Tell us about your
latest book.
StarPassage Book Three: Honor &
Mercy is a riveting
continuation of my triple Gold Medal award winning series. The intensity of the story ratchets up as the Trackers bring the battle
for earthly souls to the Present Time. There is no safe space for the Carson's
and the growing group of heroes as they face the apocalyptic implications. The
possibility of a betrayal exists and the challenge of trying to resist the
Tracker’s plans when you can't see them makes the suspense almost unbearable.
Certainly new and even more dangerous passages are involved. Their triple quest
to unravel the relic’s riddles and combat the Tracker threat while dealing with
their own personal challenges transport our heroes into desperate historical moments.
New friends and old enemies add to the story in unexpected ways. It was a wild
ride to write and I expect it will be every bit as exciting to read.
 |
| https://amzn.to/2LwQyVu |
Do you read your book
reviews? How do you deal with the bad or good ones?
Yes, I appreciate different perspectives on my
books. I encourage young readers to send me their reviews and publish excerpts
on my website minus any spoilers of course. I haven’t had any bad reviews
although there have been a couple that I felt didn’t really get the book they
were reviewing. I will often respond to reviewers and thank them for their
insight. I especially enjoy those from my target markets youth, their parents,
librarians and teachers. As an author editing and critical reviews are part of
life. They almost always improve the story and help me become a better writer.
What advice do you
have for other writers?
Write. Have your writing edited and apply the lessons you learn
from it. A good editor may suggest lots of changes, some may be difficult to
address but they will make the manuscript better in the long run as long as the
editor does not try to change your voice. Always remember it is your work and
your voice at the end of the day. See.
As you walk through life see the world through different eyes. Any moment can
bring a unique insight or new way of seeing something others view as mundane. A simple star sitting atop a Christmas tree began a thought in my mind that has
now become three Gold Medal winning books. As you stretch yourself to see new
horizons, new possibilities and the beautiful magic that is in the world all
around everything becomes possible. Give
Back. There will be many opportunities along your path to uplift others and
be generous. Take the time to give back and make it part of your outreach to
the world. I have done this through my “Live with the Heart of a Giant” Tour to
schools, communities and faith based groups. It has inspired young people all over
our country to believe in themselves, that they can overcome the challenges
they face, that they are good enough to do hard things, that they have the
ability to make a difference and that they are never alone.
Where can people find
out more about you and your writing?
We live in a connected world and I have a
fairly unique name so I am easy to find. You may like or follow me on www.facebook.com/clarkrburbidge
to keep up with what is going on. In addition, my book websites: www.giantsinthelandbook.com, www.starpassagebook.com and www.apieceofsilver.com provide
additional background on my books, me and my event tours. Of course the best
way is to spend time together is to invite me to your school, church or
community groups and we will have an awesome time together that you will not
soon forget. Also, my books are available in many bookstores and online at
Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Indiebound as well as with my publisher
DeepRiver Books. Reading an author’s books tells you much about who the author
really is.
Why
do you think readers are going to enjoy your book?
Because I have walked the
adventure myself. I don’t write from an outline per se. I experience the story
with the characters and often have no idea what is going to happen next.
Suddenly I find myself with the characters in an unexpected period of history
and I need to research it to learn what will happen next. New characters,
enemies or dangers may appear suddenly and I have to deal with them along with
the characters. This means when I am writing it is an exciting experience as if
I am in the book. It also means that I can perfectly relate to how the reader
will react when they read it for the first time. It is a tremendously exciting
way to write and it means that when I have to stop to eat or sleep that I can’t
wait to get back to find what will happen next. My readers tell me they have
the same experience when they climb into the book with my characters and begin
their adventure together. Real reading isn’t just for comprehension. When a
young person becomes part of the book, as they can with mine, and walks the
path with the characters they discover that good stories and well developed
characters have the power to transport them into Passages of their own.
I love writing for and inspiring
any age. But writing for young people who are still forming their opinions and
perceptions is a powerful responsibility that I embrace fully. This allows my
writing to help them see new possibilities and explore parts of their mind that
they might not otherwise discover. I hope my writing also helps them see
potential, hope and purpose in their lives that the world doesn't seem to
encourage much anymore. Our young people can make a difference, they are not
invisible or unimportant. They need to pursue their dreams and expand their
understandings and not follow the narrow, mind-numbing stereotypes that society
would teach them through pop culture. Youth need to be encouraged to see with
their own eyes and learn about the great sacrifices others have made to create
and preserve the freedoms we enjoy rather than blindly fighting against our
divinely inspired country. There is so much to learn and see that they will
never experience by following those who would teach them to be blind and deaf.
Who designed
the cover?
Karl C. Hepworth is a wonderful talent
and has designed the cover and inside art for my last six books. His background
includes Marvel Comics and Disney and his approach is meticulous and detailed.
We have used human models for many of the characters he has drawn and he
thoroughly reads the books and historical time periods to get even the smallest
details correct. His work is like magic to me as it appears on the page. It is
not so much that he is creating the art as it is that he is uncovering the art
that was already there waiting for the right hands. He has also added much to
the stories through his edits and questioning regarding specific scenes that
have allowed me to get the details right.
How do you
research your books?
Writing my StarPassage books has created a need for far greater levels
of research than any of my previous efforts. Not only do I have to get the
current time scenes and chapters correct which can include physical therapy,
locations and attitudes, I need to do the same with a half dozen historical
settings and the real historical people involved. It
is therefore tricky to describe research on my new book without spoiling the
surprises and the flow of the story. (Slight spoilers) My research this time
covered a WWII B-17 bombing mission over Europe, a medieval group of first
responders as their town is besieged by the Black Plague, an ancient middle
eastern lost tomb, an iconic British colonial 18th century tragedy
and a desperate moment during a key Civil War battle where history was changed
by the right people in the right place taking decisive action. These and other
chance meetings provide a diverse and unexpected series of passages for readers
to enjoy. The cool part is that they flow together to weave lessons and help
our heroes put the puzzles together in their own lives. Any reader that joins
us will have a great ride but also learn a lot about themselves. Writing about
so many different times and places requires extensive and varied research. That
is part of the fun of discovery for me. History often turns on the most simple
and seemingly insignificant moments or decisions. We see that at every turn in
Book Three.
What is your
work in progress? Tell us about it.
My wife and I have a joint non-fiction book
that will be coming out next year. We have had a blended family of ten children
for over 13 years. This has been both a great challenge and a wonderful
blessing. We believe what we have learned can critical to others who walk the
same blended path. There is a dearth of literature on the subject and a lot of
misdirection and avoidance of the subject in social discussion. We decided that
it would be a great opportunity to share our experiences and more importantly
the keys we have learned to successful blending. The book is titled: Living in the Family Blender: 10 Principles
of a Successful Blended Family. I am also working on the first stages of StarPassage Book Four. That is
sufficient for the next two years at least.
What are some of
your all-time favorite books?
There are too many to list them
all. I will provide a quick list of ten for your information. I enjoy stories
both true and fictional where the characters must reach inside themselves and
find their greatness. Overcoming is a powerful read for me. It is the personal
struggle during the challenge that makes a difference. Monsters in literature
can be internal or external, real or fictional. But however they are
constructed they are key to the story. No hero becomes such without overcoming
something. It is the monsters that allow heroes to become heroes. This is also true
in our own lives. We too often see trials, challenges or disruption as
overwhelming threats and by obsessing on our loss, sudden change, unfair circumstances
or bad luck we lose our way. But understanding that it is these same trials or
personal monsters provide us with the tools to become great changes the game.
Our darkest hours then are seen in a new light as a path that allows us to
become something more and better than we otherwise might have been. We have
these examples all around us in history and contemporary life. When we choose
to dwell on the hope and possibilities that challenges make possible it opens
our minds to our own great potential and the divine that tells us we are not
lost, we can do it and that we are never alone. Here are a list of books that
can re-enforce such attitudes and have done so in my life:
- An Angel in the
Whirlwind about the life
of George Washington should be on everyone’s reading list. Benson Bobrick
expertly transports us to the colonial era and demonstrates that if we do
not waste our energy on political correctness and more carefully study the
great man that had the opportunity to become king of
- I am inspired by individuals who do the
right thing just because it is the right thing to do such as the character
Sydney Carton in A Tale of Two
Cities.
- The story of Scrooge’s redemption and his
ability and courage to change is powerful as written by Dickens in A Christmas Carol.
- The Lord of the
Rings and The Hobbit have always been my
favorites since I discovered them one Christmas morning at the age of 21.
Tolkein knew how to get the reader to turn the page and fill each one with
wondrous characters and a real story that pulls the reader in.
- The Last Stand
of Fox Company is a powerful look at a desperate effort by a small Company to keep
a road open so that thousands of Marines could survive during the retreat
from Chosin Resevoir in
- Band of Brothers and many of the other stories
about the 101st and 82nd Airborne’s contribution
during World War II describe the unit and personal level responses and
courage of regular people in unimaginable situations.
- Treasure and almost any other book by
Clive Cussler. He has a great formula and never fails to satisfy when I
need a dose of pure fictional adventure.
- Killer Angels Michael Shaara’s riveting
story of the battle of
- The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis. Every young
person that doubts the power of faith and the existence of God should read
this. Chronicles of Narnia are
also a wonderful read.
- I have not included the Scriptures here
but they are my daily study guide and inspiration. They cannot be on any
list because they are in a class of their own.
When
you’re not writing, how do you spend your time?
I love cycling,
swimming, traveling and discovering the beautiful world around us. Whether it
is in the haunted forest behind our
home or on some far flung beach or mountain I find magic lurking everywhere. I
ride between 60 and 110
miles per week. Working in the yard is also enjoyable.
But most of all I love participating in life with my wife, our children and our
community.
