Please ask a question in your comment below to enter the drawing for a copy of THE LAST APOSTLE by Dennis Brooke.
We’ll give away one print copy and one audio copy, so be sure to tell us your preference when you ask your question. We’ll take comments for the giveaway through midnight on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016.
“What if Jesus meant what he said when he told Peter in John 21:21, ‘If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?’”
Cavanaugh stepped behind the podium, gripped both sides, and enunciated every word of his next sentence slowly, “What if Jesus meant exactly what he said—that John would remain alive until he returned?”
John shook his head.
“I am pleased to announce that this idea also intrigues a Hollywood producer. I am in negotiations for a television series based on a living apostle John.” Cavanaugh grinned broadly. “And with that, I will take time to autograph a few books.”
The noise from polite clapping in Pigott Auditorium at Seattle University was supplemented by the buzz around Cavanaugh’s announcement. A young woman who had been sitting next to John during the lecture turned to him and flashed him a smile. “That’s cool.” John gave her a distracted nod. But his heart started racing as he thought, The end times couldn’t be triggered by a stupid TV show, could they?
I’ve known Dennis Brooke since I joined the Northwest Christian Writers Association way back in 2007, when we were both in the seemingly endless stage every writer goes through—polishing and rewriting with the dream that our work would one day be ready for publication. I’m so excited to see Dennis hit the next stage with his premiere novel, and I promise you, this book is worth the wait.
Let’s get to know a little more about Dennis and his novel, THE LAST APOSTLE (the first novel in theJohn the Immortal series).
1. What was the inspiration for the plot of The Last Apostle?
This novel was sparked by a scene in the last part of the Gospel of John. The risen Jesus is walking on the shore with Peter and telling him what a terrible death he’s going to die. Peter looks behind at John who’s following them and asks, “What about him?”
Jesus replied, “What’s it matter to you if he stays alive until I return, we’re talking about you.”
Of course, the gospel goes on to explain that rumors started that John would remain alive until Jesus returned. It also explains that’s not what Christ really meant.
But when I heard that passage in the gospel I always wondered, “What if that’s exactly what he meant—that John would remain alive until Jesus returned.” I wondered what would he have been doing over the last two thousand years? How could he have influenced history? What interesting skills would a two-thousand-year-old apostle have picked up? And why would he have kept his identity a secret?
Then I started researching the life of John and learned interesting legends and facts that fit right into a story based on the idea of a living apostle John. During my travels, I’ve visited the tomb—empty tomb—of the apostle, walked in Athens where I placed scenes in the book, and stood in the amphitheater in Ephesus where he once spoke.
I’ve done my best to be true to biblical and historical facts—but speculating on the true meaning of Jesus’ question to Peter.
2. What inspired you to write this book?
The Last Apostle was actually inspired by Mike, a screen writer who was the husband of a coworker. I pitched my idea of “What if John was still alive” to him as a TV show and he loved it. He was so enthusiastic about it that I expected to be able to quit my day job to live the life of a producer on the new show. I didn’t quite contact a realtor to sell the house, but my resignation letter was mentally written.
Mike took it to a number of producers but they were looking for more edgy ideas. My show idea was kind of a Touched by an Angel meets Quantum Leap. This was in the era of the TV show Lost. Even after it got shot down he still liked the idea and suggested, “Write it as a book.”
3. How long did it take you to write the book?
After it was shot down by Hollywood, I launched into the project and turned out the “completed” version in a year. That was in 2007. But even though I had done plenty of writing in business and school, I had no idea what I was doing as a novelist—I just thought I did. I didn’t understand the industry and my craft was not up to the standards that it took to get published.
4. How did you get to the point where it was ready to publish?
Patience, persistence, and prayer! I was blessed by friends and mentors who believed in me and helped put me on the right path. I found the Northwest Christian Writers Association (NCWA) on the web and wound up on the board—mainly because I kept pestering then-president, Athena Dean with ideas. I think she figured I’d be better off on the inside where she could put my enthusiasm to work and keep an eye on me.
And through NCWA I connected with enthusiastic and talented critique partners—too many to mention. I also connected with professionals who gave me encouragement and excellent guidance. And at two critical junctures I hired professional editors, Jeff Gerke and Mick Silva. Jeff read the first part of my novel early on and gave me guidance on the basics when I really needed it. Years later Mick read the entire novel and gave me some reinforcement and some more advanced guidance at a point I was ready for it.
Part of it was also putting my work out there in contests. I learned from the good advice, learned what was bad advice, and gained some notoriety for success in the contest that Jeff Gerke ran though his publishing house, Marcher Lord Press.
Finally, last spring, I got an offer from a small, but good quality publishing house, back east. I had met with them at the American Christian Fiction Writers conference the previous fall. Shortly after that I got a counteroffer from the president of Made for Success Publishing whom I knew through a friend. They had a better distribution package and were local. They’ve done a great job guiding me through the fulfillment of this dream.
5. Do you have a dream project…something you’re planning to write someday?
My dream project is actually coming true this spring. I like to visit the places I write about so that my scenes are more authentic and I can add local color and little known history. In April my wife and I will set off on a 500+ mile pilgrimage across Spain called The Camino de Santiago or The Way of Saint James. Spoiler alert: this plays a big role in the next novel in the series.
6. What are your hobbies (other than writing)?
My wife and I love to travel both in the US and internationally. We also hike, bike, and kayak. Plus I’m an avid photographer. Both of us retire from the corporate life within the next week and will be living life on the road for the foreseeable future starting in April. We want to connect at a deeper level with different places by living there, researching history close to the source, and working with local charities. We have a website (www.WorldRovers.com) where we’ll provide advice about a world roving lifestyle.
7. Any interesting travel stories related to your writing?
We spent last Christmas and New Years in Paris and scouted out locations for a few scenes for the next novel. There’s an interesting landmark there called Saint-Jacques Tower in English. It’s all that remains of church destroyed during the French Revolution.
Saint James is the brother of John, the central character in my series. This tower is also a traditional starting point for pilgrims walking the Way of Saint James.
8. How do you measure your success as a writer?
Excellent question. I believe it’s about inspiring people to live a more fulfilling life and grow closer to God in their personal journey. I like to do that through engaging stories that stimulate and inspire people.
Dennis Brooke is a former US Air Force Officer who counts standing on the Berlin Wall in its last days as one of the highlights of his life. His work and travel have taken him to locales all over the world including Sydney, Sao Paulo, and Strasbourg. His home base is in the Seattle area. He and his wife, Laurie, are believers that you make your own adventures and they are avid hikers, kayakers, and bikers.
He is the former president of the Northwest Christian Writers Association and has been published in over two dozen international and local publications.
Where to find Dennis:
www.facebook.com/groups/TheLastApostle/
www.goodreads.com/dennisbrooke
Where to find THE LAST APOSTLE:
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- THE LAST APOSTLE by Dennis Brooke. $13.03 in paperback
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- THE LAST APOSTLE by Dennis Brooke. $34.95 Audio CD
Don’t forget to ask Dennis a question in the comments below to enter the drawing for a free copy of THE LAST APOSTLE by Dennis Brooke. Also, tell us which you’d prefer to win, a print copy or an audio book. Happy reading (or listening)!
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Dennis, how long did it take you to write the novel and when did you know it was finished?
Gigi
It took me a year to write the novel–including six passes through for editing. At that point I “knew” it was finished. I was wrong, wrong, wrong. Did I mention, “wrong?”
It took me eight more years and major rewrites to get to done enough for a publisher. That included connecting with good critique partners, getting feedback from editors and agents, and hiring professional editors at two different points.
Chip MacGregor says that most novelists will write 4-5 novels before they get one published. I followed the James Rubart model–rewrote the first novel 4-5 times before it was “finished.”
Thanks for the great question!
Dennis
As I was reading the book, I kept wondering about your method of plotting. Did you know how it was going to play out from the start, or did you write “by the seat of your pants”? Also, how much did your plot change over those several rewrites?
Lesley
When I wrote the first version it was very much seat of the pants. I had a general idea about how I wanted the modern day plot, and AD 100 subplot to go, but a lot of it was creating characters and putting them in situations.
A good example is the (MINOR SPOILER ALERT!) subplot on the island in the Aegean sea. I looked at a map and figured out John would need to make a water stop in between his origin and destination. I wrote a chapter where he stopped on a small island. But then the characters and situation took over and what resulted is one of my favorite parts of the book. It was only supposed to be a short stop!
For the next book in the series I’m doing more plotting because I’ve learned a lot about writing good fiction. But I’ll be open to good ideas by the characters 🙂
Dennis
First, congrats on the release of your book! Now for my oh so important question(s)… Are you a cat person? Or a dog person? A coffee person? Or a tea person? A Huskies person? Or a Cougar person? 😉 And finally… A paperback person? Or an eBook person?
Lynnette
Yes–the core questions!
– Dog person–Laurie and I had two dogs who each lived to ripe old ages (12 and 15 respectively) but we also had a cat who lived to 15. Note that the first dog was replaced, but not the cat 🙂
– Coffee, but I do enjoy tea. It helps that my wife has worked at Starbucks for almost 21 years and gets a free pound of coffee a week. When she retires next week the free pound is part of the “retirement package.”
– Most of my relatives are Cougars but I raised the family standard and went to the University of Washington. We are Husky football season ticket holders.
– And as far as paperback vs. ebook I actually am usually reading a paper book, and eBook, AND listening to an audio book at the same time. I typically buy eBooks because Laurie and I are packing everything up and living a life on the road so weight and storage are a factor. But I prefer paper. And audio is great for driving and working out.
Dennis
The comment about replacing the dog but not the cat made me laugh out loud! We are the same, though we did have one kitty that we loved dearly (and one that we were quite happy to part with – I think he was bi-polar, lol). I’m just much happier when I don’t have to clean a litter box all the time. 🙂
I have another question. What genre is THE LAST APOSTLE?
Lesley
We classify it as Speculative Christian Fiction with a Thriller twist.
Dennis
Nice!
My congratulations to Dennis in this very successful book launch. My question is how did the idea for the book come about and how extensively did you outline it?
I would prefer an ebook version of the book if I were to win. I find physical books cumbersome and have no time or venue to listen to an audio book.
Steve
Thanks. It has been a successful launch in large part due to great friends I’ve made in the journey. People who have advised and supported me. The first printing of 500 sold out two weeks before launch!
The book was really inspired when I looked at the end of the Gospel of John where Jesus said to Peter about John, “What does it matter to you if he remains until I return.” I always thought that would be a cool story.
I did NO outlining for the first version on paper–and very little mentally. For the next in the series I plan on doing more outlining based on what I’ve learned since then.
I’ll see what I can do about an eBook option for you–if you’re the lucky winner.
Dennis
Hey, Dennis! Thanks for contacting me to let me know your book is finally getting published. Glad to see this blog entry about it too. 🙂
I’ve actually got a few questions, but I don’t expect those to count as more than one entry for the contest, which, if I were to win, my preference would be the print copy. 😉 🙂
So my first question is, what – other than prayer, God, the Bible, etc. – did you find most helpful to you to persevere through the time when you weren’t sure if the novel would get published?
Also, since I had met you online during the Marcher Lord Select contest which MLP held, how about expanding on your thoughts regarding that contest and how you felt with it?
I see with this blog interview that you planning a series for it. Was this the intention all along, or was this something a person (agent, publisher, wife, close friend, etc.) talked you into, or did you just happen to realize at some point that you had more to tell about John? And for that matter, since you are doing it as a series, do you have an end game in mind to know about how many books it will take to tell the complete story you have in mind?
Again, big congratulations are in order for you, and I am very glad to see you’ve made it to print with this book finally! Awesome! 😀
David James
Great to reconnect with you. I’ll cover two of your questions, and punt one 🙂
– What helped me in the perseverance part of prayer, persistence, patience part of this journey was other people. Some were loyal friends who were fans. Some were successful authors or talented aspiring authors who read the work and believed it would have its day. Although there were lengthy periods of time when I didn’t touch the manuscript and worked on other things, I never seriously considered giving up.
– I had always thought of this as a series–originally a television series. There are 2000 years of history that would be fun to explore. Imagine John in the Middle Ages, on the Titanic, in Ireland when the rest of civilization was falling apart, in… Well, you get the picture. It lends itself to a series.
– On the Marcher Lord Select contest where we met, that’s too much to cover in a comment. I’ll do a longer article on that and let you know where that’s published.
Dennis
David: Hope you’re enjoying the print copy you won. And, I’d mentioned that I was going toe doing a post on the Marcher Lord Select contest. It’s up this week at the New Author’s Fellowship blog
https://newauthors.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/why-overnight-success-would-have-been-bad-for-my-novel/
I wish you could edit your blog replies: I meant to say, “…I was going to be doing a post..”
I want an edit button too! I get so used to having one that I sometimes get careless.
What is the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow?
Tom
It depends:
– What is the altitude?
– What is the humidity?
– What is the temperature?
– What is the barometric pressure?
Dennis
I have another question about plotting. Your book has dual plot lines- John in 100 AD, and also in present day. Did you write out each individually then piece them together, or did you skip back and forth as you wrote?
Lesley
I actually skipped back and forth between the two. Sometimes I would want a break from one plot line and would move on to the other . Or I would run across something in my research that would give me inspiration and then I’d incorporate it into the appropriate plot line.
This was challenging because I was writing it in MS Word and moving scenes back and forth required a lot of time consuming cutting and pasting–for a 90,000+ word manuscript. That’s why I’ve switched to Scrivener which allows me to see scenes at a glance and move them to the appropriate place.
Dennis
Scrivener, huh? I should look at that.
I highly recommend it. There is a learning curve but it’s very inexpensive and there is plenty of online training. https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php
Thanks for the tip. I’ll look at it when I’m ready to scale another learning curve.
Congratulations Dennis! I’m excited to hear about the success of your book launch. If I win a copy of your book, I’d prefer a print copy.
I’m interested in your pilgrimage plans on the El Camino. Which route are you taking? Do you speak Spanish?
If you are interested, I also have missionary contacts I can connect you with in Madrid. Vaya con Dios.
Ardis
We will be walking the Camino Frances route starting at St Jean Pied de Port. We’re working on our Spanish now. Won’t be down in Madrid but if you know people on the Camino Frances route.
We have a website and blog for our life on the road. It has info on the Camino and that route. http://Www.WorldRovers.com
When you shared your first finished draft with me, I was riveted. I loved the melding of past and present and the flow of growth that takes place as the book progresses. A most unique concept and a truly captivating page by page revelation. The many mini tales that weave the fabric of the Character John, are each subtle developments. As they roll out, an understanding of what it must be like to outlive all those around you, and still at the same time be able to nurture and form the lives that you come into contact with. Just an amazing tale, and told so well… I am looking forward to reading it again for the third time in final print.
The good news is that the novel aged well. Early fans like you are pretty happy with how it improved.
It helped me a lot to have others read it and give me feedback. For example, you pointed out that I had my math wrong in the garum production scene.
It’s great to have readers doing the math for you!