Gene Brewer
By Ryan in Authors on May 12, 2008
The best selling author of the K-PAX series talks about writing and his inspiration!
Gene Brewer is a best-selling author best known for his work on the K-PAX trilogy. Gene also has written a plethora of other novels, you can find information about Gene's other works on his website. You may recognize the title K-PAX from a film of the same title starring Jeff Bridges and Kevin Spacey, the movie was an adaptation from the first book in the K-PAX trilogy.
For an author grammar is very important but often when writing it can be hard to focus on both grammar and the art of writing itself, How are you able to juggle the two without one having a detrimental effect on the other?
The main thing is to write your story, book, article freely. You can always correct the grammar later on, or find someone who can. On the other hand, it's hard to imagine a good writer who hasn't mastered the art of grammar by the time he's seriously writing. If you haven't, spend some time doing so. It will be worth the effort. Correct grammar should come naturally to a writer, and require little thought.
One of the greatest obstacles for a writer is the continual generation of ideas, when you run into the wall that is writers block how are you able to re-inspire yourself?
At the risk of sounding arrogant, I've never had that problem. Writing comes from within, just as does any other art form. If you don't have any ideas, you should probably be in some other line of work. Politics, maybe. True, you need some life experience, but that won't make you a writer. For that you need to read and read and read. All sorts of things. And think about how they were written.
Do you feel that your years in science had an effect on your style as a writer?
I hope not. Writing fiction or nonfiction is completely different from writing scientific papers and reports. On the other hand, a life in science probably taught me to be more concise. Most writers are far too wordy.
Often novelists feel what they are writing isn't long enough and as a result there are many novels that end up being longer then they should be. Your works, however, are a very comfortable length to perfectly tell your story, how are you able to avoid creating novels that are overly descriptive?
See previous question, to which I will add: tell the story. If you find yourself describing something, make sure it's really relevant to the story, not just padding. If it's not relevant, cut it.
In the beginning, you works were often rejected by the publishing houses, how were you able to maintain an up-beat attitude and keep hold of the confidence to continue until you were finally printed?
The key word is patience. Rejection is a big part of the process. It's not so much a matter of confidence in your writing that counts, it's confidence that this is what you are--a writer. So you keep writing regardless of the circumstances. When you've finished something, proceed to the next one. If you have any talent, it will eventually be discovered.
When you opt to begin a new story, what process do you go through in order to percolate ideas for setting, characters etc?
In my case, it doesn't happen that way. When I'm writing a book, the ideas for the next one (or two or three) are already percolating. I know generally what the next one is about, and I jot down ideas all the time from relevant observations or thoughts. By the time I get to that next work, the whole thing is already pretty well formed.
Many young authors focus solely on the writing aspect of a story, how important are other aspects such as research?
Of course research is all-important in nonfiction. For fiction, it's of almost no importance at all. If you're writing a novel about the Pope, don't spend 5 years examining every nook in the Vatican. Write the story. If there are details missing when you're finished, fill them in. It's important to make your story seem plausible and real, not accurate. It doesn't have to be a photograph, nor should it be.
You are most well known for the K-PAX trilogy, do you feel this is your best work to date?
I suppose that's not for me to judge, but for the publisher and the readers. However, I confess I'm rather partial to Ben and I. But for a writer, his best work should always be the next one.
In K-PAX, you opted to name the narrator after yourself, why? And has this led to complications that may have caused you to regret such a decision?
I did that to make the book seem more realistic, and I think it did. The only complication is that I get a lot of mail asking whether K-PAX is a true story, where can I find Giselle's book, etc. No regets about this.
In your book; "Creating K-PAX", you often make reference to your phobic tendencies, particularly in the realm of health. Did this have an effect on your choice of setting for K-PAX?
Not at all. When someone claiming to be an alien makes his presence known, he's sure to be locked up in a mental institution. Moreover, this setting allowed me to address all manner of human behavior.
In your book; "Creating K-PAX", you give the advice to avoid cliches. Often in life cliches form because we use them so often that we stop noticing that they are being used. How are you able to filter cliches from your thought process as you write?
It's easier in writing than in speaking, because it's hard to edit speech as you go. Cliches come naturally for both, but they're really cop-outs. A good writer will see that when he writes "...stuck out like a sore thumb," he's actually taking the lazy way out. If you've seen or heard a phrase endless times, edit it out of your first draft. Put in something fresh and original instead.
In your book; "Creating K-PAX", you mentioned that you did not enjoy writing non fiction, but in your news you mention to be in the process of creating such a book, has your perspective on this matter changed? How do you find writing non fiction differs from writing fiction at a creative level?
They're two different things. In fiction, you can write almost anything that comes into your head. For nonfiction, though, you have to know what you're talking about. Consequently, it's much harder to write the latter. I still don't enjoy it as much as writing fiction, but it's something I want to do, so I'll just have to work harder at it.
Is there any additional advice you can pass on to aspiring young writers?
Getting published is a mixture of talent, perseverance, and luck. Mostly luck. Most writers would finish this answer by saying: never give up! But if you're are a true writer, you already know that.
