James Rollins
asked
Rebecca Cantrell:
In the past, you've tackled some difficult subject matters in your award-winning Hannah Vogel mysteries set in Germany between the two world wars. In your new series, the story is set in modern-day Manhattan. Can you share the pros and cons between writing "historical mysteries" versus a "modern-day thriller"?
Rebecca Cantrell
With the historical mysteries, you have the benefit of hindsight--you know what the characters are going to face in the world and how it's going to come out. History provides so many wonderful plots and subplots and fascinating details. The difficulty is that you can't visit the past, so it's much harder to create a world of smells, tastes, sights, and even emotions that fit into an era. So, it's a different kind of research (one that I love, obviously).
With the modern thrillers, I can visit many of the places that Joe calls home--the tunnels of the New York subway, Grand Central Station, the Grand Hyatt and take a look around to see what he might notice (or might overlook).
With the modern thrillers, I can visit many of the places that Joe calls home--the tunnels of the New York subway, Grand Central Station, the Grand Hyatt and take a look around to see what he might notice (or might overlook).
More Answered Questions
James Rollins
asked
Rebecca Cantrell:
Rebecca, you've created a very engaging character in your new series, a gentleman named Joe Tesla. He suffers from a condition that a handful of thriller writers have tackled in the past, namely agoraphobia (the fear of open spaces). But how Mr. Tesla deals with his condition is so very unique and intriguing. Could you tell us about how he compensates for his fears, and how you came to such a wonderful concept?
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