Questions for JD about the writing process, inspirations, etc.

[Rich]

Hi Joe

I know it has got to be the most textbook question around but I have to ask. What inspired you to develop the idea of the "testers" and the version of the afterlife that goes along with them?

[Joseph]

Short answer? Pressure.

Long answer?

The testers came about because of the "26 Stories in 56 Weeks" project. A few years ago I dedicated myself to writing a short story every two weeks for a year while blogging about. After my first two stories were written I was suddenly out of ideas. My deadline was approaching and it occurred to me that the best way to come up with an idea would be to steal one (haha). So I opted to try a Twilight Zone sort of story where the main character makes a deal with the devil. He asks for something and gets it only it comes about in an ironic way and winds up being his downfall...that sort of thing. And for a setting I picked a wedding.

That's where it started. But within a few hours I had decided that I didn't want to write just another "deal with the devil" type story, so I kept tinkering. Next thing I knew I was wondering if I could write a story where the devil character was the good guy.

I can distinctly remember sitting on the subway trying to think about how a character who does nothing but bad could be the hero of a story when it occurred to me that most, if not all, of my strengths, triumphs and greatest moments have all come about *because* of the bad things that had come into my life.

From there things just started unraveling. And with the 26 Stories project underway I *had* to dip back into Matthew and Epp's world every few weeks when I ran out of ideas for other stories. By the part three of PA I had a basic idea of where things were headed. However, a lot of the things that became major symbols, and even some characters, were originally put in place almost at random and then built upon later. I had no idea that Mary would become who she would or that Everest would take on such meaning.

Yet, at the very beginning, you can still the the story's roots. In the first few pages of PA you've got impish, newbie Matthew at a wedding offering temptation to a human to earn some cash.

[Tomi L.]

You write a lot about physics and metaphysics and some really deep, philosophical issues: how much do you study these theories and is it difficult to explain them in a way that "normal" people can understand and apply to the story? ~ tomi

[Joseph]

Interesting question, Tomi.
I'd like to start by stating that I am, in no way, an expert in any of the sciences I write about and I do not wish to represent myself as one. I write using the clearest understanding of these sciences that I've got, and, when you get into complex and somewhat nutty fields like quantum physics, this can get a little weird.
There are tons of topics I'd love to sit down and discuss with a real live quantum physicist, but I've never had the opportunity. I think they might clear some things up for me.
That being said, yes, I do read up a lot on physics. There are two fantastic books, The Elegant Universe: Superstrings, Hidden Dimensions, and the Quest for the Ultimate Theory and Dancing Wu Li Masters: An Overview of the New Physics which explain physics from Newton to string theory barely using any math (a MUST for me). I have read these books numerous times and probably pick them up once every two years. I find quantum physics fascinating. Again though, I find it fascinating as a layman, understand NONE of the math involved and more or less write about it from my own personal perspective. But I like to think I've grasped the basics and, considering the sense of humor many top minds in these fields have about how confusing these topics are, I also like to think I could hold my own in a beginner's debate. As Nobel Prize winner Richard Feyman said, "I think it is safe to say that no one understands Quantum Mechanics." (by the way, his memoirs Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! Adventures of a Curious Character are a wonderful look into a brilliant mind and just an overall great guy).
As for philosophy, I have read some philosophy books, but not many. I can't stand Kant or Descartes, though I often look up passages by them when I think a character could be rounded out with some knowledge of their theories. The only philosopher I've read a lot of is Plato, but that was mainly in school. Really I just have a mental flaw where I'm happy to sit down and stare into space for long periods of time thinking about death, our existence, where we find meaning and what makes people what they are. Then again, I also spend hours sitting and staring into space thinking about the best way to roast a chicken. I just like pondering stuff and don't have many topics that are off limits.
One philisophcal book that I do flip through often, though, is Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings. That book is an utter delight to me.
As for the third part, do I find it difficult to explain these things to my readers...I have no idea because I have no idea how much I'm getting across or how good of a job I'm doing. For all I know, reading my books is a good way to learn all the WRONG things abut physics. If, however, someone, someday, who is an expert in these fields, contacts me and says, "This is a good explanation," then I would say that, yes, it is difficult to do. The process, however, is easy. I just pretend I'm explaining it to my 7 year old niece. I figure if I can summarize what I know in a manner that she would understand, then I've got something. But it's not like that's a very original concept.

"If you can't explain it to a six year old, you don't understand it yourself."
— Albert Einstein

:)

I hope this answered your questions,

jd

[Tomi L.]

Wow - YES, it did, thanks! And now I have even more reading material to sink into.

[Joseph]

I *definitely* need to mention that of the two physics books I mentioned I think I've only finished one of them, and then only once. And that's having read them numerous times. Once they start discussing string theory and 19 possible dimensions it's just too much for me. Yes. 19 possible dimensions. Physics is weird.