Crackback (14 page)

Contact John Coy at www.johncoy.com.

Q.
You're known as an author of picture books. What led you to writing a novel?

A.
The seed for
Crackback
was planted when I was working on the picture book
Strong to the Hoop.
Liz Szabla, the editor, said that the language and action in
Strong to the Hoop
convinced her that I had a novel in me and that she would like to see it when I wrote it. The topic that grabbed me was high school football.

Q.
What are the challenges of writing for teens?

A.
The major challenge is being clear about what is the same and what is different from when I was a teen. Many of the emotions, the fears, the alienation, and the struggle for acceptance are similar. But the pressures on teens from parents and peers, the messages from the larger culture, and the media images they are surrounded with are different. As an author it's important for me to be with teens, to listen to them, and ask questions. It's also important for me to show them my work and ask what I'm missing and what I've gotten wrong.

Q.
What led you to the idea for
Crackback?

A.
When I was a teen, I loved football. I loved smashing into people. Football was the one place that hitting somebody was not only okay, it was prized. In
Crackback,
I wanted to convey that physical love of the game. I wanted to convey how much of Miles's identity comes from football and what happens when that is taken away.

Q.
When did you start playing football?

A.
When I was a boy I played football every day in the fall. Usually with neighborhood kids in the back yard, but if nobody else was around I would play by myself. I would make up games using the names of professional players and go from being the quarterback to the wide receiver as I threw the ball in the air and then raced to catch it.

When I played organized football I played defensive end, quarterback, and tight end. By the time I got to high school I had to switch to defensive back because I was not big enough to play up front. Over the years, I broke a wrist, a finger, and an ankle. Football is where I learned about toughness, dedication, and pain.

Q.
How does football define Miles Manning? Did it play a role in defining you as well?

A.
At the beginning of
Crackback,
Miles Manning is football, and football is Miles Manning. His sense of self is defined through football. I think it is impossible to over-emphasize how large a part of identification sports can be for many teens. When this is taken away, the crisis of identity is fundamental.

Football was an enormous part of my identity. It connected me to something larger and made me part of the school in a way I had not been before. Football was a ticket into groups and places I had not been invited before.

Q.
What research did you do for this book?

A.
I talked with high school students about football, school, jobs, and life. I interviewed football players about pressures to perform, weight lifting, and steroid use. I attended football practices, weight training, film sessions, and games. Coaches and players were welcoming and willing to answer my questions, no matter how unusual. I enjoyed being back on the football field on Friday nights and had moments of wishing I could be in the middle of the play.

I also asked football players about favorite numbers and plays that haunted them. Most players had one of each.

Q.
How has high school football changed since you played?

A.
One change is that teens believe adults have no idea how much high school football has changed. Acknowledging this gap is an essential step in understanding what some of the changes have been.

One main difference is the pressure to be bigger, stronger, faster. Weight lifting is much more intense, and year-round training and specialization have increased. Players have far greater access to supplements, pills, and steroids and have many more decisions to make about what they will and won't take to be better football players.

Another change is the high school game is more sophisticated than when I played. The plays, formations, and terminology are more complex and the quality of coaching is generally more advanced.

One change I was worried about was the speeches coaches give to fire up players. I remember these as being pretty bad, and I was worried that the coaches now all gave great, thoughtful speeches. Teens were more than willing to tell me that they still heard plenty of bad speeches and were able to help me with the speeches Coach Stahl gives in
Crackback.

Q.
The library is an important place for Miles in the book—why?

A.
For Miles, the library is a refuge from home. He goes there to get away from his dad and to read what he wants without anybody commenting on it. The library also has all kinds of sports magazines and papers for him. And it's free.

Later in the book, the library becomes even more important because that is where Lucia is. Miles comes to find her and sees how the new information he gains there expands his sense of who he is.

The library is that type of place for many people.

Q.
What were your favorite books as a teen?

A.
I was one of those sports-playing boys who stopped reading fiction in my teens. I liked to read when I was younger, but as a teen, I increasingly read magazines, the sports section of the paper, and nonfiction. I only read fiction if it was assigned for a class and much of what was assigned didn't seem very interesting.

Part of the problem was there was not as much interesting teen reading as there is now. Part of the problem was that the teachers doing the selecting picked books that did not seem relevant or connected to my interests. And part of the problem was that like many boys I stopped reading fiction for pleasure. Because I was one of these boys, it makes it easy for me to empathize with teens who do not read outside of school.
Crackback
is a book I would have liked as a teen. I hope it will draw a wide range of readers.

Q.
Do you have a favorite football number?

A.
Of course. Twenty-three.

Turn the page for a sneak peek at John Coy's new novel, Rebound, coming soon…

“Have a seat, Bergie.” Coach Kloss points to the chair in his cramped office. He's a short, solid guy, who looks more like a wrestler than a basketball coach.

Liam Bergstrom folds his thin, six foot, four inch, frame and looks puzzled. What did he do now?

“Relax.” Coach smiles. “You look like you're expecting to get cut.”

Liam unclenches his hands and rests them on his jeans. He exhales a deep breath and his shoulders fall.

“As you know, Tyler Jensrud broke his leg in two places yesterday,” Coach says. “Unfortunately, his senior season is over. Coach Grokowsky reports you've been doing good work on junior varsity. We don't normally play sophomores, but we need help. I'm officially calling you up to Horizon High School varsity.”

Liam's eyes widen. Varsity—the magic word that's floated in the distance. All the work of summer camps and traveling teams for that ultimate goal.

“We're not bringing you up to sit on the bench and look pretty. You're not that pretty.” Coach grins. “Without Jens, we're small up front. We need you to come off the bench and rebound.”

“Yes, Coach.” Liam's ready to leap for a rebound right now.

“Be in the locker room by six. We'll have your new uniform ready.”

“Thanks.” Liam reaches out to shake Coach's hand. “Thank you.”

“Welcome to varsity, Bergie. We're counting on you.”

Liam races down the hall to the old part of the school and peeks into a classroom to check the time. He adds seven hours for France. It's late, but Mackenzie might still be up. She'll be so excited. He spins his combination, opens his locker, and grabs his phone.

“'Allo,” Mackenzie answers sleepily in French.

“Kenz, Kenz, it's me. I made varsity. I thought I'd make it next year, but it's now. For tonight's game.”

“Awesome.”

“I wish you could be here to see it.” Liam paces in front of his locker.

“I do, too. I'll send good vibes to you in my dreams. Play well for me.”

“You know I will.”

“Bow your heads.” Coach Kloss kneels on the smooth bench of the boys' locker room.

Liam lowers his head and admires the shiny number forty-three and the H in a shield of his new uniform. This is the first time this uniform has been worn. His Nikes tap the double-time beat of pre-game nervousness.

Coach closes his eyes. “Lord, help us to play strong. Help us to do Your work as we take the floor with strong hearts, strong bodies, and strong minds.”

Liam folds his hands. Coach G never prayed like this on JV. Varsity feels so different already. He glances up and catches the eye of Darius Berry, the sophomore shooting guard, who transferred this year from Milwaukee.

“Let us all join in the prayer You taught us,” Coach continues.

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name.” Liam's voice blends with the others, but Darius is silent. He holds his hands behind his back and stares straight ahead. “Deliver us from evil.” Liam's set to add amen, but the prayer continues.

“For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.” It's the Protestant version with the extra words that he's not used to.

“Let's get a win.”