speaking with adam sikes

Quoted from his book:  THE UNDERHANDED
“I don’t care what the experts say—someone put these things in motion through cyberspace and social media. Then fear and anger took over, and the movements fed themselves as mainstream politics moved them forward.”
 
Your bio supports your credibility in writing an espionage novel. You are a Silver Star recipient and a former CIA paramilitary officer. Why did you decide to add Novelist?
My desire to write fiction is fairly simple, I think. Yet, the reasoning behind it is perhaps a little more nuanced. Fundamentally, after all my years in uniform and then with CIA, I wanted to create something that people could appreciate, that entertained, that captivated, that made people think. I had this need to write stories that people would want to read, and when they turned the final page, felt like they’d left a real place and said goodbye to people that they enjoyed getting to know, spending time with, and perhaps wanted to see again.
Like most authors, I’ve been a reader my entire life, and for some books, I can tell you exactly where I was when I read them going all the way back to elementary school. I devoured fantasy, literature, historical fiction, and of course, spy thrillers. In some of the most challenging periods in my life with the Marine Corps or as a paramilitary officer, books gave me joy. And even though they were a form of escape, books grounded me.
Thus, about twelve years ago while on an operation in Africa, I had some time, and that’s when I wrote my first scene for what would become my first book. This book has not been published—the manuscript is in a box in my office—but that was the beginning. And nine years later my first novel, Landslide, debuted. I’ve loved every minute of it.

I very much like your protagonist, Professor William Dresden. He is broken yet equally heroic. What were your thoughts when creating this character?
In addition to serving as a Marine and CIA officer, I am an academically trained historian, and during graduate school, I met a professor about my age. When he was an undergraduate in the 1990s, he’d gone to Bosnia to work in orphanages. When I was a young Marine, I’d served in the Balkans, too. We didn’t know each other at the time, of course, but we both witnessed some of the horrors wrought by that conflict. This shared experience allowed us to bond and we are still friends to this day.
Fast forward fifteen years, and along with two other prominent experiences in my life while in Eastern Europe with CIA, I started formulating the idea for The Underhanded.
I appreciate intelligent mysteries, spy thrillers, and action/adventure stories, and I love when historical elements and conspiracies are woven into the plot. Therefore, I wanted my protagonist to add the intelligent and historical components, yet also have had experiences and a background that would justify his actions as well as his layers and complexity. Professor Dresden was the result …

 Knowing that many of your readers won’t have your extensive background, how do you determine how much background history needs to be given?
I read somewhere to never talk down or underestimate the knowledge of your audience; meaning, don’t explain every little thing or action. But how do you know if your readers will understand a unique aspect of tradecraft in espionage or know about a particular time in history? I think that’s why fiction is a form of art, because we’re trying to walk a line using words to illustrate a story, but not getting bogged down and lost in details and explanations that detract from the plot and characters. Therefore, I try not to spend time excessively explaining real-world events or things, assuming that my readers will already know about them or, if they don’t and want to know more, will quickly look them up. But, if I’ve added fictional elements, that is when I spend a few sentences or paragraphs to give that background or additional insight.

How do you balance that information so your information and explanations don’t slow down the plot?
For my writing, I strive to make the background, the technical explanation, the context, the description, or whatever is—I endeavor to make it part of the action. I don’t want to explain, I want the background to come out in the heat of the narrative. Perhaps the conversation about someone or something’s background will be confrontational with another character, or the use of a technical device will happen just as the security guard is about to come through the door … I want to give just enough so that a reader will believe the events credible, but then get back to the story and characters and keep the plot moving.

I thought it interesting that you placed your protagonists' backstory more towards the end of the story. I found this a good builder to the ending conflicts to climax. As a reader, I continued to gather questions, which you then answered. Did you style this plot structure after other authors you have liked?
I really admire authors who in the beginning of their stories create intrigue about their characters, which they then slowly reveal throughout the narrative. As you said, it’s the idea of creating questions and mysteries that readers want answered, so they keep reading.
Placing a critical element of Professor Dresden’s backstory in the final third of the book was intentional because of what it was. I referenced these aspects of his background—major events—at the beginning of the book, but those experiences were so traumatic and suppressed that he would never discuss them casually. Therefore, I felt I had to put the characters through some shared trials for Professor Dresden to finally reveal that dark history of his life.

Authors that you feel mentored you in this genre?
Without a doubt, James Rollins, Brad Meltzer, Dan Brown, and Steve Berry. I love their work and the blending of historical intrigue with contemporary conspiracies, and I wanted to take those elements and add my perspective and insight having been a US Marine and intelligence officer doing covert action. The result, I feel, was a blend of spy thriller fiction and action/adventure.

Your first book, Landslide, was well-reviewed and received. How did you work to meet the pressure in creating an equal -- not part of the first series-- if not a better second book, The Underhanded?
Thank you for your kind words about my novels. When I am writing my books, ideas for other stories are constantly popping into my head and I don’t want to lose these nuggets. Therefore, I will either write down a short note or, in some cases, take the time to write a quick summary. Consequently, I already had a basic foundation for The Underhanded while I was writing Landslide. And with everything I learned writing Landslide, I built upon that to craft The Underhanded.
And because I am a very diverse reader, I like the idea of being able to write books that are in different genres or that blend genres, and to create series with different storylines and worlds.

​The Underhanded is not part of the first series, yet it ends as if it can be one. Do you plan to continue the characters or antagonist?
Absolutely. I’m writing the next book in the series now.

The series pressure is now on. Readers are waiting--One book a year needs to be published.  Have you found your writing schedule has changed? Plotting more?
Writing requires time and discipline—you have to make the effort to write every single word and eventually put approximately 90,000 of them together in a coherent stream. However, due to other personal and professional commitments including having a family with two young children, I must carve out time in the day to write. It’s tough, but I have chosen a routine where I wake up a little after 4am and write for a few hours before the day begins. That is my protected time when it is still dark outside, I have my coffee, and the rest of the house is still asleep. And then, if I can find a stolen moment later in the day or if I’m not too tired at night, I’ll edit or focus on other aspects of being an author like promotion or outreach or preparation for upcoming events and conferences.

What are you working on now? Will we soon find the second in the Mason Hackett series?
I have three projects going on right now. I just finished the manuscript for the sequel to Landslide, and Mason Hackett will return with a vengeance as he tries to thwart a Russian plot to destabilize NATO and penetrate a CIA operation. I also just started writing the sequel to The Underhanded where Professor William Dresden and Adeline Parker team up with a mysterious operative to subvert the machinations of an authoritarian leader in Eastern Europe. And the third project is a memoir of a contemporary of the Kennedys, the late John Carl Warnecke. I am working with the family as the editor for the memoir, and this book should be coming out in the next year.

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