Interview

In a conversation with author Dean Koontz, Michael Koryta discusses among other things, the authors he admires the most and his thoughts about screenplay writing.

Dean: Your new novel, The Prophet, is a crime novel, a suspense novel, but also a good novel about brothers and family relationships. I know you a little, and I'm 99 percent sure that you weren't cloned, that you have a family, but I don't know about siblings. You write so well about brotherly relationships that I wonder —do you have any? And football — playing it, coaching it — serves both as a background and as a solid metaphor for the value of traditions. Did you play football in school? Have you coached any?

Michael: I was a natural athlete. Played every sport, and the responses from my coaches were unanimous and emphatic. Whether it was a basketball or football or baseball bat or golf club in my hands, they'd say, "Son, I think you should be a writer." It's good to have consensus. So, no, never played football beyond pickup games — I bruise too easily and lack fundamental coordination — but I was hopefully able to bring some authenticity to the book due to the tremendous level of help and access I received from Scott Bless, Tyler Abel, and the rest of the Bloomington High School North coaching staff. I spent a full year with them in coaching meetings, practice fields, and ...