James L. Rubart Interview

Q: What do you write and why this genre?
A. I write for a number of reasons. The first is simply because I love doing it. I wrote for years before trying to get published because it filled a deep place inside. Also, I write to discover myself. Most of my stories come what I’m wrestling with in my own life. And, I write because I want readers to hopefully find hope and light and freedom from my stories. As far as genre, I don’t think about it much. I just write the kind of stories that I would love to read and the stories that refuse to leave my head till I get them down.

Q: Do you base your characters on people you know or are they totally made up?
A: Most the time-we’re talking 98 percent-my characters come from real people. Both heroes and villains. That old phrase, “Be careful or you’ll end up in my novel”, is true with me!

Q: Would you tell us about your current book release The Man He Never Was?
A: Love to! Here’s the back-cover copy which gives a good description:

What if You Woke Up One Morning and the Darkest Parts of Yourself Were Gone?

Toren Daniels vanished eight months back, and his wife and kids have moved on-with more than a little relief. Toren was a good man, but carried a raging temper that often exploded without warning. So when he shows up on their doorstep with no notice, they’re shocked to see him alive. But more shocked to see he’s changed. Radically.
His anger is gone. He’s oddly patient. Kind. Fun. The man he always wanted to be. Toren has no clue where he’s been, but knows he’s been utterly transformed. He focuses on three things: Finding out where he’s been. Finding out how it happened. And winning back his family.

But then shards of his old self start to rise up from deep inside-the man kicked out of the NFL for his fury-and Toren must face the supreme battle of his life.
In this fresh take on the classic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde story, James L. Rubart explores the war between good and evil within each of us-and one man’s only chance to overcome the greatest divide of the soul.

Q: Where did the idea for this story come from?
A. I was on the treadmill, working out, listening to a message from Tim Keller. He said Romans 7 was potentially part of the inspiration behind Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Robert Louis Stevenson’s father was a pastor). I thought, ‘What if I did a modern version of that story, where I interject a Christian worldview?’ We all wrestle with the dark side of ourselves, I wanted to explore potential answers to our struggle. How to we find victory? How do we stop doing the thing we hate doing? The Man He Never Was is my exploration of that question.

Q: Would you share with us what you are working on now?
A. I just finished recording the audio version of The Man He Never Was, and am in edits for my next novel. And I’ve formed a company with my son called The Rubart Writing Academy where I teach authors how to get published, and maybe most importantly discover the theme of their lives which gives the motivation to keep going when they fell like giving up. We did our first Academy last October and the students said it was life changing. It’s a thrill to get to do it with my son.

Q: Tell me three things about yourself that would surprise your readers.
A. I’m terrified of heights but have gone skydiving twice.
B. I pulled a table saw over on myself when I was a year and a half old and crushed three fingers on my right hand. The doctors said they’d never grow. Much prayer. My fingers grew and I play guitar, do sleight of hand, played sports all growing up.
C. I climbed up on the roof of my home when I was three years old and danced over a 26 foot drop to the concrete driveway. My mom enticed me to get off the roof with a cookie and when I reached her she grabbed me and spanked me. I’m still getting over that.

Q: Milk or dark chocolate? Coffee or tea?
A. I’m on a campaign to rid the world of dark chocolate, but since my wife loves it, I’m failing miserably. Coffee 88 percent of the time, tea the other 12 percent.

Q: Favorite TV show or shows?
A. All time: LOST. Current: Survivor and This is Us. (Yes, I admit it, it gets dusty quite often when Darci and I watch the show.)