Jaime Flores Interviews Author Nick Nolan
Jaime Flores: So will you finally tell your readers about this new book? You’ve been driving me crazy with it for years, but you’ve kept everyone else in the dark. Nick Nolan: Black as Snow is a deconstruction of Snow White--only it isn’t for kids; Black as Snow is violent and sexy and dark and funny…and it’s sure to stir some controversy--especially where I mash up sex with religion in one unforgettable scene.
Jaime Flores: That scene’s going to raise some hackles.
Nick Nolan: Yep.
Jaime Flores: Which elements from Snow White did you include?
Nick Nolan: Just about all, but only after standing them on their heads: Sebastian Black--he plays Snow White--is the messianic figurehead of a new "green" religion that celebrates evolution and the coming of the next species of Man; the dwarfs are people who’ve been marginalized by our society but who teach Sebastian what really matters; Sebastian’s "evil" mother is a religious prophet... although I’ve also sketched her with humor and pathos; there’s a love story and some straight sex and gay sex and Christian militants and drug addiction and tragedy. And there are scenes where you’ll laugh.
Jaime Flores: What about the poisoned apple?
Nick Nolan: Let’s just say there’s a poisoned Apple in the story.
Jaime Flores: So Sebastian’s supposed to be the "next species of Man?" Can you elaborate?
Nick Nolan: I think the emergence of the next human species is inevitable--if we don’t destroy the earth in the meantime. So I imagined what this evolved species might be like and created Sebastian as clairvoyant--in specific circumstances--and gave him enviable physical attributes... in other words, he’s clever and hot and gorgeous. But what I love about "perfect" Sebastian is how imperfect he really is: he’s arrogant and tender and selfish and vulnerable... just like we all are.
Jaime Flores: Why did you choose a religious movement as the backdrop for your story?
Nick Nolan: I think most of us are looking for spirituality that feels authentic. But I loathe those who prey upon people’s spiritual yearnings for their own benefit, and I show the explosive consequences that come from pig-headed, extremist views. But Black as Snow is not a book about religion, just as it’s not a book about what it’s like to be famous and beautiful…it’s really a story about love, and celebrating the golden magic of each day—even the boring, frustrating days.
Jaime Flores: So what’s the one thing you’d like readers to come away with after reading Black as Snow?
Nick Nolan: Mostly, I’d like my readers to have been entertained. But I’d also like people to read Tess’s words in the final scene and to consider their own sweet ghosts--those beloved people whom they’ve lost to fate and eternity... and then perhaps they might even look at their own spouses and partners and friends with "new eyes." And although I’ve written Black as Snow as a page-turner, it’s basically the story of how love thrills, transforms, and comforts--and ultimately unites us all.
Nick Nolan and Jaime Flores have been together since 1987. They live in Los Angeles with their two retrievers.
