Jan 11, 2025
BooKecCenTriC is thrilled to welcome the master of thrills, Seeley James, back to our virtual couch for an interview about his latest adventure, Chasm of Exiles. Enjoy this fun and heart-warming interview!
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After writing fifteen previous novels that follow the action-adventure, mystery-thriller framework in the Sabel Security series, I decided to examine the effect all the bloodshed would have on a hero. While James Bond slaughtered thousands of henchmen and never thought twice about it, in real life, that kind of crime spree has consequences. Karma if nothing else. That gave me a premise: what happens to a “hero” after the bodies are carted away?
Chasm of Exiles demonstrates the moral struggle for our hero, Jacob Stearne, and his new protégé, a teenaged former stripper named Symone. She wants him to teach her how to kill without remorse, he wants to find simpler ways to solve world problems.
And they have a world-problem: a formula for a new type of battery could shift the balance of global power. Everyone wants to get their hands on the formula, some to destroy it, others to profit from it. Jacob is sent in to retrieve it and bring it home for his billionaire boss. Which raises the next question he must answer: Who deserves to own it?
Who is your target audience, and why do
you think this book will appeal to them?
My fans tend to be people with a sense of
humor and a love of reading. I know that’s broad, but adventures like mine are
meant to be escapist outlets that also inform the reader and make them think. Chasm
of Exiles appeals because it offers interesting situations that mirror real
life without bludgeoning the reader with moral lessons.
What's the one thing you hope readers
will remember or take away from your book long after they finish reading it?
Admiring heroes is an excuse for people to
sit on their hands. We shouldn’t look for heroes but become one.
Can you share a surprising or
little-known fact about your writing process or research for this book?
Research is my favorite thing. I will
research everything I need to know to flesh out the topics in my extensive
outline. I keep copious notes in Microsoft OneNote complete with links and
pictures and my thoughts on how to spin to fit my needs. When I start writing,
I deviate from my outline so much by the middle of Act II (known by some such
as George RR Martin as the Oh Shit Moment, and by others such as Blake Snyder as
the Midpoint Crisis), that my research is useless and I must trawl the internet
for new ways to fight, steal, or blow things up.
Can you walk us through your favorite
scene or chapter from your book? What makes it stand out to you?
What makes it stand out will be obvious. Near
the end of the story, Symone confronts Jacob saying she doesn’t want to be
afraid of men all the time. She wants him to teach her how to fight and kill.
“You don’t understand,” Symone said. “I don’t want to be afraid all the time. I hate guys like Adam. I hate guys like Rochester. I hate mass-shooters. I hate them. I hate them all!”
“Hate is an all-consuming fire, Symone.” I took a deep breath. “In order to kill, you have to hate. Hate binds your victims to you for life. My world’s populated with ghosts. Phantoms follow my every step. The dead, the defeated, their survivors—they’re specters trudging three feet behind me. Hatred might feel good and just and righteous. It leads to the opposite.
“People we call leaders will use that hate for their purposes. They’ll feed on your hate and throw gasoline on the fire. They’ll use it to manipulate you. You’ll join them, pumping your fist with righteous indignation and spitting on your enemies. And next, those leaders will slaughter enemies you never knew existed, and then they’ll butcher your neighbors claiming they have been enemies all along. And then they’ll come for you. In the end, hate destroys everything. Take the other path, Symone. Go the way I left behind. Love the world around you while you still can. Love your neighbor. Love your enemy. Turn the other cheek. Let go of your hatred. That’s what real heroes do.”
What's the most memorable or impactful
response you've received from a reader, and how has it affected you?
There are two answers to this question:
First, during the writing of this book, my wife died unexpectedly. The
outpouring of love and support from my fans and their encouragement to keep
writing sustained me in ways that still inspire me. For a specific,
story-related response, several people told me the passage above brought them
to tears. That makes it all worthwhile.
What's the one question you wish readers
would ask you about your book, and how would you answer it?
A good deal of my research revolves around
ancient philosophy. Greek, Roman, Chinese, and Judeo-Christian philosophy are
both divergent and in sync, and that fascinates me. Many of the problems we
deal with today are similar to problems faced by the ancients. Most people
glaze over when you mention of Hegel or Nietsche or Moses. Just once, I’d love
to hear a question such as, “Was that passage a summation of Plato’s diatribe against
tyrants in Republic?” And I would answer, “Glad you asked. As a matter
of fact …” And that’s when the audience
would fall asleep.
What's the most embarrassing thing
that's happened to you as an author?
I’ve not hit the New York Times top ten as
I expected. That’s embarrassing.
What's the best writing advice you've
ever received, and from whom?
Robert McKee’s book Dialogue was so
packed with ideas it’s hard to pin one thing down. But there is one bit that I
learned from Lee Child’s series on BBC Maestro. He said if something or someone
is important to the story, introduce them/it in mythical proportions.
What's the biggest misconception people
have about being an author?
Glamor. Adoration. Accomplishment. Sorry, it’s
lonely AF.
What's the most challenging part of the
writing process for you, and how do you overcome it?
Discipline. If I figure that out, I’ll come
back and answer this question. The good news is: I heard Harlan Coben talking
about discipline, laziness, avoidance and he didn’t have a solution either.
How do you stay motivated and focused
during the writing process?
I look at my bank balance.
If you could go back in time and give
advice to your pre-published self, what would it be?
Pay attention to two things: Character
definition and Narrative drive. Everything else is window dressing.
Your favorite quote/saying to live by?
Love your neighbor.
Any advice to new/aspiring authors?
Study the craft daily; 2) Half the
books you read (and you should read a LOT) should be way outside your genre; 3)
Write, even when you’re spilling out crap.
Always. All my life I’ve had one book in my head and another in progress. After publishing my first book, I had the second under construction and the third taking up space in my brain.
