Ask the Author: Frederic S. Durbin
Answered Questions (12)
Frederic S. Durbin
Yes! I am at work on my first series! Book 1 and the series proposal are out on submission. Book 2 is also finished, and I'm nearing completion of Book 3. I hope the series will find the right editor soon who will believe in the books as much as my agent and I do. Thanks for asking!
Frederic S. Durbin
Well, my plots (and characters, and everything about the stories) nearly always come from places. And some of the places that intrigue me most are hidden places: caverns underground, secret rooms, hidden passageways, lost islands, lost cities swallowed by the jungle, the green shadow-world inside a cornfield or in the top of a tree . . . you get the idea. When I was about seven or eight, my parents first introduced me to the grand mystery that is Mammoth Cave, Kentucky. I was enchanted, and in one way or another, I've been writing about Mammoth Cave ever since--not directly, but the cave is present in the feel, the atmosphere of so many of my settings.
Frederic S. Durbin
Hi, Karen--Thank you very much for reading the book! I'm delighted that you enjoyed it! As to my favorite reads this year, I have two, a fiction title and a nonfiction one. The latter is 'The Typewriter Revolution,' by Richard Polt. I am a huge typewriter enthusiast, with a collection of about 30 typewriters, ranging in age from a 1925 Corona Four to a 1971 Olympia SM9. (You can find an article I wrote for Tor.com about how typewriters fit into the life of the modern writer--the link is on my web site, and you can also find it by typing my name and 'Tor.com' into your browser window.) My favorite fiction book I read this year was Shirley Jackson's 'The Haunting of Hill House,' which I'd been wanting to read for years. My favorite of hers is still 'We Have Always Lived in the Castle.' Thank you again for writing to me!
Frederic S. Durbin
Thank you, Kate! I'm really happy that you loved the book! Thank you for reading it and for letting me know. I am working on a series right now; two books are finished and I'm writing the third. Book One has just gone out on submission to some publishers. So things are moving forward, but it will be a couple years at least before it would start coming out. Do you know about my two older books, 'Dragonfly' and 'The Star Shard'? That's all I've got out there so far--but I'm writing! Thank you for looking forward to something new--and thanks again for writing to me!
Frederic S. Durbin
This would need fact-checking, but I believe I read, when I was researching the actual garden at Bomarzo, that Salvador Dali rediscovered the garden in its forgotten and long-abandoned state and was influential in getting the place noticed and restored for visitors. So "D___ S___" is more or less his name backwards -- not that my character is supposed to resemble Dali in any real way.
Frederic S. Durbin
Thanks for the question, Jessica! It's to help keep the story universal. If I used names, readers would pick up on the ethnicity and pinpoint the story to a specific country. Without the names, it could be set anywhere. As it is, the only character with a specified name is Mr. Girandole. Does that somehow imply that he's the most "real" of anyone? :-)
Frederic S. Durbin
Live as fully as you can. Enjoy each moment of life. Interact with the people around you -- be kind to them and love them. Revel in stories. Take in all the stories you can, in whatever form. Notice things. And then write, and never give up. Finish what you start. Most of all, love what you're doing. Follow the ideas that excite you. If you are absolutely passionate about your story, others will be, too.
Frederic S. Durbin
It's often a form of laziness. Writer's block is the fact that I don't want to do the hard work. So, usually, it's best to muscle through it, to make myself keep writing even if I'm convinced that what I'm writing is terrible. Eventually, I come through the rough place and know what I'm doing again. Of course it's important to get away from writing, too -- to go outdoors, do something physical, spend time with people, read, watch movies . . . and then come back to the writing with a rested, fresh perspective.
Frederic S. Durbin
The best thing is the joy of using your gifts to make the world better in the way that only you can. It's indescribably wonderful to meet or hear from readers who have loved your story -- a story that began so small, in your own mind, and only you and your family and friends knew about it. Then the story is out there in the world, and other people can enjoy it. There's nothing like that feeling. You feel that you've been part of something special, something miraculous.
Frederic S. Durbin
I'm working on Book 2 of what I believe will be a three-book fantasy series. It's the biggest, broadest, deepest project I've ever undertaken, and I'm really excited about it. The story is not directly related to any of my other published work.
Frederic S. Durbin
I grew up surrounded by books. My dad opened our town's first bookstore, and my mom built libraries for our town's four elementary schools. My parents read to me from the time I was born. Almost from the instant I understood what books were, I wanted to write them myself.
Frederic S. Durbin
I was reading a magazine article about a Renaissance garden that had been abandoned for centuries and was overgrown by the forest. The local people supposed it was cursed or haunted and avoided the place. The whole idea instantly called out to me. I knew there was a story hidden in those moss-grown ruins and sculptures.
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