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Bestselling Author Jeffery Deaver Rob Holden: Jeffery Deaver, welcome to ReadersRoom.com. It's a pleasure to speak with you today! Jeffery Deaver: A real pleasure to be here! Rob Holden: I'd like to start this off with your upcoming novel Garden of Beasts. Could you tell our readers a bit about it? Jeffery Deaver: Garden of Beastsis my first historical thriller. It's set in Berlin in 1936 and features my "hero," a mob hitman, who's recruited by the U.S. government to assassinate Hitler's rearmament specialists and in doing so prevent the next war. Garden of Beasts has a large cast of characters, including Hitler and Jesse Owens, and is filled with my typical twists and turns. Rob Holden: This novel is a departure for you, and the research certainly must have been exhaustive. How was it putting yourself into the "mindset" of Nazi Germany in 1936? Jeffery Deaver: Yes, indeed. Although Garden of Beasts is my standard length (about 435 pages) it took me twice the time to write--two years. This was mostly because of the research. While an author should never sacrifice plot and pacing, it's important for a book like this to include a great deal of accurate period detail. That's what took me 18 months to solidly research. Fast example: Did you know there were fax machines, TVs and computers in use in 1936?

Rob Holden: No, I didn't! Being something of a WWII history buff myself, I could tell you had really done your home work on this one!

Jeffery Deaver: I was born in 1950 and have a certain connection with era (my father was a flyer in the War), and I wanted to, in one sense, educate younger people about that type of conflict--so very different from what we are now experiencing.

Rob Holden: For me, the most intriguing character in the novel was Otto Webber. I am wondering what kind of research you did on him -- and how you did it?

Jeffery Deaver: Ah, yes . . . our good friend Otto. In early reviews and comments, he's emerging as one of the most intriguing and appealing characters. For those not familiar, he's a petty crook and operator who at one time had been a famous, classy criminal in Weimar Berlin. Now, as he says, he's just trying to get by because the inmates (the Nazis) have taken over the prison. I modeled him on several historical characters--and created much of him in my own imagination.

Rob Holden: While not giving away too much of the plot, the other character I would like to ask about is Willi Kohl. I would imagine working on him took a lot of time.

Jeffery Deaver: Yes, Willi Kohl is another "hero." I use parentheses, since there is a certain moral ambiguity on the part of all my characters. Willi is a Berlin criminal police inspector, and he is not a Nazi, but works for an organization that is controlled by the Nazis. He, more than the SS and Gestapo, presents the most threat to my American mobster, Paul Schumann, because he is an extremely talented and diligent cop, trying to get by in a very difficult world.

Rob Holden: Well, having read your entire backlist, I have to say that I believe Garden of Beasts is your finest work to date. I'd like to move back a book now and talk about your short story collection Twisted. Can you tell us a bit about that?

Jeffery Deaver: The title says it all! In my novels, while I have many twists and turns certainly, in the end good prevails and justice is achieved. In my short stories (I've published about 40 or so), all bets are off. The bad guys (and girls) often prevail--and do so in particularly sick ways. I write the short stories for the emotional payoff of surprise. They're great fun to do.

Rob Holden: I kinda noticed that. Is it fun for you NOT to have the "good guys" win all the time?

Jeffery Deaver: I'm glad you asked that question, because I will segue into my philosophy of writing -- it's really not about what's fun for me, but what I think will give my readers an enjoyable, emotionally intense time. In fact, I tend to be very suspicious of passages or ideas that I think will be fun to write, because they very likely won't be fun for the readers to read. When I say I enjoy them, I mean I enjoy coming up with a product that my readers will enjoy. Forgive the convoluted logic.

Rob Holden: And for our readers who haven't read it yet, how many stories are in Twisted, and what timeframe do they span in your career?

Jeffery Deaver: I think there are about sixteen, and they were written over the past ten years or so. There is also an original short story, The Christmas Present, featuring Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs. It appears to be (note the operative verb) a sentimental family holiday tale. Ha!

Natalie R. Collins: And with that, Jeffery, we would like to ask you about your Lincoln Rhyme series, for which you are most well known. How did you come up with such a complicated character as a protagonist?

Jeffery Deaver: I'm always looking for new ways to interest my readers and give them an, yes I'll say it again, enjoyable and emotionally intense time. I'd grown a bit tired of the traditional cops and private eyes and amateur detectives, and I wanted a unique character, someone who didn't solve the crime by shooting straighter or karate-kicking the bad guy. I wanted a cerebral detective, and wanted at the same time to keep the tension as high as I could. So I created a man who is pure mind. As I read my response I should add for those not familiar that Lincoln Rhyme is a quadriplegic--paralyzed from the neck down--and had been head of the NYPD crime scene unit.

Natalie R. Collins: I should also add that these novels are a MUST read for any fan of the genre.

Jeffery Deaver: Thank you!

Natalie R. Collins: I find your characterizations extremely in depth and your characters truly come to life on the pages. How do you go about researching your characters?

Jeffery Deaver: As you know from my books, they are very plot driven. Everything that happens, happens for a purpose that furthers the main or sub plots. But you can have the most clever plot in the world and if your characters don't resonate, if they aren't real then the book is a dud. I work very hard to create depth in all characters (good and bad--we need multidimensional villains as much as heroes), and much of this involves research. For instance in Garden of Beasts, I read dozens of books about Nazis, about non-Nazis, about American mobsters, about the social aspects of life in the 1930s. All of this information and detail went into my mind somewhere and then I added what I know about human nature and my own experience and out came characters that I hope are credible. This is what writers MUST do--create believable characters.

Rob Holden: Jeffery, since we announced this chat, we've had a ton of questions from our readers. Will you answer a few of them now?

Jeffery Deaver: Of course!

Natalie R. Collins: From Maggie in GA: Mr. Deaver, I have enjoyed your work so much, one of my favorites is The Blue Nowhere.... I was wondering, did a certain real life event spur you on to write this book, or did you just think it up? Keep the great books coming!!

Jeffery Deaver: Thanks, Maggie. I'm always looking for idea that I think will scare the hell out of my readers. One day, while I was writing, my computer froze -- just a hang up of some kind -- but I got the idea that what a frightening thing it would be if a psychotic hacker were inside my computer, gathering information to use to kill me. That's where the book came from.

Natalie R. Collins: Karen Q., Billings, MT: Bill Thompson (the interviewer) said that The Stone Monkey is a "richly textured book." Do you agree with this mild description and if not, how would you describe it?

Jeffery Deaver: Hi, Karen. I'll take richly textured to mean that the book has a number of layers of suspense in it. This Lincoln Rhyme story is about a human smuggler who tries to murder two illegal immigrant families in Manhattan. In addition to the criminal plot, I tried to put suspense into issues like father-son relationships, Eastern medicine vs. Western, Chinese underground culture, modern and traditional Chinese politics, and cross-cultural relationships.

Natalie R. Collins: Aaron L., Los Angeles, CA: There is a Jerry Seinfield episode where it begins at the end of the story and ends at the beginning. I always thought this format would be perfect for a Deaver thriller... is this something you might consider?

Jeffery Deaver: Ah, yes, one of my all time favorite Seinfeld's! I love Kramer's lollipop getting bigger and bigger! In fact, I've often thought about doing something that would be a bit more experimental. I'd just want to make sure that I kept a sense of story-telling, not just vignettes. I'll probably try that in a year or two.

Natalie R. Collins: Sarah W., Albuquerque, NM: If you were allowed to own ONE book what would it be and why?

Jeffery Deaver: Since Sarah says "book" and not "novel," I'll cheat: The Collected Works of William Shakespeare. I chose this because there is no more versatile, insightful and productive writer in the English language.

Natalie R. Collins: Sally F., Honolulu, HI: I have heard that your sister writes books too. Is her style like yours? What is the title of one of her books?

Jeffery Deaver: Yes, my sister, Julie, writes more serious books than mine. She's the artistic writer in the family. Her latest is wonderful: The Night I Disappear.

Natalie R. Collins: And our last reader question: Arliss H., Gulfport, FL: Of all the awards you have been nominated for and have received, which is the most meaningful?

Jeffery Deaver: Arliss: Actually, it's not an award given by a literary or book group. I received the Dream Award from the Western Law Center for Disability Rights a few years ago. I received this for the most realistic portrayal of a disabled individual in a work of art. It meant a lot to me not only for the implications of what Lincoln Rhyme says to those in the disabled community but also because I could create a credible character in a world I had not come out of.

Rob Holden: Thank you for answering those. One of the things our readers who are also writers like us to ask is about our guests' writing habits. What kind of writing schedule do you keep? How many pages per day or word count -- or is it just as the muse dictates?

Jeffery Deaver: I'll talk for a few lines on that subject. As for the day-to-day routine, this is a full-time, 8- to 10-hours per day job. Like any other. I don't have any page goal, certainly not on a daily basis, except I insist (to myself and my publisher) that I will do one book a year. I spend eight months outlining the book completely, and at the end of that time I've got an outline that's about 150-200 pages long. It includes every aspect of the plot, all the clues, all the twists and turns and endings Yes, endingS, plural. You need several surprises at the end of a thriller, since readers are so clever, they always guess one or two. When the outline is done--I do the research at the same time --I spend 2-3 months writing the book and a month or so rewriting it. I will rewrite a book easily 50 times before it goes to my publishers. Hemingway said there are no great writers; there are only great rewriters. Remember that!

Rob Holden: The work shows in your books! And so what is next for Jeffery Deaver?

Jeffery Deaver: Just before we went on-line, I minimized my WordPerfect screen, on which is sitting about 400 pages of my next Lincoln Rhyme book which is titled Gallows Heights. In it, Lincoln has to solve a cold case--one that's 150 years old! Oh, and doing three short stories for Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine.

Rob Holden: And when is this one scheduled for release?

Jeffery Deaver: Gallows Heights will be out in the summer of 2005. Then I'm outlining my book for 2006, a non-Lincoln, but the start of a new series.

Rob Holden: Would you like to give our readers a "clue" as to the new series, or would you prefer to hold off?

Jeffery Deaver: No, I'll leave them in "suspense" (hey, it's what I do for a living, right?). But I will give them one tidbit about Garden of Beasts (coming in July of this year). Although it's set in Berlin in 1936, there IS a Lincoln Rhyme connection, for the sharp-eyed reader. You'll find it toward the end. Let me know via email if you find it!

Rob Holden: Before we wrap this up, I would like to thank Jane Davis for helping make this interview happen in the best way, and also mention that both your fan email address and updates on what you are doing can be found at your website, www.jefferydeaver.com

Jeffery Deaver: Jane is Webmaster extraordinaire! Yes, many thanks to her and to you all, Rob, Natalie and Laura!

Rob Holden: Finally -- is there anything you would like to say to your fans who may read this chat at ReadersRoom.com?

Jeffery Deaver: Just to express my gratitude to them for their love of the written word (whether it's mine or anyone else's). Forgive the truism, but we writers couldn't do it without you!

Rob Holden: Jeffery Deaver, thank you for joining us here today, and much success with Garden of Beasts and all your other projects!




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