Unafraid
Page 38
If appearance meant anything, R.J. was just fine. His body was still lean and lanky, his long hair was still tucked behind his ears, and his face was still a golden bronze from spending so much time outside. Resting his arms on the window ledge, R.J. looked into the car and smiled. “I’m doin’ all right,” he replied. “For a hot August day.”
“This is my boyfriend, Ronan,” Michael announced. After he spoke Michael wasn’t embarrassed; he didn’t feel his cheeks grow warm. He had simply told the truth, and it felt good. What made it even better was that there was no awkward pause. R.J. just reached into the car to shake Ronan’s hand and introduce himself.
Squatting next to the car, R.J. lifted his faded cowboy hat with his index finger to reveal some sweat on his brow. One drop, two drops, three drops, four slithered slowly down the sides of R.J.’s chiseled face, and Michael remembered how he had loved to stare at the young man. Boy, did that seem like such a long time ago. He would have laughed out loud at the memory, but R.J. interrupted him. “You know there’s this club over in Omaha, Buddy’s Place it’s called, I’ve, uh, gone there a couple of times,” he said, smiling just enough so Michael and Ronan would understand what type of club it was. “I think you two might like it. It’s, um, filled with our kind of people.”
Well, what do you know? All this time Michael had been wrong. He had never been different, he had never been unnatural, there were others like him, closer than he had ever imagined. He just had to travel halfway around the world to learn not to be scared or ashamed of the person he was always meant to be. And travel halfway back to learn that he had never really been alone.
Driving out of the gas station, the gravel crunching under the tires, Michael didn’t see R.J. smile with admiration and pride at the young couple. He just reached out to hold Ronan’s hand, the hand that still felt like cool water over rock-hard stone. Staring ahead at the long road ahead of them, Michael was happy. He felt safe and confident. He knew as well as Ronan did that no matter what future obstacles came their way, no matter what hardships they would have to endure, as long as they had each other—and they both knew that they always would—they would never, ever have to be afraid.
Please turn the page for a special Q & A with Michael Griffo.
What’s next for you as a writer?
First and foremost I’m thinking of some new characters and some new books to write. That’s something that I’m constantly doing, even if I’m working on another project. Sometimes I get a vague idea; other times I get a character’s name. Just the other day a girl’s name came to me—Dominy Robin-eaux. So I’ve decided she’ll be the heroine of my next book, Moonglow.
At the moment I’m preparing the syllabus for a playwriting class I hope to teach as an adjunct professor for the spring 2012 semester at a college in New Jersey. I’ve taught a few workshops and seminars in the past, but I’ve always wanted to teach my own writing class. I’m still awaiting the final word, but I’m optimistic that it’ll happen.
In addition, I’m working on a new play after taking some time off to concentrate on novels, so that’s exciting. To me, writing is writing, so I really enjoy jumping back and forth between genres. I’m looking forward to seeing how this play develops after working so exclusively in the world of fiction. It should be an interesting journey.
Do you think Michael and Ronan will live happily ever after?
Well ... happily ever after can spell doom for a couple in the world of fiction, so I’m not sure if I’d say that. However, I know that they will continue to learn from each other and enjoy and experience life as a couple. The reason for that is because I stand by the words I’ve written in the three books thus far as well as the relationship that has developed between Michael and Ronan, and I believe that no matter what danger they may face they will face it together. These two are a team in every sense of the word and regardless of what the future holds for them, that’s how they’ll remain. I think it’s much more interesting—and challenging to me as a writer—to have them work together against evil than to see them separated by extraneous forces just to further the plot. To me that kind of storytelling is boring because in my heart I know that Michael and Ronan are destined to stay together. If the series does continue, rest assured that it’ll be an exciting and adventurous tale, but one that they confront together.
Is David really dead?
Hmmm ... Yes, for the moment David is a member of the community of the dead. He is in Rhoswen’s realm, and she, for the time being, is calling the shots. She’s got her big brother back to read her stories for quite a long while. But (and I’m sure you knew a but was coming) David is a supernatural creature, and a very powerful one at that, so the normal definitions of life and death don’t hold much weight where David’s concerned. He sort of transcends those restrictions.
However, as we’ve learned, supernatural creatures aren’t invulnerable, and they can be killed. I guess the real question to ask is, “How long will David stay dead?”
In terms of the storyline, were there things that caught you by surprise while you were writing? Were there plotlines or ideas that were unexpected developments?
There were actually many unexpected developments that arose during the course of writing these three books. As a writer, I’m rather organized, so I began each book with a very detailed outline, somewhere around fifty to sixty pages of specific plot points. So when I began writing I really didn’t think that much would change from my outline or that I would be surprised by any major new ideas. Needless to say I was proven wrong on many occasions.
One of the first developments was the true history of Inishtrahull Island and Weeping Water, Nebraska. I chose those locations for specific reasons: I wanted Ronan to come from the northernmost point in Ireland, and I wanted Michael to come from the heartland of America. However, I had no idea that both locations were steeped in legends that had to do with water and bloody battles. These two seemingly random choices were perfect fits for the Archangel Academy series because water and blood are vital elements to the story. I’m not sure if it was luck or the storytelling gods pointing me in the right direction!
I also had no idea that the origin of the white roses was going to play such an important role in the overall story. When I first introduced this interesting, but minor plot point, I thought it was simply a bit of fun, just a nice addition to the Double A folklore. I truly had no idea that they would turn into the huge plot point they eventually became. It was a wonderful surprise to me and hopefully to you readers as well.
When I decided to have Phaedra leave in book two, I cried. Partially because it was so unexpected, but also because it made such perfect sense. Of course, I loved the character so much (especially her name! and I think you’ve figured out by now that I love really interesting and unique names) that I would have found a way to bring her back into book three even if it didn’t make complete sense. Luckily for me (and you), her bonds to Fritz and Michael were still very strong, so it was totally fitting for her to return and play an important role in Unafraid.
And finally, I think one of the biggest surprises was the character of Ruby. Originally I had her in one scene in Unnatural when her family comes to bring Penry’s body back home. She was Penry’s older sister and named Cecily. After I submitted the first draft and while I was plotting out Unwelcome, the idea hit me that Cecily was really Penry’s twin sister and that her name needed to be Ruby because she was going to be possessed by Rhoswen’s spirit and Rhoswen means white rose and Ruby is red like the color of blood. Make sense? I also toyed with the idea that Ruby and Penry were born as conjoined twins, but realized that would be a bit of a stretch because conjoined twins are always the same gender. I know the Archangel Academy series is all about the supernatural, but some things just won’t fly!
Why do you like writing for a YA audience?
I actually never knew how much I loved writing for the young adult audience until I started. Then for the longest time I just felt an emotional conn
ection to the work and the audience and never questioned it until someone asked me during a book signing and I was forced to articulate my feelings. For me, it’s because the YA audience is fearless and without restrictions. They’re willing to join a writer for the journey and go wherever the next page may lead without cynicism or preconceived notions, and that is really liberating for a writer. As long as I maintain the architecture and the mythology of the story and don’t start changing defined elements halfway through the novel, the audience will accept pretty much anything that’s thrown at them. For instance, I can’t establish Nakano as a regular vampire and then have him walk in the sunlight in Weeping Water, which is something I actually did in the first draft! I was writing so quickly that during a scene in Unnatural I had Michael and Nakano go to Weeping Water for the funeral of Michael’s grandmother, and the scene was during the day. Of course when I reread it I had to change it so they traveled at night and Nakano had to stay inside during the day.
The other great thing is that the YA audience is not at all shy about telling you how much they love or hate a character or a particular element of your story. I’ve gotten such incredible (and, thankfully, mostly wonderful) feedback from young readers. The YA audience is really quite a smart, well-read group, and I thoroughly enjoy writing for them.
What are your favorite books?
Too many to mention or remember, for that matter! However, my absolute favorite book of all time is Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. It’s a beautifully written and timeless story of one resilient child’s ability to overcome terrible adversity. It’s also a terrific melding of gothic, supernatural, and romance. I just love it. The Picture of Dorian Gray is another favorite of mine that I only read a few months before starting the outline for Unnatural. It clearly made a huge impact with me because I made the novel and the author, Oscar Wilde, himself such an integral part of Michael and Ronan’s relationship.
Other favorites include John Knowles’s A Separate Peace, one of the best YA novels of all time, and Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones, which is not generally categorized as a YA novel but is a beautifully told story with a teenage protagonist. I guess I’ve always loved YA novels and didn’t realize it. If my books can be mentioned in the same breath as these wonderful pieces of literature, I will be one very happy writer.
K TEEN BOOKS are published by
Kensington Publishing Corp.
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Copyright © 2012 by Michael Griffo
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ISBN: 978-0-7582-7776-3