hall and declared his loyalty to Bobby based on his affection for Lily.
Jacob and Jinx are entirely different stories. Jacob didn’t come along till much later (both in the story and in my mind). He was originally very antagonistic in his relationship with Trevor and didn’t reveal himself to be a true friend until some of the archive scenes (ironically, one of his biggest scenes got edited out of the final draft). The BBF relationship between Jinx and Bobby developed gradually, both in my mind and on paper, starting with that first library scene where they play games and growing from there. Sorry I can’t share more than that. Spoilers!
4. I found Jinx to be a very interesting character. He was actually one of my favorite characters sans Bobby. Tell me a little more about Jinx.
I’m so glad you like Jinx. He is one of my favorite characters as well. Going back to my earlier comments about how I create characters, Jinx is part how I imagine myself (I like to know things and be prepared), and part the young boy, Ray, from Jerry McGuire (“Did you know that the human head weighs eight pounds?”). The name ‘Jinx’ actually came from a beloved family cat I had growing up. I didn’t really make the connection between the name and how his abilities would function until much later. Thankfully, I have tremendous serendipity when I write. Once I started to really explore his personality, I discovered the connection and realized the name fit perfectly.
5. Master Jong was pivotal in helping Bobby unleash his powers. Tell me where the idea came from of having Master Jong be the one who worked with Bobby and the influence he had over him. His teaching style was unusual.
In many regards, Bobby’s time spent with Master Jong is the traditional sensei/student relationship. However, I didn’t want the book to be about kung-fu or fighting. Thus, I relied upon a variety of meditation, yoga, and spiritual teachings that have intrigued me for years, as well as others that I researched specifically for the book.
With regards to MJs influence over Bobby: I needed an instructor who was strong-willed and independent; one not controlled by the headmistress, so that Bobby would get the honest instruction he needed in order to grow. Of course, MJ had to find his own path as well, which is part of why I think it works. Neither of them has all the answers. Instead, the master ultimately learns as much from the student as the student does from the master.
6. You have a lot of knowledge in your pages such as botanicals, chemicals, etc. How much research did you have to do on this book, if any?
I did quite a bit of research on trees and plants native to Tibet to lend authenticity when describing the landscape, flora, fauna, etc. That part wasn’t too hard. I just bookmarked numerous websites and referenced them as needed. I also did some research on chemicals and processes used for the headmistress’s ‘cook’ scene. By far, the most research I did was on bears, including studying footage of bear attacks to try and make those scenes as real as possible.
Spoiler – In case you’re curious about some of the botanicals central to the storyline: I made most of that stuff up. Don’t go looking for a Transitivo Paradoxa (Diffident Ghost mushroom), because you won’t find one, no matter how hard you look. You also won’t find a Sombre Verde root. Those items needed to be extra special, so I used my imagination rather than pull something from reality and give it fake properties.
7. Ashley is so nasty to everyone. She is the perfect yin to Bobby's yang. When did you decide to add Ashley into the story? And how did you decide to make Jinx and Ashley so different although they are brother and sister?
Ashley came about from the dynamic that needed to exist not just between the adults at the Academy (the monks versus the academics), but also between the kids as well. As you put it so well, I needed a ‘yin’ to Bobby’s ‘yang.’ Having Ashley be the bitchy Queen Bee among the other students served to establish her power and authority, just as the headmistress wields power among the adults.
The fact that Ashley is so nasty is another example of character discovery. When I wrote her lines, she simply never had anything nice to say. Believe it or not, she did even more mean things in earlier drafts that didn’t make it into the published book.
As for Jinx, I always pictured him as a good kid who struggled with his identity simply because he was constantly lost in his sister’s shadow. As you know, Bobby originally just wanted some help with his studies, but he also saw Jinx’s true nature, who isn’t anything like his sister. The fact that Bobby isn’t afraid to stand up to Ashley, or to encourage Jinx to do the same, gave me the opening I needed to pry Jinx out from under his sister’s grasp and allow his character to blossom.
That is so fascinating! If you have read the book I am sure you are just as surprised as I am about some of the answers. If you have not read the book, go back up to the top and take Scott up on his offer for a copy of the first book in the series. I promise you will love it.
The book was so amazing, and I had so many questions, this is why this interview is being done in two parts. So if you have maybe some of the same questions lingering that I did, keep checking back for part two of my interview with R. Scott Boyer.
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