"The Next Big Thing" Author Interviews

"The Next Big Thing" Interview: Jon Sindell

Hey y'all, I’m answering ten questions about my book, and including links to five authors who will in turn answer ten questions about their books and include links to five authors who will in turn answer ten questions about their books—and on and on `til our heads explode and we all intermarry, I guess.

I was invited to participate by Tracy DeBrincat, author of the fast, funny, fringe–of–Hollywood novel Hollywood Buckaroo. More about Tracy at the end of my interview.

I have also added novelist Chris Bundy to my Gang Of Five. Here's the link to Chris' Next Big Thing interview, though I also furnish the link below, along with some props about Chris and his book.

Now here's my interview about The Mighty Roman ... 

What is your working title of your book (or story)?

The non–“working” title of my novel is The Mighty Roman, which I call “non–working” because it doesn’t signal that this is a baseball novel. Error on the author. Though the cover by the amazing Chris Corwin clearly signals “baseball within.” Anyway, the title is about to be rejiggered as The Mighty Roman Baseball Blast, and Chris and I are collaborating on a cover redesign which will be awesome (I allow myself one “awesome” per conversation).

Where did the idea come from for the book?

I’ve always liked stories set in a closed system: the jury room, as in Twelve Angry Men, or on board a ship, as in Moby Dick, Lifeboat, or Mutiny On The Bounty. Characters in a closed system interact in an incredibly rich way over time, because they can’t escape one another. And a baseball team, such as the San Carlos Coyotes of the indie Cal–Hairy League, is such a closed system. And into this petri dish I placed a middle–aged white manager confused and angered by the disappearance of “his” America, and a multicultural group of eighteen–year–old ballplayers who tangibly represent the changing face of America. The book becomes sort of a Mutiny On The Bounty with bats (and pranks: it’s funny). Plus, I love baseball.

What genre does your book fall under?

Literary fiction, though as I market the book, I discover that it defies easy categorization. I, and some kind readers and reviewers consider it quite literary, but it is also a baseball story—thought it is not just a baseball story! (no frustration here). And it is a story about eighteen–year–olds, though I do not think it is a “young adult” novel per se.

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

Roman Meister, rambunctious, confused, angry white male manager:

Tom Berenger

Rex Hirsch, teen son of a Venice Beach hipster, dashing, undersized second baseman, defender of animals, friend of gays and people of all stripes, leader of rebellion against Roman:

Toby Maguire

Hammerhead Hirsch, boxing Beat poet “The Boardwalk Balladeer,” father of Rex:

Joe Mantegna

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

Fast, funny, sometimes dark ride through the first and only most glorious season of the Cal–Hairy baseball league, or: Bull Durham meets Mutiny On The Bounty.

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

I have self–published it, and I’m hopeful that it will be picked up by a press. I’ve had a lot of short stories published, and I’m hoping my stories will catch someone’s eye … somewhere … somehow … “There’s a place for us/Somewhere a place …”

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

Year–ish. The whole thing took about four years of on–and–off work.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

Bull Durham and The Great American Novel for the humor, action, and fun, Platoon (a movie, I know) and Mutiny On The Bounty (film) for the rebellion against a powerful commander (sergeant, captain, manager).

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

Number one, I totally love baseball. Second, there’s something compelling in the story of middle–aged white men who feel increasingly alienated in a rapidly changing America. For the past many years we have seen that many of these men are unable to go with the flow and turn bitter and even violent as a result. I wanted to delve into the psyche of one such bruised, proud, wounded man.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

People who don’t owe me favors have given it great reviews. And it’s funny as hell (see “Everyone Loves Chocolate” excerpt for instance).

And here are the writers in my chain:

Tracy DeBrincat is the author of the fast, funny, fringe–of–Hollywood novel Hollywood Buckaroo, and she was nice enough to invite me into this daisy chain. There is nothing superficial about my recommendation of Tracy’s novel, for I found her. Not that she was hiding—her book is prominent—but I went out alone into the wilds of the Web and found her terrific book while trolling through countless authors (I can’t count). Her sizzling prose pulled me right in. And I invited her to read at my Rolling Writers series in San Francisco, and, glory be, she accepted. So check her out, buckaroo. Add fun fact: Tracy and I both appeared in the inaugural issue of New South (Georgia State University). Hello, Chris Bundy!

  

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Speaking of Chris Bundy, Chris is the second author to grace my chain. 

It's Chris

Chris is quite a writer, and the proof is his debut novel, the Japan–based Baby You're A Rich Man,  

the story of a down-on-his luck, B-level variety star on Japanese television who is forced to go into hiding when he becomes the target of an escaped prisoner. I'm eagerly awaiting my copy, but the excerpts I've read indicate that this is quite a book. It has fabulous illustrations by Max Currie, by the way, though the text can stand tall on its own. 

I'm proud to call Chris "friend," incidentally. We first met when he edited Georgia State's lit–mag New South, which he founded. Chris chose to publish my story "Boxers," and was nice enough to send a personal note of praise. You writers know what a class act that is. Small world story: author Tracy DeBrincat, above, appeared in the same issue of New South as I did. Enough blather—here is Chris' NBT interview.

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[This space reserved for additional authors]

Happy reading,

Jon