Where did the concept for RUPTURE come from?

Why did you pick RUPTURE as the title?

It's the literal meaning of aortic rupture, the cause of death of the victims.  But I also think of the title as a metaphor for the disruption between medicine and society's trust.

Do you think the high tech direction medicine is going has a downside?  

I think that the technology available to patients today is amazing.  But we as physicians have to know when to contain it.  If you take your car in for repairs, that's exactly what you get.  The medical profession can always intervene with tests and fancy procedures.  Sometimes, however, that intervention is worse than the disease.  But it's against our culture to acknowledge that.  Some aspects of today's medicine scare me.  The technology is so powerful.  Sometimes that power doesn't fit with the complexity of the human body.  It's my experience that the medical profession still finds a way to avoid full disclosure to patients and society.  That creates an infraction that drives my writing.

Is there a lot of A. Scott Pearson in your main character, Eli Branch?

We're both surgeons who believe that our patients can benefit from scientific research.  But Eli's just now getting a healthy dose of skepticism about the business of medicine.  I already have that.  Plus, he's ten years younger, not married, and has no family other than his disabled brother who he takes care of.  He's bigger than I am, and better looking.

You chose Memphis for your story's setting. Why?

I love writing about Memphis.  The city has a certain edge to it, a sense of angst always simmering and ready to blow.  Memphis is a river town whose people have a lot of passion and heart.  Ripe for fiction.  I like to think of Memphis as a main character in my novels.

How would compare being a novelist to being a surgeon?

Both require a life of discipline.  A good surgeon is both craftsman and artist, as is a novelist.  Most people are surprised when I say becoming a novelist can be harder than becoming a surgeon.

It must be difficult finding time to write.

It's definitely a challenge.  I try to get something down each day, even if just a paragraph.  Eventually the paragraphs add up.  Problem is, they don't always fit.

Is there anyone who influences your writing career?

My patients have a big influence on my writing, particularly those who are sick and vulnerable but who face each day with faith and bravery.  The patient's narrative is very important to me as a physician.  As for writers, I admire too many to name.  Those who come to mind:  John Grisham for his sense of place and for championing the common man.  Joshilyn Jackson from Georgia who writes so well she makes me sick.  There's Sue Monk Kidd and Tony Earley.  As a boy, I got lost in Tolkien's world long before his writing was trendy.

Did you outline RUPTURE before you wrote it?

I did not use an outline for RUPTURE.  I did, however, follow a loose outline for the sequel, which I recently finished.  I guess I'm a partial outliner?

Do you attend writers conferences?  Do you recommend them to aspiring writers?

I have attended writer's conferences and believe them to be helpful, both for the craft of writing and for making contacts in the publishing business.

What single piece of advice would you give to aspiring writers who haven't yet broken through?

Most all writers have heard the advice for perseverance, but it's true.  Make a prospective plan for what you will do the moment you receive a rejection.  Make sure the plan moves you forward, not backwards.

RUPTURE is your first published novel, have you written others?  Would you ever dust them off?

I have a completed manuscript that's responsible for filling most of my rejection box.  It's in a different genre, more literary, young adult fiction.  Never say never.

And a personal question!  What does the "A" stand for in A. Scott Pearson?

A stands for Adrian, my grandfather's name.  I used to get a lot of quotes from Rocky.  "Yo, Adrian!"

A. Scott Pearson is a surgeon in Nashville who throws medical dilemmas at his series protagonist, Eli Branch, M.D.  Pearson is a member of the surgical faculty at Vanderbilt University where he teaches on the importance of the patient's narrative in medicine.  RUPTURE is by released by Oceanview Publishing, February, 2009.  For more information, visit www.rupturenovel.com

Contributing editor Andrew Peterson is working on the next novel in a planned series featuring Nathan McBride, a former Marine sniper. FIRST TO KILL is a finalist for the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Awards for Best First Mystery.  Andrew enjoys flying helicopters, scuba diving, long range target shooting, and a very sad round of golf.  He also works as a volunteer firefighter.  Andrew and his wife Carla, live just north of Paso Robles, California. More information about First to Kill by Andrew Peterson, can be found at AndrewPeterson.com