Ask the Author: Jeff Rovin
Answered Questions (17)
Jeff Rovin
Published in 1995, it was based on the original time line.
Jeff Rovin
Good and difficult question. Howard Roark and Dominique Francon because they brilliantly anchor THE FOUNTAINHEAD; but "objectively" speaking, one cannot ignore the impact, genius and power of Heathcliff and Catherine...Rhett and Scarlett...Ivanhoe and Rowena...Romeo and....
Jeff Rovin
You are very kind! There will be an announcement soon about the next step in the roll-out of the saga; we're both very excited by it!
Coauthorship with Gillian (and then with William Shatner on the Zero-G novels) has been a delight; both had wonderful and very different approaches to generating concepts and characters.
As for ghostwriting or writing under a pseudonym, the latter is great for when you want to take chances (as I did writing "cozies" as Delia Rosen) while the former presents the terrific challenge spending time in the mind and voice of another. All fun, all help you grow!
Thanks again, Ramona.
Coauthorship with Gillian (and then with William Shatner on the Zero-G novels) has been a delight; both had wonderful and very different approaches to generating concepts and characters.
As for ghostwriting or writing under a pseudonym, the latter is great for when you want to take chances (as I did writing "cozies" as Delia Rosen) while the former presents the terrific challenge spending time in the mind and voice of another. All fun, all help you grow!
Thanks again, Ramona.
Jeff Rovin
Thank you for that, K.T.! I started each world with a different chemical/geological premise and built it from there. The life forms evolved naturally (so to speak) from that. Best, Jeff
Jeff Rovin
Hi, Ray -- thanks for asking. I wrote that novel after he had bought the rights to the outline, so it's pretty much tailored to him. He's had a lot going on since then, so it's doubtful. That said, it may be time to revisit the idea! Maybe if we called it Pleistocene World... :)
Jeff Rovin
Gillian and I got together in my NY office and kicked around ideas. As soon as I mentioned my lifelong interest in martial arts (especially kung fu and animal forms), and the chakra and energy work that went with that, we knew that was the mlieu we wanted to work in.
Jeff Rovin
Process of elimination: fresh out of high school, it was the only thing I seemed capable of doing. And, hopefully, getting paid for. Somehow, it worked out!
Jeff Rovin
The second novel of the EarthEnd saga and another project that will be announced very soon.
Jeff Rovin
I didn't go to college and found that, for me, just doing it was the best teacher. The early stuff was really mediocre and I was lucky it sold; I think I'm getting better. You will too, as long as you don't stop and, just as importantly, don't get discouraged.
Jeff Rovin
Not the hours, I'll tell you that: you never stop thinking! For me, the chance to research and learn (about myself as well as the cosmos) and to select just the right word to say what I want. That's a tradition that goes back to the dawn of civilization, and being part of that is a thrill and an honor.
Jeff Rovin
Incredibly: never had it. Just so happy to be doing this! I suppose, being in Manhattan, I'd do what I tend to do a lot of anyway: go for long walks!
Jeff Rovin
Wil -- what a kind comment! I tried to keep a balance of the many media and disciplines, as well as topics and entries that were as difficult as possible. That said, of course, there were entries that HAD to be there, being cornerstones of world fantasy! I had a lot more room in my subject-specific encyclopediae like THE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF SUPER-HEROES and THE ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF CARTOON ANIMALS.
Jeff Rovin
Good question, Julie: I usually sit down at 6 a.m. and read something world-class for about an hour (not necessarily in the same genre or style). That gives me a high bar to aspire to and it works the vocabulary! Then...I just write, typically without an outline to see where the story and characters go. Been doing this for 40 years, so I've gotten good at avoiding false steps.
Jeff Rovin
Thanks, Rosemarie. The size of the names was a commercial decision: what would be visible as a thumbnail on a mail order website! I was fine with that. Hey, it was more credit than I accepted on a lot of my books! Not one for the spotlight, I. In any case, I've had my name big and proud on other things. It just wasn't an issue.
Creatively, I blocked everything out in great detail -- aided by our crack researcher Clare Kent -- and Gillian added copious words, thoughts, and flourishes, after which I put it all together. Then Gillian went over it again.
Creatively, I blocked everything out in great detail -- aided by our crack researcher Clare Kent -- and Gillian added copious words, thoughts, and flourishes, after which I put it all together. Then Gillian went over it again.
Jeff Rovin
Thanks, Brian. I had some geopolitical stories I wanted to tell that didn't fit that mold (TEMPEST DOWN, ROGUE ANGEL). Also, at the publisher's insistence, the series had always been technothrillers with a twist: a lot of time spent with the personal lives of the characters. That blend interested me; a proposed new direction, less so. It was time to hang it up. Other fine authors brought it back earlier this year with a new cast of characters.
Jeff Rovin
Ami -- I love them all! Each has its rewards, from experiencing the dusty lands and rugged lifestyle of my westerns written as Jim Grand (and other pseudonyms) to the challenging plot twists of the "cozies" I write as Delia Rosen to the geopolitical thrillers that keep me wandering the corridors (and minds) of power...and, of course, to works like this which give me leave to use my lifelong interest in "energy" and "chakra" research.
Jeff Rovin
Hello, Jeremy -- I watched the show each week, so I guess I was a fan. Gillian was a delight: very engaged and interested in the topic and the process. Her ideas for the characters were insightful and enriching. It was one of the easiest, most pleasurable collaborations ever!
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