Interview With Paul Cross

(Image found on Goodreads)

I was able to interview Paul Cross, author of A Counterfeit Priest and here the interview is!

Hello, Thank you for answering my questions today!

1. First off, let's get to know a little about you. What is one odd thing about you? And feel free to tell us a little bit more than that as well!

Wow, I could write a book about the many odd things about me, but the one that comes to mind first (that I can put in print anyway)is when I drink a glass of milk which I love, I can't drink the entire glass and always have to leave a little at the bottom otherwise I'll gag. Weird!

2. Now, can you tell us more about A Counterfeit Priest?

A Counterfeit Priest started out as a screenplay before I decided to write it as a novel. I did most of my research while I was living in Rome. I went to the Vatican which was only about a ten minute subway ride from my apartment and I would hang out there all day and I would do this for months. I once even bought a cassock and sneaked into the Vatican so that I could see what it would feel like to be part of life there. But it only worked for a few hours until I got caught and after questioning me about who I was and why was I there, which of course I double-talked the answers,  I was promptly and politely escorted out. Fortunately, my lead characters in the book, Henry Hawkins has better luck than I did. I also became friends with a priest who lived and worked in the Vatican and he was a great source of information about life inside the Vatican. He worked for John Paul II and he had great stories to tell me. Living in Rome and being at the Vatican on a regular basis was a great time in my life. Fortunately much of that experience lives on in A Counterfeit Priest.

3. Is there a particular reason that you wrote a book involving the Vatican? If so, why?

The reason that I wrote A Counterfeit Priest was because I have always had a fascination with the Vatican, the papacy, and the Catholic church. I am Catholic and was raised Catholic and always went to Catholic schools. I have heard many horror stories about people experiencing bad things with the nuns and priests but for me it was glorious. Never did I have a bad situation with any of the nuns or priests who taught me throughout my schooling. They were all gentle and kind and cared about the students. In my heart I feel bad for the people who have been sexually abused or mistreated by any of the clergy, but I truly believe that these cases are the exception not the rule.

4. How do you move past Writer’s Block?

Writers block has never been a problem for me fortunately. I have a little trick that I use that I refer to as 'leaving a little gas in the tank' before I quit writing each day so that I have a place to start the next day when I sit down to write again. And if it's not flowing like I want it to, then I leave it and go about my business for the rest of the day while still thinking about the writing. By the time I sit down behind my computer the next morning I luckily always find enough 'gas in the tank' to get me rolling and to have a productive day writing.

5. Who is your favourite character(Movie, book, etc)?

My favorite character in A Counterfeit Priest is Cardinal Contini. He's a multifaceted personality and larger than life. He's extremely theatrical and a showman to boot as well as very Machiavellian. I envy the actor who will be playing him in the film version of A Counterfeit Priest. My favorite characters in  existing movies are Lawrence in my favorite film Lawrence of Arabia ( Talk about multifaceted!! He has it in spades!) and Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mockingbird and Blanche DuBois in A Streetcar Named Desire are two other characters that fly off  the page and screen. Brilliant!!

6. What can we expect from you in the future?

My future for me as a writer holds several more adventures like the one that Henry Hawkins experiences in A Counterfeit Priest. I have several stories in me that are itching to get out. I'm also looking forward to making the film of A Counterfeit Priest so that I can bring this story full circle.

Thank you for your time! I really appreciate it!