Today I am interviewing Robert B. Lowe, the author of Project Moses.

Who is Robert B. Lowe? Robert is a Pulitzer-prize winning author whose fiction is based in San Francisco. His past experiences include a 12-year career in investigative journalism and a Harvard Law School degree, which enable him to write gripping mystery thrillers in both the legal and journalistic fields. Robert Lowe draws his inspiration from John Grisham, Dick Francis and Lee Child and adds his own San Francisco twist. His readers will enjoy his references to the city's landmarks such as Chinatown, North Beach and Pacific Heights and the Bay area's foodie culture. Robert is a family man, and when he isn't writing he enjoys a day at the golf course and spending time with his wife and daughters.
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About Project Moses. Enzo Lee, 37, a burned out reporter, has forsaken investigative reporting on the East Coast to churn out feature fluff in San Francisco. He likes his North Beach apartment, steps away from his Chinatown roots. Running, tai chi, great food, women who are attracted to his exotic looks. Life is good. Then, Lee is ordered to cover the unexplained deaths of a local judge and prosecutor. Intrigued by the connection, and the judge’s attractive niece, Sarah Armstrong, Lee begins to uncover a bioterrorism scandal whose perpetrators - including government officials and Silicon Valley titans - will kill to conceal. When Lee and Sarah become targets, the question becomes whether the pair can evade their hunters and piece together the story before their time runs out. Project Moses is set in San Francisco, New York and Silicon Valley.
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On September 8, 2012, I sat down and opened Project Moses. Talk about a fast pace action thriller that will keep you guessing. Robert’s style of writing is unique; he has talent of hooking you in and never letting you go.
From the moment I opened Project Moses, I knew without a doubt that this was the story for me. I love reading thrillers, Project Moses quickly landed on my top five favorite thrillers, and I can’t wait for book two!
The characters were relatable, the flow and storyline had me lost for hours on end, and the only disappointing part was when I finished reading Project Moses on September 9^th. It was a story that I never wanted to end.
I enjoyed this story so much that I needed to learn more about the author. Robert Lowe was kind enough to accept my invitation for an interview, I hope you enjoy!
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Sass: Hi Robert, thank you for joining me. What sparked the idea for Project Moses?
Actually, there are two parts to the answer.  The first is that I had always wanted to write a book and suddenly had a window to do it.  Mystery-thriller was my choice because I’ve been a fan of that genre since I was a kid and felt like I understood what makes a good one.  Project Moses involves a biotechnology conspiracy.  I have followed the progression of genetics technology with fascination.  It’s such a powerful tool.  But, at the same time can be misused and raise ethical questions.

Sass:  Project Moses is an interesting title, how did you come up with the title?
I pulled it out of the book itself.  The conspiracy starts with a government program and that, in essence, goes rogue.  I called the government program “Project Moses” because of the plague/famine analogy.  Plus, it seemed like the sort of name the U.S. Defense Department would generate.  I decided to use it as the book title.  I’m working on the next book and had pretty much the same experience.  In trying to come up with a thematic heading within the story – in this case a subject line for an email – I found the title. 

Sass: Are experiences or characters based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
It’s no accident that I’ve been an investigative reporter and a lawyer and the two main characters are…a reporter and lawyer.  There are snippets of things – places, interviews, etc. – that are based on past experience.  In terms of choices, responses to situations or next steps, having been a reporter allowed me to put myself in the shoes of the main character.   The characters generally are composites – pieces of various actual folks.

Sass: What was the hardest part of writing your book?
The hardest part for me was drawing the characters and their relationships.  I think I labored over that more than anything.  A lot of it was ‘discovering’ who they were as I went through the process.  Then, figuring out how to portray that without going into a lengthy explanation.  Showing vs. only telling. 

Sass: Did you learn anything from writing your book and if so … what was it?
The whole process has taught me that readers of this genre really want to be engaged with the story and the characters.  If you don’t get in the way with something that is too clunky, they’ll generally go with you. I’ve also learned that a big issue for me is putting in too much in terms of characters and subplots.  Generally, readers have enjoyed that Project Moses is a somewhat involved plot.  But, I need to guard against overloading the story. 

Sass: Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
To the extent there is a message, it’s not that genetic tinkering or modifying food is a bad thing.  It may be more that we should watch out for the law of unintended consequences.  Eventually we’ll find out a gene that makes apples juicier also makes sparrows sterile or something like that.  It’s just too complex and people doing the actual research are incentivized to ignore problems.   On the character side, one of my beliefs is that very few people – aside perhaps from psychotic killers – actual believe they are evil people even if they are doing evil things.  There is always a rationalization.  I believe that’s true in life and it’s reflected in my characters.

Sass: Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thanks for reading Project Moses and supporting independent authors.  This is an entertainment genre and that was my goal for this book – create the kind of story that has you flipping the pages after you should have the lights out.  If it does that for you, I’m happy! 

Sass: Thank you, Robert for this opportunity to interview you. It was an honor to meet with you and to read Project Moses. I hear that book two is in the making, when can your readers expect the release?
I hadn’t actually planned on creating a series but readers gravitated toward the main character and a couple of secondary ones as well.  I listened to that and have built the second book around them.  It’s called “Divine Fury” and should be out by November.
Thanks much for this interview!
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Below are direct links to Robert B. Lowes website, his reviews on Goodreads and his Amazon page.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13572547-project-moses
http://www.amazon.com/Project-Moses-Thriller-Mystery-Thriller-ebook/dp/B0070XXXDG
www.robertblowe.com

Here is my review of Robert's incredible tale! Project Moses - A Mystery Thriller by Robert B. Lowe
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

On September 8, 2012, I sat down and opened Project Moses. Talk about a fast pace action thriller that will keep you guessing. Robert’s style of writing is unique; he has talent of hooking you in and never letting you go.

From the moment I opened Project Moses, I knew without a doubt that this was the story for me. I love reading thrillers, Project Moses quickly landed on my top five favorite thrillers, and I can’t wait for book two!

The characters were relatable, the flow and storyline had me lost for hours on end, and the only disappointing part was when I finished reading Project Moses (on September 9th). It was a story that I never wanted to end, and thankfully, book two will soon be released.


View all my reviews