David C. Downing, author of Looking For The King: An Inklings Novel, is interviewed by NarniaFans.com:
NarniaFans.com: Tell us a bit about yourself, for our readers that might not know much about you.
David C. Downing: I am a professor of creative and professional writing at Elizabethtown College in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. I attended a small college in Santa Barbara, CA, and then earned my Ph.D. in English at UCLA. I have written four non-fiction books on C. S. Lewis, and about a dozen articles on C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien.
NarniaFans.com: Can you give us a quick teaser for LOOKING FOR THE KING that will give us an idea of what we’re in for?
David C. Downing: The story is set in 1940, after the beginning of World War 2 in Europe, but before the United States has entered the conflict. Two young Americans, Tom McCord and Laura Hartman, begin to suspect that the Spear of Destiny, the fabled lance that pierced the side of Christ on the cross, is hidden somewhere in England. Hitler has acquired a spear called the Holy Lance, which he believes will make his armies invincible. But he is not certain this is the authentic Spear of Destiny, so he has agents in England looking for this ancient, mystical, and priceless artifact. In their quest to find the Spear, Tom and Laura meet and get to know C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and their friends, who offer valuable guidance on their quest. But Lewis, Tolkien, and others who call their circle “the Inklings,” suggest that Tom and Laura may need to set out on an even more profound quest than their search for the Spear.
NarniaFans.com: What were your inspirations for the story of LOOKING FOR THE KING?
David C. Downing: My wife and I visited Somerset and Cornwall in 2005, and we were fascinated by all the legends that Joseph of Arimathea (the rich merchant mentioned in the Gospels) had traveled all the way to England in the first century, perhaps bringing with him the Holy Grail and the Spear of Longinus (the traditional name of the Roman soldier who thrust his lance into Christ’s side). Around Glastonbury, one meets people who talk about “Old Joe” or “Big Joe” as if they just spoken with Joseph of Arimathea in a pub last week!
That same summer I was re-reading the letters of C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, and thinking how often their perceptive observations and witty remarks in their correspondence would make for great dialog in a novel. Soon afterwards, I read Matthew Pearl’s literary detective novel, THE DANTE CLUB, in which a circle of American poets and scholars (Longfellow, Holmes, and Lowell) help the local police solve a series of Dante-esque murders occurring in 19th century Boston. I enjoyed the unusual combination of mystery and literary biography, and I thought the Inklings would make an even livelier group to help some young adventurers on their quest. So my interest in the Spear and my interest in the Inklings merged into one storyline.
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