Broken Frontier

On Thursday September 18th, Broken Frontier was invited to take part in a special conference call with author Brad Meltzer to coincide with the release of his latest novel, The Book of Lies. What follows is a summary of some of the topics discussed by the various bloggers, reporters, and fans in attendance.

Eric Lindberg (of Broken Frontier): How did the idea to link the murder of Mitchell Siegel to the Cain and Abel story and its associated lore come about?

Eleven years ago, Meltzer approached his editor after the release of his first novel. As follow-up, he proposed a modern day thriller tied to the Cain and Abel story, an idea the editor rejected. Years later, Meltzer met Jerry Siegel’s niece at a book signing, who shared with Meltzer the story of the death of Jerry’s father, Mitchell Siegel. Something about these two stories clicked for the author—a tale in which Cain might not be the villain and Superman might not come from strength but from vulnerability. The themes were irresistible.

Jeffrey Weaver (of www.scoffery.com): Do you have a preferred genre between comic and novel writing?

Meltzer likened writing comics about Superman and Batman to contributing a piece to American history. However, for him, writing novels is like building your own house from scratch.

Carrie Runnals (of www.wordstomouth.com): Would you be willing to share a personal experience and how it's changed your perspective and affected your life and possibly your writing?

Meltzer spoke of the recent death of his mother and the impact that has had on both him and his writing. Diagnosed with breast cancer after he began The Book of Lies, Meltzer’s mother died shortly after getting a chance to read the finished product. The loss of a mother and the legacy of parent to child are prominent themes in the novel and it means very much to the author that she got to read this tale.

Kathy Roberts (of www.bermudaonion.wordpress.com): Did it take longer to research or write the book?  How much time was spent on each?

Each book he writes takes a minimum of six months research. Most of the Superman lore was already in his head but the Cain and Abel research was found largely in books from the Middle Ages Meltzer sought out in libraries. The novel took a year and a half to write.

Scotty V (of www.supermanhomepage.com): Beyond simply being a murder thriller that involves the father of Superman's co-creator, why should The Book of Lies be on a Superman fan's reading list?

Although fictionalized, the novel is the closest thing to the real story of Mitchell Siegel’s death and its impact on the creation of Superman that the general public has seen. The loss of Jerry’s father to violent crime is something that has not been widely known or discussed in the past.

Jeff M. (of www.WatchTowerPodcast.com): Can you run us through the events that led to the founding of the Siegel & Shuster Society?

Meltzer visited Siegel’s childhood home in Cleveland expecting something out of Norman Rockwell. Instead, he found the house to be in poor condition, something that seemed inherently wrong to him. He promised the owners that he would help improve the state of the home and get them a plaque from the city commemorating its historical significance. Turning to his rolodex of famous friends, Meltzer was able to raise money to repair the house and contribute to its associated charity fund, Ordinary People Change the World.

Kevin Moore (of the "Brad Meltzer is the Next John Grisham" Facebook group): With your recent focus on Ordinary People Change the World, how will this endeavor inform or influence your future fiction writing?

Meltzer commented that every one of his stories, be they novels or comics, has been about ordinary people changing the world. The biggest challenge his characters face is always themselves. The view of the regular person in extraordinary circumstances is something he has always connected with.

John (of www.superherohype.com): You participated in what can best be described as a "brainstorming session" with members of the FBI and the CIA to dream up new ways terrorists could attack the US. Was this different than any other writing session for you?

Homeland Security contacted Meltzer after his novel, The Millionaires, was found to be owned by a suspect arrested on terrorism charges. Meltzer was soon recruited for a "Red Cell Program" where out-of-the-box thinkers discussed potential terrorist plots and ways that American cities could be threatened. The author found this to be an amazing yet terrifying experience.

Stacy Alesi (of www.bookbitch.com): Since you say this was the book you were "born to write," what do you do next?

Meltzer is very happy to have finally told this story. His wife called its creation inevitable. While not necessarily a better or worse writer than he was when he started, Meltzer believes he is now more intellectually honest about the themes of his work that come from his own life. This honesty of craft will allow him to be free to write almost anything in the future. In fact, he already knows what his next novel will be.

Nicole Bonia (of www.linussblanket.com): How do you feel about the exposure of the fiction writer in his/her work?

Meltzer is accustomed to it, as he always writes to an extent about his own life and experiences. He does not want to be a writer who simply churns out a new novel every year, good or bad. The emotion must be honest and real for him even if the details are fictionalized. He doesn’t always know the ending when he begins writing but needs to have "the address I’m driving to."

Jeff M. (of www.WatchTowerPodcast.com): What comics do you read regularly?

Meltzer is a big fan of Brian K. Vaughan’s work, particularly Ex Machina, his favorite series. He enjoys Y: The Last Man, All-Star Superman, and the work of Geoff Johns and Brian Michael Bendis. He also believes that Scott Pilgrim is the best comic that many people don’t know about.

Eric Lindberg (of Broken Frontier): What was the Siegel family's reaction to this fictionalized theory of Mitchell's death?

Several Siegel family members called Meltzer to thank him for bringing attention to the reality of Jerry and Mitchell’s life. While half the family maintains that Mitchell was murdered and the other half holds that he died of a heart attack, both agree that Mitchell died as a result of a crime. This is not something that has been greatly discussed when writers have analyzed Superman’s origin or Jerry’s life.

Scotty V (of www.supermanhomepage.com): According to the Siegel family and other sources, Mitchell died from heart failure during the robbery. Why did you choose to represent the circumstances of Mitchell's murder as you did?

As stated above, the exact circumstances of Mitchell’s death are not as important as their context and the impact they had on his son. Meltzer acknowledged that his account takes liberties and is a work of fiction. However, he believes that what happened to Mitchell had a profound impact on Jerry’s work with Superman, stressing the themes of a bulletproof man, early drafts of the story that involve a robbery, and a later Siegel story in which Superman travels back in time to Krypton and is given a chance to save his father, Jor-El. These latent father issues and powerful themes were what Meltzer wanted to explore in his novel, regardless of the details of Mitchell’s death. Whether the details are real, Meltzer sought an emotional truth that anyone can identify with in The Book of Lies.

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The Book of Lies was released Sept. 2, 2008 from Grand Central Publishing. Broken Frontier’s review of the novel can be found here.

An audio recording of the conversation is available here.