27th September, 2010

American writer Robin Parrish has put his stamp on more than one genre and format. Beginning his career as a journalist and editor covering Christian music for various websites as well as CCM Magazine, he then launched the now defunct on-line project Infuze as a unique blend of faith and pop culture issues. It was also the launching pad for his writing career after Bethany House saw his serialized story on the site, which led him to release his Dominion Trilogy, consisting of Relentless, Fearless and Merciless. Last year saw the release of his sci-fi adventure novel Offworld, while the supernatural-focused Nightmare was released in July of this year. With his passion for technology, creativity and faith, Parrish is a unique voice in the marketplace. KRIS BATHER caught up with him via email...

Five books in five years is pretty impressive. Is the act of writing novels becoming easier for you, and is it still as much fun as it was when you first became a professional author?

“It's not becoming easier, because I intentionally push myself to grow with every book. By that I mean, I come up with a story idea that forces me to expand my skill set and try things I haven't done before. The craft of writing fiction has become very second nature to me, yes, but I don't think it will ever be so easy that I can do it in my sleep. If that happens, then I'm probably doing it wrong! I don't ever want to get stale.

     "And yes, absolutely it's still as much fun. Probably more so, because I feel like I have a better handle on what I'm doing now.”

US author and journalist Robin Parrish. "I have no problem with Christian artists 'going mainstream'. In fact, I think all of the ones that want to be able to speak to the issues of modern life and not be shoved off to the edges of what the world considers to be a 'fringe' subculture, should seriously consider it. As long as they don't lose themselves or their beliefs, as long as they don't trade in those values in exchange for fame and fortune, then I think their message needs to be heard outside of the 'Christian' industry. Desperately."

How has the issue of Christian entertainment versus mainstream acceptance changed since the release of Relentless? Is the 'Christian' label still a hot topic for Christian artists?

“I think Christian readers are slowly becoming more open minded about what all the term 'Christian fiction' encompasses, though some will always have a list of requirements that must be met for that term to apply, and they're never going to change their minds. As for non-Christian readers...I haven't noticed any significant change. They're still as disinterested as ever in 'Christian fiction'."

     "Yes, it's still a hot topic, and it always will be. You can't have a religious-minded business without mixing two things together that aren't a natural fit. There's always going to be a tension there - there's no getting around it.”

I believe you once interviewed Katy Perry years ago when she wasn’t known as Katy Perry. Are you concerned about the transition from Christian artist to mainstream artist continuing, like it did with her and Jennifer Knapp?

“Well, that's two wholly different topics there.

      "I have no problem with Christian artists 'going mainstream'. In fact, I think all of the ones that want to be able to speak to the issues of modern life and not be shoved off to the edges of what the world considers to be a 'fringe' subculture, should seriously consider it. As long as they don't lose themselves or their beliefs, as long as they don't trade in those values in exchange for fame and fortune, then I think their message needs to be heard outside of the 'Christian' industry. Desperately.

     "That said, I don't believe that every musician who's a Christian is required to sing about the Gospel. There's nothing whatsoever wrong, in my mind, with being purely an entertainer. We need art and entertainment to speak to our hearts and minds, and to help us understand ourselves and others. We need art to live. As a novelist, I'm unapologetically an entertainer, first and foremost. My worldview colors everything I write, just as it has for artists throughout history. But I do what I do to enthrall and captivate and take readers on a wild ride; I'm not a preacher by trade. There are tons of Christian ideals and values in my books, because those are virtues that I hold in high regard, but they're depicted through the actions of the characters, not through a sermon or prayer that's shoehorned into the middle of my story.

     "OK, whew, stepping off my soapbox now.

     "As for Katy Perry...Yes, I interviewed her many moons ago, when she was about 15 and just starting out as a Christian artist, and I was very impressed with her. She was hysterically funny and wildly energetic and very easy to talk to. She was articulate and I felt like she had a really good head on her shoulders, and a heart for God.

     "I remember being excited when I first heard that a mainstream record label was interested in signing her, because I thought she could go very far. Obviously she has, but I don't see much - or okay, any - evidence that she's held to what she believes now that she's a media darling. To my dismay, she's developed a potty mouth, a proclivity for showing off her body, and a dozen other things that don't sit too well with me. I can't speak to the condition of her soul; that's her business. But her life isn't screaming 'I love Jesus' these days, which is deeply disappointing.”

As a huge Lost fan, did the finale satisfy you and is there another show on the horizon that might fill its shoes?

“Yes, I was fine with the ending. Like everyone else, I wouldn't have minded a big, mind-blowing revelation at the end that pulled back the curtain and shed new light on everything that happened in the show, like some huge 'theory of everything' explanation. But I appreciated that the writers chose to end the show in a circular fashion, returning to the beginning, and by focusing on the characters and the end of their journey, instead of the island's many secrets. Besides, season six was littered with answers to all of the biggest questions, so those of us who were really paying attention already knew that most of major mysteries had been solved.

     "As for another show...It's funny you ask me this, because at the time I'm writing this, I just got finished watching the pilot NBC's The Event, and it blew my mind. My wife and I talked about it at length after it went off, and the last time any show had that effect on us was, of course, Lost. I'm onboard for this one, so we'll see if it can maintain its watercooler relevance as well as Lost did, for as long as it was on.”

You’ve covered a few different genres in your books. How will your next book, Vigilante, differ from your previous books?

“Vigilante is best described as an action thriller. It's the first book I've done that features no supernatural elements whatsoever. It is 100 per cent rooted in the real world, and everything that happens in the book is stuff that could really happen.

     "A lot of fans have told me that they love my action scenes, and those fans are going to have tons to feast on in this one.

     "Other than that, I'm not sure there's much else I can give away without saying too much. And ultimately it'll be up to the fans who read it, to decide how it's similar and how it's different.”

What makes you choose your next story? I’d imagine it must be something powerful as it has to sustain your interest and keep you motivated for a long time.

“Definitely. Whatever has captured my imagination, that I can't stop thinking about, that ideas keep coming to me about...That's usually what I settle on. Like I said before, I always choose a different genre, to keep from repeating myself and to challenge myself, but like most writers, the answer is probably as simple as: I pick stories that I'm excited to tell."

Is writing for a living a lonely occupation?

"It might be for others, but I've always been very self-sufficient, so it doesn't bother me. I work best when there's no one else around, and no distractions.”

Do you pay as much attention to negative reviews as compared to positive ones?

“I'm not bothered by negative reviews that are written with care and consideration. The ones that rile me are the ones that are unfair. Example: someone on Amazon wrote this really scathing review of Offworld a while back and actually said that (I'm paraphrasing) she really enjoyed reading it and thought it was well written, but she disliked it because it didn't meet her criteria of being a 'Christian book'. She literally gave it a two-star review because it wasn't 'Christian enough' for her, though it had been published and marketed by a Christian publisher. It was unbelievably idiotic. Her entire opinion about the book was based on stuff that had nothing at all to do with the quality of my work.

     "I've been blessed not to have gotten a ton of negative reviews. I really thought there would be more of a backlash from Nightmare than there was, just because of the subject matter (ghosts).

     "But at the end of the day, no matter how objective a reviewer may be, they're still giving you their opinion. And every opinion is informed by things like tastes and preconceived notions. So you have to force yourself not to take it seriously.

     "And as somebody who used to work as a professional reviewer, I'd be pretty hypocritical to not accept the bad reviews and only focus on the good. Reviews can often be very helpful in figuring out what your strengths and weaknesses are.”

Will the exponential rise in technology be an empty distraction for society or will it lead to positive changes and challenges to how we see ourselves and each other?

“Um...yes. ;)

     "Oh, OK...yes, there's a ton of distraction on the Internet and in all forms of entertainment media in general. For all their clever uses, social networks represent a brand new challenge in fighting distraction because they're just so darn fun to use.

     "But the cream always rises to the top, and I definitely believe that technology is bringing about positive changes. ebooks alone are a wondrous new way of distributing an author's work. Think of it: instantaneous purchases from the comfort of your home, super easy to use technology that's just as simple as turning and bookmarking pages, and that has zero impact on the environment because there's no paper involved. I think it's brilliant, and it's revolutionising the entire publishing industry - in both good ways and bad. The same way that independent musicians and bands found themselves on a leveled playing field  the big-name rock stars when MP3s and iTunes came about - that's the new playground that authors have to play on. It's no wonder we're seeing headlines every day of more and more established authors defecting from traditional publishers to self-publish their own work via Kindle and the like. It's cheaper, faster, and offers a better revenue share for the writer.

     "These are not bad things, and eventually the publishing industry will realise that and find a way to embrace it, just as record labels have come to embrace downloaded music over CDs.”

Apart from being a novelist you also write for a variety of online portals. Do you ever get tired of writing or run out of things to say?

“Oh gosh, the need to find things to write about is a daily challenge. So yes, absolutely I get tired of looking for stuff to blog about. But I still get a ton of enjoyment out of it, because there's always, always interesting new things to find. Plus, I'm pretty fortunate to get to blog about stuff that I actually like (for the most part), so it's hard to complain.

     "I'd also like to ask readers to point their web browsers to http://thenightmareiscoming.com and bookmark it, as some very cool, interactive new things that I'm very excited about are going to be happening there soon, in support of my current novel Nightmare.”

~ www.robinparrish.com