Rueben's Ramblings

Charlene Keel

Here is Part 2 of my Q&A with “Dark Territory” Authors J. Gabriel Gates and Charlene Keel:

Question: Do you have a favorite character?

Gates: I have a lot of love for every character I write. They all have their admirable qualities. I love Raphael for his heart and his determination, Zhai for his patience and his discipline, Aimee for her headstrong desire for freedom, Master Chin for the love he bears his students, Ignacio for his loyalty and his sense of humor, Dalton for her strength. That’s one great thing about this series; you really have a broad family of characters with whom you want to spend time.

Keel: I’m partial to the misfits and miscreants—the anti-hero heroes like Maggie, the popular cheerleader and resident bitch who’s dating Rick, the local football star, but she wants Raphael and would love to see him and Aimee break up. We get under her skin and explore the reasons for her behavior (like having to parent an agoraphobic mother for most of her life)…I also like Maggie’s mom, Violet, who’s not as crazy as one would first think, and Ignacio (Nass) is fun and full of surprises.

Question: Is there room for a sequel?

Gates: Absolutely! The Tracks Book 2 is called “Ghost Crown”. We’re putting the final touches on it now, and it comes out in January (of 2012). Char and I both think it’s even better than “Dark Territory”, so we’re excited for it to get out into the world.

Keel: The Tracks has always been envisioned as a series, both by myself and Jacob, and by HCI Books. With rave reviews coming in on almost a daily basis, we are more eager than ever to keep going with the series. (I should also mention that it took) about the same amount of time to write “Ghost Crown” (as it did “Dark Territory”).

Ghost Crown

Question: Can you share a little about “Ghost Crown”?

Keel: We introduce a new character, with whom I’m totally in love. Orias is the son of a fallen angel and a human woman. He goes to Middleburg with a plan to take Aimee away from Raphael for his own devious purposes. He is the ultimate bad boy, doomed to a living hell through no fault of his own—and he’s so supernaturally gorgeous it melts your heart just to look at him. That’s a pretty hot combination. As for Maggie, her character has the greatest developmental arc, going from resident bitch in (book one) to spiritual warrior in the second book.

Question: If a movie were adapted from the book, which actors/actresses would you like to see play the primary characters?

Gates: The characters in my books are such individuals in my mind that it’s difficult for me to imagine them in any other way. But I will say this: whoever plays Raphael and Zhai had better be genuinely good at Kung Fu, so you Hollywood teen actors had better get down to the nearest Kwoon and start practicing now!

Keel: For the younger characters, I’ve already consulted with my very own minion of teen readers (my granddaughter Allie and her friends) and they think Emma Roberts (Nancy Drew) should play Aimee and Dakota Fanning (The Twilight Saga) should be Maggie. Thomas McDonnell (Prom) or Avan Jogia (Victorious) – both who have been compared to Johnny Depp – should play Raphael, and Channing Tatum (Dear John) should be Rick. I’d love to see sexy John Barrowman (Torchwood) as Oberon and either Gary Cole (Office Space) or Joel Gretsch (The 4400), both of them intense and compelling actors, as nasty Jack (Aimee’s father), and multi-talented Philece Sampler (Another World) as Violet, Maggie’s agoraphobic mom. Blair Redford (Switched at Birth and The Lying Game) should play Orias.

Question: Do you have a favorite story arc or favorite character?

Gates: There are lots of pieces of the story that I love, but I find Raphael’s back story particularly haunting. I’m a big fan of Dostoevsky; he was such a master of creating these terribly heartbreaking situations for his characters to rise above, and that’s what I think of when I think of Raphael’s life: he can either take his circumstances as an excuse to be a troublemaker, or he can buckle down and be a force for good. I think that’s a relatable situation for a lot of teens.

Keel: One of my favorite story arcs is the mystery of what Violet has locked down in her basement. How did it get there? What’s going to happen to Middleburg if it gets out? This thread runs through several books and is key to the mystery of Middleburg.

Question: Were any of the characters modeled after either of you or anyone you know?

Gates: Nope. They are all real individuals – they just happen to live in my (and Charlene’s) mind!

Keel: Probably. Specifically (and on purpose), Lily Rose, the housekeeper for a few of the wealthy Topper families. She is a magical creature and is modeled after the wonderful African American woman who took care of me for the first 12 years of my life. Her name was Lugene Lewis, and any goodness and compassion in me she, along with my Aunt Daisy, is responsible for. I’m a great fan of Stephen King and in some of his books (like “The Shining” and my favorite, The Talisman, which he wrote with Peter Straub); old black guys with humble occupations have magical qualities. So I guess that’s a nod to Stephen King. And Dalton is a compilation of a couple of my friends.

Question: Are there any story arcs that you ended up not using in the book?

Gates: There’s a moment near the beginning when Raphael considers stealing a video camera. In an earlier draft, I wrote that he actually took it. It was the first big battle of our collaboration. I saw that act of theft as a mistake Raphael would have to rise above and learn from, but Char adamantly opposed it as a “non-heroic” action. Ultimately, I think it was a good cut. It would have been a violation of Raphael’s Wu-de (martial arts code of conduct) and anyway, it wasn’t necessary to the main story. Charlene was right.

Keel: Some will carry over to other books, like Violet’s “deal with the devil” and how she got to be agoraphobic. (And, of course), our creative conflict (over) whether or not to let Raphael steal (the camera). I just couldn’t believe that the character we created would go so totally against his philosophical beliefs. That’s why it’s so important for a writer to get to know his/her characters, to get inside their heads and live, eat, sleep, breathe, play, work and walk with them every day. When I’m writing, I even dream about my characters and become submerged in their world.

Question: Do you have any advice for new writers?

Gates: Write daily, read daily! Don’t start by writing a novel – start with short stories and make sure they have all the necessary dramatic elements: a beginning, a middle, an ending, rising action, conflict, character development, etc. Hone your craft on short projects then move to longer ones. Above all, be patient. There are no shortcuts. Getting good takes years, and once you’re good, getting published takes even longer. Ultimately, writing has to be a lifestyle. And what a wonderful lifestyle it can be!

Keel: Yes—write, write, write. Also read, read, read. When I’m asked for advice by aspiring writers who tell me they don’t have time to read, or that they don’t want any outside influences sneaking into their work, I wish them well and suggest they at least read Stephen King’s “On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft“. You can’t write good fiction unless you read good fiction (and even bad fiction, since it shows you what not to do). Writing is a process and it’s long, tedious and usually lonely, so be willing to listen to successful writers and don’t think that (as one novice writer told me), “It’s perfect the way I first spew it out. I don’t believe in re-writing.”

If you would like to learn more about J. Gabriel Gates, please visit his website here.  And, if you would like to learn more about Charlene Keel, you may visit her website here. They would love to hear from readers about The Tracks series.

Again, the first book in The Tracks series – “Dark Territory” is now on bookshelves and the second book – “Ghost Crown” – will be released in January of next year. You can also visit HCI Books here for downloads of posters, wallpaper, ringtones or information on the book series.

Get out there and buy a copy of “Dark Territory” for yourself (and for your friends and family too) and mark your calendars for the release of its sequel “Ghost Crown” in the new year!

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Since the novels of Harry Potter and the Twilight franchise have made young adult fiction the hot “it” brand in the world of the written word, countless books centered on teens and young adults have been published or, in some cases, been rediscovered by readers of every age.

J. Gabriel Gates

One such new series of novels that readers should be on the look-out for is The Tracks series of books by J. Gabriel Gates and Charlene Keel, the co-authors of the recently released book entitled “Dark Territory,” published by the Teen division of HCI Books – best known for the life-changing “Chicken Soup for the Soul” series of novels. “Dark Territory” was released nationwide on July 1 of this year.

“Dark Territory” has been described as ‘West Side Story meets Twilight’ and author Gates has been hailed as the ‘best new supernatural fiction writer on Earth’. It has also been said that his latest book ‘combines the perfect blend of star-crossed love, kung fu and magic in a story that has all the makings of becoming a box-office smash hit.‘

The story contained inside the cover of this exciting new book series is about a young man from the back streets of Los Angeles who never expected to find himself in the middle of a gang war when he moved to a small, quiet town. But these are no ordinary gangs nor is this an ordinary town. When an awesome power is discovered at work in the tunnels under the railroad tracks, the two gangs set out on a terrifying mystical quest to fight a force that not only threatens their town, but possibly the whole world.

Dark Territory

To delve more into “Dark Territory” let’s take a look at a more in-depth explanation about the story:

In the quaint town of Middleburg, an abandoned train yard and old railroad tracks form the dividing line between two rival gangs – the wealthy, preppy Toppers and the working-class Flatliners. When Raphael, the leader of the Flatliners, falls in love with Aimee, a Topper girl, the rival gangs prepare to do battle . . . but not with guns and knives. Their martial arts’ training dictates a strict code of honor, which all of the gang members adhere to. The only hope for peace between the rival gangs lies within the giant X formed where the railroad tracks cross. The awesome power contained in the X sends the Flatliners and the Toppers on a mystical quest to fight against malevolent forces that threaten the existence of Middleburg—and maybe the world.

I recently had the opportunity to interview the co-authors on what inspired them to create the unique world of The Tracks series among many other subjects. Here is what these talented writers had to share with me:

Question: What inspired you to write this story?

Gates: The initial inspiration came when I was taking a Wing Chun kung fu class and my girlfriend at the time and her friends were watching teen dramas and I thought: “wouldn’t it be cool to make a teen drama with kung fu?” The initial idea was for The Tracks to be a TV show, but Char had the idea to make a book series out of it. Aside from that, though, it has a lot of themes that are interesting and important to me: class relations, conflict resolution, spiritual growth and meditation.

Keel: For me, I guess the short answer is ambition, possible financial reward, and the creative urge to spin a great yarn.

Question: How long was the story in development and how long did it take you to write “Dark Territory”?

Gates: This one spent a long time in the hopper! I came up with the TV show idea and Char and I wrote a treatment for it back in 2005 or so. It was in about 2010 that she came to me and suggested that we pitch it to publishers as a teen series. But sometimes ideas are like fine wine – the longer they sit on the shelf, they more they mature. I think this story benefitted from its long gestation period.

Keel: Jacob came to me with a great premise…it grabbed me right away but I thought it needed something else. When I ran it by my best friend and spiritual brother, Christian Osborne, he listened quietly and said one thing: ‘Make it magic.’…Jake liked the idea, and we went to work on a treatment for a TV series, which took maybe two weeks to write. (Unfortunately), circumstances took me back to Florida and it (wasn’t until) six years later, thanks to my friend Herman Rush introducing me to Peter Vegso, that we pitched it to HCI Books. All we had at that point was the TV treatment, which we had turned into a book proposal. It took us about 5 months to write “Dark Territory”.

Question: How did you come together to work on this book?

Gates: Back in 2005, I was living in LA. I had just finished writing my second novel and was trying to figure out how to get a literary agent. Like all young writers, I was getting nothing but rejections from the loads of query letters I sent out, so I put an ad on Craigslist titled: “Young Author Seeks Mentor” (and) Char answered. It was her idea that we should come up with TV show ideas and pitch them to the studios together. (But then she) moved back to Florida before we ever got around to pitching any of our TV ideas. Years later, she called me up about pitching The Tracks as a book series that we would write together. I agreed, she pitched the idea to HCI, and here we are.

Keel: (Yes), we met through (the ad) on Craigslist. I already had many TV credits (under my belt, but) I’d reached that certain age where women start to become sort of invisible in Tinseltown. I had no problem getting pitch meetings…but more and more I was pitching to very young studio executives. I was getting really annoyed with the stunned looks on their faces when someone their mother’s age walked in…(ironically) I was about to place a notice on Craigslist…when I saw Jake’s ad, looking for a mentor. I got in touch, we met for lunch and hit it off—and I was delighted to find that his writing talent is awesome.

Question:  What was the most difficult scene to write?

Gates: I wouldn’t say that any of it was too difficult – when you have a story and characters this great, it really just flows. But Char was definitely the expert on writing the romantic sections, especially from the female point of view. It’s hard for a guy author to get excited about how alluring his hero’s cologne smells! I think the story really benefitted from having both our perspectives, the Yin and the Yang.

Keel: For me, the battle scenes, so Jake took those on and I did very little tweaking on them. I have absolutely no training in martial arts, so I happily bow to his expertise.

Question: Can you provide a general premise for the book beyond the (general) description?

Gates: It truly is something new: a modern literary soap opera. It has something for everyone. You have a gang war, forbidden love, magic, Eastern mysticism, humor, teen shenanigans, popularity anxiety, looming catastrophic evil, and lots and lots of action. I loved the idea all along, but the more great feedback I get from readers, the more excited I am about “Dark Territory”.

Keel: Jake pretty much nailed it with his answer. I also like the way one reviewer describes it: “When Ignacio Torrez moves from the rough streets of Los Angeles to a small town dead smack in the middle of nowhere, he never expects to find himself in the midst of a gang war.” I think that kind of grabs a reader.

(Part 2 of this article will be posted tomorrow at 12 Noon.)

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