Francisco X. Stork
Kathie Josephs: Good afternoon Mr. Stork. I am thrilled to be talking to you, and admit I am a little nervous. I appreciate the time you are giving me today.
Francisco X. Stork: It's my pleasure and there is nothing to be nervous about.
KJ: I have a lot of questions so let's begin. The first three books you have written stand alone. Do you see any value for the reader to read them in the sequence you have written them. Will it help them learn more about you the author and your way of writing?
FS: The first one is more of an adult book. The second and third were marketed as young adult books. It makes more sense to read the 2nd and 3rd ones first, if you are interested in stories about young people. The first one is really quite different. You know when authors write their first book, they tend to be more biographical, and so I ask when people read it to be kind. There are some similarities in all three. They all have Mexican American characters and there are certain issues they have in common.
KJ: What amazed me with this book is the way you were able to get completely inside the mind of this young man. I understand that during your college years you worked for the Mental Health Department in Alabama and during your senior year you lived at a developed home that was part of L'Arche where persons with disabilities could interact with the "normal" in order to learn how to better succeed in society. Is this experience the only research you did for this book?
FS: No. I think when I was writing the book those instances certainly came to mind, but once I realized the character would probably be diagnosed as having some sort of high functioning Autism probably Asperger's syndrome I began to do more research in that area. What really interested me the most were some of the autobiographies that I read. Some people with Asperger's Syndrome are very intelligent. Also, when the second book came out, I was invited to talk to schools in the Southwest. Most schools today have special need classes, and I would make a point of meeting with and talking to the teachers and kids in these classes so I could get an idea of how they talked and acted.
KJ: When Marcelo was asked to describe the music inside his head, he couldn't find the right words because none of the words he came up truly explained the music, I thought about how I would describe it and it was a very difficult thing to do. How did you know about the music? How much of this book is real?
FS: (Laughter) Are you asking me if I hear music in my head?
KJ: (Laughter) No. What I am asking is if you have a special friend that you were able to talk to about this music?
FS: Well, I do have a young cousin that was diagnosed with this disability, but that isn't where I got the idea. With things like hearing music, when I first started writing the book, I didn't set out to write about someone specifically with Asperger's Syndrome. I was writing about a character that had certain qualities. For example, someone in my mind who was very Holy and saint-like and they would hear this connection and would be interested in religious themes. They would hear this kind of music. It is very difficult to describe, but a lot of Holy people have reported that they hear that music.
KJ: I didn't know that. It's very interesting.
FS: Yes, and when I started to think about the qualities this young man would have, it seemed likely that he would like to be alone, he would be very orderly, and would have difficulty in navigating in the modern world on the streets with all the noises. So it was at that time that I knew he would be diagnosed with high functioning Autism.
KJ: Your first book was directed for adults and your next two were directed to young adults. Why did you switch audiences?
FS: You know I have always been interested in working with young people. I think the age between 14 and 18 is crucial age and I remember many important things happened in my life when I was that age. When I first started writing the second and third books, the characters became young people. When my agent began to distribute these books to see who would be interested in them, the publishers that were interested were those who specialized in young adult literature. When I first started writing them I didn't say to myself this is going to be a young adult book. Instead, I just wrote about young people and the market for that is different than for adults.
KJ: Do you think you will every find yourself writing for a much younger child?
FS: I could see that. It would be kind of fun to do.
KJ: Do you think that in the books you write for young adults the main character will always have specific problem that must be overcome and learned from?
FS: I think that one of the things that characterize young adult literature is this sense of growth that takes place during the novel. I think an adult book can be written without that. A young adult book in my mind has this need for the character to overcome something. I don't think the problem will always be a disability like Marcelo had. There will always be a conflict that whether external or internal that will be resolved in the inner growth of the character.
KJ: You seem to a good understanding that vital young adult period. How do you get your information? Was it through personal experience?
FS: Well, my wife would say it was because I have never grown up. (Laughter) I do remember that period, but I have a lot of interaction with young kids through different venues. For example, I talk at schools and I do a confirmation class at church. But when I write, I try not to be condescending to them. I can't imitate the way they talk. There are some things I just can't do, but I try to stay as close as I can to the way a young person would perceive the world.
KJ: I am curious if you will ever have your main character be a girl or are you more comfortable since you are a man and have gone thought the different phases of male growth that you will stick with boys.
FS: I would really like to write from the young woman's prospective. It is like a challenge and I am a little bit afraid as to whether I could pull it off. Right now I am reading a lot of novels that have been written by men where the characters are women. Some of them are able to pull it off and some don't.
KJ: When you begin your book, do you personally see a situation that affects you in a way that sticks in your head and you feel compelled to write about it? If not, where does your story idea come from?
FS: In the case of Marcello I think it just took a long time for the idea to evolve, and it was going in different directions. In the beginning the story was more about the mother and then when I got to Marcello, he became more interesting. I believe the story begins when you perceive the voice of a character, how he sounds to you, how he speaks, and how he thinks.
KJ: Why would you start thinking about voice?
FS: You start one day and it sort of comes to you. You have a very vague idea of what you want to write about, then you come up with a character, and then you wait for the voice to come. Finally you start writing. Later there is a lot of revision. I guess I would say that the character and voice come first, and then a storyline and the plot. Here I had this character and wondered what happens to him.
KJ: In your author's note, you said it took you years to complete this book. When you wrote this book was it a daunting experience for you or did you think, "Yes, I can do this"?
FS: I had to convince myself that all I could do was within my own powers. I knew that it could be a real challenge, but you know we just have to stay humble and do our best. My job was to basically write a couple of hours each day. That was my task and then what happens after that would be out of my control.
KJ: While you were writing were you ever surprised as how you had Marcello react in specific situations?
FS: There are some things that I didn't know before hand and how they would come out. I struggled with that. There were many times I had to stop and wait and see what direction Marcello was going to take. One time he surprised me in the scene where he goes a second time to see the Rabbi and he seems to have lost a little bit of his ability to remember and to read the Holy books.
KJ: In all honesty I was almost afraid to read the end of the book. I knew what I wanted Marcello's decision to be. He was a real person to me. That is how well your wrote this book. Without giving the ending away did you know how the book would end before you wrote it or did it come to you as you were writing it?
FS: No I didn't know how it was going to end. I knew it was going to have a positive ending. I knew the ending would not be clear-cut and would have some ambiguity about it.
KJ: I know you have a fourth book due to come out some time in March 2010.
FS: The title they have given it is The Gun, The Rose and the Parico. It is by the same publisher and will be out in the spring of 2010.
KJ: After your book is published and you can't change it, do you ever have hindsight? Like, "I wish I had had him do this or why didn't I develop this further"?
FS: Not really hindsight. The only time that happened was in my second book. A very intelligent boy ends up in reformatory school. When it is time to leave, he is given a choice of either staying at the school one more year as an assistant helping the other kids or going to college. Because of who he was, I had him stay and then maybe go to college after that. I had a lot of people who read the book say that that was a mistake, so I think I had a little bit of doubt in my mind. Once the book is written I tend not to think about it and go on to the next one.
KJ: I have two more questions. What was the most surprising thing you learned about yourself in creating these books?
FS: That's a very good question. Let's see, I think the most surprising thing is that I was able to become the other person in a way. I had this actor like ability to get into the role of the person I am writing about. While I am speaking on behalf of that person, I am that character. In a novel you are going to have to move back and forth. One second you are Marcello and the next second you are Wendell.
KJ: In the book Marcelo in the Real World, when the family goes on a trip every night the mother asks everyone in the family what their favorite part of the day was. Marcello has a problem responding as he has so many things that he liked. I am going to make this a little more difficult and ask what your favorite thing this whole week has been for you.
FS: (Laughter) I like that. Well this interview is not a bad part. I really enjoyed talking about the book with you. I'm not just saying that I enjoy talking about the books and it makes me think and helps me with the process of creation.
KJ: That was a great answer! Thank you so much for your time and I will anxiously await your fourth book.
Contributor: Kathie Josephs
Reviews
Marcelo in the Real World
Francisco X. Stork
What an amazing book! Once I read the first page, I absolutely could not put it down. Marcelo hears internal music that no one else can hear. He has a condition similar to Asperger's Syndrome and sees a doctor who keeps asking him what the internal music sounds like, but he just can't find the best word to describe it. Marcelo is happy and successful while working with ponies at the riding stables that are part of the special school he attends. Then. his father tells Marcelo that he wants him to work in the mailroom of his law firm so that he can interact with the "real" world. He also explains that if Marcelo does this, he can choose if he wants to return to the special school or be mainstreamed into a regular education classroom for his senior year. It's a big decision, but he does work in the mailroom. There, he meets Jasmine and Wendall. Situations occur that involve feelings and situations Marcelo has never been exposed to (e.g., desire, anger, jealousy, doing the wrong thing to get ahead instead of doing the right thing just because it is right). In addition, he learns something about his father that was he was never supposed to know and sees a picture of a girl with half a face that changes everything for him and the law firm. I felt that we should all be more like Marcelo when making decision and just do the right thing. The wisdom the author put in this story far exceeds anything I have read in a long time. This book is warm, touching, intelligent, and excellently written. 2009, Arthur A. Levin Books/Scholastic, Ages 14 up, $17.95. Reviewer: Kathie Josephs
ISBN: 978-0-545-05474-4
ISBN: 0-545-05474-5
Added 07/30/09
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