Bill Poje

 

 

Bill Poje was born in 1963 in East Grand Rapids, Michigan. He earned an accounting/business administration degree from Aquinas College in Grand Rapids in 1986. He also received an MBA in the concentrations of finance and operations from the Owen Graduate School of Management at Vanderbilt in 1988.

At the age of 16 Bill managed a new\used book, comic book & baseball card store. This exposed him to a diverse set of literary influences. His favorite authors include Anais Nin, William Faulkner, Raymond Chandler, Sergio Leone, H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, Edgar Allen Poe, J.R.R. Tolkein, Robert E. Howard, Richard Matheson, Robert Bloch, Heinrich Boll, Will Eisner, William Shakespeare, Robert Frost, and Louis-Ferdinand Celine.

After college Poj lived and worked in a variety of locations and industries while travelling the globe. In 2007 he was working and living on Grand Cayman Island and commuting to Grand Bahama Island. The Pojman was the financial controller for the largest exporter out of the Bahamas. The Pojerino decided to give up this life, move back to the USA to live in Jacksonville, and to write and publish Painless.

In his leisure time Poooj enjoys watching and playing sports, movies, music, reading, and working 5 Sunday crosswords every week. The Pojerooski is also the family sponsor for the Poje Scholarship, Poje Award and Poje Banquet at Aquinas College. These awards are in honor of Bill’s father, “Doc” Poje. Doc taught chemistry for forty years at this small Dominican school.

The Poj-Meister is also working on the sequel to Painless, titled Blindless, as well as a humorous dark comedy, essays, shorts stories, and poetry. For more text samples of Painless please visit the author’s personal web page at:

http://www.painless-poje.com/author.htm

www.poje.biz

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: Where did you grow up and was reading and writing a part of your life? Who were your earliest influences and why?

 

Bill Poje: I grew up in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  As a child I read a lot of pulp fiction novels such as Doc Savage and The Shadow.  At the age of 13 a New\Used Book\Comic Bookshop opened up in Grand Rapids and the store became a haunt of mine.  The hippie that managed the store hired me as a stock boy when my age was still 13 and at the age of 16 I was co-manager of the store while attending high school.  This employment ended when I turned 21 and I decided to get a college degree and do something else with my life.

 

During the bookstore time I saw many different genres and read quite a few varied books as well as comics and other styles of art.  Like many people whose collections I purchased there were phases that I transitioned through; the horror phase; the mystery phase; the shlock novel phase; the history phase; etc. 

 

Some of the items I liked and some I did not but the influence was that I saw many people buy and sell books covering each genre.  The notion that one genre is “better” or that one item is the “best” or “favorite” was a notion I abandoned.  While I still enjoy reading HP Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith at this point in time my interest is character driven stories that are relevant about the world we live in versus a fantasy world.

 

In high school and in college I had creative writing courses.  People seemed to enjoy what I wrote but I did not like what I wrote.  Everything I tried to create always seemed immature to me.  Therefore the interest in writing existed but there was a personal feeling of no need to pursue writing until it felt “right.”

 

The fiction authors who I feel influence me greatly are Shakespeare, William Faulkner, Anais Nin, Louis Ferdinand Celine, Raymond Chandler, Herman Hesse and Heinrich Boll.

 

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: Who is Bill Poje and what makes his day?

 

Bill Poje: Bill Poje is a single 46 year old male who has multiple degrees (BSBA in accounting & Business Administration; MBA in Finance & Operations Management) and has worked in a variety of industries culminating most recently with living on Grand Cayman Island and also Grand Bahama Island in the position of Financial Controller for the largest exporter out of the Bahamas.  This led to the point of mid-life decision of Where am I going with my life?  The answer was to either permanently commit to island life, or move back the USA and do something else.  Moving back to the USA won out.

 

Coincidental with the decision to go back to the USA, my Mother (who lives with my brother in Jacksonville (FL)) suffered a mild stroke.  Mom is fine (for an 86 year old) but she no longer has a driver’s license.  The result is that moving to my brother’s house to help take care of my Mother made sense. 

 

What makes my day now is a variety of things:

 

a)    Making sure Mom is taken care of.

b)    Advancing the writing career and the business and creative opportunities off of writing the career.

c)    Playing basketball\racquetball and staying healthy.

d)    Smiling and making others smile.

 

 

 

 

PageoneLit.com: Why do you write?

 

Bill Poje: When I moved back to the USA The question of What do I do next? existed.  I felt that I was mature enough and had learned a lot during the business career to create entertaining stories and products that people would enjoy.

 

What I choose to write about are topics that, in my opinion, deal with current socio-political topics with entreating readers.  I write to influence people’s minds as well as to entertain.

 

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: Your new novel is PAINLESS -- Just for starters where did the title come from? Are you subliminally telling us that reading your novel will be PAINLESS?

 

Bill Poje: The title on the cover shows glass shattering hence the dual meaning of PANELESS.  This foreshadows action in the novel as well as the end. 

 

Painless also deals with the concepts of “value”.  What is it that Augustus Valentine values?  Is it the materialistic goods in the book?

 

Many people around the globe recently major hits to their “value” with collapse of various markets in 2008.  This week the SEC is bringing suit against Goldman Sachs over the actions regarding CDO’s, and there are discussions about how a firm named Paulson profited by billions of dollars betting against the real estate market CDO’s.  How much “pain” did any one person feel over the market collapse?  Numbers on pages changed but it was all very painless.

 

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com:  I always enjoy the first sentence of a book. Someone once told me you can tell a lot about the book from the first sentence and that many classics have classic first sentences, so PAINLESS begins " Icky Vicky was not icky." The floor is yours sir --- 

Bill Poje: Readers want to be entertained.  My opinion is that the majority of readers want humor but also to think.  The first sentence provides an immediate contradiction that makes the reader think about icky Vicky.  If she is not Icky then is she sexy?

 

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com:  Who is Augustus Valentine?

 

Bill Poje:Augustus Valentine is a romanticized studly Mr. America.  Readers want fantasy and readers want attractive characters that fulfill the fantasy.  That is the vision of both Mr. and Miss America that we are led to believe is so important and giving the readers what they want is important.

 

Augustus is named after the Roman Emperor who was so powerful that we celebrate one twelfth of the year with a month named for the emperor.  The legacy of the Roman Empire lives today but the Roman Empire does not.

 

All of that aside, Aug runs the Trove Import Export company outside of Fort Lauderdale.  He achieved this position through his family connections.  Through his connections he periodically is required to smuggle goods in and out of the country.  This does not bother Aug for he is a man versed in the concepts of legal and illegal activity.  He is, in a certain sense, like Joe Kennedy, SR.  As far as anyone on the outside is concerned he is just a businessman not involved with anything illegal because being associated with people involved in illegal activity would be bad. 

 

Aug has also suffered a dramatic double whammy in his personal life due to the tragic deaths of his parents and his first wife.  These occurred at separate times in his life.  During his lifetime he has also survived multiple attempts upon his life.  He is a fun guy just trying to get by and have a house and a job and a wife and kids…but life keeps getting in the way.  He is now looking towards a future with his girlfriend Jocelyn…will life keep getting in the way?

 

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com; In PAINLESS , Augustus Valentine is chasing his attackers - Isn't this type of plot usually the other way around?

 

Bill Poje:  I’m not convinced that your statement is correct.  It seems to me that in the Godfather that Michael Corleone chases his attackers.  So does Jason Bourne in the various Ludlum novels.

 

I think that the difference you are describing may be that many simplistic novels are constructed with a hero with smuggled goods and that people are simplistically chasing the hero to get the goods.  The focus is on the smuggled goods and resolving a “good guy \ bad guy” situation over the course of the novel.

 

The Painless story has a variety of characters chasing a variety of various “deals.”  Multiple characters are all chasing different items of value with different motivations.  The intent is that art mimics life for all of us act with various motivations, intents and values.

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: PAINLESS offers up plenty of action, love, violence, comedy & tragedy -- Did I leave anything out?

 

Bill Poje: HA HA…my opinion is that the proper question is Did Bill Poje leave anything out?  But you failed to mention Steam and Soap Opera which can be construed as Intrigue.  Heresy is also included in a background manner.

 

Hopefully Painless also provides material that makes one think about the world around you and the people you meet.  I am personally proud that multiple people have independently stated to me that they felt that Painless never insulted their intelligence.

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: PAINLESS would make the perfect Hollywood film -- If the casting department called today and said, "Bill cast your movie." Who would you cast and why?

 

Bill Poje: Thank you for this question.  Painless is designed to be a fun R rated film.  Your question is quite complimentary towards certification of achieving this design construct.

 

The question of who to cast is exceptionally difficult to answer.  The conceptual design of Aug and Jocelyn is as The Big Sleep Bogart\Bacall combination…but updated to 2010.  The byplay between Bogart\Bacall in The Big Sleep is mature; not childish.  There are two scenes that I feel exemplify the mature steam between the two.  One scene is the byplay in Philip Marlowe’s office when Bacall calls the police and the two of them pass the phone back and forth.  The other scene is at Eddie Mars gambling house where Bogart watches Bacall sing And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine while she watches him watch her while they both check out the waitress.  The scenes impressively yet subtlety develop their relationship.

 

The voluptuous and delectably incredible Jocelyn would have to be cast first.  The role would require an actress who has developed thespian skills as the role in Painless and the sequels require a wide range of personalities.  The Seed of Chucky Jennifer Tilly has a lot of the personality characteristics as do both the Shannen Doherty Prue Halliwell Charmed character (although Prue is a little too “mopey” …Jocelyn is more wickedly and happily fun).  A brunette Greta Scacchi from either The Player or Shattered would make an awesome casting but the role is past her time.  Too bad; she could really steam up a screen!  I can’t point to a single actress today who I can recommend but I am confident that there are plenty of capable actresses who exist that can fit the part.

 

Next would come Aug.  Aug was somewhat designed with a young Craig Bierko in mind; specifically a cleaned up Timothy from The Long Kiss Goodnight or the Douglas Hall character from The Thirteenth Floor.  With those concepts in mind it would have to be an actor who obviously generates steam with whoever the Jocelyn actress is.

 

Angel was themed after The Thirteenth Floor Grethen Mol Jane Fuller Character, and Jack Dough is themed after an image of the Secret Window Johnny Depp…but cleaned up, with the same scowling visage and nowhere near as psychotic.  Jack is very sane.

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: I've never asked an author this question but knowing you, you will enjoy answering it -- What would the the PAINLESS soundtrack sound like?

 

Bill Poje: The Soundtrack is primarily very rocking.  The primary construct is to write in songs that “move” with lyrics that epitomize the feelings of the characters.

 

For example: The vision of the title sequence is to have the logo of Painless shatter with the title sequence occur during the activities in Trove.  The forklift trucks move goods around while the characters interact.  The goods on the skids unloaded are labeled with the title credits.  The title sequence music would be the music (lyrics excluded) of Faith No More’s We Care A Lot.  If one knows the song it starts with the drums and bass rhythmically thumping with an air of mystery established by the rest of the musicians.

 

The action in Trove in the beginning includes stuffed animals. This logically leads to Stone Temple Pilots Plush.  The Plush lyrics also establish the concept of:

 

“And I feel so Much Depends on the Weather, So is it Raining in your Bedroom”

 

Later that night Aug looks at the sky to The Kinks Stormy Sky

 

“Oh Darling, Did you ever See Such A Stormy Sky?

It’s never Been Like this Before

 

I see it…Feels Like we’re in for a Stormy Sky

But I can’t See a Cloud in Sight”

 

These songs foreshadows many events and establish the Romantic conflicts in Aug’s life.

 

The steamy scene in the car is themed after 3 Guns’ n Roses covers of other bands music.  Human Being lyrically represents the feelings of Jocelyn and Aug; the foreplay is Raw Power, and the climax is Buick Makane/Big Dumb Sex.

 

Other songs include the car chase through Detroit themed after Ted Nugent’s Terminus El Dorado. The music of The Reverend Horton Heat works in with opening night at Poseidon’s with Eat Steak, Bad Reputation as well as the cover of Jezebel.  The craps table scene is themed around The Pretenders Brass In Pocket.  Sweet’s Love is Like Oxygen also plays a prominent role; if run can imagine a car chase along 520 from Cocoa to Cocoa Beach driven by the guitar solo then it really comes to life.

 

The couples dancing segment is themed around The Divinyls Because

 

“Looking Forward To The Time

When the Secrets That You Keep

Are Open to Me

Please let me Turn The Key

To your Mystery”

 

If one knows the bands and the songs, and knows how the songs would sound driving through a Dolby Sound System to the audience, and how the lyrics tie into the characters one can “get” how rockingly melodic the soundtrack would be.

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: What do you hope to achieve with  PAINLESS?

 

Bill Poje:  Painless is designed to be a fun R Rated film as well as to be the first product in the start of a career of artistic ventures.  I hope to achieve the start of a successful new career in entertainment.

 

 

PageOneLit.com: What was the last book you read?

 

Bill Poje: A Conspiracy of Fools by Kurt Eichenwald.  The book is about the Enron collapse told through the eyes of the principles.  As a businessman I found the book fascinating but also reinforcing of certain themes that I have learned in my business career.  Namely, if you work with or for someone who is very antagonistic or arrogant they are actually a horrible businessperson and they will bring down the organization in the end.  People hide fraud by acting belligerent and arrogant.

 

 

 

PageOneLit.com: What's next?

 

Bill Poje: The short story posted on the website titled Senator Smarmy contains the thematic plots behind the various novels I will be writing.  Up next are 2 books.  The sequel to Painless is Blindless; the third in the series will be Timeless…but the 3^rd one is a little ways off down the road.  Nigger Like Me will also be published simultaneously with Blindless. 

 

From there we have a Lovecraftian style collection of short stories done in the current time frame title The OId Ones as well as a semi-autobiographical work titled H & Job covering the time frame of 1996 to 2004 working for Hi-Lex. 

 

After that is UnManifest Destiny about what state will be the 51^st state in the Union, and why…as well as other novels themed around Hispanic subprime mortgage loan saleslady intertwined with a corrupt police department abusing RICO statutes as well as Civil Asset Forfeitures. 

 

There is also The Worst and The Dumbest to be written.  That is about how GM and Wall Street have, for decades, only hired the most intelligent people.  Fat lot of good that has done America!

 

Lastly, among other things I am working on (such as more Senator Smarmy stories) is The Salvador Dali Code as a parody of The DaVinci Code.

 

For further details on these novels I suggest reading Senator Smarmy on the Painless-Poje website.

 

 

PageOneLit.com: Do you have any hobbies? What are they? How do they enhance your writing?

Bill Poje: Oh I enjoy sports and arts.  Right now I am so busy with writing and performing book signings and travelling to cities and meeting people that I really don’t have time to do anything but the next task there is to be done.  And all of the people I meet and all of the feedback I get enhance my writing.  But…I am having the time of my life doing it!  J