Interview: Robert Scott - Co-Author Of The Eldarn Sequence

For the second time in less than a year, I have had the good fortune to be able to conduct an interview with an author whose work I admire and respect. Earlier it was with Ashok Banker, author of the modern Ramayana. Now it's Robert Scott, co-author of The Hickory Staff with his late father-in-law, Jay Gordon.

The Hickory Staff is the first book in a trilogy entitled The Eldarn Sequence, named for the world on which it is partially set. We also spend a good deal of time with the characters in the exotic local of Idaho Springs, Colorado. As I had said in my review of the novel, what made this work so special was that they managed to breath new life into a familiar genre: the 'stranger in a strange land' theme.

It was this, their characterizations and something about the freshness of their writing that captured my imagination and made me appreciate the book so much. When I wrote them to tell them I had written an unsolicited review of their book, and to request an interview, it was Robert who wrote back.

It turned out that Jay Gordon was in the last stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and by this time could no longer type. Jay passed away on November 18th of 2005, having seen the first book published, the second on the way for final proof, and the third about to enter editing.

We had initially planned this interview when Jay was alive, but the disease had other plans and the end, to my regret, came quicker than I could get it together to send off the questions. In this interview Robert talks about the genesis of this series, the way in which he and Jay worked together, a little about Jay himself, and of course some of the nitty gritty behind the creation of the work.

I conducted the interview via email, sending Robert a list of questions to which he responded. As I discovered with Ashok Banker's interview, authors don't need much encouragement to write, and Robert supplied bountiful answers for all my questions.

So sit back and enjoy reading a storyteller telling the story of his creation , The Eldarn Sequence.

Q: Well, let’s start with the usual biographical details.

The first time I met Jay Gordon was in Boston. I was dating his daughter (now my wife), and Jay drove up from New Jersey to help her move into a new apartment. As a guitarist, I was always worried that something I lifted or carried would cut one of my fingers or crack one of my nails. I had a performance the following weekend and was gingerly lugging books, furniture and various sundry items – all the time hoping I would come through the day unscathed.

For some reason, there was a moment when Jay and I found ourselves alone in the back of the moving truck. The silence was awkward; so, I took advantage of the opportunity to spot check my hands. Blushing, I confessed that I was a bit overzealous about my fingers and that I often felt like a character from a series of novels I had read back in high school. At that, Jay interrupted. Obviously relieved – we had something to discuss, after all – he said, ‘Thomas Covenant, Steven Donaldson’s hero.’ And so it began; we had known each other for about two hours at the time.

Article Author: Richard Marcus

Richard Marcus is the author of the forthcoming book What Will Happen In Eragon IV? and has had his work published in print and on line all over the world. The not so long-haired Canadian iconoclast writes reviews and opines on the world as he sees …

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