Q&A With Brett Battles

I’m so excited to be doing this Q&A with New York Times Bestselling author Brett Battles. He’s written several spy and mystery thrillers but has dabbled in sci-fi thrillers now and then. He’s written over forty novels, a few short stories and novellas. Many of his books are part of popular series such as the Johnathan Quinn & Project Eden Series! His current release in the Stuart Woods series Smolder came out today on June 4^th is available now! 

Q: Brett, would you like to tell the readers about your current book Smolder, & where the idea for the book came from?

A: Smolder is the latest book in Stuart Woods’ Stone Barrington series. I was and remain incredibly honored to have been asked to continue the series after Stuart’s passing in 2022. I wanted to create a story that utilized the rich history of the Stone Barrington books and would read as if Stuart himself wrote it. In preparation, I reread the entire series, and in doing so, I noted several things that I wanted to use and or expand upon. From those, I developed the plot for the book that became Smolder.

Q: What do you enjoy most about writing in the mystery spy thriller & sci-fi thriller genres? 

A: I like to write fast moving stories with interesting characters and writing thrillers—whether they be spy, mystery, or sci-fi—provides the perfect vehicle in which to do that. You can have fun, be serious, explore interesting topics, and all sorts of other things with them.

Q: Where do your ideas, characters and worlds within your stories come from? 

A: Everywhere and nowhere. I can literally be walking down the street when a random idea hits me. Likewise, I can be writing a novel with no ideas yet for what comes next and must consciously think something up. In truth, it’s more of the latter than the former. This is my full-time job, and I can’t sit ideally waiting for inspiration to hit me. Sometimes, I must forcibly shake it into existence. 

Q: If you were to explore writing in other genres, which genres would they be and why?

A:  If I were to write in a genre I’ve never published in, that would be Romance. I had never read any romance until about three years ago. Now, I read a ton. Don’t tell anyone, but I’ve already started writing one. I just need to find the time to finish it, and hopefully write more.

Q: Would it be too early to talk about any upcoming stories you are currently writing now, or can you talk about them?

A: I have just finished the next book in Stuart Woods’ Ted Fay series, called Golden Hour. It’ll be out in December. When I have time, I’ve also been working on the next book in my Jonathan Quinn series and a book in a new offshoot series from the Quinn books. (Not calling it a spinoff as it will end up being its own thing outside the current Quinn universe.) Also, I have two partially written novels that I hope to get back to before too long. One being that romance I mentioned, and the other a fun multiverse story set in the present day.

Q: Does Hollywood have the rights to your work? The entertainment industry could use new ideas instead of constant remakes, reboots, sequels, prequels and spinoffs. 

A: There’s been interest in my Quinn series off and on over the years, more in the recent past than earlier. The rights have gone in and out of a few hands already, but nothing to show for it. I’d love to see it happen, but I learned long ago not to count on it. Contrary to what some people think, few authors have control over whether that happens or not. What I can control is writing more books. So that’s what I focus on.

Q: How do you deal with criticism whether it’s online trolls, bad reviews & family and friends who may or may not be supportive? 

A: Ignore. I tend to avoid reviews beyond a week or two after a book comes out. If anything like that shows up on social media, I turn off my notifications and walk away. Luckily for me, when it comes to friends and family, they’re all very supportive.

 Q: Do you ever deal with self-doubt when you are writing a book? If so, how do you overcome it?

A: Yes. Absolutely. There’s almost always a point during the rough draft of every book I write when I think this is terrible! Because it is terrible. That’s what rough drafts are. I just forget that sometimes. To deal with it, sometimes I’ll plow through, sometimes I’ll take a break, and sometimes I’ll do a rewrite pass on what I’ve already done to help me refocus on the story.If I were to write in a genre