Frequently Asked Questions . . .
Scott is always delighted to hear from readers, but if you’d like a quick reply to a question you want to ask him, check below as the answer may very well be here!
Do Scott’s books need to be read in the order they were published, or doesn’t it matter?
If you’re a new reader and find that you’ve picked up a book that’s midway through Scott’s Ben Hope series, don’t worry – it’s not essential to read them in order as each one can largely be read as a stand-alone. You won’t be left scratching your head wondering who’s who or what’s happening. However, if you really want to get a feel for the ever-evolving character of Ben Hope, the ideal thing is to follow his adventures from the start. The complete list to date, in order of publication, is:
- The Alchemist’s Secret (first published as The Fulcanelli Manuscript)
- The Mozart Conspiracy
- The Doomsday Prophecy
- The Heretic’s Treasure
- The Shadow Project
- The Lost Relic
Scott’s Vampire Federation books can also be read out of order, although unlike the Ben Hope books they follow directly on from one another like episodes in one big story – so to get the very best out of them Scott advises readers to begin with Uprising, and then move on to its follow-up, The Cross, which will be available in the UK from Autumn 2011 and the USA in 2012.
Are Scott’s books available in other languages?
Yes, the list of translated editions of Scott’s books grows constantly. It currently includes Bulgarian, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Taiwanese, Thai and Turkish. English language editions also exist for Australia, New Zealand and the USA. You can CLICK HERE to see a selection of Ben Hope series book covers from all over the world.
What’s the best way to get a signed copy of one of Scott’s books?
Due to writing and research commitments Scott is not currently planning any book signing events, but as soon as this changes, details will be posted on the website. A special limited signed edition of The Mozart Conspiracy will be published in the USA in 2011 by Touchstone (Simon & Schuster).
How does Scott do his research?
It depends on the subject he’s researching. To get a real flavour of a location, whether urban or countryside, he sometimes travels there in person – for example, he spent some time in Rome while putting together The Lost Relic, and for The Alchemist’s Secret he enjoyed exploring the mountainous region of the Languedoc in southern France. Scott always takes his trusty Nikon D90 with him, so he can bring home hundreds of images – of landscapes, cityscapes, cathedrals and ancient monuments and artifacts, that he then draws on for inspiration back at his desk in west Wales. Scott also makes extensive use of books, maps, the internet, and his own experience. Sometimes there’s just no substitute for pure imagination, such as when writing about the subterranean ice citadel of the Übervampyr in Siberia, for the Vampire Federation series – somewhere that’s not so easy to get to...
Where did the idea for the Ben Hope character originate?
Not from any carefully worked-out plan or deliberate desire to create a ‘commercial’ character who could carry a series, but instead completely out of the blue. Scott was out walking in the fields and hills of rural Wales one day, books and storylines the last thing on his mind, when pretty much the whole concept came to him, together with much of the storyline for the first book in the series, The Alchemist’s Secret. After that, it was just a question of filling in some of the details of Ben’s past and background. It’s the way that Ben Hope just seemed to materialise out of thin air, fully-formed as a person, that makes Scott feel so close to the character.
Where does Scott get all his story ideas from?
Just as the basic idea for the Ben Hope character came when least expected, Scott finds that it’s when his mind is elsewhere that the best ideas can suddenly strike out of nowhere. His countryside lifestyle often finds him outdoors, whether it’s splitting logs for the fire, tending to his little patch of woodland, or exercising his dogs – and it’s at these moments that an idea can come rushing in, sometimes almost fully developed. In other cases, researching the background for one book can spark off an idea that will eventually find its way into another. Or else, Scott finds himself drawing on events and people from his own life experience to inspire him. The rest of the time, it’s the traditional slog of scouring libraries, periodicals, the web and any other resource for ideas and information for the giant melting pot that it takes to put together a complex ‘history-mystery’ thriller.
I’d love to see a movie of one of Scott’s books. Is this happening?
Many readers ask Scott: ‘Why don’t you make a film of your book?’ His answer is generally: ‘I would love to, and next time I have $80 million in my petty cash jar I will certainly do so!’ The fact is that movie-making is so terribly complex and expensive – it’s a heck of a long road from book to film and even projects based on #1 Bestsellers often never get off the ground. At present the Ben Hope series is optioned for film and there has been a great deal of interest in creating a movie franchise based on the book series. But, like Scott, we’ll all just have to wait and see!
How did Scott get into writing vampire novels alongside his other thrillers?
Readers are often a little surprised to hear that the idea for the Vampire Federation series actually predates the Ben Hope series by several years! Scott has always been fascinated by vampire stories, though he wanted to do something very fresh and original with the genre if he was going to become involved with it. When he first proposed the books to UK publishers way back in 2003, they responded by saying that they loved the idea and the writing, but that there was no market for vampire books in the UK at that time. Scott had to wait several years for the market to catch up – and in the meantime devised and wrote the first several Ben Hope books. When the time was right, he re-pitched the vampire idea to one of the same publishers who had rejected it years before, and they snatched it up right away! Well, that’s the publishing world for you...
Does Scott read his fan email?
If it’s a wacky business proposition; a request for Scott to write, co-write or advise on a book manuscript; or anything else that might be inappropriate, it will be trashed before it reaches Scott’s personal inbox. Everything else is certainly read by him. Scott is always happy to hear from readers and will always do his very best to reply to each and every message he receives. If he’s out of the country on a research trip, or is up against a book deadline, he may not be able to reply immediately, so please be patient!
Does Scott write under any other names?
Scott chose to alter his name slightly to ‘Scott G. Mariani’ for the purposes of the Vampire Federation series in the UK, simply to create a distinction between the two series of books and to avoid confusing readers who might be expecting Ben Hope to turn up in Uprising, or vampires to appear in The Lost Relic! For contractual reasons, the vampire books will appear in the USA under the pseudonym Sean McCabe, published by New American Library.
What does Scott do when he isn’t writing?
There is no question of being inactive or sitting idly in front of the TV in this author’s down-time! Scott has many other interests, which he tries to pursue when he can. Nature photography often takes him out to the beautiful wild places he loves so much. He is a keen archer, and has built his own archery range where (for those of you who really want to know!) he shoots a Hoyt Aspen compound bow and a variety of recurves, including a Win & Win and an English longbow. Scott also likes to have a blast now and then with his Brown Bess musket, and has a lifelong interest in medieval longsword fighting. When he’s in a more contemplative mood, he will spend time with his astronomical telescope studying the night sky. He loves walking with his dogs – the gentle and loyal Rottweiler being his favourite breed of all time. And he’s also a big movie fan, with a very eclectic DVD collection that ranges from Quentin Tarantino to John Ford and absolutely everything in-between. Aside from all that, of course, there’s his lifelong passion for good food and wine. Scott has to admit that he isn’t quite as Spartan in his gastronomic tastes as his character Ben Hope – though Ben could drink him under the table any day... |
