This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.
Mike Scott is a proud graduate of Dublin Coffman High School and Miami University, who just published his first book of fiction. Beating the Books is a financial and domestic thriller about the modern temptation of legalized sports betting and the hidden costs. He recently took time to discuss his background, novel and life lessons learned.
Cathleen D'Angelo
Colleen and Becca Scott, Mike's mother, enjoy their copies of Beating the Books.
Q: Congratulations on publishing your first fiction novel. Who or what motivated you to write a thriller about legalized mobile sports-betting?
A: I dabbled in sports-betting arbitrage, so the novel is inspired by my experiences but is heavily fictionalized. Sportsbooks post odds, discrepancies are exposed and if you place a bet on both sides to win, the inefficiency promises to end in profit. The bettor wins, but only by a small percentage, so it requires significant capital and multiple accounts. It has exploded into a multibillion-dollar industry.
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Q: Do you still dabble? Why or why not?
A: Risk free doesn’t mean consequence free. Arbitrage sports-betting is a 24/7 machine that is constantly changing, offering new opportunities. It takes significant sacrifice, and I didn’t feel present with my wife and two young daughters. It’s addicting because you make money and feel like you are winning, but meanwhile your career and family life suffers. I witnessed this scenario with several friends and decided it wasn’t the path for me.
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Q: Were there other novels or movies that inspired you to write?
A: Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis. It explores the use of sabermetrics and statistical analysis in baseball. And Breaking Bad on Netflix because of the moral unraveling and its impact.
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Q: What are some of the important themes that run throughout the novel?
A: Addiction, for one. How much is enough and at what cost? Living life behind a screen instead of being truly present.
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Q: What did your writing process look like and where did you do your best work?
A: I was visiting my dad at Lake Erie when I wrote the foreword, decided the ending and sketched out a few chapters. When I returned to Washington, D.C. I wrote at night after helping put the girls to bed and then first thing in the morning. We live in a high rise near the U.S. Capital and enjoy some great rooftop space to enjoy as the sun is rising. My goal was to write a chapter at one sitting and then edit it at the next sitting.
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Q: How long did it take to write Beating the Books?
A: Actually, I wrote this 95,000-word novel in three months. Then I leaned on AI for grammar and editing purposes, naming my personal AI assistant, “Athena,” goddess of wisdom. I hired a professional editor to provide feedback on the novel and he loved it, but suggested I add more character description and development. I knew in my head what the characters looked like, but I hadn’t explained enough to the reader. Then I hired a designer for professional formatting and the cover design, and those processes took another two months.
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Q: How and why did you self-publish?
A: Using a traditional publisher would have extended the process by 18 to 24 months. Because of the sports-betting subject matter, my goal was to be published by the Superbowl and I achieved that by going live on January 18. I published on Amazon and Ingram Spark, which is where libraries and publishing houses look to attain new books.
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Q: Was/is it difficult to hear criticism about your unique 95,000 words and what helps you through that?
A: I’ve always played a lot of sports and have learned many lessons from athletics through the years. The toughest times though were when I officiated basketball. I started in middle school and was a referee for 15 years. I learned whose advice to heed because they were trying to help me improve, and whose words to ignore because they thought I made their kid’s team lose with a bad call. That toughened me up for critics of my writing. Most successful writers have an entire team of editors combing through their work, so it is smart to consider other perspectives.
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Q: What else helped prepare you for being a novelist?
A: I feel like Dublin Schools were incredible and I had great teachers and experiences that encouraged me to have confidence in my abilities. Power of the Pen at Sells Middle School planted the seed for me to try writing creatively. In those competitions, you have about an hour to utilize a prompt, come up with a story, characters, themes and develop it into a work of fiction. Most people claim that the biggest obstacle for writing is just getting started. Power of the Pen taught me to storyboard and I’m very grateful.
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Q: Any key teachers or influences from Dublin?
A: John Dillard, my English teacher from Karrer Middle School unlocked my love of words and recognized my potential. I got hooked on watching West Wing and also formed a love of politics, got involved in student government and was student body president at Miami University. Travis Barrett from Dublin Coffman challenged me daily in high school. He would return my essays with red markings everywhere. It was difficult but I learned that his corrections and suggestions were meant to encourage me to dig deeper, think harder and push myself. We still stay in touch and I hear his voice in my head when I write.
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Q: What do you miss about Dublin and will you ever move back?
A: I love Dublin and I can’t think of a better place to raise a family. It is such a vibrant, well-planned city with great schools, parks and events. I try to return for as many Irish Festivals, Memorial Tournaments and Fourth of July celebrations as possible. It gets trickier with two little kids of course, but my mom, Becca Scott, still lives there and we visit with her and would love to be back in Dublin. My full-time job is the chief development officer and associate dean of development at the University of Maryland in the College of Computer, Mathematical, and Natural Sciences, so for now I’ll be staying put.
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Cathleen D'Angelo
Colleen's pup wants in on the fun too.
Q: Are there any other novels we should anticipate?
A: Writing Beating the Books was a life-long dream but it was tough with two little ones at home. I’ll probably take a break, although I have several ideas and I’m constantly jotting down notes on my phone. I am also looking into several streaming platforms to get my novel adapted to film or TV.
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Q: What advice can you offer to aspiring writers?
A: I feel like a novice myself as I’m still learning, but (I’d say) try not to lose sight of the written word and its power in communication. Find someone like Travis Barrett that you trust as a mentor and draw on their knowledge. Then, soften your ego and be open to feedback. Don’t take it as criticism. Change your lens and consider other possibilities.
Colleen D’Angelo is a Dublin Life columnist and freelance writer who has lived in Dublin for 27 years. You can find her on the pickleball court, in the yoga studio or on an airplane to international destinations. Contact her at colleendangelo1@gmail.com.
