Howard Jay Smith is an
award-winning writer from Santa
Barbara, California. BEETHOVEN IN LOVE; OPUS 139 is his third book. A former Washington, D.C. Commission for the Arts Fellow, & Bread Loaf Writers
Conference Scholar, he taught for many years in the UCLA Extension Writers’
Program and has lectured nationally. His short stories, articles and
photographs have appeared in the Washington Post, Horizon Magazine, the Journal
of the Writers Guild of America, the Ojai Quarterly, and numerous literary and
trade publications. While an executive at ABC Television, Embassy TV, and
Academy Home Entertainment, he worked on numerous film, television, radio, and
commercial projects. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Santa Barbara
Symphony - "The Best Small City Symphony in America" - and is a member of the American Beethoven
Society.
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Title:
BEETHOVEN IN LOVE; OPUS 139
Author: Howard Jay Smith
Publisher: SYQ
Pages: 385
Genre: Literary Fiction/Biographical Fiction
Author: Howard Jay Smith
Publisher: SYQ
Pages: 385
Genre: Literary Fiction/Biographical Fiction
At the moment of his death, Ludwig van
Beethoven pleads with Providence to grant him a final wish—one day, just a single day of
pure joy. But first he must confront the many failings in his life, so the
great composer and exceedingly complex man begins an odyssey into the
netherworld of his past life led by a spirit guide who certainly seems to
be Napoleon, who died six years before. This ghost of the former emperor, whom
the historical Beethoven both revered and despised, struggles to compel the
composer to confront the ugliness as well as the beauty and accomplishments of
his past.
As Beethoven ultimately faces the realities of his just-ended
life, we encounter the women who loved and inspired him. In their own
voices, we discover their Beethoven—a lover with whom they savor
the profound beauty and passion of his creations. And it’s in the arms of
his beloveds that he comes to terms with the meaning of his life and
experiences the moment of true joy he has always sought.
Purchase Information:
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Thank you for this interview! I’d like to know more about you as a person
first. What do you do when you’re not
writing?
I am fortunate at this stage of my
life to live in Santa
Barbara, a place that
is as close to paradise as one gets in this country. Weekends we will often walk the rugged
coastline north of town or kayak outside the harbor. I also love classical music and opera and we
catch every concert possible here – of which there are many. I am also on the
Board of the Santa Barbara Symphony – the best small city orchestra in America – and the responsibilities associated with running it take
a fair amount of my focus. Using my past business and finance experience I oversee
development and planned giving for the Symphony.
When did you start writing?
I began writing with my very first
short story about piloting a Cessna – about half a page long – when I was in
elementary school. And got my first rave
reviews!
As a published author, what would
you say was the most pivotal point of your writing life?
In my mid 20’s I was fortunate
enough to be accepted as a Scholar into Middlebury
College’s Bread Loaf Conference where I met the late novelist,
John Gardner. John became my mentor and
over the next few years I returned to Bread Loaf as a scholar two more
times. There I worked with other greats
of that era, John Irving, Toni Morrison and Tim O’Brien. I also studied with
John back in DC and Virginia. Gardner was hands down the best teacher I have ever had for any
subject ever. It was through my work
with him that I found my essential voice and truly began my career as a
writer.
If you could go anywhere in the
world to start writing your next book, where would that be and why?
In short order I would head to Venice, Vienna and Prague. My next novel
which I am actively researching is also related to music. This novel, Mozart, Da Ponte, Scandal, will focus on
the life of Lorenzo Da Ponte, the man who wrote the lyrics for Mozart’s three
most famous – and scandalous in their time – operas, ‘The Marriage of Figaro,’
‘Don Giovanni,’ (both of which premiered in Prague) and ‘Cosi Fan Tutte,’ which
played in Vienna.
Born a Jew in 1749, Da Ponte not only outlived Mozart by
some 40 years, he also grew up in and around Venice in an era when people still ran around in capes and masks
all year round. After his father converted the entire family to Catholicism
when Lorenzo was only 14, he unwillingly became a priest in order to get an education. He led a rogue’s life; a priest and literary
scholar who would say Mass on Sunday while whoring, drinking and gambling the
other six days of the week with his friend, Casanova, the infamous role model
for Don Giovanni.
Always too politically outspoken for his own good, he was
successively expelled from the Veneto, Venice and Vienna and had to flee debt collectors in London before making his way to early modern New York where he opened an Italian bookstore in Manhattan and a deli across the river in New Jersey. He started an
opera company – the seeds of today’s Met – and was the first professor of
Italian at what became Columbia University.
Da Ponte was the classic survivor, who in his day did
everything he could to stay afloat financially while still writing a collection
of operas that were considered scandalous in their day but are today revered as
some of the finest works of that genre ever created. His eight decades
constitute a life adventure well worth exploring.
If you had 4 hours of extra time
today, what would you do?
My taxes.
Where would you like to set a
story that you haven’t done yet?
There are other parts of Italy, the Piedmont, Sicily, Florence, Rome, Naples, some of which I have already visited or lived in, that
would be an excellent setting for something, especially if there’s enough
expresso, gelato and wine. Machiavelli,
the Borges, Vivaldi, Verdi and Andrea Zani all come to mind as possible
historical personas to explore.
Back to your present book, Beethoven In Love; Opus 139, how did you
publish it?
My friend and fellow writer,
Russell Martin, author of the non-fiction bestseller, Beethoven’s Hair, also runs a small independent press, SYQ. The publisher of my previous book, Opening the Doors to Hollywood, was
Random House. It was however not only a non-fiction work based on film and
writing classes I taught at UCLA, it was also a long time ago. After a number of attempts to reach out to
literary agents and other publishers, I realized that the publishing world had
vastly changed since Opening the Doors to
Hollywood was released in the 1990’s.
Every agent I spoke with wanted either a celebrity driven piece or an
easily commoditized book of 250 pages. Beethoven in Love; Opus 139 is neither.
I ultimately decided to go with SYQ and found the process much more to my
liking. I was involved and had control
over every aspect of the process, including the layout, design and cover. I should add that the cover art was done by
my son, Zak Smith, a well-known artist in his own right with five published
books and paintings hanging in eight museums around the world.
In writing your book, did you
travel anywhere for research?
Yes and no. Although I have traveled extensively in Europe over
the years and felt comfortable setting my novel there, I had intended to make
my way to Vienna and Bonn on a trip but for personal reasons at the time was unable
to do so.
Why was writing Beethoven In Love; Opus 139 so important
to you?
As one of the fictional
characters, Johann Gardner, a writer inspired by my mentor, John Gardner, says
to Beethoven in the course of the novel, “What is a novel, but a collection of
lies we tell to reveal greater truths.”
Whether we are conscious of it or
not when writing, (and hopefully one is always conscious) a book, a story, an
article is always about something, it always presents a world view, an
attitude, a philosophy of life. In
simple terms, you want the reader to finish your book, and feel as if they have
not only been thoroughly entertained but that they have also learned something
about life and the way of the world. If
a character does something, it has its roots in their behavior and thoughts and
there are consequences that occur because of those attitudes and actions – and
this is what I would not only want my readers to reflect upon when they finish
but to also consider how those situations, behaviors, and ideas might impact
their own lives.
When I came across the story of
Beethoven’s death -- how at his last moment a bolt of lightning strikes the
side of his building, rousing him from a coma; his eyes open, he sits up right,
he shakes his fist at the heavens and then collapses back to the bed and is
abruptly gone -- I found the contrast to my own near death experience stunning.
When I was not yet twenty-one and
going to school overseas in Singapore, I had a severe motorcycle accident. As my body
somersaulted through the intersection, time stopped and a great and profound
sense of peace and tranquility suffused my consciousness. Fear, especially that fear of death we all
share, disappeared. My biggest surprise
was landing very much alive – and in pain – on the other side of the crossroads
and not the “other side” of life.
Beethoven’s death throes were so
different from my calm transition. That
led me to wonder what it would have taken for this great man to come to peace
with all the turmoil and failings of his life – and there were many. In that nugget of a thought, Beethoven in Love; Opus 139, was born.
In the novel, at the moment of his
death, Beethoven must find a way to come to peace with all of the failings of
his life in order to order to enter Elysium, be rejoined with his Immortal
Beloved and find his one moment of joy. I would hope then that my readers
reflect upon these greater truths and in their own way find their moment of
joy, their passion for life and a greater degree of peace and contentment for
having gone on this journey with Beethoven. And although those injuries still
ache decades later – especially when it rains – researching and then writing
this novel was an absolute joy.
Where do you get your best ideas
and why do you think that is?
I read a lot and often skim news
articles from around the world – not just current events but historical as
well. As a working professional writer, screenwriter, teacher and TV executive
for almost four decades, I am always on the lookout for great stories of
historical figures where my potential protagonist wrestles with the same types
of profound emotional or psychological issues that each and every one of us can
relate to in our own lives.
Any final words?
Yes. To everyone who reads this
interview, please buy a copy of “Beethoven
In Love; Opus 139” – you will not be disappointed. Researching and then writing this novel was a
long journey, every moment of which was an absolute pleasure. I learned ages ago that if you want someone
to take the time and effort to read your book and find your work compelling and
engaging, you must also be equally passionate about what you create. I absolutely
love the entire process of crafting a story, from jotting down ideas and doing
research when necessary, to shaping each line, each paragraph, each character,
each scene. I want to transport the reader into a vivid and continuous dream
that is so powerful, so all-encompassing that the next thing they know is that
someone is calling them to dinner. Given all the wonderful critical press
reviews and comments I have received regarding the novel, I am confident my
readers will be fully satisfied when the reach the end of Beethoven’s journey
to Elysium.
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