The Blade Itself: A Novel by Marcus Sakey
The Hype Really is All That
I caught the Marcus Sakey hype when I was clicking through Sarah Weinman's Blog, Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind, and I was really intrigued with all the buzz. Basically, a debut author from the streets of Chicago had penned a book that landed him a two-book contract at St. Martin's Minotaur, a four-book contract with Dutton, and a movie deal with Ben Affleck & Matt Damon. Not a bad start from the gate! Well...what about the writing? I ordered my copy & had it shipped. I took a weekend to read it. My verdict? Raw, brilliant, and suspenseful! Sakey has written a book that will make your skin prick with tension and anticipation to the very last page. So when you read amazing blurbs about this book by top-tier crime writers like T. Jefferson Parker, George Pelecanos, and Lee Child, it makes sense. But, it's still amazing to watch such a stellar take-off to stardom! It's the kinda of stuff American dreams are made it.
Book Summary
After a job goes horribly wrong--a shop owner is shot--small-time burglar Danny Carter leaves the crime business behind for good. He is now a well-paid, respected construction manager in Chicago with a great girlfriend and a comfortable life. Then his former partner in crime, Evan McGann, is released from prison with plans to resume their alliance. Danny isn't interested, but Evan threatens to expose Danny's past, including his presence when the shop owner was shot; worse, he accosts Danny's girlfriend, Karen. Trapped, Danny agrees to Evan's plan: kidnap the son of Danny's boss. Danny hopes that he will be able to keep anyone from getting hurt, but it quickly becomes apparent that Evan can't be controlled. Fast pacing, full-bodied if flawed characters, effective use of the Chicago landscape, surprising plot twists, and some thought-provoking musings on the changing nature of longtime friendships give this debut caper novel both substance and suspense. Sakey is a writer to watch. Connie Fletcher From Booklist {Yes! That's the fabulous Connie Flecther that Modern Girl Style interviewed in November! It seems that she has got some great taste in books!}
The Author
As Marcus Sakey will admit to anyone:
"Ten years in advertising and marketing gave me the perfect experience to write about thieves and killers."
The Interview
Modern Girl Style had to get a glimpse at how Marcus Sakey does what he does so well... 
1. I’m sure you’ve already heard this, but THE BLADE ITSELF was a brilliant novel. It was also your first novel. Was it hard to convince your family and friends that you had left your day job to write a novel?
First off, thank you. I appreciate it. As for leaving the day job, funny story. I worked in a small ad agency that was driving me up the wall. I'd come home and gripe to my wife night after night. Then one evening, she pointed out something I should have thought of--I could quit.
So we spent the evening talking about it, about how I'd always wanted to write a novel and how maybe this was the right time. And I decided to quit the next morning.
Except when I came in to the office, I was promptly fired.
Honestly. Layoffs. So it kind of felt like the universe was giving me a push. 2. What inspired you to write this novel? How did you discover the characters, the structure, and the story?
Before I started, I spent a couple of months writing short stories and trying to figure out what I wanted to commit to. Then one evening I was walking home, down the nice block to my nice apartment where my nice wife waited, and it hit me--all of that could be taken away. In other words, the things we love are the things that make us vulnerable.
It was an electric moment, and I seized it. By the time I'd made it to my door, I'd come up with the most elemental part of the conflict: a man who had changed his life for the better, and another one who was willing to exploit everything my protagonist loved in order to get what he wanted.
After that, it was a couple of months of work to figure out the details, to explore the characters, and to tie a structure to the thing. But it really began in that moment.
3. What is a typical work day like for you? Are there certain things that you have to have, like a cup of coffee, to get things rolling? How many hours do you tend to put in?
When I started doing this, I would spend the morning pacing around, trying to put words together, and failing miserably. By lunchtime, I had convinced myself I had no talent, that this was a waste of time, that there was no way I was going to make even my daily quota, much less a completed book.
Then, after lunch, I'd sit down and type my damn words.
After about a year, it hit me that maybe the afternoon was the best time for me to write. So I started doing email and promotional stuff in the morning, and not trying to write until after lunch. Which seems to work well, and certainly involves less self-loathing.
As for the hours, I try to work a day-job schedule. But I don't like to quit without getting at least 1,000 words that I intend to keep. And if I'm on a roll, I go with it. You never know when that energy will strike again.
4. Who doesn’t love a page-turner! How did you craft the psychological tension and suspense in your novel?
It's mostly a matter of really believing in your characters. If you get to know them, to understand what matters to them and to put yourself in their head, then the tension comes naturally.
Also, you always try to think of how you could make it worse. With every decision, every action, every page. The old adage for suspense is drive your characters up a tree, and then throw rocks at them. Thrillers basically tap into the same part of people that gets a sick pleasure out of pulling the wings off flies.
Only, you know, without the evil.
5. As they say, writing is rewriting. Once you had the first draft complete of THE BLADE ITSELF, how much work did you have to put into bringing it to completion? What did you learn from the process and what advice can you offer to other writers?
I tend to rewrite as I go, so once I finish a draft, it's fairly coherent, and parts of it I've gone over a dozen times. After that, I like to put it away for as close to a month as my deadline allows. When I come back to it, I read the whole thing in a day, marker the hell out of it, and go to work.
The trickiest part is not letting yourself get tied into the decisions you make. As much as possible, you need to stay fluid, to remember that anything, even major plot points, can change if it will make for a better book. That's a really, really tough skill to master, and I'm nowhere close yet. It's just something I'm working towards.
BONUS QUESTION!!
Well...Modern Girls love to gossip! Is it true that THE BLADE ITSELF is being turned into a major motion picture with Ben Affleck & Matt Damon? If so, what can you tell us about the project?
It is true. Or more precisely, it's true that Ben Affleck and Matt Damon's production company bought the rights to make it into a film for Miramax. As for whether either of them will star, who knows? I'd certainly be thrilled, but it's out of my hands.
What I can say is that it looks like the same team who just did Gone Baby Gone will likely be working on my novel. That's got me giddy, because the film, which was adapted from a Dennis Lehane novel, is flat-out terrific. It's got tension and atmosphere and theme by the handful, and at the same time is just a hell of a ride.
Want to learn more? Head over to Poe's Deadly Daughters for a first-rate interview with Marcus Sakey!
