1. Is PageLand a book for children, or adults?
2. What does everything in PageLand mean?
3. Is this book dangerous?
4. Is this a book about religion?
5. Is this a book about God?
6. Is the character of Arthur like the person of Christ?
7. Who is David Hutchens?
8. Are there any hidden messages in PageLand?
9. Who does David Hutchens look like?
10. Are you writing any more books?
11. What is the official music of PageLand?

Q. Is PageLand a book for children, or adults?

A. Either. Both. Neither. Okay, I don't really know. With its cartoony illustrations, it looks like a children's book. But the story deals with some really big questions -- like, "Who am I?" "How did I get here?" "What else is there?" -- that have challenged philosophers and theologians for thousands of years. You can spend a lot of time thinking about PageLand if you like. Or after you read it, you can toss it behind your sofa and forget about it.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Some of the messages in PageLand are kind of hard to understand. Why isn't it more clear?

A. PageLand is a "metaphor." A metaphor is when we compare one thing to something else. When I say that my daughter Emory is a "bright little diamond," that doesn't mean she's really a diamond. It's just a way of helping you understand my daughter, Emory, by comparing her to something else (a diamond.)

So one good way to read PageLand is as a metaphor. Here are some questions to get you started: How is the storybook of "PageLand" like your life? How are the characters like you? Spend a few minutes imagining if your life was a book. What kinds of questions does this make you think of?

_{[back to top]}

Q. Is this book dangerous?

A. It could be, especially if dropped from a great height -- say, from the top floor of a tall city skyscraper. There is the possibility that the corner of the binding could strike a passer-by, resulting in a bloody nose, concussion, or worse.

_{[back to top]}

Q. No, I mean the ideas of the book. Are the ideas dangerous -- especially for young minds?

A. PageLand asks more questions than it answers. For people who like everything to have answers, PageLand might be a little unsettling. This may tend to be more true for adults.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Is this a book about religion?

A. No, not at all. PageLand asks some pretty big questions, like "what is real?" and "what is our purpose?" These are the issues that religions all seek to address. So while PageLand is concerned with some of the same questions as religion, it is not a book ABOUT religion.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Is this a book about God?

A. Now you're getting closer. Here's another question for you to think about: The characters of the story are confused when they think about their lives being "written" by an author who they can't see.

Remember, PageLand is a metaphor. So it would be correct for you to ask questions like "Is my life a story that is being written? If so, who is writing it? Why? And what is the story of my life about?"

_{[back to top]}

Q. Is the character of Arthur like the person of Christ?

A. What are some things in the story that brought an image of Jesus to mind? If you imagine Arthur as being like Christ, what are some questions this makes you want to ask about the identity of Christ?

_{[back to top]}

Q. Hey, now you're just answering our questions with other questions! No fair!

A. That's because I want you to think about it. If I answer everything, then YOU will stop thinking about it and go back to playing Tomb Raider on your Nintendo Game Cube. And what fun would that be?

_{[back to top]}

Q. Who is David Hutchens?

A.After his costumed role as Sigmund on the 1970s Saturday Morning hit "Sigmund & The Sea Monsters" resulted in near-fatal foam latex poisoning, David quit the world of showbiz broken and embittered. From there, he wandered the world aimlessly looking for something do. Once, he ate more than 20 hot buffalo wings in a single sitting, which made him sick all that night. His wife said "I don't know why you always do that to yourself. You deserve to get sick." David knew she was going to say that.

On the surface, David appears normal and if you were to spot him in a crowded restaurant you might first find his table manners unusual, but otherwise find nothing special about him; no webbed toes, no Tourette's syndrome, no dramatic curvature of the spine. A kid once told him his hair looked "poofy," but this doesn't seem to be an issue for most people.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Come on. Really. Who are you?

A. Okay, okay. I kid. There are other places in this website that will give you a better idea of who I am (like here.) The main thing is, I'm a dad to two great kids named Emory and Oliver. I'm married to Robbie.

I wish I could play with them all day long. But I have to make money to pay for my house. To do that, I spend much of my week as a writer. I write books about business, I write training programs for big companies, I write articles and speeches. For a few years, I used to write advertisements, like the commercials you see on TV or in magazines, but don't hold that against me.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Are there any secret messages in PageLand?

A. Yes. The names of my children -- Emory and Ollie -- are hidden somewhere within the story. First person to find them wins a free, double-shot caffe espresso. (Unless you're a kid. In that case, its a single shot.)

_{[back to top]}

Q. Do you know who you look like?

A. Yeah, I know; actor Rob Morrow, who played the doctor on that old TV series Northern Exposure. I get that all the time.

Long before that, there was a character named Skippy on a show called Family Ties. I look like him, too.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Are you writing any more books?

A. Yes. I like to write things that help people talk about ideas. When I'm not writing books for kids, I'm writing for very serious, grown-up business people. The funny thing is, you can't always tell the difference. I know kids who like to read my business books, and business people who like to read my kids books.

However, if you liked PageLand, you may be pleased to know that some other similar (that is, freaky and weird) stuff is in development.

_{[back to top]}

Q. What is the official music of PageLand?

A. John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme." It played continually on iTunes in hopes the spirit of Coltrane would seep into the text.

Also, if you're picking up any feelings of alienation in the story, that was inspired by Radiohead's "OK Computer." Most children's books cannot claim inspiration from "Paranoid Android." That's why this one is special.

_{[back to top]}

Q. Were you really on "Sigmund & The Sea Monsters"?

A. No.

[back to top]