Irie Parker: Twisted Consequences
Book Club Favorites
April 16, 2009. Queenie C gets in-depth with author Irie Parker about his new-age romance, Twisted Consequences.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
This
was a very interesting topic for a book. Online dating sites are common right now. Why led you to choose this topic for a novel?
The
idea of using technology to assist in mate selection has always fascinated me. The possibilities seem endless, and it sure is a convenient way to
socialize. At least, some marketing department wants us all to think this way. Seriously, I felt that reading their e-mails from an online date
site was a good way to learn about the two characters.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
There were some characters that played a minor role in your book, Rex and "Busy Body" for example. What is their importance to the overall plot?
I
used "Busy Body" to show early on in the story that Tyson could be rebellious at times. Tyson needed an antagonist as soon as the opportunity arose,
to demonstrate the difference between himself and the stereotypical, needy and depressed handicapped person. The "Busy Body" scene felt like a
great way to display Tyson's confident/arrogant attitude, before his more sensitive side is revealed during the e-mails he trades with Michaela.
The need for Rex's physical presence says a lot about the level of Tyson's cautious thinking. Rex is also important because he's an unpredictable
wild card in a situation where discipline, observation and stealthiness are mandatory for survival. His unwillingness to follow Tyson's directives
gets the three travelers into some uncomfortable situations. By the end of the story, the reader and Tyson are left wondering who exactly is a
friend or a foe.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
Why
did you decide to set half of the story's location in Bucharest, Romania?
The
stark contrast between their sterile syrupy online relationship and the real world was intended to be obvious as Tyson observes a cityscape still
suffering from a coup of it's communist dictatorship ten years earlier.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
Why
was it important that Tyson have a disability?
I'm
smiling after reading this one.
Well, to be honest, I'm a quadriplegic myself and saw this character as a vehicle for showing what it feels like.
It wasn't really that important to the story itself though. The disabled young adult with a confident attitude and thirst for adventure is certainly
not your average everyday character. It also gives the reader some insight into the life of a quadriplegic who does everything he can to successfully
exist in the able bodied world.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
How
does the title, Twisted Consequences, apply to the story?
I
believe it conveys the idea of someone taking what they think is a calculated risk, then realizing in the middle of the gamble that everything
they were using to make their calculations was an illusion.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
Why
aren't there more details about Michaela's true identity at the end?
Since
Michaela was meant to be a mysterious character, the reader is left with little information about her. I wanted the reader to feel the same confusion
Tyson was experiencing.
Book Club Favorites: Interview with Irie Parker
Can
you share with us any current projects or future plans as an author?
I'm
currently working on the design of a board game guide for HendrickMedia. Also, I will be ready to release a text book near the end of 09, titled "Transforming:
from silver salts to binary code," covering the changes in photography technology over the past twenty years.
As far as more adventures with Tyson, there are quite a few. I plan to have one completed by the end of 09, and at least one more in 2010. They
occur in reverse order of Twisted Consequences, and Tyson is turning out to be a pretty gutsy youngster.
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