By: Yohana de la Torre

 

Robert Macomber has always loved two things: sailing and writing. The son of a sailor, he inherited that urge to navigate the open seas and learned sailing at a very early age from his father. He uses his sea experience for his books and his tales about ships, sailors, and the sea couldn’t be more fascinating and true. When not aboard his delight, Macomber lives in a little bungalow in Matlacha Island, along the same lower Gulf Coast of Florida where he grew up. So, we were able to catch up with the author and hear what he had in store for his fans.

 
Q: Is your talent as a writer innate, or did you “grow into it”?

A: “I think a lot is innate since I have always been an avid reader and storyteller.”

Q: Do you recall a distinct “turning point” when you felt your writing style changed or improved while you were growing up?

A: “I think we all change in our writing styles, and hopefully improve. Experience produces confidence and enthusiasm. I feel that I have improved as the years have gone by. One specific way is that I feel more free now to try new methods, storylines, etc.”

Q: Your novels deal with what type of themes or subjects?

A: “I write Maritime/political historical novels. I tell the story of events in history through the eyes of my main character, Peter Wake, a naval officer in the US Navy from 1863 until 1908.”

Q: Why the interest in the water and those adventures?

A: “I grew up on this coast as a sailor and I loved books— it was a natural progression for me.”

Q: Can you tell us a little about A Different Kind of Honor.

A: “In 1879 - 1881, Peter Wake is sent to South America to be an official observer in the War of the Pacific, a conflict that changed the political and social history of that continent. He is also keeping an eye on the French in Panama, as they tried to build a canal. At the same time, political tensions rise back in Washington (we had three presidents within seven months) and Wake’s family undergoes a tragedy. Down in Peru, he makes a decision that puts his life and his career in great peril. It’s a political, naval, and social look at the times.

“The book has received some very nice critical acclaim, and just won the highest national literary award in the genre— the American Library Association’s 2008 Boyd Award for Literary Excellence in Military Fiction.”

Q: Fiction has been written for centuries, but some stories take off and develop a multitude of fans while others languish. How does a writer draw people into a work of fiction?

A: “By knowing his subject matter very well and giving the reader characters they can understand.”
Q: Do you need a specific setting to create a novel?

A: “I write my novels out on location (at sea and on land) and also at my bungalow at Matlacha Island. I travel the world on lecture tour and also on research treks to visit the places I write about.

Q: How long does it take you to write one?

A: “Usually, [it takes] a couple of years to research it and one year to write it. I have a novel a year released to the public.”

Q: Do you have a favorite author?

A: “Historical novelists: C.S. Forester and George MacDonald Fraser. Modern novelist: Randy Wayne White and Dan Brown.”

Q: Have you learned anything from their style?

A: “Yes— pacing, humor, formatting, and character development.”

Q:What’s more important good writing or storyline?

A: “[Good writing] is crucial [and storyline] is the frame upon which the writing rests.”

Q: What’s the latest book you’ve read? And what do you think about it?

A: “I read four or five books at any one time for research. I just finished Black Majesty, written by John Vandercock in 1928. It was very well done. It’s about Henri Christophe of Haiti.

Q: What else do you like to do aside from writing?

A: “Good music, good food, sailing, and traveling the world. My favorite: sitting on a beach under a coconut palm sipping some decent rum (Matusalem), listening to Buffet (the early years), and reading a good book (White’s latest)...”

Q: I understand that you are gearing up for a signing at the museum, can you tell us a little bit about it? What can we expect from you next ?

A: “I’m going to share a light-hearted look at some unique experiences I’ve had while roaming the world, lecturing and researching— an African test of manhood, getting arrested for weapons smuggling in Singapore, exploring the Tombs of the Dead in Peru, confronting pirates off Colombia...and the life lessons I learned along the way!”

Q: Do you already have another novel on the cutting board?

A: “At any one time, I’m working on several [novels] at once. The novel for 2009, The Honored Dead, will come out this next March. It is set in French Indo-China in 1883. Right now, it’s in final edits and graphics production up at the publisher. The 2010 novel’s manuscript has just been finished. It is set in Havana, New York, Washington, Key West, Southwest Florida and Tampa in 1886. I am currently researching and about to start writing the novel for 2011, which is set in 1888. For its research, I’ll be spending time in Key West, Nassau, Inagua Island, and Haiti, later this year.”

- To find out more about Robert Macomber visit www.robertmacomber.com!