Interviews
Explorations Interview with R. A. Salvatore
Paul Goat Allen: Bob, correct me if I'm wrong but it seems to me that there's a huge resurgence of interest in Forgotten Realms. Wizards of the Coast is reissuing all your Drizzt Do'Urden novels in hardcover editions. Your last Forgotten Realms novel (The Two Swords) debuted at the top of every national bestseller list when it was released last year. Is it simply another generation of fantasy fans discovering Forgotten Realms, or is there something more to it? More people turning to adventure fantasy as a little escapism from cold harsh reality?
R. A. Salvatore: I don't know the numbers, other than my own products, but I believe that you're right. I'm not sure if there's a huge resurgence of interest, or if it just keeps plugging along. And after all these years…. Ed Greenwood must be very proud of his baby. I think the reason that Forgotten Realms is doing well right now is that it remains classic adventure fantasy. Our genre has expanded in wonderful ways over the last few years, with so many new dimensions, new voices, and new perspectives. But Forgotten Realms remains faithful to that core understanding of fantasy: with elves and dragons, orcs and demons, and magic aplenty. It's a great place to “play,” so to speak. It has grown richer over the years, as so many creative people have added their special touch; but through it all, the world remains true to the basic tenets of fantasy literature. And yes, escapism is the key word regarding fantasy, for me anyway. I know that some people like their speculative fiction rooted in gritty reality. Sure, I like a little of that; but more than anything else, when I'm reading or writing fantasy, I want to be able to forget CNN, or a bad day at work, or whatever else is stressing me out at the moment. I want to go away to another world, where magic rules and dragons terrorize -- and where, no matter how strong the bad guys are, I can make a positive difference. That's what entertains me.
PGA: Promise of the Witch-King seems to be one of your “tightest” works to date. Like a fighter at the peak of conditioning, there's no fat anywhere. Does constructing stories come easier now after penning so many?
RAS: Easier and more difficult all at once. Mechanically, I hope that I'm a much better writer now. But there was an innocence and an energy to the early works that -- I think -- more than made up for any structural problems. Also, it's easier to “grow” characters at the beginning than it is after 18-20 books; but still, they're always surprising me. I'm glad to hear your opinion on this one. I wanted Witch-King to be very tight and focused because it had an important job to do: moving forward the relationship between Artemis Entreri and Jarlaxle. These two guys play off each other so well that I don't have to surround them with massive and overwhelming storylines. But at the same time, Witch-King would only work if I introduced several new and interesting characters, and each with a purpose. And of course, with these two protagonists, the supporting cast always seems to be wearing red shirts. Don't get too attached to anyone.
PGA: How does Promise of the Witch-King differ from your previous works? After the dramatic success of recent works, is there more pressure for this one?
RAS: Strangely enough, I'm feeling no pressure at all. Maybe this goes back to the earlier question regarding perception. From the beginning, I've maintained that writing is the art of doing something the way you want it done. Then you cross your fingers and hope enough people like the way you did it so that you get to do it again. I'm on a journey with some friends in a wonderful and magical land. They're telling me their stories and I'm writing them down. I'm thrilled that other people want to share in this adventure, but that's not why I write. This book is a little different, but it wasn't a conscious decision. Or maybe it was. When I turned it in, my editor called and said, “Wow, this is a dungeon crawl. We publish Dungeons and Dragons, but I don't think we've really done any dungeon crawls.” By that he means that the conflict of the story essentially takes place in a single setting -- in this case, a magically constructed castle. I don't know that I can do that with many characters, but with Entreri and Jarlaxle, the interplay between them makes even a small room seem like a grand stage.
PGA: Has anyone ever commented about the uncanny physical similarity between Todd Lockwood's portrayal of Artemis Entreri on the cover of Promise of the Witch-King and, well, you?
RAS: Not until this moment! I'll have to go take another look at that cover. When The Woods Out Back, the first book of my Spearwielder's Tales, came out way back in the early '90s, I was surprised (and so were my friends!) to see that I was on the cover of a book. The character looked quite a bit like me. Since that series was very much autobiographical (except that I was kidnapped by a hobbit named Bilbo, not a leprechaun named Mickey), I just figured that I must have described Gary Leger, the main character, quite well. I'm a little scared, though, if people start seeing me as Artemis Entreri! Egads!
PGA: Of all the characters you've created, which one is closest to the real Bob Salvatore, and why?
RAS: All of them and none of them all at once. Well, the aforementioned Gary Leger, for obvious reasons, bears a resemblance to who I was in an earlier phase of my life. But all of my characters are bits and pieces of who I am and what I know and what I believe. They are also other people I've known, or read about, or seen in movies. It's like I take a thousand different people and cut them up into tiny pieces, then put them in a blender and spit out new and interesting (I hope) combinations. That said, I've always maintained that Drizzt Do'Urden was who I wish I had the courage to be. His journal entries really touch home with me.
PGA: What's on the agenda now?
RAS: I'm working on the sequel right now; I've taken Entreri and Jarlaxle this far and I need to see how their relationship winds up. Are they going to hug like brothers or kill each other? The fun part is that after all these books, I still don't know. I can announce now that I've signed on to do five more Forgotten Realms books with Wizards of the Coast. I love Ed's world so much -- I can't imagine not writing here. Also, I'm getting a lot of pressure from many people, including my wife, to follow up The Highwayman. I wrote that as a stand-alone novel, and it certainly is; but many people have expressed an interest in seeing more with those characters. Certainly I intend to go back to DemonWars at some point in the future. It's all good. It's all fun. If this fantastical ride I've been on ended tomorrow, I'd walk away with no regrets. I know how lucky I've been, and am truly grateful. I still believe that for every working author there are a hundred more who are just as good but, for one reason or another, just don't break through. Because of the books, I have friends all over the world now. I see familiar faces at conventions and at book signings. I get e-mails from soldiers in Baghdad and Afghanistan, from grandmothers in California, and from high school students in New Jersey and London. As long as it's fun, I'll keep doing it, and I honestly cannot imagine this being anything but fun.
