Character interview with J.D. from "Drip"

On Writing were able to interview J.D. from the novel 'Drip'

"A hand wearing a fancy watch parted the office blinds, and J.D. felt nauseous with despair: suddenly he knew—even though he could not explain how—that all of his mojo had been permanently taken away."

J.D. and George: thick as thieves since the fourth grade. J.D., the troublemaker, the stud: the alpha. George, the sidekick, the misfit: the loser. Upon graduating college, J.D. has convinced the only job creator in rusty Middlestop to hire them. BrewCorp, the hot new coffee and retail chain, is offering a vice presidency to the employee with the boldest plan for growth, and J.D. is determined to be the guy. When not sleeping with co-workers, he hatches his pitch for a one-of-a kind data pipeline. He is unbeatable--until George grabs the promotion. Now J.D. wants answers. His quest to find them—and to deal with the monstrous truth—is the subject of indie filmmaker Andrew Montlack's wry debut novel, which features the same biting satire that made his mockumentary, The Devil's Filmmaker, a cult classic.

Tell us a little about yourself? Where do you come from?

I come from the planet Krypton; I was sent here to rock your world (laughs).  Ok, ok.  I’m from Middlestop—born and raised.  I’ll be with BrewCorp for a year, year-and-a-half, get my promotion, then I’m gone.  I’m already having drinks with headhunters.  Figure one to two years in a Boston or New York financial house, then off to Dubai.  And I will rock your world.

Tell us a little about your home, what are your feelings towards home?

Boring.  Next.

What motivates you along your journey?

Ascension.  Next.

How do you see yourself/ how do you see yourself in relation to the rest of the world?

You sound like a guidance counselor.  You know what?  I don’t feel I have to do good works and starve; the world was in trouble before I got here and it will still be in trouble when I leave.  Maybe if people focused on where they wanted to get to instead of whining about where they were stuck, the world would improve.  Ever think about that?  Carry on.

What is most important to you in this world?

I believe I’ve answered that question already.

What characteristics do you consider important in a person? What kind of people do you try to surround yourself with?

Are you asking me if I have friends?  Yes, I have friends.  You’ve met George, right?  Well he’s my right-hand man—ever since the fourth grade.  There’s nothing George wouldn’t do for me.  I can’t tell you how many times I lit off a pipe bomb in the bike rack in front of the school and George took the heat.  He’s never turned me in.  Not once.  Now, you’re talking buddies?  Or you’re talking girlfriends?  ‘Cause I am currently sleeping with three—count them—three hotties from the same department.  The temptation is to keep each one secret, right?  Wrong.  You play them off one another, then you don’t need to keep track of what you said to whom and they try extra hard to hold your interest.  You know the thing about a slap?  It doesn’t scar.

What do you see for yourself in the future? Where will you be? What kind of person do you want to become?

So here’s the thing: I actually have a geek side.  That’s why I’m not going to let my engineering degree go to waste for more than a couple of years.  I think the world seriously can be made better; there are incredible technologies just over the horizon—faster-than-light travel, next-generation robotics, global smart grids, terraforming.  But it means focus; it means letting nothing get in your way—not your boss, not your pets, not your…not your mom…and not your friends.

To learn more about Andrew Montlack, click here. 

To purchase 'Drip' click here.