INTERVIEW WITH JERI WESTERSON

Sharon: I’m

delighted to welcome back award-winning author Jeri Westerson to talk about her

upcoming medieval mystery BLOOD LANCE. For those of you unfamiliar with her

work, Jeri takes a different approach to her medieval novels. She employs the

tropes of the hard-boiled detective fiction of a Dashiell Hammett or Raymond

Chandler and re-imagines it in the fourteenth century. What was the idea behind

this for your “medieval noir” series and how exactly does it work?

Jeri: The need to

do something different, I suppose. What was going to make my series stand out above the outstanding series that were already

out there? And when I was developing these novels, I happened to have been

reading a lot of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. It just got me to

thinking about why couldn’t I incorporate some of the same tropes that you

might see in a hard-boiled mystery: the hard-drinking, tough-talking detective

with a chip on his shoulder, the dames in trouble, the corruption of officials,

the darker aspects of crime, the PI with his own code of honor. I felt it

translated very well to a detective who was a disgraced knight. Some things are

pretty universal, and the human condition, our greed, poverty, jealousy, lust,

go hand in hand in a murder story whether that story plays out in the 1940s or

1380s. But having said that, it is indeed a medieval story without anachronisms

in speech, motivations, or messing with history. It’s just my “what if?” What

if a man with his skill set found himself adrift on the streets of London? What

could he do to satisfy honor and make a living?          

Sharon: We talked

about your main character before, Crispin Guest. Why do you think this kind of

somewhat hang-dog character appeals to readers?

Jeri: Well, he is

a man of his time but some of his attitudes are also timeless. He should be a

broken man with all that’s happened to him but he isn’t. He stands alone, and

readers, male readers particularly, find this appealing, just as they found the

characters John Wayne portrayed appealing in the same way. He doesn’t take any

crap, he keeps his honor intact even through adversity. Woman find him

appealing because they want to save and redeem him…plus he’s a sexy beast.

Sharon: One would

think that this approach to writing a medieval piece the author would have to

disregard the history aspect.

Jeri: Not at all!

I am well aware that those readers who like history with their mystery demand

authenticity and accuracy when it comes to the history. That’s why they enjoy

reading historical mysteries. I’ve been told time and again—as I’m sure you have—that they like to learn about

the time period when they are reading the fiction. There are political aspects

at play in my books and I try to be as accurate as I can when I include them in

the plots without degenerating into a thesis. I try to keep it lively and

energetic with a clever mystery to keep another ball in the air. But if you aren’t

willing to stick to the history, why write it? 

  

Sharon: BLOOD

LANCE is the fifth book in your series. I’ve noticed that each book seems to

highlight a religious relic. Tell us about that.

Jeri: When I

started to plot out the series and to really figure out how to write a mystery

(since I started out writing historical fiction with no publishing success), I

studied hard-boiled mysteries, and one of the books I literally took apart to

figure out how to write one, was Dashiell Hammett’s wonderful THE MALTESE

FALCON. The falcon in the book is the McGuffin. Alfred Hitchcock coined that

term. It means the thing that the plot turns on, that starts the action. It can

actually be interchangeable with anything, anything at all, because in the long

run of the plot, it really isn’t important. But it nevertheless begins a sort

of chase to get it…before the bad guy does. I felt this added a fun element to

the story. And by making it a religious relic or venerated object, it also

added an ambivalently mystical quality to the twists in the plot. But unlike

the ordinary McGuffin that is not important to the story except as a means of

starting off the action, sometimes my relic is. That keeps it from becoming

formulaic, to my mind.    

Sharon: What is

the relic in BLOOD LANCE? And how do you decide what relic to use? Does the

relic come first, or the plot?

Jeri: The relic

usually comes first, though it depends on how I can wind around the history at

the time of the story. So once I’ve established the relic it presents a plot to

me. The relic in this instance is the Spear of Longinus. This was supposedly

the spear with which the Centurion Longinus pierced the side of Christ while he

hung on the cross. Like most relics from the time period, it has a long and

varied history, which makes it fun—and possible—to have it turn up when I need

them.    

Sharon: Did I

hear mention of jousting in this book?

Jeri: Yes! Being

a big fan of medieval weaponry and of knighthood, I wanted a book with jousting

in it. It’s all very formalized. I am fortunate that I have gotten to know men

who actually do competitive jousting—yes, even today!—and who teach sword

craft. I was afforded the opportunity to wear armor and even sit on a destrier,

a 2,000 pound Percheron, with a lance in my hand to really get the feel of it. I

also got a firsthand lesson on long sword fighting. I do love my hands-on research!

When I was studying about jousting in England, I read that

there had been jousts on London Bridge, so I decided to put that in the book.

In fact, a great deal of the action is set on London Bridge in this novel and

it almost becomes a character in itself. I know most people, when they picture

London Bridge think of a simple stone structure spanning the Thames, but it was

like a little city within a city. It had houses and shops and even a chapel

right there built along its span.

Without giving anything away, the joust becomes the exciting

climax to the story.   

Sharon:  Give us the “elevator pitch” of the novel.

Jeri: Crispin

witnesses a body hurtling from the uppermost reaches of London

Bridge. Whispers on the street claim it’s suicide, but Crispin insists

otherwise. Now he’s caught between rebellious factions in King Richard’s court,

Spanish spies, murderous knights, an old friend’s honor, and the true ownership

of the Holy Spear of Longinus, culminating in a deadly joust on London Bridge.

Sharon: What’s

next for you?

Jeri: Next fall

will see the release of Crispin number six, SHADOW OF THE ALCHEMIST, where Perenelle,

the wife of French alchemist Nicholas Flamel, has been kidnapped, and the

culprit wants Flamel’s most prized creation, the Philosopher’s Stone. There is

more here than a simple abduction. What follows is a chase down the shadowy

streets of London, and a deadly game between men who know the secrets of

poisons and purges, sorcery and forbidden sciences.

Take a look at the awesome Crispin series book trailer, book

discussion guides, my appearance schedule to see if I’ll be in your home town,

and other fun stuff on my website www.JeriWesterson.com;

you can see my blog of history and mystery at www.Getting-Medieval.com; and you

can read Crispin’s blog at www.jeriwesterson.com/crispins-blog.

You can also friend Crispin on his Facebook page or follow me on Twitter.

Sharon: Thank you

for sharing with us, Jeri.  I am looking

forward to reading Blood Lance.

Jeri: Thanks again

for having me, Sharon!

September 29, 2012