Some might question whether John Edward’s psychic abilities as shown on his TV shows “Crossing Over with John Edward” and “John Edward Cross Country” are made up for entertainment. And those who aren’t believers might find satisfaction in knowing Edward does make things up – as a fiction novelist that is.
Edward’s most recent and third novel “Fallen Masters,” which released Sept. 18., is a story between good and evil fighting over power of currency in the form of resources, such as oil.
“The good guys are trying to inspire, the bad guys are trying to control and ultimately it is up to mankind to choose,” Edward said in an interview with The Lantern on Ohio State’s Center for Study and Teaching of Writing’s “Writers Talk.”
Edward deemed himself a writer when he was 9 years old and said he initially considered pursing writing as a career.
“I used to tell my family that if they weren’t nice to me that I would write a tell-all book about them,” Edward said. “Some pieces of my family have made it into previous books of mine.”
His influences as a writer range from classic literature such as Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Scarlet Letter” to authors such as Stephen King and C.S. Lewis.
“In high school I enjoyed reading the classics that were often required reading, and people probably thought I was crazy for actually liking the books we had to read,” Edward said. “But the stories were so interesting and I loved the characters.”
His love for intricate characters in novels helped inspire him to write and connect to the characters within his own novels. Edward said he considered his latest novel an “ambitious project,” but felt the characters were strong and needed to be brought together completely.
“I really fleshed out these characters and I really connected with them,” he said. “They became like real people to me and I knew they had to come together somehow.”
Edward said the people in his life influenced the development of characters in some of his novels, including his latest one.
“There is a little bit of me in all these characters in one aspect or another and there is also some characters that are almost completely based off of people I’ve met while traveling,” Edward said.
He also said he gains inspiration to create storylines of his novels from the TV series “Lost,” which went off the air in 2010. The show has an overall story that includes all the characters but it also allows each character to have its own smaller storyline.
Edward’s novel follows this same pattern, with characters who have their smaller personal stories for the readers to follow, which interlace into the larger plot of the book.
Edward said he tries to show his passion for writing through the mood and tones of his storytelling.
“The best part about being a writer is trying to move someone,” Edward said. “If there is a mood or feeling that I am trying to get across, if I get emotional when trying to write it, I know I have the right tone set for the reader.”
The new novel seems to have yet to create a buzz in Columbus for readers.
A couple bookstores in Columbus have not seen much interest in “Fallen Masters.” Mike Babcock, assistant manager at the Book Loft in German Village said the store has sold copies of Edward’s older books but none of his most recent novel.
“We have one copy and it hasn’t sold yet,” Babcock said Monday morning. “Typically, it’s not a type of book people come in looking for but if they see it sometimes they will pick it up.”
The store did sell a few copies of Edward’s previous novel “Infinite Quest.”
The Barnes & Noble on High Street also has not had any specific requests for “Fallen Masters.”
The store does not have the book in stock but offers customers the option to have it ordered, said Barnes & Noble employee Mark Duffy.
Duffy, a fourth-year in biology and pre-medicine, said he would consider reading the new novel.
“It’s an interesting topic,” Duffy said. “I would check it out just to see what it’s about because it is not what I read every day.”
