The books shown on the left are by Roger Maxson. Click on the cover to order.

This interview was conducted by  Jacquelyn Tolksdorf on June 20, 2024.

Today I am interviewing  author Roger Maxson.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf: Thanks for graciously agreeing to do this interview with me!

Your book is a satire that critiques religion and politics. Why did you choose to address these themes through the lens anthropomorphized animals?

Roger Maxson:  The story comes from my life, personal experiences of growing up in a holy roller fundamentalist Pentecostal church family. Unlike Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens who approach religion from a objective and intellectual perspective, mine is more personal, and visceral. Okay, so there’s no talking animals, but in the bible there are.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  The title suggests a fairy story that’s absurd. Can you elaborate on the significance of the title and how it reflects the book’s themes?

Roger Maxson:  I think animals taking up religion is absurd. Any animal.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  The character of Mel plays a central role in the narrative. Can you tell us more about his development and what he represents in the story?

Roger Maxson:  Mel the mule is a Catholic pope, a manipulator, driven to have complete control over all the animals. His machinations drive a lot of what happens in the story regarding the domesticated farm animals. He overhears humans and returns to the barn to tell others he has had a vision or can foretell the future. Mel is the antagonist and foil to Julius, the parrot, and non-conformist, non-domesticated, and non-believer animal who is outside the food chain.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:   Humor and irony are significant elements in Pigs in Paradise. How do you balance these with the serious themes you address?

Roger Maxson:  For me, humor was essential to tell the story knowing of its breath and length. It can’t be serious all the time. What we have is ridicule. Religion is a choice. Yes, we are born into religion without having a choice, but when we reach a certain age we can decide, it becomes a choice and subject of ridicule. However, I have learned that I could not out do the language of these evangelical ministers. In college a writing professor once said you cannot parody porn. The language, the dialogue has already been exaggerated and is already a parody. Years later, Penn Jillette of Penn and Teller, says pretty much the same thing when he states that you cannot out do these preachers. Their language is so far over the top they can’t be out done. I knew better than to try, and yet I wish I had been a little harder on these people.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  George Orwell’s Animal Farm is a perfect inspiration for the book subject to anthropomorphize societal characters we come across in life. What else about George Orwell’s work inspires you?

Roger Maxson: “Brevity is the soul of wit,” writes Shakespeare, and Animal Farm is a perfect example. Christopher Hichens calls Animal Farm “charming.” Animal Farm has always been with me, well, at least since about the age of eight when I saw a most perfect adaptation of the novel into a cartoon movie. It was then, and is probably still, the saddest cartoon I have ever seen. This was during the Cold War and the cartoon movie Animal Farm was a good “learning” lesson of the evils of communism. Although the story has been with me a long time, it would be another 20 years before I saw the novel in a British Literature class to come full circle. I guess that the right term. The book is funny; is witty, and capsulates the politics of the 20^th century concisely. More so than I could ever do with my politics of the 21^st century. I used the subtitle “a fairy story most absurd” somewhat sheepishly as an allusion to Orwell’s Animal Farm because of its subtitle “a fairy story.” Also, because as in fairy tales, sudden acts of violence often befall animals.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  The book features a variety of animal characters, each symbolizing different societal aspects. How did you decide which animals to use and what they would represent?

Roger Maxson:  Blaise is a Jersy cow and I wanted her to have class, and sophistication, as far as Jersy cows are concerned, and thus, I wanted her to come from the Isle of Jersy, which makes her more English than American. Also, Blaise, named after Blaise Pascal the 19^th (18^th?) philosopher, has no character arc. She is as steadfast and honest and true from the beginning of the book until the end. She is the unsung heroin of the novel. Julius, the parrot, is also central as the singular voice of reason, but because of the theme of violence perpetrated against reason, he could not be the main character, but a protagonist. In the spring of 2012, I remember while driving a sped van in Merrimack, New Hampshire, during a break at a coffee shop/restaurant with a lot of pages of notes, print outs of certain and different breeds of animals, pigs, sheep – at least two different breeds of sheep, different types and breeds of chickens, ducks, and geese even though those differences where never necessary in the novel. At first Stanley, named as such because Stanley rhymes with manly and important to the plot, Manly Stanley, and as a joke or two. At first, Stanley was a black Arabian stallion because of the part of the world the story takes place in Israel. But an Arabian was the wrong connotation. At about this same time while also working a part-time job on weekends as a security guard, where I wrote the novel while on the job, a woman I worked with and horse enthusiast had a printout of a horse she wanted to buy or lease. It was a picture of a black Belgian Stallion, and its history and breed were perfect for what I needed, and Manly Stanley was born a black Belgian Stallion. Boris the Berkshire boar because of the poetry and breed from England was Jesus to the animals. Boris the Savior or Boris, the Berkshire Boar, and Messiah. I spent many long hours, pouring over the types and breeds of animals that populated the Israeli farm. Mel the mule was easy. Mel, a mule and thus sterile because of its mixed breed was always the perfect choice for a Catholic priest or pope because of their commitment to celibacy.   Yes, I had fun naming the characters and deciding who was who. Julius, the parrot, the real name of Groucho Marx and not lost on my daughter, is not a domestic farm animal. He was always meant to be separate and a lone voice from the rest of the farm animals. The same is true of the chorus or commentators the ravens, Ezekiel and Dave, another fun couple to name.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  At any point in those 9 years of writing did any animal characters become voices in your head (so-to-speak) that pop into your head in real-life when you come across the humans that they represent?

Roger Maxson:  I had voices in my head often throughout the writing process throughout the writing of the novel, but not as humans they may or may not represent. Instead, mostly the working out of scenes with dialogue and jokes. I drove a school bus for most of the writing of this novel, always rehearsing lines of dialogue and scenes through my head until I could stop to write out the notes and add them to the script, my manuscript in process. Once I wrote these lines or scenes out, usually that would be the end of it, but at other times, these lines or exchanges kept coming back to let me know that I did not yet have it right. I am a perfectionist and I approached the novel as a perfectionist which led to bouts of procrastination and writer’s block. I poured over certain scenes and dialogue lines too much too often. Research and note taking can take up so much time that they hinder the actual writing of the content. This happened to me. I wrote perfect wonderful notes for four years before I wrote any content of the novel. When I did, I started with Book Two because one chapter was a short introduction and the next chapter was full of and still is full of song titles. When I first started writing, it was important to get ink on the paper and to cover as many pages as possible so doing the chapter with songs was the best way to start. I wrote out all the lyrics to all the songs – at least nine of them before learning that this was a copywrite infringement and could only use the song titles or a short example of a line or two of lyrics. When I got done, I had 24 – 30 pages of roughed in notes with song lyrics. It was enough for me to keep going and to finally turn to Book One and chapter one, “A Road Runs Through it,” which would become chapter two because of plotting.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  You mentioned in your preface about self-publishing so you could “publish my book, the one I wrote.” I can’t imagine how much would have to be “neutered” (pun-intended) from the book’s satirical theme of absurdities in religion. To the reader, who doesn’t see the absurdities in some (most) religions – what way would you like them to keep an open mind?

Roger Maxson:  Absurdities in some (most) religions – what way would you like them to keep an open mind? It really comes down to book length, the sermons, the number of sermons, and my desire to get the book out there wherever out there is as fast as possible after having spent 14 years with this subject and writing process. I was self-conscious. I had submitted the manuscript soon after completing the book to publishers, but it was not ready. I still had a lot of editing to do even though I tried to write a perfect book as I wrote so as not to become overwhelmed from having to edit the whole manuscript. I also had to break up the chapters in Book Two because they were too long. Plus, by adding more chapters led to much better transitioning from scene to scene, sermon to sermon, and chapter to chapter. I was able to publish the book I wanted to publish, the one I wrote, warts and all.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  Self-publishing is a route you chose for this book. Can you share your experiences with self-publishing, and what advice would you give to other authors considering this path?

Roger Maxson:  As I’ve mentioned, self-publishing was good for me because I did not want to spend another two or more years trying to find a publisher and waiting for it to be published. I needed to get the book out there without anymore delays. Self-publishing is also not a good route to go because it is costly without the support of a traditional publisher, the marketing, promotions, tours, readings, and having print copies gracing the bookshelves of bookstores. That is a big issue. You cannot have your book printed on demand at a cost to allow a bookstore to make a profit without overpricing your printed copy. There are no balk print rates for the author. You’re on your own, and for someone like me, it’s a problem. I’m not good at self-promotion, marketing, or nor do I have money to invest in the promotion of my novel. Next time, it should be different. Next time, the type of book, the story will be different. It should be published by a traditional publisher. When I ever get around to writing it.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  Looking back on the writing process and the finished product, is there anything you would do differently, or any part of the story you wish you could expand upon?

Roger Maxson:  I am a perfectionist/procrastinator who lacks the confidence to tackle certain writing projects or lack the ability to stay the course on one story. Pigs in Paradise was different. It was the story I was meant to write.

Jacquelyn Tolksdorf:  Thank you for agreeing to do this interview with me.