Interview with Ryan Schuette

1-When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? The creative writing bug bit me when I was 13. Fascinated by Star Wars, I wrote a short story about X-Wing starfighter pilots attacking a new imperial battle station. I can still remember the feel of the notebook, the satisfying intercom dialogue between harried pilots, and my frustration with the so-so quality of my descriptions. So I knew I’d be a writer when I heard my inner critic’s voice. Ha!

2-How do you schedule your life when you’re writing? Good question, and very timely. Writing a 900-page fantasy epic like A Seat for the Rabble took time — a lot of it. It was for this reason that I actually took off from employment after graduate school, to devote myself fully to writing. I knew that I eventually wanted kids and had to return to work to save for retirement (and pay off student debt), and that I couldn’t hash out this novel while on someone else’s clock. When I eventually did return to work, as an editor in Washington, D.C., I had difficulty budgeting time to write creatively at all, largely due to the fact that our nation’s capital is a city of workaholics and a daily commute on the metro ate up my schedule. That was a problem, since A Seat for the Rabble was, at that time, a second draft that needed ironing out. It wasn’t until I landed a new, remote-based job that I was able to ditch the commute and reorient my schedule around creative writing. To make time for my passion, I’ve also learned that it’s helpful to schedule recurring calls with friends — something they also appreciate. 

3-What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? I leave nothing to chance when it comes to computers. I save multiple versions of my work in multiple places — offline, online, and in the cloud. I owe this to the trauma of losing work on a Dell computer in the ’90s. 

4-How did you get your book published? I’m self-publishing it through my own company, Bedivere Press. And although that’s the case, I’ve had to invest about $15,000 to $20,000 into publishing this professionally. That includes hiring a professional editor for the first two drafts, commissioning a well-known fantasy illustrator for two glorious book jackets, contracting with a design firm to format the interiors for A Seat for the Rabble and An End to Kings, and more. 

5-Where did you get your information or idea for your book? I wanted to write a novel about the perils of violent revolutions. Fortunately, I had no shortage of interesting events and people for inspiration — namely, the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381, in England; Oliver Cromwell and the English Civil Wars; the French Revolution; and the Arab Spring. Even the January 6 insurrection provided parallels for this work. I simply wanted to tell the story of revolutions that succeed, and then fall apart, as they so often do, and explore the silver linings of political ambition gone awry. 

6-What do you like to do when you’re not writing? I love to be near the sunlight and listen to soothing, compelling music, such as songs by Loreena McKennitt and film and series soundtracks. Definitely puts me in the mood to write fantasy!

7-What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating your book? There are two types of writers — architects and gardeners. I was surprised to learn that I’m the former. I wrote the first draft of A Seat for the Rabble from a theological seminary’s dorm room in a mad dash of passion, and grew frustrated as the weeds of my storytelling thickened uncontrollably, leading characters here and there, and just making a mess in my Word document. I reached page 550 or so (single-space, 16 font) when I gave up and hired a developmental editor, who essentially told me to start from scratch. Which is what I did, after I developed a stronger plot outline. It ultimately took three drafts (two of them 800 pages) before A Seat for the Rabble came to fruition. 

8-Is there anything you would like to confess about as an author? Yes — I haven’t yet read the Harry Potter series. I know, I know! How could I not, especially as a fantasy writer? I love the movies and leafed through the larger novels when they came out, but the first few works — written for a younger audience — turned me off as a young adult. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (or Philosopher’s Stone, rather) is on my reading list this year. 

9-As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up? I wanted to be a Russian scientist. I have no idea what inspired me to want to be Russian.

10-How do you process and deal with a negative book review? As writers, we tend to conjure up all manner of projections to avoid feeling our feelings about disappointment. I try to acknowledge those feelings, rather than suppress them, and learn what I can from a negative review. If I can, I’ll get in touch with the reviewer and ask them why some passage, character, or plot element didn’t click with them, and why. We’re here to learn from each other, sharpen ourselves, and improve, and disappointment’s a good teacher in that light.