Jonathan Latt Interview Published on: 21, Jun 2023
What were your childhood dreams? Did you always want to be an author?
Well, there was that two-week period when I was around 8 or 9 when I wanted to be the Millenium Falcon. Not Han Solo mind you, but the actual ship. No, I do not have any reasonable answer as to why. Then I wanted to be an oceanographer...on a trip to the beach with my family it was discovered that I have an intense fear of the ocean. This would seem to be a major hinderance in the life of an oceanographer so again, it was not meant to be. Then there was the usual slew of aspirations a young man would have; President, Pirate, Assassin, Mob Boss, Certified Public Accountant and Leader of the sewer dwelling Mole People. I had never considered doing anything as daunting as writing a novel until about 10 years ago. I have worked as a script doctor and consultant in film and television since my early thirties and I guess as I grew more confident in my writing this just seemed to be a natural evolution. I absolutely love writing novels and will continue to do so for as long as I can.
Do you remember the first story you ever read, and the impact it had on you?When I was very young, I wasn't much of a reader. I would read for school and such but never really enjoyed it. So, I think the appropriate answer for this question would be to tell you the first book I read that really turned me on to reading and that book was Tunnel in the Sky by Robert Heinlein. I was about 13 or so and read it in a couple of days, that was my gateway drug and from there I was hooked. I've been a voracious reader ever since.
What is your strongest memory, as a child, of your parents and what were you all doing at the time?My strongest childhood memory is waiting in line to see Star Wars A New Hope on a hot summer day when I was 8, holding my dad's hand in the long line that snaked around the cinema. Other than that, it's really a bunch of small memories. My mother cooking bubble and squeak for all of us on a rainy Sunday, Going to England every other summer to be with family and wandering the streets of Bath with my cousins. A family trip to Yosemite, lots of those awesome little memories. I had a really nice childhood...honestly, I have no excuse for being as screwed up as I am.
What inspired you to become a writer, and what drives you to continue writing?An old business partner of mine convinced me to start writing. I started out in film and television and have slowly transitioned to novels. The first script I ever wrote was so much fun and felt so natural I was basically hooked from there. I have found that aside from writing being something that I truly love to do, it is incredibly therapeutic. My drive to continue writing is a combination of wanting to get better with every story I tell and making people happy with those stories.
How do you approach the process of writing a story, and what steps do you take to ensure it is well-written and engaging?Each story seems to take on a life of its own and each time the process is slightly different. I think in terms of ensuring it is well written and engaging, I use beta readers for feedback and of course try to remove my ego from the process which is a lot harder than it should be. In the end I simply write something that I think I might enjoy and hope others will as well.
Can you describe your writing style, and how you developed it over time?I guess my writing style could best be described as fun and sincere. I was raised on 80s and 90s films that had a certain narrative style and think that has influenced me a lot in my writing. However, I like to think my characters are a little more three dimensional than say your typical 80s buddy action movie.
What has been the most challenging aspect of writing your first novel, Starlite, for you, and how have you dealt with it?Starlite is actually my second novel but it is the first one I've done all by myself. My first novel The Geek was with a very small publishing company and I didn't really enjoy the experience. I would say I learned how not to publish a book by working with them. So while the writing was the fun part and mostly comes easily to me, it was actually the publishing part that was incredibly challenging. I taught myself indesign and did the layout and cover myself, hired the editor and found a great printer in Canada (Marquis press) that I think did a great job with the paperback. While it's a lot of pressure having to do everything, and I did still make some minor mistakes I am incredibly happy that I have learned new skills that will carry over to my future work.
Can you discuss a particular project or piece of writing that you are particularly proud of, and why it was meaningful to you?I'm actually very proud of Starlite for all the reasons I mentioned in the previous answer and writing a sci-fi novel is very meaningful to me as it's the genre that got me addicted to reading when I was a child.
What's the strangest thing you have ever had to research online for your debut book?Well for Starlite I did a lot of research into superfluid dynamics. It's back story mostly but there's chunks of chapters that talk about how space flight works in my novel's universe. I did quite a bit of resarch on quantum entanglement as it relates to the possibility that outer space is in fact a superfluid. In the end I reached out to some quantum physicists and a very nice professor from MIT exchanged a few emails with me and was incredibly patient and helpful.
What advice do you have for aspiring writers who want to break into the industry and establish themselves as successful professionals?First, don't be afraid to write and re-write. Listen to people's opinions about your story but in the end you have to do what you think is best for the story you want to tell. Also, never write what you think people want to read always write the story you want to tell. Readers will find you.
How do you adapt your writing style and approach to meet the needs of different audiences or clients?I don't really. I write the story I feel compelled to tell knowing that just by sheer population numbers on the planet there will be people who enjoy it. Now, in regards to script doctoring and consulting, each client is different and I work with them on the voice they're looking for.
How do you handle writer's block, and what techniques do you use to overcome it?I actually use Legos for writer block. They're great. I have a bunch of those really small sets of Legos in a cupboard and when I'm stuck I will take one out and build exactly what's on the box, then I take it apart and just build some random stuff. Nine out of ten times it works and unsticks me.
How do you balance your own creative vision with the expectations and demands of readers or publishers?Since I self publish and I actually think most people should, I don't worry about publisher expectations since I know I want as close to perfection as I can get. As for readers, I think the ones that find my book are looking for the type of story I'm telling and will usually enjoy it. I think its death to write what you think someone wants to read.
What are your future goals and aspirations as a writer, and how do you plan to achieve them?I just plan to keep writing. I juggle the books with my day job of script doctoring and consulting in film and tv so that sometimes gets in the way of the novels, hence such a long time between my first and second book. However, Covid changed a lot of things in the industry and I am concentrating more on the books now. I plan to write about seven or eight more novels and then retire and go back to school to get a hard science degree for fun.
Finally, how has your time with AllAuthor impacted your life and your writing so far? What other measures could be taken on this site to cater better to the needs of the authors?I really do think it's a great site and have found it incredibly helpful in promoting the book and don't really know more that you all could do. I find it is a great tool in the writer's toolbox which should consist of various marketing and support aps and strategies.
