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It's All About the Questions


Jan 18, 2019

This is an interesting episode in that we had some issues getting James on the line so I started out talking about how we learn to be flexible and roll with things. Then James Rollins is able to call in and I get to ask him lots of questions about his latest book, his creative process and we get into a deep discussion about how AI, Artificial Intelligence is not just a character in his latest book.

I am fascinated by authors who started with one career and had an even more successful career as an author. I especially am obsessed with how they weave reality and fiction into their books in such a way that we, as readers, have trouble deciding which is fact and which is fiction.

James Rollins is a NY Times bestselling author whose latest book, Crucible, is listed as a thriller yet it weaves, tech, history, religion, military, world events and science into a novel that is sure to give him another #1 NY Times bestselling book. During our conversation we talk about how he knew when he could set aside his practice as a veterinarian, his advice to others on that process, how he does his research and we have a very deep discussion on AI and our thoughts on where it stands in the world today.

Plus, he gives us a little peak inside his latest, sure to be #1, book, Crucible.

James Rollins is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of international thrillers, translated into more than forty languages, with more than 20 million copies sold. The New York Times says, “Rollins is what you might wind up with if you tossed Michael Crichton and Dan Brown into a particle accelerator together,” and NPR calls his work “Adventurous and enormously engrossing.” Rollins unveils unseen worlds, scientific breakthroughs, and historical secrets--and does it all at breakneck speed and with stunning suspense. A practicing veterinarian, Rollins has pursued scuba, spelunking, and other adventures around the world, and currently lives and writes in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.

As a boy immersed in the scientific adventures of Doc Savage, the wonders of Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, and pulps such as The Shadow, The Spider, and The Avenger, James Rollins decided he wanted to be a writer. He honed his storytelling skills early, spinning elaborate tales that were often at the heart of pranks played on his brothers and sisters.

Before he would set heroes and villains on harrowing adventures, Rollins embarked on a career in veterinary medicine, graduating from the University of Missouri and establishing a successful veterinary practice. He continues to volunteer his time and veterinary skills in support of the local SPCA. His hands-on knowledge of medicine and science helps shape the research and scientific speculation that set James Rollins books apart.