Let us Talk of Many Things; of Books and Queens and Pirates, of Mystery and Kings...: Novel Conversations with Ian Nathaniel Cohen's Michael McNamara

In conjunction with Indie BRAG
posted every Friday
#IndieBragNovConv

To be a little different from the usual 'meet the author'

let's meet a character...

Michael McNamara

from

The Brotherhood of the Black Flag: A Novel of the Golden Age of Piracy

Q: Hello, I’m Helen the host of Novel Conversations, please do make yourself comfortable. Would you like a drink? Tea, coffee, wine – something stronger? You’ll find a box of chocolates and a bowl of fruit on the table next to you, please do help yourself.

A: Thank you kindly! I’ll have a cold ale or sweet wine, if you have some on hand, and I’ll take you up on those chocolates.

Q: Wine it is, I have a particularly nice vintage... I believe you are a character in Ian Nathaniel Cohen’s novel The Brotherhood of the Black Flag. Would you like to introduce yourself? Are you a lead character or a supporting role?

A: My author was kind enough to make me the main character…although that means I’m usually the one being put in harm’s way, so I don’t know how much of a kindness that truly was.

Q: What genre is the novel and what is it about?

A: My author thinks of it as a historical adventure novel, although “historical thriller” is the more official – or marketable - genre. Anyway, my story takes place in 1721, the twilight of the Golden Age of Piracy. I was wrongly dishonourably discharged from the British Royal Navy after thirteen years of service, and when you first meet me, I’ve lost my position as an assistant fencing instructor. With no prospects keeping me in the newly-United Kingdom, and uncertain of what I want to do with what’s left of my life, I set sail for Kingston, Jamaica, looking for new opportunities.

But I never expected that opportunity to present itself in the form of Captain Stephen Reynard, a notorious pirate turned pirate hunter in order to earn a pardon. Pirate hunting seems as good a calling as anything else, and an honourable use for my fencing skills, so I join Reynard’s crew and his quest for redemption.

Q: No spoilers, but are you a ‘goody’ or a ‘baddie’? (Or maybe you are both!)

A: I suppose that depends on your attitude toward the British Empire and her navy – although now that the navy and I are…on the outs, I don’t know if that applies anymore. Anyhow, I try to be a good person. You know, fighting for those who can’t fight for themselves, keeping others safe, and doing my best to treat people with respect and courtesy.

Q: Tell me about another character in the novel – maybe your best friend, lover or partner … or maybe your arch enemy!

A: I’ve never known anyone else like Captain Reynard. After all his past evils, I suppose I ought to hate the man, even if he truly has changed his ways. And yet I can’t deny being grateful to him for giving me a sense of purpose or envy him for his own. And he’s certainly a charmer, with a gift for persuasion. I can see how he built up the reputation he has.

It’s hard not to talk about the captain without his fiancée, Dona Catalina Moore. She’s been through some hardships in her life that would have broken many others, but she’s never lost her compassion, empathy, or her belief that storms pass and all wounds heal. If only she wasn’t betrothed to the captain…

Q: Is this the only novel you have appeared in, or are there others in a series?

A: So far, this is the only one. I know my author is toying with ideas for a single sequel, and it may happen someday – it depends on how well history can cooperate, and how different he can make it from something else he’s working on.

Q: What is one of your least favourite scenes you appear in?

A: I’m at a rather low point when you first meet me – no employment, no true friends, seemingly disdained by my family, and only desperate hope for opportunity in our colonies. I also spend some time in a brig at some point, which I obviously did not enjoy.

Q: And your favourite scene?

A: Oh, that’s easy – my duel with Captain Reynard when we first meet. It’s been a long time since I met a swordsman who could give me as good a fight as he does, and we share a fondness for verbal sparring.

Ian Nathaniel Cohen

Q:Tell me a little about your author. Has he written any other books?

A: Not fiction – at least not finished ones - but he’s gotten all sorts of things published here and there – an academic essay on something called “martial arts movies,” whatever those are, and he wrote for his university’s paper for a time. During a student internship, he wrote on-the-air promos for a radio show he was working for, and his day job involves writing process documents and training materials. He’s also done a great deal of blogging, reviewing mostly the kinds of classic swashbuckler movies that inspired my own tale, and he has two featured columns on a website called The Comics Bolt.

Q: Is your author working on anything else at the moment?

A: Oh dear Lord, yes – he’s got his hands in so many in-progress literary pies, it’s a wonder he can keep them all straight. The one he aims to complete next is The Sherwood Caper, a Robin Hood adventure which will have a similar flavour to my own story. He describes it as a medieval heist thriller, and I would expect a sizable number of sword fights in that one as well.

Other than that, he’s working on a murder mystery set in 1930s New York, another one set in Hong Kong’s film industry in the 1970s, and even a fantasy series he’s collaborating on with a long-time friend. Ideas for other works come and go, and the Almighty Himself only knows what will come of them.

Q: How do you think indie authors, such as your author, can be helped or supported by readers or groups? What does your author think is the most useful for him/her personally?

A: My author may be an experienced and versatile writer, but he is very much a neophyte when it comes to marketing his books and finding an audience for them, and he welcomes guidance or advice from more experienced authors. Also, groups have given him access to numerous readers and reviewers, as well as other books he can learn from in crafting his own stories. He also can be found on all sorts of historical appreciation sites looking for the most minor of details for his other works, and he appreciates the time the experts take to assist him.

Q: Finally, before we must bid adieu, the novel you appear in has been awarded a prestigious IndieBRAG Medallion, does your author find this helpful, and is there anything else he would like IndieBRAG to do to help indie authors receive the recognition they deserve?

A: It was certainly an esteem booster for him, and it most likely made his book more likely to be selected for consideration by a potential reviewer. IndieBRAG has also been gracious enough to include my story in some of their promotions involving pirate-themed stories, which was very much appreciated. It’s hard to say what else they could do or assist with that wouldn’t come over as an imposition on their time or ingratitude on my author’s part.

Q: Thank you, Michael, it was a pleasure talking to you. Would your author like to add a short excerpt?

A: I think he would. This scene takes place at a celebration hosted by Sir Nicholas Lawes, the governor of Jamaica, for whom I did a small service upon my arrival in Kingston. The festivities are in honor of Captain Reynard, and the governor has recommended I join Reynard’s crew. Not having any other prospects, I’m game, but the captain decides to give me a little test first.

Helen: Well, while your author sorts that scene out for us, would you like a refill of that wine?

Michael: No, thank you – I dislike to overindulge these days. But perhaps some more chocolate, if you would be so kind?

Helen: Actually I do have some more - I think I'll join you! Here’s to being a successful Brag Medallion Honouree!

EXCERPT:

“Allow me to give the fencing instructor a lesson of his own,” Reynard said. “You know what kind of sword this is?”

“A schiavona.”

“Very good. You know your weapons. Ever fight anyone who used one before?”

McNamara shook his head.

“You’re about to,” Reynard said. “The men I hunt are dangerous, battle-hardened killers. Those who sail under my command have to be men I can count on to know how to fight. You don’t mind if I take your measure in front of these assembled peacocks, do you, Mr McNamara?”

“Not at all,” McNamara said. He rose and removed his own coat and waistcoat and drew his colichemarde, eager to show Reynard just what exactly he could do with a sword.

The music came to a sudden stop and the guests became alarmed at the sight of two drawn swords, but Reynard calmed them down. “No need to be concerned. At His Excellency’s request, this gentleman and I are going to provide you with a fencing exhibition, as a test of his skills and to audition him for a place on my crew. Please stand back and enjoy the entertainment.”

“Captain, are you sure about this?” Sabatini asked, glaring at McNamara as he stepped between them.

“Easy, Nick,” Reynard said dismissively, stepping around his quartermaster. “I have every faith in Mr McNamara’s abilities with a blade. Faith, of course, that those abilities are inferior to my own.”

“I wouldn’t put too much stock in that if I were you,” McNamara retorted. “Believing yourself to be a greater swordsman than you really are is a common mistake among beginners and amateurs.”

“Ah, but it’s not a mistake if one actually is the greater swordsman one believes he is,” Reynard said with a chuckle.

McNamara couldn’t help smiling at the banter. He’d often scolded his students for wasting their energy on verbal sparring, and he could only imagine how they’d react to him engaging in it now. “I’ve heard boasts like that from too many of my students to take them seriously. So to join your crew, I have to outfence you?”

“No, I just want to see how long you’ll last,” Reynard replied. “You’re not going to beat me. If you’re ready, Mr McNamara?”

“Whenever you are, Captain Reynard. I’m looking forward to proving you wrong.”