On the SOLID VOX™ Network, EGOIST with Martin Lindeskog speaks with Edward Cline, author of the acclaimed Sparrowhawk adventure novels.
Ed Cline (pictured left) talks at length about the novel writing process, including the way he approaches background research, character and plot, and even the choosing of names for his characters.
I was most impressed by Ed Cline’s clarity of thought, expansive imagination, and dedication to the Founding Ideals of America – all of which comes together in the form of his adventure novels.
After Martin Lindeskog finished speaking with Ed Cline, I asked him: With the enormous immersion in historical and cultural facts and figures that he has to constantly do, how does he stay creative? A lot of people who have a “research type” mentality don’t tend to have a “creative type” mentality. They seem to be two distinctly different types of thinking.
This is what I got from his answer – and it’s probably mixed in with my own views on this issue:
What mattered was how the facts are treated. Each bit of information is viewed as a potential springboard or starting point.
For instance, the name “Frake” from Ed Cline’s first novel, Jack Frake, was derived from noting the early meaning of the word “freak”.
What was interesting was that a “freak” back then (probably spelt a bit differently) didn’t have the same derogatory/mocking sense that it has today. It meant a unique, distinctive person who stood out. And this was treated as good thing.
The dictionaries I’ve checked don’t know the origin of the term “freak”. But I wonder if it’s related to fracas derived from the Italian fracasso, which comes from fracassare “to shatter.”
So, when a creative person researches facts he finds what is surprising or curious about them and works on how this can be used to come up with something new. The facts are launching pads. He’s not just categorizing the facts, he’s connecting them and playing with their possibilities.
Hmm … maybe the creative person uses facts to create a fracas? 
Listen, download, or podcast Martin Lindeskog’s interview with Edward Cline @