By Laura Benedict

I’ve reviewed books myself on a freelance basis for a Michigan newspaper for over ten years, I’m married to a writer, and I have many writer friends, so I’m deeply aware of how affecting reviews—both positive and negative—can be.

But any writer who says he or she doesn’t read reviews of their books is probably fibbing. It’s a sore, sore temptation to listen in on what folks are saying about your baby, even when you suspect that someone out there is going to claim it’s ugly as sin.

The early word was not great. Two out of the Big Four—Kirkus, PW, Library Journal, and Booklist—were stinkers. They weren’t just bad. They were cruel. And I mean cruel, as in, “who did I piss off to get this kind of treatment?” cruel. As a writer, that was my first, defensive reaction. They couldn’t have possibly read the same book I wrote! The other two were better, but equivocal. I knew I should’ve been grateful: not everyone gets her first book reviewed by the Big Four. I found myself saying stiff-upper-lip things like: “Well, I wanted to run with the big dogs. Guess I’m off the porch, now!”

Journalist and author Emily Benedek recently published her debut novel, RED SEA. In a recent interview with Bookreporter.com reprinted here with permission, Emily discusses her story.

RED SEA chronicles the investigation --- spearheaded by an Israeli Special Forces commander, a counterterrorist expert and an American reporter --- into a major terrorist attack. In this interview with Bookreporter.com's Joe Hartlaub, Benedek explains why she chose to write this book as a work of fiction, even though its information came from one very real source, and discusses the various inspirations behind her characters. She also compares and contrasts writing fiction and nonfiction, shares her thoughts on the current state of homeland security and names a few of the figures --- both literary and otherwise --- who have helped shape her work.

Bookreporter.com: RED SEA concerns an investigation into a terrorist attack that slowly uncovers a plot for an even greater catastrophic attack. The back story regarding the book, however, is almost as fascinating as the novel itself. You originally made contact with an Israeli counterterrorism expert whose story could only be told as a novel; the result is RED SEA. Why did the expert insist that his story be told as fiction? And, even as fiction, did you have problems bringing it to publication? 

By Laura Benedict

I’ve reviewed books myself on a freelance basis for a Michigan newspaper for over ten years, I’m married to a writer, and I have many writer friends, so I’m deeply aware of how affecting reviews—both positive and negative—can be.

But any writer who says he or she doesn’t read reviews of their books is probably fibbing. It’s a sore, sore temptation to listen in on what folks are saying about your baby, even when you suspect that someone out there is going to claim it’s ugly as sin.

The early word was not great. Two out of the Big Four—Kirkus, PW, Library Journal, and Booklist—were stinkers. They weren’t just bad. They were cruel. And I mean cruel, as in, “who did I piss off to get this kind of treatment?” cruel. As a writer, that was my first, defensive reaction. They couldn’t have possibly read the same book I wrote! The other two were better, but equivocal. I knew I should’ve been grateful: not everyone gets her first book reviewed by the Big Four. I found myself saying stiff-upper-lip things like: “Well, I wanted to run with the big dogs. Guess I’m off the porch, now!”

Journalist and author Emily Benedek recently published her debut novel, RED SEA. In a recent interview with Bookreporter.com reprinted here with permission, Emily discusses her story.

RED SEA chronicles the investigation --- spearheaded by an Israeli Special Forces commander, a counterterrorist expert and an American reporter --- into a major terrorist attack. In this interview with Bookreporter.com's Joe Hartlaub, Benedek explains why she chose to write this book as a work of fiction, even though its information came from one very real source, and discusses the various inspirations behind her characters. She also compares and contrasts writing fiction and nonfiction, shares her thoughts on the current state of homeland security and names a few of the figures --- both literary and otherwise --- who have helped shape her work.

Bookreporter.com: RED SEA concerns an investigation into a terrorist attack that slowly uncovers a plot for an even greater catastrophic attack. The back story regarding the book, however, is almost as fascinating as the novel itself. You originally made contact with an Israeli counterterrorism expert whose story could only be told as a novel; the result is RED SEA. Why did the expert insist that his story be told as fiction? And, even as fiction, did you have problems bringing it to publication?