Interview with Clark Rich Burbidge, author of Star Passage
Tell us about your
latest book.
Star Passage 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 every earthly soul to the Present Time. There is
no safe space for the Carson's and 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.
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 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 America and turned it
down maybe there is something we can learn. America is the only country
that was formed by revolution that did not immediately morph into a
dictatorship of some kind. One man, George Washington, was the reason.
- 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 Korea.
- 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.
- Dunkirk The real story of how the
British Army was saved should be required reading for every student. It
was an impossible feat accomplished on the spur of the moment through
shear grit, courage and leadership.
- Killer Angels Michael Shaara’s riveting
story of the battle of Gettysburg. And other books by his son Jeff give us
insight into the personal experiences, mistakes and miracles of these
iconic moments in history.
- 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.
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