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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Now you can read the answers Grey Griffins fans most want to know.
Just click here.
. . . OR ASK YOUR OWN QUESTION
Email: J.S. Lewis | Derek Benz
MySpace: Grey Griffins | J.S. Lewis
Snail Mail: P.O. Box 2431, Chandler, AZ 85244
* And remember, if your question isn't picked this month, keep trying!
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JANUARY 2008
ROUND TABLE AND MORE BOOKS
Q: Can you tell me when the card game is coming out, when the third book is coming out, and if there is going to be more books? (Justin)
1) CARD GAME: Soon. We're working on the development right now, and the art is AMAZING!!!
2) THIRD BOOK: The good news is that it is out in stores across the country!
3) MORE BOOKS AFTER BOOK 3: Absolutely. In fact, we've posted a rough draft of the first chapter for Grey Griffins Book 4: The Immortals, online. Just click here to take a sneak peak.
GREY GRIFFINS VIDEO GAME
Q: I was wondering if you are going to make a video game based on the Grey Griffins series? (Evan)
Right now, we're holding off on the video game for a little while. There's a lot going on right now. In fact, we have our trading card game coming out this year. It will be called Round Table - just like the game the Grey Griffins play in the books!
BOOK 4: THE IMMORTALS & THE MEANING OF "SOON"
Q: I can't wait 'til your fourth book, The Immortals, comes out. The website says its coming soon, and I was wondering if it really means soon, or just that its coming out anytime this year. (Kelton)
We don't have the production schedule nailed down yet, but we're going to work hard to write it faster than we've ever written before. If we're lucky, we could hit the fall of 2008, but realistically we're looking at January 2009. However, we've posted a rough draft of the first chapter here. Hope you like it!
DELVING INTO RAY'S DARK SIDE
Q: I think it might be interesting if you told your readers more about what Ray and Max were like as freinds, I for one would love to know more about their past. (Aura)
Jon: Wow, that was a really interesting thought. It's sad to see what petty jealousy can do, and it doesn't seem to matter what age you are. Isn't it curious how money and material gain seems to consume people? It's like Gollum chasing his "Precious" -- and in the end it kills you (or at least robs you of true happiness). Ray had a good life and gave it all up because he was jealous of Max -- his money and popularity. The funny thing is that Max doesn't really care about any of that stuff. in fact, he just wants to be normal. I think you bring up a good point, and one we'll have to ponder for future books. But you're on the right track -- we've been talking about expanding Ray's role (and digging deaper into his relationship with Max) starting possibly in Book 4, but in a very big way in Books 5 and 6.
BECOMING A WRITER vs. CHEWING SANDPAPER
Q: I really want to learn how to write, but I'm not sure I would be able to. I wrote a book once but I think I would rather chew on sandpaper than to read it. (Morgan)
Don't give up. First drafts are supposed to stink! We took three years to write and then re-write our first book. And we've been told that Rick Riordan's Lightning Thief took 14 drafts. Just find a subject you have a real passion for, and then write a little bit every day. Before you know it, you'll have a whole book. Then, once you're done, go back and edit. But don't worry about writing the perfect draft -- short of divine inspiration, it doesn't exist! We're all on a journey to get better.
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
Q: When did you write your first book? What was it about? (Nicole)
Derek: We wrote our first book when we were 15, but it grew so big that we never finished it! One of these days, if we have time, we'll go back and finish it up. But it might be a while.
THE EYE OF ODIN
Q: Can you tell me what do you think would happen if someone had the Eye of Odin and touches the ground what would happen to the earth? (Chase)
Derek: That's an interesting thought. The Eye will seek to pull magic from whatever you touch. But the amount of power you can absorb is directly related to your will power. A very powerful person, like Vlad, could probably absorb more than Max's Dad. But Lord Sumner could absorb more than most people. So, let's say you had the Eye... No matter what you touched, you would be limited by your will power. Let's just hope the Eye never falls into Oberon's hands...
INSPIRING CHARACTERS
Q: I was just curious if any of the characters in the (Grey Griffins) books are people you have known? I mean say for example you knew a person named Max, and he was like the Max in the book... (Lana)
Derek: A lot of the characters are definitely based on people we know. Jon (JS) and I had a secret club very much like the Grey Griffins... And yes, some of the characters are real! One secret that few people know: there really is/was an Iver.
THE ROUND TABLE TCG
Q: Are we going to be able to play Round Table just like the Grey Griffins do in the book, or will it be different? (Justin)
The card game will be VERY much like how it is played in the book. Very few differences at all. But keep in mind, Round Table, as the Griffins play it, is not the standard. They play a special - older - version. You'll find that out in future novels. The game that is coming out in stores matches the official tournament style of play!
THE TREES OF AVALON
Q: I absolutly love the Grey Griffins books...im already on number 3...but anywho..i hav a question..i was in my school library and noticed a book called the tree of avalon..if u dont know or heard of it..read it..or read the back and u will get my question.... did u base ur books off of that one..??? or were u writing before this book? (Haley)
Jon: I just looked up Tree of Avalon on amazon.com, and I unfortunately have to report that neither of us has read the book. The version of the World Tree in Grey Griffins Book 3: The Fall of the Templar actually stems from Norse Mythology. It's name is Yggdrasil, and if you'd like, you can read a bit about it on Wikipedia by clicking here.
SLASHING THE "O"
Q: What is the font on the covers of your books? And on the name Soren, how did you get the slash through the word? (Matt)
The font is called Skreech, though it's been manipulated a bit in Photoshop in the final masthead on the book covers. As to the "O" with the slash, it's an actual Scandinavian character that should be available on all computers. Just look through Microsoft Word 'help' for "special characters" or character sets and you'll find it. If not, go ahead and copy and paste this one into your documents: Søren.
BOOK 5
Q: Is there going to be a Book 5? (Tammy)
We have planned a 13 book Grey Griffins series. Our first step was to make a rough outline of the entire story arc for all 13 books, and then we break it up into three book story arcs that we develop in greater detail. The reason we do that is because though we know where the story is ultimately heading, sometimes the characters take a life of their own and dictate that we stray from our original thoughts and head a different direction for a bit. We try to stay focused on the end goal (the crescendo at the end of Book 13), but we need to leave room for changes here and there. So now that we have completed Books 1-3, we have written detailed outlines to Books 4-6, and we?ve even started writing Book 4.
So in short, yes, there is a Book 5, and it's working title is The Gathering. Book 6 is currently titled The Changelings. But you never know, both could change before they go to print!
WRITING YA FICTION
Q: I was wondering if you could give me any tips or stop signs for writing a young adult fiction...I don't want to go to deep and risk it becoming an adult's fiction and yet at the same time I want it to be a mature good read. Also I am editing way too much, I mean this book is my baby but...? (Bubba)
Jon: Let's start with the editing part. Stop editing! At Arizona State University, I had a fantastic professor named Mark Harris who wrote a novel and the screenplay for Bang the Drum Slowly. It can kill the creative process. Another fantastic author, Robin Brande, once told me that she was taught that writing fast is the best way to write. What that means is that you need to just get your thoughts out there and let them fly. Then, once you're done, go back and start editing. The only exception you might consider is stopping every once in a while to ensure that you are hitting your main story points, and that there is a general cohesion to your manuscript. Besides, the truth is that you'll never be fully satisfied with your story. You can make a career out of editing one book. Look at George Lucas and Star Wars -- he can't leave those original three movies enough alone (and I loved them the way they were!).
As to the adult/kid balance of your story, I truly don't know if there is a formula for it. Both Disney and Pixar seem to know the secret, but it's beyond me -- and I'm not too sure that they don't accident upon the formula. However, the old addage that you can't serve two masters probably rings true here. You need to decide who your core audience is and write your story for them in a manner they'll be engaged by and understand. If you choose that you're going to write for a younger audience, that doesn't mean the story has to be simple, but you don't want to be too obscure or obtuse as to alienate the core group.
You might want to consider this -- it's easy for adults to harken back to their childhood for nostalgia's sake, but a younger audience doesn't always have enough life experience to understand more mature concepts.
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