May 2004
Adrienne Martini
features
An Interview with Steven Brust
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Which isn’t to say that his characters don’t pull their weight as well. The best known may be Vlad the Assassin, whose introduction in Jhereg has led to a series of stories -- nine so far with each more nuanced and resonant than the last. But there are others, like The Phoenix Guards's Paarfi or Cowboy Feng’s Space Bar and Grille’s Billy or To Reign in Hell’s Lucifer. These are the sorts of creations that stick with you, long after the book is back on the shelf.
While some are drawn in by Brust’s laser-like attention to detail–and, indeed, have constructed online ledgers to accounting for the same -- most are sucked in by the story, by the skill with which Brust makes you care and keeps you entertained. April will see the release of Sethra Lavode, the third (and last) installment in the The Viscount of Adrilankha story. For some, the mere whisper of the word “three-volume story” calls to mind bloated explorations of no more than the writer’s ego. But the Viscount books are lean without being sparse (despite the narrator’s leanings toward hyperbole) and amusing without being puffy or twee. In short, they are just good yarns.
“I’ve wanted to make other people feel like I felt when I read Lord of Light,” Brust says. “Have I accomplished that? God, no.” His readers may disagree with that assessment, of course.
Brust, who now lives in Las Vegas, took a quick break from writing the next Vlad tale so that we could chat about his work, his life and his poker by phone, which he answered with a hoarse, “I’m your huckleberry.”
So why work in Vegas?
I needed to get away from home -- home is Minnesota -- and my social life was getting to the point where it was actually interfering with work. I was just spending too much time being social with other people. In Vegas, not only don’t I know anyone but there’s nothing to do here -- nothing that interests me, with the exception of the occasional poker game. It’s a really good place for me to work if I can deal with all of the financial issues. I would like to move back to Minnesota at some point. But that was the main reason.
I mentioned the move to a friend of mine and he said, “OK, let me get this straight -- you moved to Las Vegas to get away from temptation?” It’s true, though. All of those things that I like to do pretty much don’t exist here.
I like Vegas. It’s actually a much nicer place to live than you’d imagine. You get away from the Strip -- I’m only like 2 and a half miles from the Strip -- and it’s a southwestern town. I live in a neighborhood surrounded by Mormons. They’re very quiet. And they like me because I’m quiet. I got a couple of remarks about the Darwin sticker on my car but no one took offense. They’re very pleasant people.
What do you like to do?
I like to sit around cool places and talk to readers. There are very few readers here. I have had the fortune to discover a few here and that takes up some time.
Has talking to people ever changed your approach to the book you’re working on?
I hope not. On the Dragera list, somebody, unfortunately, just came up with an idea that was exactly what I had already planned -- and that has made me seriously consider changing it. But I don’t know if I will or not.
What are you working on now?
Another Vlad novel. The plan originally was 19 of them or until I get tired of them or until I die. And so far that is the plan. I haven’t gotten tired of him yet. I still like hanging out with Vlad, checking in with him to see what he’s up to. He keeps me entertained. I’ve always wondered and still wonder -- or always since I realized I was writing a series, anyway -- I’ve wondered what I would do if I got tired of him and they waved some money at me. I still don’t know what I would do. I would happily live the rest of my life never knowing what I would do.
As the series has progressed, Vlad has gotten more complex…
…otherwise he’d get really boring. I don’t want to read the same story over and over.
Do you think that reflects your growing up as well?
I would image. You get older and your interests change. One hopes they deepen. And you’ll drag some people along with you as you go through that and lose others -- but it strikes me as a pretty bad thing to worry about that.
How old are your kids now?
I think it’s 19, 21, 21 and 28.
Did you ever see yourself having a 28 year old?
No -- and I still don’t. I’m only 30... in hex.
What do they think about what you do?
I still remember one occasion when -- I’m exaggerating the story a little -- when my band Cats Laughing was in an Xcalibur comic book and a certain of my children thought that was far more exciting than the fact that I had written some books. They do seem to be proud of me as a writer, which I like, because they sure as hell have no reason to be proud of me as a father. So at least they get something out of the deal.
What’s the one question that everyone always asks you?
"Where do you get your ideas?" is a popular one. I also get a lot of "when is the next book coming out?", which seems fair.
Has the publishing world been everything you’d thought it would be?
I was fortunate enough not to enter with any particular conceptions one way or another.
Was the Viscount series always envisioned as three volumes?
It wasn’t envisioned at first. The Phoenix Guards was a book I wrote with no expectation of publishing it. I wrote it purely because I wanted to read it.
What did folks at Tor say when you said you wanted to publish a three-volume work?
They said “OK” They’ve always been pretty much “OK.”
Complete fannish question next: what is on your desk?
Other than the computer? It’s a PC -- it’s very cute and has a particularly attractive blue light. Above that I’ve got a hologram -- it’s a telescope and you look through it and see a planet that looks like Saturn and a spaceship. It’s very happening. I’ve got a picture of Roger Zelazny. A quote from a poem by Jane Yolen: It is all true,/ it is not true. /The more I tell you,/ The more I shall lie. /What is story/ But jesting Pilot’s cry?/ I am not paid to tell you the truth. And a quote from Alexander Dumas: "Prefer rogues to idiots, they sometimes take a rest." I’ve got a painting by my friend Kathy Marshall of Vlad with Loiosh at Castle Black. Let’s see... I’ve got the usual collection of writerly type books that I keep at hand. I’ve got the OED behind me. It’s the whole lower shelf of the bookcase behind me. It’s the 1974 edition, not the two-volume thing but the multi-volume thing. Sometimes, I pick it up and cuddle it. A picture of my sister and my kids. A disorganized massive pile of DVDs, that I put in for background because I can’t stand background music but I like to have voices.
Which are best for writing?
Just about anything with horses in it. War movies are good. Midway, Kelly’s Heroes. Pirates of the Carribean turned out to be pretty good to write to. And Casablanca. You stop in the middle when one of the lines comes up, then you go back to work. I’ve got a nice piece of artwork by Terri Windling. It’s a nude -- but very graceful, not particularly erotic but very, very attractive. Next to that is a bulletin board on which I try to control the universe.
Your characters’ universe or your personal universe?
My universe. I’m trying to hire a personal assistant, which would be easier if I could afford to pay. Minimum wage doesn’t seem to grab too many.
What’s the question that you wished you got asked?
I wish people would ask if I was a good poker player.
Are you?
No. I’m terrible. Absolutely terrible. Come on over. We’ll get a game going.
