I’ve known Tobias S. Buckell and Dave Klecha, as friends and writers, for coming up on twenty years now, so it gives me a special kick to be able to have them both as co-presenters of this particular Big Idea post. They’re talking about their just-released novel The Runes of Engagement, which answers the question: What if you took a squad of Marines and had them run a real-life role-playing adventure? Here are Tobias and Dave, in conversation about what it took for them to roll on this particular initiative.
TOBIAS S. BUCKELL AND DAVE KLECHA:
Tobias: Right. So you know how they say the best ideas come to you in the shower? I’ve read that this is because the shower is a protected creative space: you’re not on your phone, or being interrupted by phone calls, and the routine is automatic. This gives your mind time to wander, to be creative, and you can be hit by just sudden jolts of total euphoria. This is where BIG IDEAS come from! And my totally awesome Big Idea is so brilliant, so awesome, so cool, it’s going to convince every single one of your readers to just run out and pick up this book right–
Dave: Wait, wasn’t this OUR idea? I can assure you it did not appear during a shared shower… so maybe we should tag who is speaking.
Tobias: Right, right, that’s super presumptive of me. Unlike most of the Big Ideas, I can’t say THE BIG IDEA came just from me because there are two names on the cover. This trick on the readers has been revealed by the Art Department (who we can’t be mad at because, look at that cover. Look at that chonky good boy of a dragon!).
Honestly, I had been hoping to just coast on all your hard work and act as if this entire book was my brilliant fever dream when really, I often have no clue where some of the funniest pieces of this book came from. Dave, what’s your memory of the spark that really animates this whole project? What made us crazy enough to risk our friendship of (whispers) so many years to spend all our free time on a goddamn novel? No one reads anymore anyway, right?
Dave: Okay, first… this definitely hasn’t been all my hard work. I could just as easily say I was hoping to coast on your experience in publishing. But that’s not really how this shook out. What animated this, for me, was the opportunity to do something creative with all of those conversations we’ve had over the years, sharing ideas, cracking each other up, and otherwise driving our wives nuts.
Tobias: Well, first of all, my experience in publishing over 25 years is nothing I want to coast on because it’s been more like the sort of turbulent plane ride that leaves confused readers vomiting in a bag, but that’s nice of you to suggest my career is a ride anyone wants to be a part of. I’m just happy to be in the air, or theme park, I’m sorry I’ve lost control of this metaphor. What I’m trying to say is that we came to this project based entirely on just how much it delighted us, and how much we enjoyed cracking each other up. Taking that experience out for the year(s) it (can) did take us to put this together was a pure delight. I can recall,however, that the earliest seed of this came from a request to write a military fantasy short story for a John Joseph Adams anthology…
Dave: …and of course you thought of me to collab with, since I’m a writer who has actually spent time in the military.
Tobias: That’s it, that’s the ONLY reason I reached out to you. Not 20 years of being close friends or staying up until four in the morning talking about the world. Just your service!
Dave: Right… Not that I want to be just that guy, but I have to admit, I do enjoy writing that kind of stuff, especially when it comes to trying to convey the reality of life on the ground and subverting expectations. These aren’t exactly the Marines one might expect from consuming other military-set stories, after all. The fun part for both of us, though, and what I think is really going to be fun for the reader is also paying homage to various fantasy stories and playing with expectations along the way.
Tobias: I knew we both adored Diana Wynne Jones “Tough Guide to Fantasyland” as well as various fantasy games in common, and tons of books (the obvious and not so obvious). But to be honest, we initially had a tough time finding a way into a ‘military fantasy’ short story, Dave’s experience and my own creativity notwithstanding, we both didn’t have an ‘in’ for a long time. We almost didn’t write the story! Until I was standing in a shower… I’m not even kidding by the way… and I thought I’d ask Dave what he thought about “Marines go to generic Fantasyland: chaos ensues.” That’s a germ of a thought, not a whole story, but it was Dave who came up with the secret sauce that I think made the book something special. Something more than just a gimmick of an idea that I initially had. That was the important soul of this project, the thing that’ll make you go buy it (because look, we’re working here, we’re trying to convince you to spend your heard-earned cash on our little fever dream here), and it is that…
Runes of Engagement: Amazon|Barnes & Noble|Bookshop|Powell’s
Tobias Buckell Socials: Web site|Bluesky|Instagram
Source: The Big Idea: Dave Klecha and Tobias S. Buckell
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