Heather’s Bookshelf: Author Interview with Seeley James

What inspired you to write “The Rembrandt Decision”?

James: When I was 19, I adopted a 3-year-old girl and raised her (more at https://seeleyjames.com/adopted/ ). That was forty-six years ago. Along the way, I learned a lot about adoption, families, mother/fatherhood, and misconceptions about genetics. For years, I wanted to write a story that illustrated the challenges adopting families face. My own experience as a single dad was too unusual to use as a blueprint, but I incorporated a few personal experiences into the story. Since I love mysteries, I also wanted to incorporate ancient reflections on adoption, so I wove a bit of Sophocles into it as well. As for the mystery portion itself, I love Agatha Christie and wanted to honor one of her works (Agatha aficionados will understand when the read the ending, anything more would be a huge spoiler). And, on top of that, whodunits are nice, but wanting to go an extra step inspired me to include a why-dunit aspect.

How did you come up with the names of your main characters?

James: When I wrote my first book, in the early days of social media, I posted a note on Facebook asking if anyone would like to lend his/her name to some characters. My intent was to avoid what I see all the time: every character named some variation on a bland Janet Brown (nothing against Janet, I hear she’s nice). About five people volunteered over the course of a week. Everyone involved thought it was a kick. In the next 10+ books, I held a drawing for fans to Name the Villain! I was surprised how many people want to have a villain named after them.

For Rembrandt, I held the usual drawing, but the central characters were a family. The winner, Phil Jacobsen, named the family after himself, his wife, his daughter, and his son. He loved the result! I’ve not heard from the others in his family … Not sure how that worked out. But, since it was one winner taking all the juicy names, I then posted in my fan group ( Sabel Agents | Facebook ) asking if anyone wanted a minor character named after them. I noted there was no guarantee they would be a good/bad guy, just “waitress at diner” or “neighbor with a clue”. For some bizarre reason, I expected five or six volunteers. Instead, they poured in, over thirty in fifteen minutes. I had to shut it down and figure out how to work that many names into the story! When you read it, you’ll note an unusual number of named characters in the funeral scene. Well, that’s where a lot of them went. By pure chance, long suffering fan Kitty Robinson became Crazy Kitty. And the bar owner, Kubari Eady is an actual friend of mine and a great comedian. Since he helped me develop the character of Isaiah Reddick, I felt I owed him at least one speaking role.

Is there anything that you want readers to know about you, your writing process or your book?

James: You mean aside from: “It’s brilliant – I’m a genius; don’t listen to my mother.” I have a very involved method of writing not unlike James Patterson. I took a class of his years ago in which he said he writes a brief outline of one or two sentences per chapter, then writes the story. As he gets to the end of each chapter, he asks himself, what would be the most outrageous twist that could end this chapter? By the time he reaches halfway, his outline is meaningless. I’ve read his works and they are fun because they’re unpredictable, but they also blow-up credulity at many turns. While his fans love it, I prefer stories that hew a bit closer to the laws of physics.

I have a spreadsheet in which I lay down the eighteen crucial turning points in the story. I then start writing and keep track of each chapter with time, viewpoint, and major reveals/changes. This spreadsheet also has a list of clues, when they first appeared, when they developed, when they were resolved, etc. Another tab in the sheet tracks the characters, their motivations, backstory, and so on. All this organization keeps me organized. So of course, as I get to the end of each chapter, I ask myself, what would be the most outrageous twist that could end this chapter? By the time I reach halfway, my eighteen crucial turning points are meaningless. BUT! That clue list comes in handy. Rembrandt has 752 data points. I managed to untangle them all. I think.

When you encounter writer’s block, what do you do to break yourself out of it?

James: As you can see from my windy, self-absorbed answers to your questions, I’m never at a loss for written words. I’ve never had writer’s block. I’ve had writer-shoulda-been-blocked, does that count? That’s when I type like a madman for hours believing it to be divinely inspired, only to re-read it the next morning and wonder what the hell happened and then I start thinking about changing divinities and wondering why there are so many run-on sentences and what kind of poisoned mind could write like that without seeking a mental health professional’s guidance and where does it all end, anyway?

When other writers tell me about their blocks, I analyze a few things and find it’s usually down to a single problem: Lack of story vision. The Big Picture. Those are the eighteen crucial turning points that drive a story’s arc. When you don’t have a comprehensive plan (even if you’re like James Patterson and are quite willing to dump it), you lack the confidence to proceed. When you have an idea what the middle and end points are going to look like, you can write the scene that moves you one step closer to that goal. And then you can come up with the most outrageous twist to end that chapter.

Are there any tips that you would like to share with other aspiring authors?

James: Anyone can tell a story, the trick is to tell one so fascinating people will shell out their hard earned money to hear it. That’s no easy feat. Study the craft, read Shawn Coyne, Joseph Campbell, Robert McKee, Christopher Vogler, and others. Stay away from books on writing by writers, most of them have been lying since they were eight and turned it into a business. They can’t really explain what they do. (But they take you on a fascinating ride that makes you feel like you learned a lot.) The three best books that grew my process were: Story Grid by Shawn Coyne, Dialogue by Robert McKee, and The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell (if you read this last one, keep in mind that it’s dated in many aspects, but the net analysis of ancient literature is the foundation on which most movies are based).

What is your favorite genre, book, and/or author?

James: I love adventure mysteries. That’s not a recognized genre, but in my mind, it’s the mashup of an adventure like Raiders of the Lost Ark with a mystery like Death on the Nile. A fast-paced chase across a continent or two (Rembrandt is my first one-town story) to bring the killer to justice and retrieve the stolen crown.

Robert Louis Stevenson was the first author to immerse me in a far-away world. To this day, I recall instantly visualizing the tap-tap-tapping of Blind Pew’s cane on the cobblestones in the opening chapter of Treasure Island. The fact that Stevenson made the bad guys a blind man and an amputee was brilliant. And, as I mentioned before, I love Agatha Christie. I read And Then There were None when I was ten and vividly recall thinking, “Wait, how could he be dead when it was so obvious he was the killer?”

 As for current writers, there are so many greats out there. I just read Gillian McAllister’s Wrong Place Wrong Time and loved it. I also greatly admire Laura Dave, Lance Charnes, Lucy Foley, Michael Connelly, SA Crosby, AG Riddle, Attica Locke, Sandra Brown … the list goes on. And that’s just fiction. Don’t get me started on the non-fiction writers.

What are you working on next?

James: Yesterday, I closed my eyes, prayed to some unseen being, and sent my first draft of Death and Lies to my editors. I can’t wait to see what a disaster it is. I have two series: Jacob Stearne Thrillers and Pia Sabel Mysteries. The two characters worked together in the first eight books, but complained about each other constantly, so I separated them in the next six books. They still make guest appearances in each other’s books when I can afford it. Lies is the fifth Jacob Stearne book, my fifteenth overall. Where Rembrandt and the other Pia Sabel mysteries are more traditional mystery, the Jacob Stearne stories are more mystery with adventure (and a good dose of humor). That book should be out in October. Veteran Jacob Stearne is accused of murder in eastern Europe while chasing a future-changing technology worth not billions but trillions.

Learn More About the Author and The Rembrandt Decision here:

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