More on Youtube from Edward Eaton!
I grew up in West Virginia. I come from a family that spent 300 years in the south. The last family member to be from the north was Nathaniel Eaton, who was Schoolmaster at Harvard College in the 1630s. He was fired for caning his students too roughly. I teach college and understand where he was coming from, er, know how wrong he was. Anyway, when it came time to apply to colleges, we sort of felt that the connection would not ‘legacy’ into Harvard, so…I went to the University of Richmond, instead.
I have lived all over. I went to college in Virginia, and graduate school in Ohio. I have lived in China, France, Israel, and Oman. Oman was my favorite place.
Right now, I live in Boston. I really hope I have not stopped moving around. I have a little boy, so I suspect we have to slow down. For the time being.
The great thing about living in Boston for a southerner is that here, like in the south, ‘Yankee’ is a bad word.
Tell us your latest news.
My first novel, Rosi’s Castle was published last November, by Dragonfly Publishing. I am excited about the reception Castle has had. Castle received a Silver Medal from the Readers Favorite Book Awards (YA Fantasy/Sci-Fi). Rosi’s Castle is about a girl who is sent to live in New England after the disappearance of her father. When she arrives in her new home, she discovers that it is haunted. She is even more surprised to find out that she is the one haunting it. She sets out on a journey to discover a curse that has plagued her family for centuries.
This summer, Dragonfly published my verse drama, Orpheus and Eurydice, a revision of my 2010 UK publication, which, in turn, was first produced as a play in Oman. This is a dramatic version of the classical story—with something of a twist.
Dragonfly also released my play, Elizabeth Bathory, based on the historical Hungarian Countess who killed hundreds of young women and bathed in their blood.
Just last week, I received Book Three of Rosi’s Doors, Rosi’s Company, from my editor. I have some work to do, but we feel that this will be the most dramatic of the series.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
Samuel Goldwyn once said, “If I want to send a message, I’ll use Western Union.” To a certain degree, I agree.
There are certain philosophies that I suspect (and hope) come across in my books. One of them is that life is not black and white, good and evil, right and wrong. Life is filled with gray areas. Elizabeth Bathory is a bad person, yes, but her desires and needs are understandable perhaps even admirable. Rosi Carol is a good person, but she has to make some unfortunate decisions, even bad decisions. People do horrible things for the right reasons. People do good things for the wrong reasons. Someone once said that if we understood the ignoble reasons great people do great things, we might admire them less. Should we then admire people who do horrific acts for noble reasons? Of course, we have been debating this since Abraham took Isaac to the mountain. It is the very stuff that makes for tragedies. If someone wrote a book about your life, what would they title it?
Ted: A Dreamer’s Life
My wife tells me that I should be more grounded in reality. Me? I am opposed to reality. Reality is for chumps.
What is the ultimate dream vacation? A couple of years ago, when we were living in Oman, we went to Dubai. Christopher (my son) and I went to that indoor ski resort to play in the snow (my wife, Silviya, went shopping L). Christopher and I love skiing. The resort in Dubai is neat. It is a gimmick. It is hardly the sort of ski resort that Christopher and I should be skiing at. However, I loved the Middle East—blue skies, heat, bright sun, friendly people, safe streets (other than the riots). Well, I liked it. We went swimming in the ocean on Thanksgiving. We sat on the deck and grilled our dinner in January. Now, if I could spend my vacation at a luxury hotel, in the Middle East, but spend every other day skiing at some large mountain not too far away. A fondue restaurant around the corner. A suitcase full of books. Oh, and the next seasons of Game of Thrones, True Blood, and Veep would be pretty nice to have (in advance :)
What person in history would you most like to meet?
Only one? Can’t do that.
Helen of Troy. I am working on a play that takes place during the Trojan War. Helen is not a character in it, but I often wonder. Just how beautiful was she? And how beautiful would she be by today’s standards? Besides, if I got to meet her, I would be in the position to find out about Hector, Achilles, Paris. I would be able to find out just where Troy was. Yes, that is a legitimate question, and a lot of people think that it was not in Turkey. Me? I think the story comes from India. Sure, there was a city in Asia Minor. Yes, there was a war. But the story came from the East.
Caligula. Why not? He is a fascinating person. I would also get to meet Claudius, one of my favorite emperors (yes, I am a big fan of Robert Graves’ books).
Richard III. What really happened to the princes in the Tower?
Shakespeare. I’m a writer, a poet, a theatre professional. He is the man. I wonder what he was really like. I have my ideas about that, but I would like to know.
Patton. World War II is one of my favorite historical periods. Patton is my favorite general. If you could design a refrigerator magnet, what would it say?
“Write! Write! Write!”
Not very interesting, I admit. I need to be reminded. I need to be pushed. If I am poking around in the refrigerator, then I am not doing my work.
Do you have some links for potential readers?
Yes. Yes, I do.
Social Networking:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4489684.Edward_Eaton
Purchasing:
Edward,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for visiting with us today! It has been great getting to know you and your works!!
All the Best,
Rionna