FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
When I’m interviewed or do a book event, I tend to get asked the same questions over and over. As a service to everyone, here are the answers that I usually give. (Of course, my answers may vary based on how much caffeine I’ve had that day.)
General Questions
1) How do you pronounce “Kuzneski”?
My name is a lot easier than it looks. The best way to remember the pronunciation is to make it rhyme with “was pesky.” Kuzneski was pesky…. Yeah, I know it’s not the most flattering rhyme, but it seems to be memorable.
2) When will your next novel be released?
The Death Relic was released in the UK on September 29, 2011. The Secret Crown will be released in America on January 12, 2012.
3) When will one of your books be turned into a movie?
Hopefully soon! As things stand, I have a film agent (Jon Kassir at CAA), but none of my books have been optioned ― even though a number of producers have inquired about the rights. If someone in Hollywood makes an offer, I’ll be sure to post all the details on my news page.
4) Why are your books released in the UK several months before the US?
Even though I’m an American writer, my books are a lot more popular in the UK ― at least for the time being. Because of my success overseas, my British publisher rushes my books to print because they know they’ll fly off the shelves. Meanwhile, my American publisher takes the “regular” amount of time to release my books. They use the extra time to send out review copies to the media and critics. That delays the release by several months.
5) I heard you’re launching a new series called THE HUNTERS. Can you give us some details?
The first book in the series won’t be released in the UK until February 2013, so I’m not allowed to give you too many details about the plot or series. However, if you want to read the initial press release from Headline Publishing, you can read it here.
6) Hold up! Does this mean you’re ending the Payne & Jones series?
Nope, it doesn’t mean that at all. In fact, my new four-book deal with Headline includes two new books in the Payne & Jones series. Starting in 2013, I’m going to start releasing a new book every eight months, alternating between the two series.
7) How long have you been a writer?
I wrote my first book as a fourth grader and can remember entering several writing competitions in junior high school ― even though I never won any of them. In senior high school, I entered a Writer’s Digest contest that was open to writers of all ages and somehow took second place. Not bad for an acne-faced teenager, especially since I was competing against thousands of professional writers…. Unfortunately, I went into a severe slump after that. My next work wasn’t published until I started working for my college newspaper.
8) Did you REALLY play football at Pitt? You look kind of scrawny.
Thanks. But the truth is I was an offensive lineman for a very good Pitt team in the late-80s. Unfortunately, my career got cut short due to a freak foot injury, which contributed to my massive weight loss. (I was around 270 pounds in college; now I’m 200.) At the time, it was pretty devastating ― to me, NOT the team. But all things considered, it was probably the best thing that could’ve happened to me. Instead of spending all of my time in the weight room, I was able to focus all of my attention on writing and sleeping past noon.
9) How did you get an agent?
First of all, let me make one thing clear: Finding an agent was a painstaking process that took me several years. I did what all writers are supposed to do; I wrote a query letter to every agent who was looking for new clients. Unfortunately, that got me nowhere. After that, I decided to take a different approach. I wrote letters to many of my favorite writers, asking them to read an unpublished version of The Plantation. Amazingly, most of them agreed to do it, and before I knew it, the endorsements started rolling in. Eventually I decided to self-publish my book, hoping it would get me enough money to pay my rent. Remarkably, it did more than that . . .
Scott Miller, an agent at Trident Media, bought one of those self-published copies in a Philadelphia bookstore and liked it enough to e-mail me. At the time, I had a folder with over 100 rejection letters, yet the best young agent in the business bought my book (at full price) and contacted me. Not only did I get a royalty from his book sale, but I also got the perfect agent.
10) I want to read your books in the order they were written. Do you remember the order?
Of course I remember the order. What, do I look like a moron? Wait! Don’t answer that!!!
1) The Plantation
2) Sign of the Cross
3) Sword of God
4) The Lost Throne
5) The Prophecy
6) The Secret Crown
7) The Death Relic
Questions about THE PLANTATION
1) How long did it take you to write The Plantation?
The first draft took roughly nine months to complete, but it was way too long to hold a reader’s interest ― coming in at 220,000 words. I ended up cutting a few characters, one major plotline, and over 100,000 words during the next few months. All told, the book was done in about a year.
2) How did you come up with the concept for The Plantation? It seems so different . . .
I’ve always been interested in the concept of revenge. You know, what motivates people to seek retribution. Sometimes it’s a hatred that’s been festering for years; other times, it’s a quick, violent reaction (i.e. a crime of passion.) Anyway, I was pondering the concept of revenge while I was driving from Pittsburgh to Hilton Head, SC. If you’ve ever been to South Carolina, you know the state is filled with plantations, some bigger than Rhode Island. Eventually, something clicked in my mind. I realized a plantation would be a great place to get revenge. Not only because of the isolation but also because of the violent history of the South.
3) If you came up with the idea in South Carolina, why does your story take place in Louisiana?
The biggest reason was New Orleans. I wanted Payne & Jones to look for clues in a major city, and South Carolina doesn’t have anything the size of New Orleans. Besides, the history of Louisiana is so different than any other state that I felt it would make an interesting backdrop for The Plantation.
4) Ariane Walker was Payne’s girlfriend in The Plantation, but I don’t remember her being mentioned in any of your other novels. Did Payne kill her?
Don’t be stupid. Of course Payne didn’t kill her. But my agent did....
Let me explain: The Plantation was my first novel. It was published by a small publisher, but it did so well I signed a three-book deal with Penguin USA. When I wrote Sign of the Cross, Ariane appeared in the first draft. Payne called her when he was in Spain, and she popped up in a few other chapters. However, when my agent read it, he felt the book needed to be shortened. (It was really long.) The easiest sections to eliminate were the ones with Ariane since she was nothing more than a supporting character. So that's what I snipped ― all the parts with Ariane.
Once the book was released, my agent and editor loved the formula. Payne & Jones were single, giving them freedom in future novels. And I have to admit, I liked it, too. Will Ariane ever reappear? Possibly. But for the time being, Payne and Jones will be free to play the field.
Questions about SIGN OF THE CROSS
1) Sign of the Cross is a religious thriller. Were you trying to cash in on The Da Vinci Code?
I finished the first draft of SOTC before I’d ever heard of Dan Brown. I came up with my plot in the late 90s but didn’t feel comfortable writing it until I had a chance to do all the background research that was necessary. In the meantime, I ended up writing The Plantation, which turned out to be a great decision for a number of reasons.
If you still don’t believe my timeline, check out the first edition of The Plantation, which was released a year before The Da Vinci Code. In the back of the book, there’s a big ad for SOTC.
2) I’m fascinated by the history in SOTC. Can you recommend any books on religion?
I came across several titles while I conducted my research. I didn’t read all of them, but I saw them mentioned enough that they’d probably be a great place to start.
Non-fiction:
· Holy Blood, Holy Grail by Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, and Henry Lincoln
· Rosslyn: Guardians of the Secret of the Holy Grail by Tim Wallace-Murphy and Marilyn Hopkins
· Jesus and the Lost Goddess by Timothy Freke and Peter Gandy
Fiction:
· Map of Bones by James Rollins
· The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury
· The Expected One by Kathleen McGowan
· The Genesis Code by John Case
· Daughter of God by Lewis Perdue
· The Templar Legacy by Steve Berry
Questions about SWORD OF GOD
1) I heard the British version of Sword of God is much longer than the American. Is that true?
Yes, Penguin UK contracted me to write an additional 10,000 words for their version. That’s roughly 50 extra pages. My main focus was fleshing out the character of Shari Shasmeen and the members of her archaeological team. In addition, I extended the conclusion of the story, adding a twist that fans of Sign of the Cross will enjoy.
2) Payne and Jones belonged to a military group known as the MANIACs. Does such an organization exist?
During times of war, the U.S. Military has experimented with all-star squads. That is, taking their best soldiers, regardless of their branch, and throwing them together on important missions. Over the years, these squads have gone by many names, and some of them still operate today.
In my novels, Payne and Jones are former members of the MANIACs, a Special Forces squad that they once commanded. MANIAC is an acronym that stands for Marines, Army, Navy, Intelligence, Air Force, and Coast Guard.
Questions about THE LOST THRONE
1) Have you ever visited Greece?
Yes, I visited for over a week and saw most of the major sites. After spending a few days in Athens, I toured the countryside, stopping at Delphi, Mycenae, Sparta, Olympia, and many towns in between. I also took a boat to some of the islands in the Aegean. That was probably my favorite part of the trip. The islands were simply gorgeous.
2) Where did you first learn of archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann? How did his story provide the inspiration of The Lost Throne?
I was a student at the University of Pittsburgh, taking a course on the Greek Classics. One of the lectures focused on Heinrich Schliemann’s life, particularly how he used The Iliad to discover the lost city of Troy. Or, how he didn’t. That was the incredible thing about Schliemann. No one knows what to believe because he was such a brilliant con man. Half the time he was taking credit for things he didn’t do, the other half he was denying things that he actually did. As an author, that gave me a lot of fodder to work with.
3) What was the strangest story that you uncovered about Schliemann?
Anytime Schliemann would invent a new fact about himself―for instance, he claimed he had dinner with the President―he would actually change his diary to cover his tracks. Sometimes he even glued in additional pages if he didn’t have enough room for all of the fictional details. Keep in mind, I’m talking about his personal diary, something only he got to read during his lifetime. How bizarre is that? I’m not sure if he did it to help keep all of his tales straight, or he did it because he knew scholars would read his diary after he had died. Whatever the reason, it spoke volumes about the man and his ego.
4) What was the most interesting thing you learned while writing this book?
Even though I had heard of Mount Athos, I didn’t know much about its history or its role in the Orthodox faith. But the more I researched the place, the more I realized that it needed to be in my story. It’s almost like a separate country inside of Greece―similar to the relationship between Vatican City and Italy, but not as distinct.
5) I’d love to read Allison Taylor’s dissertation, the one mentioned in your Author’s Note. Do you know where I can get a copy?
I have to admit, this is one question I didn’t expect. Why? Because I was simply joking around in the Author’s Note. The truth is Allison Taylor is a fictional character, so she never actually did any research. But I wish she had. It would’ve made my job as an author a heck of a lot easier!
Questions about THE PROPHECY
1) Unlike your other novels, there was a cliffhanger at the end of THE PROPHECY. Will there be a sequel?
Normally I pride myself on tying up all the loose ends in my novels, but in this case I felt a cliffhanger was appropriate because of the subject matter. I mean, when it comes to Nostradamus, there are never any definitive answers...
2) Umm, you didn’t answer the question. Will there be a sequel?
Nope. No sequel.
Questions about THE SECRET CROWN
1) When will THE SECRET CROWN be released in America?
Putnam will release the hardcover in January 2012.
2) Does Ludwig’s secret grotto actually exist?
Believe it or not, it really does exist. You can see photos of the grotto in my Virtual Book Tour feature. Click the link to visit the Tour page for The Secret Crown.
Questions about THE DEATH RELIC
1) When will THE DEATH RELIC be published in the US?
Putnam will release the hardcover in January 2013.