1--What is the title of your latest release?
TOM CLANCY SHADOW STATE
2--What’s the “elevator pitch” for your new book?
Jack Ryan Jr. risks life and limb in the jungles of Vietnam to expose a Chinese industrial intelligence network that threatens a top-secret national defense program.
3--How did you decide where your book was going to take place?
Because this is a Clancy novel, I wanted to focus on the geopolitical tensions between the U.S. and China. Since I spent my career in tech, I chose to highlight American dependence on Chinese rare earth minerals. As with other areas of the tech supply chain, many companies are looking to Vietnam for a China “decoupling” strategy. Given the complex history of American policy in Vietnam, I thought it would be interesting to set the story there.
4--Would you hang out with your protagonist in real life?
Oh, most definitely. Jack Ryan Jr. is a cool dude. He’s smart, courageous, and fun. I’ve seen him suffer a trifle from youthful arrogance in the past, but he’s maturing nicely.
5--What are three words that describe your protagonist?
Clever, honorable, adventurous
6--What’s something you learned while writing this book?
I learned a heap about rare earth metals/minerals. I found it interesting that the metals are relatively common but that refining them is the hard part. China is far and away the world leader in refining rare earth minerals, especially when used in magnets that are critical for next-generation products like electric cars and smartphones.
7--Do you edit as you draft or wait until you are totally done?
I work through a completed first draft that follows an outline and then rewrite. I believe one needs the big picture to edit effectively, so doing it along the way would waste a lot of time, at least for me.
8--What’s your favorite foodie indulgence?
I don’t know if it counts as a foodie thing, but I love barbecue. I recently bought a smoker and am getting better at brisket.
9--Describe your writing space/office!
I’ve lived in the Pacific Northwest for many years and designed my loft to look like a Seattle coffee house. It has cracked leather, scuffed wood floors, and industrial lighting fixtures. People call it “moody,” which I think is perfect for writing.
10--Who is an author you admire?
It’s hard to pick from so many good ones. My current favorite writer is Mark Helprin. I read his most recent book The Ocean and the Stars and thought it was in a class by itself.
11--Is there a book that changed your life?
If I had to pick one, I would say The Caine Mutiny by Herman Wouk, which I read in my early twenties. I loved it because it combined the romance of the sea, a war story, a psychological drama, and a legal thriller into a single work. It is so well characterized that lines from it run through my head to this day. It inspired me to write novels.
12--Tell us about when you got “the call.” (when you found out your book was going to be published)/Or, for indie authors, when you decided to self-publish.
Oh, man, it was surreal. A good six months after I had sent my manuscript off into the black hole of the submissionverse, I got a random call from a 212 number. I remember talking to my (now) agent for the first time while standing in my kitchen when he told me how much interest there was. I quite literally squashed a chair leg on my toes to ensure I wasn’t dreaming. I still think I might be dreaming.
13--What’s your favorite genre to read?
I like historical military fiction, but there isn’t much of it out there. Short of that, I like spy thrillers where the protagonists are tortured and flawed. John le Carré was quite good at those heroes. I also enjoy non-fiction centered around history. Reading biographies is a great way to learn about protagonists—partly because there is so much more to a famous person than we think. They are all tortured and flawed.
14--What’s your favorite movie?
Oppenheimer—I thought its characterizations and layers were outstanding. It is also interesting how it deals with science, history, and the morality of war.
15--What is your favorite season?
Autumn is my favorite season, with the months ranked in descending order: September, October, November. The air dries out, the kids are back in school, old friends reconnect…and football returns.
16--How do you like to celebrate your birthday?
A very good, dressy dinner with my wife that starts with a Manhattan and ends with a long laugh with our shoes off.
17--What’s a recent tv show/movie/book/podcast you highly recommend?
I would recommend “For All Mankind” on Apple TV+. It’s an alternative history of what would have happened if the Soviets landed on the moon before the Americans. I believe there are four seasons now, and the characters evolve over time. The sets, writing, and character development are quite good. Overall, it is such an ambitious project for a TV series that it shouldn’t work. But it does.
18--What’s your favorite type of cuisine?
I’m going to have to go with either Thai or Vietnamese. Let’s call it Southeast Asian. The way those dishes fuse heat, citrus, and cool spices like mint or basil is exquisite. Now I’m getting hungry.
19--What do you do when you have free time?
I find that playing music is a great way to let my mind run free. I have been taking violin lessons for about two years, though my playing would not indicate that. As hard as it is on the rest of the house, I enjoy figuring out new songs with my violin.
20--What can readers expect from you next?
Another Jack Ryan, Jr!
Jack Ryan Jr. #12
Surviving a helicopter crash in the Vietnamese Highlands is only the start of the challenges facing Jack Ryan, Jr., in the latest propulsive thriller of this #1 New York Times bestselling series.
The vibrant economy of the new Vietnam is a shiny lure for Western capital. Companies are racing to uncover ideal opportunities. Not wanting to be left behind, Hendley Associates has sent their best analyst, Jack Ryan, Jr., to mine for investment gold. And he may have found some in a rare earth mining company—GeoTech.
But a trip with a Hendley colleague to the Highlands to observe the company’s operations takes a treacherous turn when their helicopter is shot down. Some things haven’t changed, and Vietnam is still the plaything of powerful neighbors. The Chinese are determined to keep Jack from finding the truth about what exactly is being processed at the isolated factory.
Now Jack is in a race for his life. He’s got to stay one step ahead of a pack of killers while supporting his wounded friend. He’ll get no help from the government, because in the jungle, it’s the shadow state that rules.
Thriller Military [G.P. Putnam's Sons, On Sale: August 20, 2024, Hardcover / e-Book, ISBN: 9780593717943 / eISBN: 9780593717950]
M. P. Woodward is a veteran of both US intelligence ops and the entertainment industry. As a naval intelligence officer with the US Pacific Command, he scripted scenario moves and countermoves for US war game exercises in the Middle East. In multiple deployments to the Persian Gulf and Far East, he worked alongside US Special Forces, CIA, and NSA. Today, Woodward runs international distribution marketing for Amazon Prime Video, having launched Amazon’s original video content in more than forty countries through more than one hundred cable, wireless, and broadband partnerships. He collaborates closely with content creators and distributors in driving viewer awareness and engagement. He is currently developing the international distribution strategy for the upcoming serial adaptation of The Lord of The Rings.
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