Rem’s Chance received a 4+ star review, making it an IndieReader Approved title.
Following find an interview with author Dave J. Andrae.
What is the name of the book and when was it published?
The book is titled Rem’s Chance. It was released June 3, 2024 on paperback and eBook.
What’s the book’s first line?
“They left Fort Myers at half past midnight, saying little to each other once they got in the car.”
What’s the book about? Give us the “pitch”.
The logline describes Rem’s Chance as “a Florida novel that melds literary fiction with gritty crime and mystery elements, romance, and insights into an aging Generation X.” Overall, I think the novel’s value lies in the way that it rhythmically blends together different elements, and how this creates a unique aura. The reader is introduced to a handful of characters in southwest Florida with differing approaches to life. Some of the contrasts between the characters are subtle while others are more drastic, with the implication being that different modes of living can end up factoring into vastly different outcomes. Par for the course for my writing thus far, there’s a lot of cultural commentary in the mix, some witty banter about art, the social world, aging, and so on. The novel has its share of humorous moments, as well as some sexier parts. In my view, these aspects render the story readable just as much as its crime plotting, which is faint at first but moves into higher gear amid the back half.
What inspired you to write the book? A particular person? An event?
The book takes place in the early post-pandemic era, or around when Covid-19 had started to feel less daunting, in the fall of 2021. This was a curious cultural moment because I think a lot of people were forced to reckon with what they wanted to do with their lives, how to maybe pick up the pieces and begin again.
In my case, I decided to write another book. That was my main mode of self-actualization at the time, though it wasn’t easy, and I didn’t have much breathing room. In the case of the main character Rem Bruxvoort, at the beginning of the book his living situation is strained, what with him being forced to cohabitate with an ex-fiancée who despises him. He feels stifled, and at age forty-six only has so much banked up, so he’s grasping for a positive way forward.
What’s the main reason someone should really read this book?
There are so many entertainment options out there. I think if someone were to read my two books, watch the better films I’ve made as a writer-director, and listen to some of my more fleshed-out music, the impression they might get is that I bring an eccentric form of thoughtfulness to the table. Making and releasing art, for its own sake, is something I’ve been committed to for decades now. I’m more interested in the work itself than its stature or whatever social and economic capital I might be able to wring from it, much as I don’t mind being well thought of or making money. So there’s a relative purity of expression at hand, in that I tend to believe it starts with the work and it ends with the work. That’s where I put my emphasis. Whatever love I have for the world often finds its purest outlet in the art I make anyway. So in a real sense, a book like Rem’s Chance is “the main event.” The things surrounding the work I do aren’t always unimportant, but they tend to feel secondary.
What’s the most distinctive thing about the main character? Who-real or fictional-would you say the character reminds you of?
Outwardly, I think the protagonist Rem could be described as a Gen X underachiever, or a “loser” as his ex-fiancée dubs him. But he’s dignified, has a rich inner life, and is cultured enough to know that art can sometimes be good enough to be its own reason for living. He isn’t exactly where he wants to be in life, and isn’t super accomplished, but instead of feeling sorry for himself, he’s willing to have another go at things. Rem is likable enough in and of himself, but I think it’s in his romantic and creative partnership with Julie, and the rekindling of his friendship with Gene, that he becomes most accessible for the reader. He wasn’t modeled after a particular person, and shouldn’t be seen as a proxy for me, but his worldview was informed by an array of influences.
When did you first decide to become an author?
Where the narrative arts are concerned, filmmaking was my first love. That’s what I went to school for and what I spent a good chunk of my twenties and thirties being preoccupied with. So even though I stood to learn much about the craft of novel writing when I began work on my first book, in the spring of 2018, a lot of crucial groundwork was already there. Many issues with narrativity and taste that first-time novelists might grapple with were things with which I was already very familiar.
It’s my second, after The Friends of Allan Renner.
What do you do for work when you’re not writing?
Nothing worth repeating here!
How much time do you generally spend on your writing?
Both of my books took a bit under two and half years to put together. My sleeping schedule can vary wildly, but when I’m in the thick of a chapter, I will usually roll out of bed and start writing first thing in the morning, with my first cup of coffee and a can of La Croix at my desk. If this goes well, it will usually only last for a few hours, with the middle of the day being less productive, but maybe some creative juices starting to return again toward bedtime.
What’s the best and the hardest part of being an indie?
The best part of being an indie author is no deadlines. Nothing moves to the post-production phase until it’s ready. If the manuscript isn’t good enough, it simply doesn’t get published. I can refine it until my heart’s content. I have full control and will even veto a few suggestions from my line editor.
The biggest drawback is probably a general lack of legitimacy bestowed upon one’s work. Among the larger conversations in the book world, independently published authors are easily brushed off. Then again, what with millions and millions of books out there, it’s hard to say for sure how widely read any current author’s work will be well after the fact. In one way or another, we’re all at the mercy of time.
What’s a great piece of advice that you can share with fellow indie authors?
Don’t wait for the circumstances to be ideal before you begin. In my experience, the circumstances for creating are almost never ideal and even if they are, they won’t stay that way for long. So if you have it in you, get down to it.
Virginia Woolf’s quip, “For heaven’s sake, publish nothing before you’re thirty,” is sound advice, but it need not apply to every writer. I definitely wasn’t ready before thirty, but some aspiring novelists might be.
Would you go traditional if a publisher came calling? If so, why?
Yes, possibly. It would hinge on what the terms of the agreement would be.
Is there something in particular that motivates you (fame? fortune?)
My primary motivation for writing is to create a book that will transcend the moment, to write something I would consider worth reading if I hadn’t written it, to not bore my future self or the would-be reader, assuming he or she is on the level.
Which writer, living or dead, do you most admire?
There is no one writer that I idolize or treat as a compass. In terms of prose style, I’m no more under the sway of Nabokov than I am Raymond Carver. I’ve never felt there’s only one way to write a book, to present experiences or ideas on a page. There is a difference between good and bad writing, but there are variegated permutations of each.
Which book do you wish you could have written?
Tough one. Maybe Georges Bataille’s The Blue of Noon, an early influence, simply because it’s irreverent and good for a laugh, but also artful and intelligent . . . well written!