The New Jersey Children’s Writer’s Guild

This month, NJCWG member Kathi Kurz interviews Bruno Grigoletti, author of The Soul Patrol.

Hello, Bruno, and Welcome to The Writer’s Journey!

Kathi: I understand that your literary journey started with short stories, poetry and contributions to magazines.  How did you get from there to writing full-length novels?

Bruno: When I started out many years ago, my main focus of writing was poetry and free form prose pieces.  I eventually evolved into writing short stories, which I still enjoy doing to this day.  There is a great challenge in hooking a reader and creating a story that must have all the same critical elements of a longer tale but with the limitation of nine thousand words or less.  The sad side to the short story is that it is much less commercially appreciated and much harder to sell nowadays.  Since the creation of more mass media outlets over the last fifty years, most people don’t bother with a monthly periodical that solicits the short story format.  There are exceptions to this rule, but many of these types of magazines tend to be read only by other short story writers not the general public.  Reader’s Digest is the one monthly venue that is still mainstream but their material tends to be more non-fiction based.  It seems any more that unless you are willing to write in a novel format, selling your work becomes far more difficult, so I decided to try my hand at it.

Kathi: So you wrote short stories for magazines?

Bruno: Actually, I have a couple of adult pieces under review by Weird Tales magazine. They are an adult format more for those fans of Poe, Lovecraft and Gaiman. If you like short stories with a real surreal flavor then this magazine would suit you well. I hope to hear from them over the next several weeks regarding the submissions I did called, Oubliette and Five Days.

Kathi: While you were in high school you received honors at a young writer’s workshop from Lafayette College in Pennsylvania.  This helped you recognize your passion for writing.  What other influences helped shape your passion for writing?

Bruno:  I was also a voracious reader as a child.  My father was in the navy and we were stationed in Puerto Rico until I was seven.  There were other children on the base but much of my time was spent alone.  Having no siblings, I found that books and music were my best friends growing up during those early years.  I tried becoming a drummer, but I found that while I was good enough to play, writing came far more naturally to me. When we moved back to New Jersey and into a small quaint neighborhood in Washington, I made plenty of friends.  It’s funny, I recall most of the time when we were bored they would ask me to invent some new idea or story for a game to play.  I guess since then I’ve been one of those people who have a story to tell.

Kathi: You are a naturally creative individual. What other literary recognitions have you received?

Bruno: I have only just gotten back into writing again after a near fourteen-year hiatus.  Life has a way of catching you off guard.  Marriage, children and switching jobs caused me to place my own passions on the proverbial back burner.  Now that my children are coming around and getting a bit more self sufficient, it was time to get my hands dirty again and take another crack at it, and I’m glad I did.

Kathi: Did you consider another career choice before realizing your ability to write?

Bruno: Yes.  Since I had a family to provide for it became imperative that I found a more steady nine to five type job.  In the beginning I tried to balance both but it was difficult.  Maybe I just wasn’t ready to take the leap of faith that is needed to write a book for the general public, who knows.

Kathi: You have two “tween” daughters.  How do they inspire your writing?

Bruno: As a parent, your children inspire almost every aspect of your life, so yes they also inspire my writing.  When I decided to try my hand at writing again, my instincts took me to the familiar ground of adult fiction.  I began getting some positive feedback and my eldest daughter asked if I would in fact write a short story that she and her friends could enjoy.  So I wrote, B.F.F. (Best Friends Forever) which The Soul Patrol is based on.  When she loved the concept and her friends asked for more, I decided to go for it and write the full novel.

Kathi: I completely agree having two young children myself.  Are they your reason for targeting that audience?

Bruno: Yes.  After the interest from my daughters’ peers, I wanted to try and write something that they could enjoy now, not ten years from now.  Most of my other fiction is adult based with heavier moods and themes.  This though, has not only been fun for me but also a real learning experience.  I was constantly forced to review what I was doing and make sure it fit within a duel tiered comfort zone.  As an author I wanted to press buttons and send a message that would possibly make a difference to a young adult that read the book.  I wanted it real in the sense of character reaction and language.  As a parent however, I had to keep things in perspective and police my own imagination so as not to drive the story to far in a direction that might make my new audience nervous or intimidated.

Kathi: How did you arrive at the concept for “The Soul Patrol?”

Bruno: My children have had a pretty charmed life so far.  Both sets of grandparents are still with us, and on my side, a full set of great parents as well.  My kids have not yet had to face losing someone who they are close to and love.  I wanted to prepare them a bit, answer some of their questions and soothe some of the fears that I know they are sure to have when the time comes to say goodbye to a loved one.  But the book had to be written in a way that would not “overwhelm” them to the point where it became a manual on how to deal with loss.  I wanted it to be subtle and tied around a story they could enjoy and maybe even re-read as time goes on.

Kathi: This book touches upon some pretty serious life issues, those being divorce and the death of a friend.  Has personal experience played a part in the development of this story?

Bruno: I have never been divorced but have had friends whose parents have and friends who have recently divorced who have children.  So, while I have no firsthand experience with this part of the story there are numerous personal accounts and research that I drew upon to help me tap into those emotions and situations.  The other part unfortunately I do have experience with.  I went to a small school with a graduating class somewhere just over one hundred and yet by my senior year, we had lost seven friends.  I myself have had two near brushes with death as well. One when I was five and the other seven years ago when I fell seriously ill with a staph infection.  So, that part of the story was very easy to capture.

Kathi: As you continue the series with “Five Against One,” can we expect to see the characters mature and encounter other life issues?

Bruno: Absolutely.  In the next book Caitlin and Nicole are going to run into a very mean spirited young lady who moves into the neighborhood and begins a campaign to harass and undermine every personal relationship that Caitlin has made.  In time, The Soul Patrol gang will have some heavy and serious issues to deal with including, Internet bullying, school lockdowns and ambushing of a single child by several enemies at once.  Five Against One will definitely show some of the darker and more mature aspects of “tween” rivalries. But in the end, well let’s leave that as a surprise for now.

Kathi: Why did you decide to give the second book in the series a different name?

Bruno: The book will be called, The Soul Patrol Returns in… Five Against One so the first book is also the series title from this point on.

Kathi: Other than this series, what are some of your other literary aspirations?

Bruno: One day, after I’ve handled the series I would like to try my hand at writing for the adult market.  I have several manuscripts that I would like to pursue and a few twists that might be interesting for them.  But for now, The Soul Patrol is the primary focus of my attention.

Kathi: Have you continued writing for magazines, short stories and poetry?

Bruno: Yes.  Short stories are the creative element that I use to capture the main idea of my future novels.  I like to see if the idea behind the story works and if it does then all I need to do is embellish it and violá, I have my book from an abridged to an unabridged format.

Kathi: What a great way to test your audience.  Have your short stories and poetry been published?

Bruno: Several of my prose pieces were published years ago in an anthology called Shadow of the Mind.

Kathi: How can people find “Shadow of the Mind?”

Bruno: Well, I’m not really sure anymore. I guess Lafayette College would still have a copy and I think my parents do as well. I tried to find one for myself a few years ago and ran into a dead end. It’s a shame because the piece I wrote for that book was one of my early favorites.

Kathi: Who are some of your favorite authors?

Bruno: I have several authors that I love and all for very different reasons: Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, who I thank every time I read Frankenstein because to me it is the most amazing novel ever penned; Frank Herbert for his vision; Gene Shepherd for his wit and charm; and Neil Gaiman.  No other author has excited me more over the last fifteen years than Neil.

Kathi: What are some of your other interests?

Bruno: I am a huge ice and field hockey fan.  I love these sports, and my youngest daughter who plays field hockey I had the privilege to coach this year.  I also love European history, and I am a mild enthusiast for high end sports cars.

Kathi: Lastly, what piece of advice do you have for writers just starting out in this business?

Bruno: Test the waters.  That’s the best advice I can give.  Family and friends are not always the best or most impartial judges of your work.  Get people who don’t know you to invest some time, find a freelance editor, do what it takes to see if your idea’s and creations are commercially viable.  There are a million great manuscripts out there, but if the people controlling the money have little faith that they can make a profit on them, they are simply stories that will never be shared.  That doesn’t mean totally give up your artistic vision, not everyone shares the same tastes to be sure.  But, you must find a way to get your vision into a format that others will appreciate and accept.  Later, after you’re a household name, then go out and shock them with something new…it’s all about timing.

Kathi: That is some great advice, Bruno.  Thank you so much for your time.

Thanks for sharing your story with The Writer’s Journey, Bruno!

Editor’s Note: The next book in Bruno’s Soul Patrol series, Five Against One, is scheduled for release this summer. Visit Bruno’s site at www.bgrigoletti.com.

Kathi Kurz is an aspiring author who lives in central New Jersey with her husband and two small children.