tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79070158202587680872024-03-21T09:04:25.146-07:00Day Labor, the Official blog of Crimefactory MagazineAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.comBlogger69125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-43972854522010706632011-07-16T23:53:00.000-07:002011-07-16T23:58:49.086-07:00Video Interview—Duane Swierczynski<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3JhP-OOKKpkG6BdyWoSulsslXPlGJZ5yNZSheJgl8z7SLLvNH2XaPjVdDQ6F3l-Dg0-T3dVQ4plqsppkK3MQB-k0eEEWpB4sM9q5Xr9PI4Z5hZuXgebv1XZQ4n-AUueyxI12ZuXVvcEU/s1600/fun+and+games.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 211px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3JhP-OOKKpkG6BdyWoSulsslXPlGJZ5yNZSheJgl8z7SLLvNH2XaPjVdDQ6F3l-Dg0-T3dVQ4plqsppkK3MQB-k0eEEWpB4sM9q5Xr9PI4Z5hZuXgebv1XZQ4n-AUueyxI12ZuXVvcEU/s320/fun+and+games.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5630211205456302434" border="0" /></a><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->In the last four years, there’s been a near holy trinity of pulp writers who, in my eye, can do no wrong: <p class="MsoNormal">Joe R. Lansdale</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Charlie Huston </p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://secretdead.blogspot.com/">Duane Swierczynski </a></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Swierczynski is one of those rare novelists who have yet to make a misstep in his career, despite the broad narrative leaps he takes. His novels are—for a lack of a better term—high octane thrill rides, which constantly challenge the notions of genre and <span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>keep the reader burning through pages.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Swierczynski is also one of the novelist who I’ve most wanted to interview and finally I was lucky enough to sit down with Duane at<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.poisonedpen.com/"> the Poisoned Pen Bookstore</a> in Scottsdale, AZ where he was making his first appearance and we sat down and talked about his latest effort <a style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Fun-Games-Duane-Swierczynski/dp/0316133280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1310885403&sr=8-1">Fun & Games</a>, <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.mulhollandbooks.com/">Mulholland Books</a>, his recent work with DC comics, and just where in the Hell he gets ideas from?</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I hope you enjoy.</p><br /><br /><iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/yn8-_aTD_l8" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="349" width="560"></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-6252931796151628782011-05-28T23:43:00.001-07:002011-05-29T00:11:18.743-07:00Issue #6 is LIVE!!! And a quick note<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1A8b75yPpboQy1k_2HbtdjSr-37yEDzQ3kkVO_d_J-oJzvXtTjuznYpimSNPNsTI3uqGkROcwVxygVI93F85tv1G4_fP6Z8HBM_NfC53QYj-bVrBxdjBgEHYx_RZhRyOrdSep_mfmhg/s1600/CF6.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 208px; height: 259px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI1A8b75yPpboQy1k_2HbtdjSr-37yEDzQ3kkVO_d_J-oJzvXtTjuznYpimSNPNsTI3uqGkROcwVxygVI93F85tv1G4_fP6Z8HBM_NfC53QYj-bVrBxdjBgEHYx_RZhRyOrdSep_mfmhg/s400/CF6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612031303444280738" border="0" /></a><br />Hey Gang,<br /><br />As you may or may not know already, issue #6 of <span style="font-size:130%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/main/Home.html">Crime Factory</a></span> is Live!!<br /><br />It's 200 pages of awesome and the line up is huge, so I hope you check it out right <span style="font-size:130%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/main/Home.html">HERE</a></span><br /><br />I also wanted to drop our future contributors and individuals whose stories we've already accepted a quick note regarding issue #6 and future issues.<br /><br />First off, we're trying to publish as frequently as we can and we appreciate your patience regarding seeing your story in <span style="font-size:130%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/main/Home.html">Crime Factory</a></span>. We obviously love your work, otherwise we wouldn't have accepted it.<br /><br />However, I will say we are working with a sizable backlog of stories. In fact, most of the stories in issue #6 were accepted over a year ago and when we're putting together an issue, we tend to prioritize those that have been in the hopper the longest.<br /><br />Plus, I don't know if anyone has noticed, but each issue is growing larger and larger, and the reason for this is we want to get these stories out into the world, but once again, I do want to urge you to be patient.<br /><br />But, if you do have concerns regarding your accepted story, please feel free to contact me personally at: rawsonkeith (at) gmail dot com. I will get back to you in a timely manner.<br /><br />Please only contact me if you have an ACCEPTED story, not a query.<br /><br />Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys the issue.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;">-Keith Rawson, publisher, Crime Factory Magazine</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-90895992301346754412011-05-18T13:06:00.000-07:002011-05-18T13:27:09.090-07:00Interview—Tom Piccirilli<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie_SgnkQ6oOMsGJIINqAOQ8hXKM4UpR9WnIwhL_jOzykulM4NY3_uSD2Xo19CIi81WzC6SeDiGP2CwEdDXCai18rMZ3j4coQU4Mp7G6vmavdgeaPnpTB1O_YHFkt9MSb1R5x8iMD56uDE/s1600/Tom+Piccirilli.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 198px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie_SgnkQ6oOMsGJIINqAOQ8hXKM4UpR9WnIwhL_jOzykulM4NY3_uSD2Xo19CIi81WzC6SeDiGP2CwEdDXCai18rMZ3j4coQU4Mp7G6vmavdgeaPnpTB1O_YHFkt9MSb1R5x8iMD56uDE/s320/Tom+Piccirilli.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5608152618730483666" border="0" /></a><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">I’ve been a long time admirer of <span style="font-size:130%;"><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://thecoldspot.blogspot.com/">Tom Piccirilli</a></span>. His narrative voice is one of the most stylized and fearless of the current batch of neo-noir novelists. I was recently fortunate enough to steal away some of Piccirilli's precious writing time to talk about his most recent releases (the brilliant Every Shallow Cut and his collaboration with Ed Gorman, </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Cast In Dark Waters.) as well as his experiences in e-publishing and his upcoming hardcover release from </span></span><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Bantam THE LAST KIND WORDS.</span></span></p>I hope you enjoy <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><br /></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Keith Rawson: Over the last year you've focused intensely on the current economic state of the U.S.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>How much has the down turn in the economy affected you and your community?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> I have focused on economic woes in some recent short fiction and my noirella EVERY SHALLOW CUT especially, because finances have been tight here and growing ever tighter for the past year.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>My wife has a heart attack in early ‘10, and though I thank her doctors daily that she's made a full recovery, the hospital bills continue to pour in.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Being one of those millions of Americans without health insurance, we've been brought to the brink of ruin by our debts.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Being a nervous, tense, worrisome soul even at the best of times, I'm all that to the nth power now.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>And though it helps to make for some deep dark noir, it hardly sends me to sleep with dancing sugar plums in my head.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>At least two of our neighbors have been foreclosed on and it's a real possibility that me or anyone else can get crushed beneath our mortgages and wind up back in Ma's basement or out on the streets.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Write what you know, and at the moment I know stark terror pretty well inside out.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: 2010, I think, has been the first year in close to a decade where you didn't have a full length novel appear, what's the reason for this?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> My next novel for Bantam THE LAST KIND WORDS has been trekking on a long and bizarre road.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>As anyone who's paying attention knows, the publishing world is in a bit of disarray now.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Random House, the parent company of Bantam, came in and restructured the whole place among layoffs and a culling of the book lines.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Somewhere in there, though, the good folks at the house decided to push me out of mass market paperback originals and shove me up to hardback with a nice big publicity push.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>We've already got blurbs from the likes of Lee Child, Daniel Woodrell, Nancy Pickard, and a number of other generous, first-rate folks.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>However, Bantam has decided the best time to release the book is in summer, and since they couldn't quite make it for summer of ‘11, the novel is now currently slated for summer ‘12.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Keith Rawson: Is this your first time publishing in hardback and why did Bantam decide to with your next full length release as a hardback?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> It's my first time in hardback from a major publisher.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I've had tons of small press limited edition hardcovers, but this is the first novel from a NYC publisher the size of Bantam.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Apparently they've got great faith that the book has some kind of mainstream appeal and might actually sell copies.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It's the story of a former thief who returns to his criminal family shortly before his brother is to be executed after going on a killing spree.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The brother claims that he did go on a rampage, but that one of the murders attested to him he didn't commit. <span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>So my protagonist is drawn into this bizarre mystery, helping a brother he hates, forced to face people and events from his past that he doesn't want to face.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: EVERY SHALLOW CUT is a bit of a departure for you. It's dark but doesn't really stick to any particular genre. What's the novella about and where did the idea for the story come from? </span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> It's the story of a homeless writer who's lost his house and wife amidst the economic downturn, who is finally pushed to the point of violence.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>He buys a gun and goes on a cross-country trek with his bulldog to see his older brother.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Along the way he relives his past, his highs and lows, his busted dreams, and his failures, while trying to make sense of his own downfall.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It's kind of a meta-fiction, with a lot of autobiographical realistic emotions focusing on a lot of raw honest stuff, most of which has never really happened.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It might be a departure for me because it's not a horror or crime tale, but is dark as hell, and in some regards possibly my darkest story ever.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>And anyone even remotely familiar with my work can see that it shares certain themes with my other noir fiction.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Keith Rawson: You also recently released a collaborative piece with Ed Gorman--Cast In Dark Waters. Is this an e-book original or was is it previously published? Also could you give a brief summary of the book?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> It was originally released as a limited edition hardcover as part of Cemetery Dance's Novella series.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>It's our homage to the old pulp magazines and such writers as Robert E. Howard, Kenneth Robeson, and Maxwell Grant. It follows the story of Lady Crimson, a female pirate captain who rules her crew with an iron fist and sails in search of treasure to a distant island where vampiric-like beings haunt the tropical waters and jungles. Going ashore she finds a fabled temple with a thousand stone stairs and is forced to outwit and battle a tribe of monstrous creatures as well as various undead former friends and lovers. </span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: Was Cast In Dark Waters your first collaborative novel? And would you ever consider another collaboration?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> It's the first collaborative piece I ever did.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I've also co-written a short horror story with Ken Bruen.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>But I'm a complete control freak.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I can only collaborate in a certain fashion, which is how I came to do these two pieces.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Both of my collaborators got to a certain point in the story and then turned it over to me to do whatever I pleased.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>They never rewrote me and didn't mind if I rewrote them.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Unless I have that kind of control, I just can't co-write with anyone else.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I don't play well with other children in the sandbox.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: Inevitably, I'm going to have to ask you about e-books and the e-publishing process. First, which do you prefer, traditional publishing or e-publishing and what are the up downsides of both for you?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> If I was one of those cats who's selling 500 units a day, or even a week, and keeping 90% of the cash, I'd definitely be a big proponent of e-publishing.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>But at this point, for me, it's just a little extra gravy a month.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Financially and career-wise it has not replaced traditional publishing in my life, although it is a terrific supplement.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I can bring out-of-print books back into print with only a modicum of expense, I can do original novels or novellas or collections that don't seem right for the traditional presses for one reason or another, and I can toy with prices or do monthly sales or any other damn thing I feel like doing.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>E-book publishing is having total control of the material.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Traditional publishing, though, still offers me advances, an editor, a physical book, sales from brick and mortar bookstores, a team of folks dedicated to promoting foreign sales, some advertising, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span></span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Keith Rawson: Will you be re-publishing the horror tittles you wrote for Dorchester (Leisure Books) or is the publisher still in control of the copyright? And what was your take on Brian Keene's current situation?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> I own all the rights to my work.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I'll probably be reprinting some of the books in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Right now I'm more focused on my crime fiction and getting that out in front of my readers.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>I'm glad that Brian was willing to go to the mattresses to get Leisure to return his rights to him.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Few writers are willing to draw a line in the sand and refuse to let the publishers cross it.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Whether it's because of lethargy, inertia, or fear, too often authors are taken advantage of by corporate forces.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: You came into publishing at the tail end of the horror boom of the 80's, what's changed the most in publishing since then and what would you change back if you were in control of the industry?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> Well, since then just about everything has changed.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Less bookstores, less copies of books in stores, less love of genre fiction, it seems. You used to be able to put "horror" on the spine of a book back in the 80s, not so anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>There's so many biases and worries and emphasis on mega-sellers rather than mid-list.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>The mid-list is effectively gone, the paperback scene is going.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>If I could change anything it would be that publishers spread the love around, try to build up entire careers rather than selling single books or series.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Push the authors, push literature as a whole rather than the flavor of the hour, keep the people who love books in business, because without them, there is no business.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: What's been your proudest moment as a novelist and what's been your most difficult?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> I've been in this game over 20 years, and it's never been easy.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Writing is a gut-wrenching process and publishing can be even worse.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>My proudest moment is the fact that I'm still alive after being kicked in the head by every boot in the biz imaginable. </span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;">Keith Rawson: Do you ever see yourself returning to writing novel length horror or has the voice disappeared? </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style=" font-weight: bold;font-size:10pt;" >Tom Piccirilli:</span><span style="font-size:10pt;">The voice is there but the desire is gone for the time being.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Maybe the wheel will turn again somewhere along the way.</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="mso-spacerun:yes"></span>Keith Rawson: Not to be too invasive, but what are you currently working on? And other than THE LAST KIND WORDS what else can we expect?</span></span></p><span style="font-family:georgia;font-size:130%;"> </span> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-size:10pt;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Tom Piccirilli:</span> LKW has been pushed back to '12 but I'm currently working on the sequel THE LAST WHISPER IN THE DARK.<span style="mso-spacerun:yes"> </span>Besides that, there's always some noirellas and short stories in the pipeline, but it's a bit too early to discuss them at the moment.</span></span></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-73428616460202138432011-04-26T08:40:00.000-07:002011-04-26T09:42:18.260-07:00Video Interview—Joe R. Lansdale<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOP6UxZ5zDCj2Q9mKD-mqVvW9su8y9pVAjEBE-MgaGkW01jEniSyAZ85GyeRvQCjVXbwMeuJ38KK0CyPToTJrBTXhoYg8eBvXA9IAO1Op-xbCqGws_y1f04r74rQH8AF-Kvc0CFEHaqY/s1600/Joe+Lansdale+Devil+Red.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 217px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoOP6UxZ5zDCj2Q9mKD-mqVvW9su8y9pVAjEBE-MgaGkW01jEniSyAZ85GyeRvQCjVXbwMeuJ38KK0CyPToTJrBTXhoYg8eBvXA9IAO1Op-xbCqGws_y1f04r74rQH8AF-Kvc0CFEHaqY/s320/Joe+Lansdale+Devil+Red.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5599931597530465634" border="0" /></a><br />In the two years I've been conducting interviews, there's been only one author who leaves me star struck whenever I sit down with him:<br /><br /><a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://joerlansdale.com/">Joe R. Lansdale</a>.<br /><br />As most of you know, Lansdale's been an enormous influence on me since my teens (You can read my tribute to Joe right <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.spinetinglermag.com/2010/05/14/joe-r-lansdale-interview/">HERE</a> over at <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.spinetinglermag.com/">Spinetingler</a>) and I always feel very fortunate that the legendary author is willing to sit down with me year-after-year.<br /><br />And on April 16th, I sat down again with Lansdale at the <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.poisonedpen.com/">Poisoned Pen Bookstore</a> in Scottsdale, AZ to discuss Joe's latest Hap and Leonard novel, <a style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" href="http://www.poisonedpen.com/products/hfiction/9780307270986?searchterm=devil+red">Devil Red</a>, his upcoming Young Adult novels, and his future projects with <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://www.mulhollandbooks.com/">Mulholland Books</a><br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/rKdmR3KzGvY" allowfullscreen="" width="640" frameborder="0" height="390"></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-83530342507296424412011-02-27T20:13:00.000-08:002011-02-27T20:14:59.733-08:00Nueva Localización by Jimmy Callaway<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;">Stillwell lit two Luckies and handed her one.<span style=""> </span>The streetlight threw vertical shadows on her face as she smiled up at him.<span style=""> </span>“What’s this?” he said, touching his finger to the pucker of skin on her belly.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Cigarette,” she said.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Boyfriend?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Father.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Huh,” he said, taking a drag.<span style=""> </span>“You two didn’t get along, I take it.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She shrugged.<span style=""> </span>“That’s the only mark he ever left on me.<span style=""> </span>He felt bad about it afterwards.<span style=""> </span>Seemed to, anyway.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Huh.”<span style=""> </span>He watched the smoke curl from her Lucky, the ash beginning to crumple under its own weight.<span style=""> </span>He took an ashtray from the bedstand and placed it on his own naked stomach.<span style=""> </span>“My old man was no angel himself.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah.<span style=""> </span>The belt, that was his, y’know...”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Favorite.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah.<span style=""> </span>But then one day, I don’t remember what I did, but I had the belt coming.<span style=""> </span>So I decided, bent bare-ass over my own bed, to not cry.<span style=""> </span>And I couldn’t see his face, but it was like, <i style="">whap! whap!</i><span style=""> </span>And then he paused, y’know, waiting for the reaction.<span style=""> </span>But I held it in, y’know.<span style=""> </span>And I couldn’t see his face, but I could, y’know, I could picture it.<span style=""> </span>Confused.<span style=""> </span>He wasn’t a smart guy.<span style=""> </span>But then he got it after a minute.<span style=""> </span>Still, one more time—<i style="">whap!</i>—and that was it.<span style=""> </span>Never got the belt again.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah,” she said, and handed him her cigarette.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>He took it from her and stubbed it out, and then his.<span style=""> </span>They slept, her with her head on his chest.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She called a few times, but gave up after a week or two.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; line-height: 200%;" align="center">#</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She’d been angling to get Zero into the bedroom all night.<span style=""> </span>He finally just let her blow him on the couch, not only shutting her up for fifteen minutes but also letting him continue with the block of <i style="">Roseanne</i> on TV Land.<span style=""> </span>The blow job was pretty good, too.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>After she was done, during a commercial, Zero said, “Hey, what’s that on the back of your neck?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; line-height: 200%;">“What?” she said, feeling back there.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; line-height: 200%;">“That scar, man.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She said, “Oh, that.<span style=""> </span>Nothing.<span style=""> </span>I was in a pretty bad fight once, with some bitch trying to steal my boyfriend.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah.<span style=""> </span>Just stupid high school shit, at some party.<span style=""> </span>When I had her on the ground, one of her friends hit me with a broken bottle.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Man.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah.<span style=""> </span>Eight stitches.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Man,” Zero said.<span style=""> </span>The commercial was over, but Zero said, “Y’know, I haven’t thrown a punch since fifth grade?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah?”<br /><span style=""> </span>“Yeah, this kid, I don’t remember his name, was being a real prick at the bus stop, man, just being a real jerk-off.<span style=""> </span>Throwing rocks at kids, just being a prick.<span style=""> </span>And then, I dunno what happened, but I just snapped and beat the shit out of him.<span style=""> </span>Right there in front of everybody.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Wow,” she said, “Did you get in trouble or anything?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Nah, no grown-ups around, nothing.<span style=""> </span>None of the other kids were gonna narc me out, they all hated him too.<span style=""> </span>But there I was, standing over this kid, crying in the gutter.<span style=""> </span>And then I realized I was crying too.<span style=""> </span>Or at least I had tears coming out of my eyes.<span style=""> </span>All worked up, man, all excited, and for what?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Nothing,” she said.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>They fell asleep in front of the TV, Zero’s pants still undone.<span style=""> </span>Zero scrambled some eggs for them both in the morning.<span style=""> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>He never called her again, but ran into her on the street a couple weeks later.<span style=""> </span>She seemed real glad to see him, but they never hung out again.<span style=""> </span>It never came up, really.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center; line-height: 200%;" align="center">#</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>Bronson had been trying for a couple of weeks now to get this girl into the sack, but it was totally worth it.<span style=""> </span>She was round, she was firm, she was more fully packed than a Who concert in the ‘70s.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>They lay there, panting.<span style=""> </span>“Man,” Bronson said, “That was fun.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She laughed a little in the back of her throat.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>Bronson rolled over onto his side, facing her, his head resting on his hand.<span style=""> </span>“Hey, what’re all those little scars on your back?<span style=""> </span>You fall into a thresher or something?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Hm, no,” she said, “I had a boyfriend who was into BDSM.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Oh,” Bronson said, “What is that, like, an industrial band or something?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She laughed again.<span style=""> </span>“No, it’s, y’know, bondage and stuff.<span style=""> </span>He had this cat-o’-nine-tails he’d use on me.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Jesus.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Not your thing, huh?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>Bronson pulled a face.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She said, “Have you ever tried it?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Well, no.<span style=""> </span>But I did date this one girl who wanted me to rape her all the time.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Oh, yeah?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah, it was no big thing, it was just kinda weird, that’s all.<span style=""> </span>Every time we’d do it, she’d ask me what it was like raping her.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“And what did you say?”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>Bronson shrugged.<span style=""> </span>“Oh, well, y’know, I said it was great or whatever.<span style=""> </span>But I couldn’t really say, since I’d never raped anybody.<span style=""> </span>She seemed to like it, though, y’know.<span style=""> </span>I aim to please.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She said, “Well, an element of danger can be, y’know, a real turn-on.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“Yeah, I get that.<span style=""> </span>I dunno.<span style=""> </span>It’s dangerous enough out there for me, thanks.<span style=""> </span>I mean, not to sound braggy or anything, but fuck.<span style=""> </span>I’ve been beat up, shot at, all kindsa crazy shit.<span style=""> </span>So when I’m in the company of a young lady, y’know, I’d like to...let my guard down a bit, I guess.<span style=""> </span>That’s living dangerously, you ask me.<span style=""> </span>Not that you did.”</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She laughed.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>He grinned.<span style=""> </span>“I guess I’m just an old-fashioned guy,” he said.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>“I think you’re sweet,” she said.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>They slept, and then she let him have sex with her again in the morning.</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 200%;"><span style=""> </span>She never returned any of his phone calls after that.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-33064635996105161722011-02-27T20:10:00.000-08:002011-02-27T20:12:53.695-08:00ROBBIE V WANTS A JOB By Cameron Ashley<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John G comes back into the cafe. He adjusts his pants, pulling the waistband up over his under-gut, wipes his palms on his thighs, leans over the counter and picks up his short black.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark sits at the rear of the cafe, combing his greasy ducktail back into a shape it never really lost in the first place. He taps his fingernails on his Cooper’s stubbie, drawing John’s attention.<span style=""> </span>John waddles over and sits down.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“What’s up, mate?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Someone here to see you. Says he knows you. Says he wants a job.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John sighs, his coffee-breath clouding Mark’s personal space.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Where is he?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark smiles and points to a table at a front corner of the cafe.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John, eyesight fading with age, squints at the shape hunched over his table, then fumbles for the glasses in his pocket. They are crazy thick black-rimmed spectacles, the kind hipsters wear for irony’s sake but John wears out of cheapness.<span style=""> </span>John says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Fuck me.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Yeah, thought you’d say that.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">The shape in the corner stares out at Lygon Street. John turns back to Mark.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“This guy’s going to scare off all the pretty girls.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Take a look around, boss. You ever see any pretty girls in here?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Smartarse. Who is this freak?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Says he’s Robbie V. I was gunna just toss him, but he swears he did some work for you a few years back.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“That guy’s Robbie V?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“So he says.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“No way he’s Robbie V.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Well, that’s what he says.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“That guy...he’s...all cut up.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I believe he’s what’s known as a modern primitive.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“A what?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“A modern primitive. They’re into weird body modification and post-humanism and...” </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark smiles into his latte cup.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“...alternative sex.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John makes a face like someone cupped a fart in their fist and released it under his nose.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Jesus Christ.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Had a quick chat. Seems like a nice guy.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“How do you know all this stuff?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“What stuff?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“This modern...whatever stuff.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I read, John.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“You and your perverted books.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I once went out with a chick who had a piercing through her thing. What was her name?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Through her what?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Her <i style="">thing</i>. Christ, John, don’t make me draw a picture.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“You’re wrong. There’s something very, very wrong with you.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“She had to take it out. It made her cum all the time, like just walking around and stuff, off she’d go.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John shakes his head, says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“What is happening to this world?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Nancy! That was it, her name was Nancy. Shit, I should check in with her.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“You need to find a nice girl.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Are you going to give him a job?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Doing what?<span style=""> </span>Scaring little children?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark laughs, says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Keep it down, boss. He can probably hear you.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I don’t give a shit. What happened to him? Such a handsome boy. Look at all those scars...”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I don’t mind the scars, look how they swirl, such intricate patterns. It’s the earrings I find a bit off.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John takes another look.<span style=""> </span>Huge, heavy, metal hoops are inserted into Robbie V’s lobes, stretching them out so far you could put a midget’s fist through them. Mark says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Pretty gross, eh?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I can’t talk to him.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Do you really know him?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John whips off his glasses, leans in close.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I do.<span style=""> </span>He used to do what you do.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Ah.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“He then got some weird girlfriend...went all...weird.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Ah.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“He up and left. Last I heard he was in Nimbin or something.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Well, he’s back now. Maybe she dumped him, the weird girlfriend.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Good riddance. I can’t talk to him.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“John...”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I can’t. You do it. You tell him I have no work for him. My heart has broken. Such a handsome boy.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“John, surely we can use him for something.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">John stands, shakes his head, shuffles off to the kitchen, says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“What is he thinking, coming back to me looking like that?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark drains the last of his beer. Rubs his eyes. He hates disappointing people and this dude’s potentially a bit of a wild card and wild cards he hates disappointing the most.<span style=""> </span>He walks behind the counter and grabs two more beers. Robbie V hears Mark approach, he looks up and smiles. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Fuck me, his teeth are filed.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark pops the top off a beer and passes it to Robbie. He does the same with his and takes a seat.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Listen, mate –”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“He didn’t go for it. I heard. It’s okay. I just thought that maybe he could use someone with a look, you know.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Yeah. Well, I think that it’s just that you’re a little...distinctive, mate. I mean, you stand out like a sore dick. I mean, you look like Killer Croc.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Killer --?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Croc.<span style=""> </span>From Batman.<span style=""> </span>Look, never mind about all that, okay? I’m pretty sure someone somewhere can use a man of your distinctive talents. Whatever, uh, they may be.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Robbie V leans across the table.<span style=""> </span>He’s quite the side of beef. The table gives out what may be a final death rattle. Mark makes a mental note to start reinforcing these cheap pieces of shit before there’s an accident. Robbie V bares his fangs and says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“I am a man with a broken heart who has lost all faith in everything except the modification of the flesh.<span style=""> </span>I have transformed myself into something post-human.<span style=""> </span>I have gone through rites of passage you cannot even comprehend. I know how to burn symbols into skin, how to suspend a body from hooks through the flesh and how to take a man through a journey of such pain that it will leave him either transcendent or dead. I have no interest now in anything except pain and its power and what it can do.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“...Right...”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">The guys sit there, eyeballing each other.<span style=""> </span>Finally, Mark says,</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“So. You have any pictures of yourself, like, hanging from meat hooks or whatever?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Not on me, no.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Right. Well, tell you what, I like you, mate. I’ll put in a good word for you and, even though we try not to torture-slash-maim too much these days, you never can tell when such a situation may arise. Leave me your number. We’ll be in touch.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Robbie V nods, reaches for his wallet.<span style=""> </span>Mark waves it off. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Beer’s on me mate.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">They shake. Robbie stands, smiles at Mark with those shark teeth.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Thanks, mate.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">Mark nods, holds his breath till Robbie V is surely well on his way back to Freaksville.<span style=""> </span>Mark sits and drinks his beer and thinks about piercings for a bit. He pulls out his phone, scrolls through some numbers and dials.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU">“Nancy? Hey, it’s Mark. How ya been?”</span></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-67681932967183425472011-02-27T20:06:00.000-08:002011-02-27T20:09:57.506-08:00My Brother's Keeper by Brian Lindenmuth<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><i style=""> “I knew there were others like me who had brothers they did not understand but wanted to help. We are probably those referred to as “our brothers keepers,” possessed by one of the oldest and possibly one of the most futile and certainly one of the most haunting<br />of instincts. It will not let us go.”</i><span style=""><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 21pt; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="">–<span style="font: 7pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span>A River Runs Through It</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">He stood there, in the middle of his brother’s living room, and felt<br />the sounds and bustle of family and domesticity wash over him. He was<br />less then twelve hours out of jail after doing twelve years for a<br />crime he didn't commit and these sounds were foreign to him. His<br />brother had picked him up from the motel, brought him to his house<br />then left him in the living room with shouts to "make yourself at<br />home", not knowing quite what to do with him. He felt vaguely dirty<br />and guilty as if he was eavesdropping. Buried beneath all of this he<br />felt longing. He longed to possess these sounds and take them into<br />him and keep them forever. He so badly wanted his own set of domestic<br />sounds. The unfulfilled desire coupled with the knowledge of its<br />absence hurt him deeply. The only thing worse than hurting was knowing<br />why and being unable to do anything about it. He was lonely and alone<br />and he knew it.<br /><br />Twelve years ago they said he beat her and punched her in the gut hard<br />enough to lose the child few knew she was carrying. He hadn’t, his<br />brother had been the violent one that night.<br /><br />His prodigal brother’s star had always been on the ascendancy, shining<br />bright in others eyes. The star blinded many to his brother's<br />shortcomings and a ready excuse was always quick to free him of blame.<br />Unlike his brother he had always been written off and cast aside.<br />But those were the actions of others and he still loved his brother.<br /><br />Living in the glow of his brother's radiance had taught him to be an<br />observer and in silence he became a quick study of people. He saw the<br />changes in his brother's girlfriend before anyone else did and he also<br />saw his brother's eyes after she told him. When their old man told<br />him that his brother and her went to the quarry instead of their usual<br />Friday night movie he knew.<br /><br />He knew what his brother was going to do that night and was unable to<br />get there in time to stop it. He knew that he could protect his<br />brother by taking the blame and not one person would doubt it. He<br />drove his brother to the end of the street where they lived and let<br />him out to walk the rest of the way home telling him he would take<br />care of it. He did it because he believed that any man who turned his<br />back on his family was no good and he didn't want his brothers more<br />promising future to be jeopardized. He was stronger than people<br />thought and he would lie about what happened and his brother was<br />weaker than people thought and would let him.<br /><br />"Uncle Joe, when did you get here?"<br /><br />He refocused on the present. "Just a little bit ago."<br /><br />"Where's Frank" He knew his niece had stopped saying Dad awhile back<br />but to hear it was jarring.<br /><br />"He said he'd be back in a minute."<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">He still hadn't lost his heightened jail sense, the one that told when<br />shit was coming, the one a man learned to trust in order to survive,<br />the one that kept him alive. He knew something was wrong. He knew<br />something was coming.<br /><br />"You knew that didn't you? Were you listening from the kitchen?"<br /><br /><br />"I was."<br /><br /><br />"Why."<br /><br /><br />"Frank and I don't do the same room thing anymore."<br /><br /><br />He thought he saw a ghost of a look on her face, one he recognized<br />from jail. The broken look that new guys wore after a few nights and<br />sometimes many more after. A look of personal hell and violation. He<br />shook it off because he wasn't in jail anymore and knew he was still<br />trying to adjust.<br /><br /><br />With all of the light tone he could manage he asked, "What'd you do to<br />your arm?" He almost said kiddo but stopped just short.<br /><br /><br />This time, as she pushed her sleeve down, he knew he saw the look.<br />Looking through him she said, "Frank".<br /><br /><br />He felt movement upstairs coming closer. For the first time she looked<br />right at him and his jail hardened soul jumped.<br /><br /><br />"I really don't mind the scars," she said.<br /><br /><br />With that confession she let him into a small select club. She looked<br />at him fully with eyes older then her age to see if he understood<br />that. He did. He held her gaze and nodded slightly.<br /><br /><br />He stood there for four breaths, unable to speak. The silence fitting<br />and necessary. The third breath was the deepest of them all and the<br />fourth held a finality to it, as if a decision had been reached.<br /><br /><br />He knew he had to leave. With something breaking inside of him he<br />left in silence, quickly and quietly. After the door clicked shut a<br />question, directed towards him, hung in the air, then fell away<br />unanswered.<br /><br /><br />In a moment of strength he turned his back on his family because after<br />the things he did in jail he knew he was no good. He knew that<br />sometime later, in a moment of weakness, after some preparation, he<br />would again be who they all thought he was. He'd be back.<br /><br /><br />Once, he'd gone to jail because of his brother. Now, he'd be going<br />home again because of him.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-22790469286724141812011-02-27T20:00:00.000-08:002011-03-08T14:25:52.373-08:00The Lesson of Blood by Keith Rawson<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bByqry0P-yU-THj9tjUDv3TLy0yk3SxGtNXamOHlCpTO6QA9X72iYvSmNLc_PxIT2MKERY3CQoDbyZ7z_FPlIPQZ0CoLwO1a6yvgqATa9i17YWrk8_pW3C5aCgp3IoxW1sArf4jfi20/s1600/barbwire.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 240px; CURSOR: pointer" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5578586240248596546" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-bByqry0P-yU-THj9tjUDv3TLy0yk3SxGtNXamOHlCpTO6QA9X72iYvSmNLc_PxIT2MKERY3CQoDbyZ7z_FPlIPQZ0CoLwO1a6yvgqATa9i17YWrk8_pW3C5aCgp3IoxW1sArf4jfi20/s320/barbwire.jpg" /></a>My eyes opened down a dirt track, sitting next to my father in one of his old cars. I can't remember what kind of car it was? Just another rusted out heap in a long line of rusted out heaps.<br /><p class="MsoNormal">My father thought he could fix everything with his hands.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />-I thought you said....<br />-I know...I know what I said...but I can't. I can't, not any more.<br />Blood rushed through him, his skin going hot/cold, beads of sweat popping, coursing down the jagged valleys of hard flesh which peppered his shiny scalp, his cheeks, his neck and chest. The puckered, raised flesh were a life time of labor, like a permanent Employee of the Month photo stapled to his back.<br />-We need the money.....<br />-We haven't needed the money in ten years...I can't watch you do this to yourself anymore. What are you trying to prove?<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />The cracked vinyl bench made my bare legs itch. The front struts squealed under our weight. My family were large people, even at 6 or 7 I weighed 150 lbs. My father was a walking brick wall, my mother the same. Both of them liked to drink. They never seemed drunk to me, just mad. Mad at the little house we lived in, the shitty jobs they always lost six months or a year after they got them, mad at each other for being so fat and knowing no one else would have them.<br /><br />I think we'd left the house because my mother had lost another job waitressing, or working at the seed factory and she was trashing the house. I know I was scared and my father didn't like to see me scared, so we left, driving until he decided he needed a drink, so we pulled off the road, parking out in the scrub brush and dying saguaros watching the sun dip into the flat desert.<br />He was raising the short dog of Makers Mark to his lips when the other car slammed into our bumper and throwing us hard into the dash.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />-I have NOTHING to prove! I am the GREAT SHIEK! Terror of the SQUARED.....<br />-You're DELL LANGLEY! DELL LANGLEY, MY HUSBAND! THE FATHER OF MY CHILDREN! YOU ARE NOT THE GREAT FUCKING SHEIK!<br />He briefly met her eyes, his tiny wife. She seemed so fragile and in need of protection when they met fifteen years ago. But her body was a mirage, a trick of the eyes hiding a fierce predator. It was what he loved most about her, this hidden strength. He shifted his gaze to his feet, squatting away the tears, trying to focus on the curled toes of his familiar boots.<br />-Dell...If you go out there...if you go out there, you'll never see me again. I can't live with another scar. I can't live with the blood anymore.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />It sounds cliche, but in that moment, I felt weightless. For a blink of an eye, my enormous body was a bird. I remember smiling, maybe even laughing when my face collided with the wind shield, my nose splintering, blood splashing down my cheeks, glass tearing into my forehead.<br />I remember my father yelling something, the rumble of it barely penetrating the white noise that filled my ears. His fists clenching and unclenching, his head turning, staring back at the two shocked teenagers who'd run into us. He said something to me and left the car<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />His entrance music began and the English interpreter told him it was time.<br />It was time.<br />He looked at his beautiful wife one last time as he fitted his turban on top his head, turned, and walked away.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />The car that had ran into us was being driven by a boy. That day, I remember him looking so adult--Scared, but grown up. But didn't all people over the age of fourteen look like adults when you were six? The car he'd been driving was brand new. Maybe it belonged to his parents? Maybe it was a gift for a good report card? He had the look of privilege--blond, blue eyed, a deep desert tan face.<br />A beautiful face.<br />He had a girl sitting next to him in the passenger seat. I imagine she was beautiful, too, but I couldn't tell because all of the blood.<br />My father reached the ruined car in four giant steps--he was deceptively quick for a man of his size, a trait I inherited--and put his fist through the driver side window and wrapped his hand around the boy's throat.<br /><br /><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span><span style="font-size:+0;"></span>#<br /><br />He was used to American crowds. Americans with their mania for spectacle and their unquenchable blood lust. The Japanese were a fastidious audience, erupting briefly as he burst through the curtains, marveling at his size, but then growing silent, the only sounds the shuffling of feet, muffled coughs.<br />He charged the ring, sliding his body under the bottom length of barbwire the promotor had replaced the ring ropes with. The crowd popped again as he turned in a slow circle taking in the weapons strewn across the mat.<br />The bell rang and the attendants set the ring posts on fire.<br /><br />#<br /><br /><br />My father dragged the boy through the shattered window, glass tore into him, his mouth opened wide, a scream trying to drag out of his lungs. My father didn't give it a chance to escape, driving his fist hard and fast into the boy's teeth before he even hit the ground. Once my father had him in the dirt, he climbed on top of him, peppering his face and upper body. After five minutes, he finally stopped punching, his body heaving. He stared back at me, his face gleaming with sweat. He held up his fist and I watched the blood and chips of bone drip from his knuckles.<br />I knew then, you could fix anything with your hands.<br /><br />#<br /><br />The Japanese were just like Americans.<br />Once the fires were lit and he and his opponent began to tear into one another, tossing each other into the fire and barbed metal, they all clamored to their feet, screaming themselves horse, demanding more horror, more blood.<br />More, more, MORE!<br />None of this was real.<br />Even a child could tell you that professional wrestling was a fraud, which is why he jumped at the chance to work matches like this one. Matches where the blood flowed, where he could feel the power of his hands pounding flesh, cracking bone, the energy of the crowd driving him. The feeling, it was something his wife, his children, his few friends outside of the ring would never understand, or that none of the mattered in the least compared to this.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com20tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-44991771567182272752011-02-21T16:31:00.000-08:002011-02-21T19:38:30.277-08:00From The Archives—Interview with James Crumley<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9bgb7J7zrrC3dqGr3gRK9bhthM0JZItbl9wCNV_izse_p6hvbnbdgMFz2FkSOKZyMONLN8Z2ML6C66OrTl4Kh-QYknfvzZ-p6QhggQM58brN10oavJZ0iUpJsHnHDnJsdXfyXA7Wdvx8/s1600/vsbr.crumley.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 282px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9bgb7J7zrrC3dqGr3gRK9bhthM0JZItbl9wCNV_izse_p6hvbnbdgMFz2FkSOKZyMONLN8Z2ML6C66OrTl4Kh-QYknfvzZ-p6QhggQM58brN10oavJZ0iUpJsHnHDnJsdXfyXA7Wdvx8/s400/vsbr.crumley.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5576309035365994018" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">The true benefit of being apart of a legacy publication is that we have a rich archive of material which to draw from. With that being said and without further preamble, we present to you Noel King's interview with the late, legendary James Crumley, which originally appeared in issue 2, Volume 1 of Crimefactory.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;">I hope you enjoy.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;"><br />KR</span><br /><br /> <br /><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Interview with James Crumley, Missoula, Montana</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;" align="center"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">18 May 1996</span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Your new book, <u>Bordersnakes</u> (1996) brings together the two characters who narrate your earlier series of novels: CW Sughrue from <u>The Last Good Kiss</u> (1978) and <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u> (1993) and Milo Miladragovich III from <u>The Wrong Case</u> (1975) and <u>Dancing Bear</u> (1983). They had encountered one another briefly at the end of <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u>, with Milo unnamed as Sughrue’s “old partner.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What are you up to by letting them both loose in one novel?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What happened was that United Artists had bought the first Milo book and I was half way through <u>The Last Good Kiss</u> when my agent said, “Jesus, this is a movie man! Change the character's name.”<span style=""> </span>So I did, but of course I had to rewrite the book; just changing the name didn’t help. And in this Texas novel that I’ve never been able to finish I had a character like Sughrue. He'd done some of the things Sughrue had done, he'd been in and out of the army three different times, been in Vietnam, played football under assumed names in junior colleges, worked writing sports for the <u>Wichita Eagle Beacon</u> and done skiptracing. And now it’s all so contractually confused that I thought some day I’d have to write a novel in which <u>both</u> of them appear but I didn’t know it was going to be this one. When I started this book, it was a third-person account of Sughrue who’d moved to El Paso, but that didn’t work, so I sat down and started with the Milo voice, thinking “what the hell, it’s going to be a Milo book”, and I got about 150 pages in and suddenly it became obvious that it was time to change voices. You never know how those things come about, but it did and I went into the Sughrue voice, and then went back and forth through the parts all the way to the end of the book. And then, in the sixth part, I’ve swapped voices back and forth in shorter sections. It wasn't as easy to decide when to change voices through the rest of the book as it was at the beginning, the first time. It turned out to be one of my least favourite chores. I had to think about this shit, and I hate that. I don’t mind rewriting and thinking about it that way, but thinking about it ahead of time always seems to me to be a waste.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Have you thought about what these two characters, Milo and Sughrue, afford you as a writer, running them separately?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’ve been playing with this sort of thing since my first novel, <u>One to Count Cadence</u> (1969). The older character, Milo, gives me a character with a real sense of moral ethics and an approach to the world which involves kindness rather than violence, although he’s willing to be violent when it’s necessary, I guess. And the Sughrue character is just reckless and crazy and he’s not afraid of anything. That’s one of the things that starts this new book off. Sughrue is afraid now. Something has happened and he’s learned fear. So he and Milo go off on a double-edged jaunt, looking for Milo’s money and looking for Sughrue’s revenge and everything comes up fairly well for everybody, except for the bad guys.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK</span></b><span lang="EN-AU">:<span style=""> </span>At the end of <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u> you’d held Milo’s inheritance money off for one year.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, he didn’t get it.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Because of the confusion in the earlier books about whether it’s due him at age 53 (<u>The Wrong Case</u>) or 52 (<u>Dancing Bear</u>)?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, what a dope I am! I never look back at those books when I’m writing a new one. Not even when I was doing the screenplay to <u>Dancing Bear</u>. It’s easier <u>not</u> to look back, to just go ahead. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Speaking of that, you’ve said that you’ve had 8 or 9 goes at a <u>Dancing Bear</u> screenplay, and it’s currently optioned by Robert Towne. Could you run through some of the history there?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, the first time was with a director named Tim Hunter who did <u>The River’s Edge</u>. It was a year at Warners and then a year at Mirage with Mark Rosenberg and Sydney Pollock. We did four drafts but they never could come up with a star that they liked. Sydney Pollock was a perfect gentleman about everything and he was one of the few people in the business who’d schlep into town to see you, not just call you. Actually, he was here in Missoula recently giving a talk but I was in the process of finishing up the book, so I didn’t get to go see him. You know what it’s like; Mark would say “if you'll do it with Don Johnson, we can start tomorrow.” And Tim would say, “fuck that shit.” Tim is a <u>very</u> hard-headed young man and he’s had a lot of trouble in the business because of that. He’s been offered big money to do sequels but he’s just not that kind of director. He’s worked steadily over the years, and struggled mightily, and he’s the least Hollywood person I know. Then the option lapsed and Tim couldn’t get anyone else to pick it up. I’d done a screenplay for Paramount which they dropped on when the strike came up, because I was working on <u>Judge Dredd</u>, but I went on and finished it anyway, and to make a long story short, this producer who’s now got <u>Dancing Bear</u> got the book to Robert Towne with the notion of maybe writing a screenplay about Californian women firefighters. Give me a break! And Robert said, “this book is too good, man, they should do the book.” So we had this big conference call while Robert was on the way to the <u>Batman</u> wrap party, he’s lost somewhere in Echo Park and he can’t find his way out and I know <u>just</u> where he is because I have a friend who lives up there and it’s in the process of getting him down to the wrap party that he’s saying “this<span style=""> </span>could make a wonderful movie” and I say “it's not <u>ever</u> going to be a fucking movie unless someone like you says yes.” There's a long silence, a few more directions, and finally he says “yes.” So I get Robert Towne to say<span style=""> </span>“yes” and that was the beginning of this endless project.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Could you say something about your other screenwriting experiences?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I did an independent script for some Mexican investors and a lawyer who was embezzling money from a drug launderer. And <u>Dancing Bear</u>, and a long time ago, I did a screenplay of <u>The Last Good Kiss</u>. Back then I didn’t have any help and didn’t know anything about it. Working with Tim Hunter, doing a lot of work over the years, has been a great help. And working with Robert Towne has been good because he's an entirely different kind of writer than I am.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>How do you see these differences?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, I still tend to think like a <span style=""> </span>novelist. I‘ve written a lot of screenplays and I'm not a <u>bad</u> screenplay writer, though I can’t seem to get anything made. Robert’s really a screenwriter and a hard worker and he’ll stay with it until he gets it right. He’s written a <u>lot</u> of scripts while this <u>Dancing Bear</u> stuff has been going on, while this last version supposedly has been rewritten by the guys down the hill. Then we’ll rewrite that but that contract hasn’t been negotiated yet. There’s two worlds that all writers, not just screen writers, have to deal with. You have to deal with the business and with the work. And it’s sometimes difficult to keep them separated. I’ve often talked to people who run writing programs, telling them that you need to teach a course in the business, you need to let these kids know what the fuck is happening in this part of it all. And Missoula is a good place to do that because there's enough writers here with enough horror stories to make you want to <u>stop</u> writing. So Hollywood was good for me in that way, in that I now deal with New York in Hollywood terms. I'm simply intractable, you can’t fuckin’ move me. I will not be bought on a deal and the word is I won't fuckin’ publish the book if I don’t get the money I want. I'll move to France and write porno novels!<span style=""> </span>Or move to LA and write porno movies, I don’t care, but I will <u>not</u> be humiliated by these arseholes in New York and certainly not by assholes in Hollywood. So I’ve got a little bit of a reputation. Plus the fact that from reading the books everybody suspects that I’m a complete madman, they’re afraid I’ll go berserk in their office and bite their ears off. And that’s good, I’m glad of that.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’re now publishing with Mysterious Press, having previously been with Random and Picador. What’s happening there?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I got an offer from Mysterious for four times the advance that I had and the editor at Random House at the time decided she wanted to teach me a little lesson. So she flew back to New York and lectured me about the sanctity of contracts. And I said, “Jesus, if I’d just won the Cy Young award, the baseball pitching award, you wouldn't mind if I wanted to renegotiate my contract. When I negotiated this contract originally nobody knew who I was and now people know who I am.”<span style=""> </span>She wouldn’t budge though, so I moved to Mysterious and then my buddy Otto Penzler got in a fight with Warners over the backlist and so he sold them, and so now I’m left at Mysterious.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>So did Random House sign you up to a long contract initially?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>No, one book at a time for a while and then a two-book contract. No, eventually we weren’t that far apart in terms of money but I think it was just that they wanted me to back off, they wanted to face me down. I don’t have any regrets about leaving <u>that</u> Random House. Of course, the way the publishing business is now, there’s <u>anothe</u>r Random House!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Every few months ....</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, so I don’t know what’s going to happen now.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’ve also published some books with smaller presses; the collection called <u>Whores</u> done by Dennis McMillan and the lovely edition of <u>The Muddy Fork</u> collection you did with Russ Chatham’s Clark City Press. Both those collections are cult objects, in a way.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, nobody in New York ever offered to do those books. The French and the Japanese have treated them like books but nobody in New York was much interested in publishing my short fiction. It’s terrible for the publishing industry to be located in one place, just like it’s terrible for the automobile industry to be located in one place. One of the reasons that Japanese cars are better than American cars is that Japanese executive’s wives have to drive a different car every month. They don’t get driven around in limos, and so they tell their husbands what’s wrong with these cars. It’s a much more sensible way of doing things than riding around in a limo and deciding what a car feels like, instead of having your wife drive it downtown!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Have you any ideas on why you are so popular in France and Japan?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I don’t have any idea. I don’t care either. The French have been very good to me, they put me up in nice places, feed me well, put me on TV with Randy Newman. I quite enjoyed it. French journalists are wonderful, they’ve always got different questions. When the <u>Mexican Tree Duck</u> came out in France, <u>One to One Count Cadence</u> also came out, so I got a lot of political stuff. Because they managed to lose that war before we did.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, well, apparently it came as a big shock to them that their army, especially the legionnaires, could get beaten so badly.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, they were great guys but the Vietnamese have been at war for 2000 years. I’m surprised they're not at war now. This is the longest peace they‘ve had since the Chi Com border clashes fifteen years ago. It must be drivin’ them<span style=""> </span>nuts not to have a war ...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I see the French have just issued a new translation of <u>The Last Good Kiss</u>. Philippe Garnier now calls it that rather than the earlier, not so good, translation called <u>The Drunken Dog </u>(<u>Le chien ivre</u>). And I see on the cover of the new translation there’s a lovely photograph of the art deco Club Moderne in Anacondo, Montana.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Philippe Garnier did that, did it on his own while the other edition, <u>The Drunken Dog</u> was still in print. He’s been up here a lot and we drive around a bit and he took that picture of the Club Moderne in Anacondo. He loved the look of that place.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’ve only been in Missoula a couple of days but it seems to an outsider’s eye, a groovy, hip little town. You’ve been here, on and off, for thirty years and seen lots of changes. Could you comment on the sorts of changes you’ve witnessed over the thirty or so years?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s <u>always</u> been a very hip little town, full of painters and potters and writers and poets. The question everyone always asks is, “why do all these writers live in Missoula?” We are not the first writers to live here. Jim Welch has lived here steadily for thirty years. He was in College here when I arrived, Kittridge has been here since 1969 when I left the first time. I don’t exactly know what it is. It was the middle of the bottom of an ice-age lake, so maybe it‘s the prehistoric mud that attracts us! But there is something Southern about Montanans that is different from people in all the other western states, there’s definitely something <u>Southern</u> about it. Montanans seem to have a natural politeness and charm that people in Idaho and Wyoming lack, although there are places in both those states that I like a lot.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And I think it may have to do with the fact that the State was settled, in large part, by Confederate deserters, guys running from conscription. So there's an openness and an easiness about this place, there’s no class stratification, although, like the rest of America, it’s suffering from the fact that the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>In a state like Montana where there really is no economic base, the stupid sons of bitches should again legalise the growing of hemp for the making of paper. A three state area in the mid-west could grow enough hemp for all of the paper in America. They don't need to cut these trees down here. But they do cut them down and it’s the great American desert out here; these trees take a hundred years to grow, we get fifteen inches of rain a year. It's just foolishness. And it’s no place to raise cows. Shit, they raise more cows in Iowa than they raise in all seven western states. All the cattle industry does is break down the fields, break down the stream banks and it’s not going to get any better. These old people who’ve worked on ranches all their lives find it very hard to give up the notion of ranching, it’s almost impossible. And when you look at the sacrifices<span style=""> </span>they’ve gone through you can’t much blame them. It’s the same for the people who‘ve been raised working in the woods, sawyers and what not; it’s very hard to try to persuade them out of the woods into some other job.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It's very hard for them to understand that we can’t do this any more, we can't cut these fuckin’ trees down, it’s <u>not</u> a good idea. But lots of things have changed over the years for the good. When I first moved to Missoula it was one of the two most polluted cities in America, next to Pittsburgh. There were seventy or so teepee burners in the Valley and also the Pulp Mill, where they burn scrap lumber, was putting out an enormous amount of shit. They’ve put scrubbers in but they still act like they own the town. I've had several lawyers tell me they could put these fuckers out of business in a heartbeat. But it would put the <u>town</u> out of business. There’s a lot more people now and still a lot of problems, none of the problems has really been solved, but it’s a nice town to live in. It’s nice to look around and see people you’ve known for twenty years, people who are actually working writers. In this town you better not call yourself a writer unless you actually are!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Do you no longer feel, assuming you ever did, a displaced Texan?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, I was always displaced. I was born in Texas but we went to New Mexico during WW2. We didn't move back to Texas until I was in the second grade. The part of Texas where I lived is the last place where there’s a great clash between the white minority and the Mexican American majority, where people are still race conscious in a really silly way. It’s an unhappy kind of place, it’s hot and humid, and the wind blows nine months out of the year. It was never a place that I was ever going back to once I left, although circumstances have forced me back a couple of times. I don’t think of myself as a Texan, but I’m more comfortable with going<span style=""> </span>to Texas than I used to be. I used to feel like I was going to be trapped if I ever got back down there. Now I’m not quite as much that way. I’ve got where I kinda like going to Austin. I don't think of El Paso as Texas. I get into arguments in bars about that. I got sideswiped by the world’s biggest Chicano in a Holiday Inn bar down there.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Earlier this year I was in Austin around the time of their film festival and their South by Southwest festival, with something like 700 bands coming into town for a couple of weeks. I’m a fan of Butch Hancock and Jimmy Dale Gilmour and some of the other Austin c & w bands. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I've got a live cd they did in Australia! Austin has gotten so much bigger than it was when I lived there twenty years ago that you’ve got to <u>really</u> want to go into a crowd to go out. I was there in a cold spell in early March, just before South by Southwest. There was some kind of thing with Texas writers, so Martha and I went down and spent a week. The thing was out in a shopping place called Central Park, out Lamar. There’s a big bookshop out there, though I’m not crazy about chains.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What is a rough chronology of your goings and comings?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I came here in 1966 when I finished graduate school in the University of Iowa. I spent three years here, then they fucked me over academically and professionally, so I took a job, and a raise, and moved to Arkansas. And then I discovered that I wasn’t <u>actually</u> a Southerner, I just <u>thought</u> I was a Southerner, and I sold <u>Cadence</u> to the movies, so I quit down there and moved back here. Then I got broke again because the Hollywood guy wouldn’t pay me and I had to go back to teaching. I spent three years at Colorado State, running the writing programme and I just couldn’t hack that kind of job. So I came back here for a while, went to Seattle for a while, went to Austin for a while, got married again, then took a job at Reed College in Portland. That lasted a year, then I came back here, then went back to Texas for a while, then came back here for a year, got broke again and took a job at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, then came back here for two years, got broke again, went to El Paso for a part-time job for three years ...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>That’s why you were attracted to the Chandler lines from <u>The High</u> <u>Window</u> you use as the epigraph for <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u>: “Nobody called, nobody came in, nothing happened, nobody cared if I died or went to El Paso.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’d always wanted to use that anyway!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>On the subject of epigraphs across your first books: in <u>The Wrong Case</u><span style=""> </span>you have Lew Archer’s comment, “never go to bed with a woman who has more troubles than you do”, and with <u>The Last Good Kiss</u> you have some great lines from Richard Hugo’s wonderful poem, “Degrees of Grey in Philipsburg.” How do these quotation-epigraphs function for you?<span style=""> </span>In <u>Dancing Bear</u>, you have the Benniwah tale. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Which I just made up.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I thought it was an authentic anthropological text!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, some woman who does that kind of thing, she takes down Indian folk tales —<span style=""> </span>she’s won the Caltin award a couple of times — she had her friend’s daughter call me up to try to find out where the tale comes from and I finally had to say I made it up. It would seem to me presumptuous to appropriate a legend from a real tribe unless I was using it for some purpose that they might want. So I just made it up, I make up a lot of shit ... </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And your use of the Richard Hugo poem? Because Hugo was already in Missoula when you arrived and you have that lovely description of him as “grand old detective of the heart.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Dick was here when I got here. He was integral to my crime-writing life because he turned me on to Chandler. He couldn’t believe I’d never read any Chandler.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What age would you have been then?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Let me see, I came here in 1966 when I was twenty-seven. And I just loved Chandler, it just took off for me.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What were you attracted to in Chandler’s writing?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Mostly the fact that it was really wonderful, fun writing; the general sense of fun, the sentences were fun, and that appealed to me. As far as crime writers go, I guess I was inspired by Nicholas Freeling and Raymond Chandler (chuckles). They’re the two disparate ends of my scale.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What other forms of writing were important to you when you were starting out?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, Lawrence Durrell’s <u>Alexandra Quarte</u>t was really a big book in my life, then Fitzgerald and Faulkner, and the Russians. Camus, but the philosophy, not so much the novels. In the month I started <u>One to Count Cadenc</u>e for the last time, I read <u>Anna Karenina</u>, <u>War and Peace</u>, <u>The Rebel</u> and <u>The Brothers Karamazov</u>.<span style=""> </span>I finished the book and I remember jumping up and down in the snow in the middle of the night in my shorts in Iowa City, shouting out “Hooray for Karamazov, you motherfuckers!”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’re a very helpful and important figure for some younger crime writers. Craig Holden acknowledges you, you’re blurbed generously on Les Standiford’s <u>Spill</u>.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Craig used to house-sit for me when I would go down to Hollywood. Les is an old buddy of mine. I just got around to reading his new book, <u>Done Deal</u>. I helped him move to LA. He hired me in El Paso and then he took off for a year in Florida and came back for a year, and then got an American Film Institute screenwriting thing, so he moved to LA for two years and then went back to Florida for his job. But his <u>Deal</u> books are getting pretty good, he’s doing OK. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>So there is a literature-friendship factor in your life?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Friendship has always been more important to me than literature and so I try to find something to say for friends’ books if for no other reason than that they’re friends. And I get a lot of stuff in the mail and every now and then I’ll run across something I really like and I’ll blurb it. Like Michael<span style=""> </span>Doane’s <u>Bullet Heart</u> which just knocked me out. So if it’s somebody I don’t know I pretty much make sure it’s a book I like a lot. I get so much stuff that every now and then I'll miss one and read the galleys later. I did that with one called <u>The Late Man</u>, set in Wichita, it's a newspaper mystery. But it seems to me that what you do is give back to someone else what was given to you. I wouldn’t have gotten where I am if it hadn't been for the guy who was teaching writing at Texas A & I when I was a <u>physics</u> major (chuckles). That was William Harrision, and then the guys who helped me in Iowa, Vernon Castle and Dick Yeats.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU">NK:<span style=""> </span>I guess much of your reading is quite programmatic, purposively directed towards things that you'll incorporate into whatever you’re writing at the time.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>No, usually I just read with nothing particular in mind. I finally got a degree in history as an undergraduate and I still read a lot of history but lots of it doesn’t come to anything in the way you’re suggesting. There's no place to put any of it, but knowledge itself is worth having. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Have you any opinion on the critical reception your work has received?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What critical reception! My books have been pretty effectively ignored for a long time. <u>The Last Good Kiss</u> sold 4,500 copies in hardback. It’s been in print ever since then, and all my books are still in print. I think I confused people. I’m not writing detective novels and I’m not writing literary novels, and nobody knows what to do with them. Although that's a problem I don’t I have at all in foreign markets. In Germany and Italy I’m in a crime series, in England I’m in Picador, a perfectly legitimate literary press. Now the Italians are bringing my books out in hardback after I had been out in cheap paperbacks; the Greeks have just discovered me.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Will you be checking the translation?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Let ‘em go, man. Whatever they do is OK with me.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And you went to the Nottingham<u> Shots in the Dark Crime</u> Festival at the time of publication of <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u>, Adrian Wooton who’s long been associated with that, is very knowledgeable about your work.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Adrian had me introducing Sam Peckinpah’s <u>Bring Me The Head of Alfredo Garcia</u>. This is the print from the British Film Institute which is a perfectly beautiful fuckin’ print man, and it’s the director’s cut. So I get to the back of the movie theatre and he says, “well, our table is ready” and I say “Our table’s ready! I haven’t seen this fuckin’ movie since 1974 or something!” So Adrian arranged for me and Martha, Adrian and his wife, to watch the movie in one of the smaller theatres the day we were leaving. Myself, Martha, Adrian and his wife and one other person, nobody knew who he was. It was wonderful. The film held up like a charm.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>With Warren Oates driving around, throwing some ice into the bag that contains the head of Alfredo, and talking to it.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’d always thought that Warren would have made a great Milo.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, he got gathered.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Poor devil. Went upstairs to take a nap. Said he wasn’t feeling good and then he was dead.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And there’s that gag scene in <u>The Wild Bunch</u> where the bottle of whisky goes around all the people and Warren doesn’t get a drink. William Holden gets a drink, <u>everyone</u> ...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And the Mexican actor, Jaimi Sanchez, lets the last drop pour onto the ground. I saw that in the Roadshow cut in Dallas one night. I’d moved to Arkansas and my folks were still alive and living in South Texas, so my second wife and all our kids got in the Volkswagon station wagon and headed for Texas. We stopped in Dallas and I opened the paper and there was <u>The Wild Bunch</u> finally out in the Roadshow version. And I told Maggie, I hope you can find a babysitter because I'm going to the fuckin’ movies! The motel found us a babysitter, we got stoned senseless and it was in one of the big downtown Dallas theatres, a 500 seater with maybe four people in it. I was still laughin’ when the credits came up, I just loved that movie.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Did you ever meet Peckinpah?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I got to meet him once before he died. He’d stopped drinking and I was meeting him at Harry’s American Bar in Century City. He was across the way at a meeting with ABC. I heard the bartender saying on the phone, “no there's no Jim Crumley here” and I said “hey, what the fuck is that, here I am man!” It was Sam calling to say he was going to be late. He died not too long after that, goddamn it.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What’s this story about how you almost came down to Australia once?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>My father worked for a little junkhouse oilfield outfit owned by a family called Glasscocks. Old man Lonnie had gotten sick with Parkinson's Disease so the sons were running the company. I was back from the Phillipines so I guess it was around 1961 or 1963. And there was a big boom in north-eastern Australia and they’d gone down and put up for the bids and they’d gotten a pretty good-sized small lease — everybody else was giant — Arco, Mobil, Exon and Enco back in those days, and so we were slated to go down there.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>My old man was a drilling superintendent, the guy that was in charge of the exploration operations, after having worked his way up from a roughneck. And that’s what I was doing because I didn‘t want to play football any more, I was roughnecking and going to college. The idea of going to<span style=""> </span>Australia and teaching people how to roughneck was very appealing. We all had passports and were ready to go, I think we’d gotten as far as tickets and some little finagling going on down there among the Australian government and the oil companies, and that lease just sort of disappeared. I don‘t know exactly what happened. It may also have been the time when you had the CIA living out at Pine Gap!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What is your writing regime; how do you carve up your day when you're writing.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Try to stay sober til midnight and go to work. Having worked in Hollywood all those years, working with someone else, you have to do it a little differently. But doing a rewrite of a novel I just write and go to bed and get up and write. I don’t really have a schedule, like I used to have, mostly because I always seem to be doing a bunch of different things. I wrote four screenplays while I was writing <u>Bordersnakes</u>, the last novel.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What were they?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I did the adaptation of Ellroy’s <u>The Big Nowhere</u>, and then I did a low budget horror movie, it doesn't have a title any more, and a low budget adaptation of a book in which the hero is a retired drug smuggler, called <u>Bloodworks</u>. And then I had to do the horror movie again, alone. And I was working with Tim Hunter on a script he's been trying to get made for years, a cop movie set in LA. And somewhere in there was the <u>Judge Dredd</u> script; someone disputed a credit on it, and as a consequence all of the writers who ever worked on it had to be copied on everything that had happened. There were sixteen writers! Tim and I were the first and we thought we were writing a twenty million dollar movie. Then the strike came and they wanted to do it for 8 million. So all the shit we did for the first thing they had to take out, and then they ended up paying Stallone $12 million just to do it!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Do you have any thoughts making the differences between novels and screenplays?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>They’re very different forms of discourse. I was rewriting <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u> while I was writing a screen version of <u>Dancing Bear</u>, and there were occasional moments when I’d forget what the fuck I was doing, and why, but it’s a fairly easy switch from novel writing to screenplay writing and I’ve been doing it for quite a while now.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, it’s often the case that novels can quite literally represent more kinds of things than are allowed in Hollywood, with their internalised self-censorship rules.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>One of the other things I like about Robert Towne is that he simply tells those guys to stuff it up their arse. That’s never been a problem with the <u>Dancing Bear</u> project, the stuff about the drugs. They're just silly. The world changed significantly when the studio heads stopped trusting their own judgement and started wanting to know what audiences thought. And then came the dreaded MBA and I’m not convinced that the MBA hasn’t ruined America. If you think of all the kinds of losses of loyalty of employees in large corporations, and all the kind of shit that’s going on in the movie and publishing worlds in terms of looking at it as a <u>product</u>. It seems to me at one time there were a lot of book salesmen who read books, and an editor said to me in a conference recently that she didn’t want that kind of salesman. She said, “if I give them spoons, I want the fuckers to sell spoons.”<span style=""> </span>And that kind of thinking has essentially ruined what at one time was a fairly gentlemanly business. A friend of mine was at the Burbank Book Fair and it seems that the corporate overlords are complaining to their editorial boards about the mid-range novel, novels that have runs of four to 8,000 copies. That’s not enough, they don’t want to publish those books any more.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You said earlier, in relation to your most recent trip to do signings in Austin, that you don’t like the chains. Is that a factor here?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>The chains now control how many books are sold, really. If you can sell to the chains then that controls what happens to a book. They're putting all the independents out of business. I was talking to Barbara Thoreau last night at the party. She has an independent bookshop here, and a Barnes and Noble is opening soon and that will make things difficult for her. I try to stay out of chains as much as I can. The best places I was at on <u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u> tour were <u>A Clean Well Lighted Place for Books</u> in San Francisco and <u>Duttons</u> in LA.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>And in the UK I guess you read at <u>Murder One</u> in London?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, but I had more fun in Manchester, a better crowd. I liked Manchester. I was doing an interview with two little girls from the BBC Radio; the usual stuff, they asked me what I thought about Manchester and I said we were looking in the guide book on the train coming up and Manchester didn’t get a mention and that led me to think I’d like it. And one of them, about 4’ 8”, jumped in the air and said “Not in the fuckin’ guide book! We invented the canal, we invented the Industrial Revolution, quantum physics, we may have the best football team in the world, <u>of course</u> we’re not in the guide book,” and she stamped her foot. I liked Manchester and I expect to be back there one day. I liked London too, but that’s a different deal.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Have you any more to say on the chains vs. independents?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>The chains get discount books from the publishers. They buy their books at a price that Barbara can’t buy her books at. And they’ll come into town and try to drive the independents out of business. One of the things that’s nice about Missoula is that it's got three independent bookstores, it used to have four but the little professor went out of business. There’s a federal trade law that prohibits certain kinds of discounting, like on washing machines and things, a fair trade agreement of some sort. Books have never come under that and now the independent booksellers of America are trying to get them to change that. I don’t know if it’ll happen but it seems to me that the corporation has served its purpose and you can’t have a country where there’s no sense of personal responsibility. It’s not going to make one world, it’s going to make one McDonalds and you know that as soon as the chains drive the independents out of business they’re not going to sell books for half price anymore and they’re not going to hire people who know what they’re doing.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Speaking of the changes in the publishing industry, do you get much interference, rather than assistance, in the production of one of your books?<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I don't get much of that. The only thing they tried to get me to do on <u>Bordersnakes</u> was write the convertible they’d put on the cover <u>into</u> the novel. I gave that editor so much shit, told him I’d keep his letter in my files and publish it one day so that his kids would say, “what the fuck was dad thinkin’ about?”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>So who do you trust to read your manuscripts and make any suggestions?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I don't let anybody do anything as I'm going along. My wife Martha proofs for me. She’s been writing for a long time and her first book of poetry is coming out next month.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Something I learned working on screenplays with Tim Hunter is that you may have a different idea from somebody else but when you’re working together you have to be able to <u>say</u> why that’s a better idea. And sometimes what happens in the process is that you come up with something entirely different from what either one of you suggested but which is better. So it’s not that I completely resist what people think, it’s just that that’s something that has to come later for me. When I’m in the middle of a book I just don’t have the time or the inclination for that.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I was more thinking of the finished manuscript, when you felt it was completed, do you get other people to read it then?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>No, there's a time in your life for that but I’m at the point where there’s no purpose in showing the manuscript to anybody who can’t give me some money, or some drugs! I’ll let people read it for fun but they have to come up here to the house to get the manuscript.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Do you have information on your book sales, which books have done the best?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span><b style=""><u>The Mexican Tree Duck</u></b><u> </u>has sold more copies in hardback than all the other books put together. It’s sold somewhere between 30,000 and 40,000 copies. At $22 a copy, that’s in the neighbourhood of $700,000 gross. Cut that in half, they haven’t lost any money on me. They’ve <u>never</u> lost any money on me but then, I've never <u>made</u> any money.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>So are you saying that in your writing life you haven't been able to live from your books alone, it’s always been the teaching and the screenplay writing?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Maybe if I’d written more. But I took about ten years off. Shit, it just wasn’t happening. If I can get people to read my books, they like them, but the people who are in charge of getting people to read books don’t know how to get people to read my books. I’ve met at least a dozen people who have family or friends who never read books but they’ve read <u>The Last Good Kiss</u>, two or three times! People who read my books call me up on the phone. Sometimes they call me up collect. That’s why I still have a listed phone number.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>That prompts me to recall a remark Don DeLillo once made about letters he received from his readers, many of whom were “disturbed.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I get some disturbed letters. I got a really fuckin’ ugly letter from a blind woman in California when <u>The Wrong Case</u> was out on books-on-tape. It was insulting, attacking the profanities in my book, and I don’t think you have a right to insult someone you don’t know like that. That’s just not in my breeding, and so I wrote her a scathing letter back but this woman I was seeing at the time talked me out of sending it. About six months later I was moving and I found the letter again, re-read it, thought it was a wonderful letter, and I sent it. And I've got a letter down here in a box from some guy in Tucson, the answer to whom will be “not only did your parents not teach you not to be insulting to strangers, they also didn’t teach you the proper use of fuck.” His letter is full of “fuck,” trying to make fun of my using “fuck” all the time. But those things only happen every now and then. I get some stuff from ex-drinkers and druggers and Vietnam vets who dispute the ability of my characters to carry on the way they do and still live. And what that means is, <u>they</u> weren’t able to, and they extrapolate from that. But what fans I’ve got are fairly steady and secure. If they get the books out on the stands I’ll sell some, but like everything else it’s all shelf-space and distribution. I’ve got all sorts of odd critical reviews. They just don’t know what to do with the books. It’s like in LA, it's very difficult for them to understand that you can laugh and be violent at the same time. I don’t know how the Coen brothers ever got work!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, it’s been independent work.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I never could connect with those kinds of LA people, but it ain’t over yet.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Your last book started with Hank Snow jukebox reference. What musical references are in the new book, who do you like in country?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>In this new book I’ve got Warren Zevon, Bob Seeger, the Flatlanders. I like Jimmy Dale Gilmore and Joe Ely, I’ve got almost all of their stuff, and Iris Dement, a lot of Nancy Griffith, and Steve Earle.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span><u>Bordersnakes</u> is due out in November. Can you say something about it without giving too much away?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Milo and Sughrue take off and try to get Milo’s money back but they also have to do something for Sughrue first and in that kind of way where everything turns out badly, lots of things turn out badly; it’s almost all set in west Texas and California. I don‘t think there’s any scenes in Montana at all. Everybody writes about Montana now. And I’ve never been one to do what everyone else does. My mother used to called me “a contrary son of a bitch.” Milo and Sughrue go all over the country, their friendship is put to the test and is not found wanting.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’ve been married five times. How is life now for you, family life?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Life is good. I’ve got five kids who have grown up fine. Four live in Washington and one is down outside LA. They’re aged between 39 and 11, three boys, two girls and a batch of grandkids. My oldest grandkid is the same age as my eldest son, 15.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Are you on good terms with your former wives?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’ve got one I’ve never seen since I split. Two I have children with and they live in the same town. And one I’m still friends with. They all live over near Puget Sound now. I used to live on Vachon Island in the middle of the Sound, and I’ve often thought of moving back there, Seattle, Tacomo, Port Townsend. But it’s a little too dampish and my arthritis gets bad in that damp weather.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>How did John Williams come to visit here, doing his <u>Into the Badlands</u> book. He describes<span style=""> </span>having trouble locating you and then being drunk and crashing cars.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I knew John in Paris and we got on quite well. The time he came to town to do that piece I was involved with a woman who wasn’t exactly stable, I guess you could say, and she hated the notion that I was being interviewed and that she couldn’t have anything to do with it. As a consequence it was a very tense time and I’m glad we all survived. John’s been back twice since then and he was here two or three weeks ago to do a piece on Jimmy Lee Burke. He handed over some tapes of Los Lobos and Steve Earle.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’ve been involved with creative writing courses over the years. Do you have any opinions on them?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>There’s too many of them. There must be a hundred unemployed MFA’s in Missoula alone. It‘s nice that it turns out intelligent readers but I now think you shouldn’t get the MFA until you publish. You should take the MA and you take an extra year on the off chance that if you publish, we’ll give you an MFA. Also, there’s not much quality control. When I ran the programme at Colorado State I actually kicked people out. Nobody does that any more. Without anyone there to exercise individual judgement and take responsibility for it, what you end up with is a lot of people getting MFA’s who can’t write, have no talent. They may have a lot of heart and willingness to work but you can’t overcome that lack of talent. It’s almost impossible. When I took my MFA in Iowa in 1966, there were about 3 places that offered them and now there’s about 270 places. It’s nice that it gives young writers a place to teach while they’re trying to get their career off the ground. A lot of these guys have it in their minds that they’ll get a degree, get a job, go someplace and live there for rest of their life. And I’ve never much had that middle-class dream. Coming from a working-class family, there were no great hopes. My parents haven’t owned a house since WWI, so, you know, it gives me a different outlook on things. Also, I’m broke a lot! It’s now possible to get an <u>under</u>graduate degree in creative writing in lots of places and I find that sort of abhorrent. And I tell everybody, if you really <u>want</u> to write, get a degree in something <u>actual</u>, get a degree in philosophy or economics. You don’t need a degree in English. Chances are you’ll read all the goddamn books anyway and you’ll like ‘em a lot better if you haven’t had to go to those fuckin’ courses. There’s lots of things to be learned out there. Major in history, anthropology, wildlife, biology, don’t major in English and <u>don’t</u> get an undergraduate degree in creative writing, for God’s sake.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I gather you don’t have a particularly high opinion of the academic world.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s just another kind of bureaucracy, very self-serving, and frightening in its insularity.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’ve been able to make these little sorties into it for a time and then get out of it.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Yeah, but I’m the entertainment. I learned that a long time ago. As long as I was entertaining I could do whatever the fuck I wanted to.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>The eccentric in their midst.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>The dancing bear.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You’ve had a couple of acting roles. Could you talk about that?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I’ve managed two roles in the last twenty-four years, both in low budget films. I played a hotel clerk in <u>My Samurai</u> and a corrupt sheriff in <u>Rocky Boys</u> which they shot up here last summer, but which won’t be released yet because they don’t quite have the money for the final print.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I mentioned to a friend of mine, Roy Jensen, that toward the end of my life, I was thinking of working my way into a film career playing heavies<span style=""> </span>and Lloyd reared back from the bar and said “you might do OK<span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span>but you look too much like that other son of a bitch, Wilfred Brimley.” And Jimmy Gammon, the big gravel-voiced guy who played the horse-trader in Tony Scott’s <u>Revenge</u>, was working on something in Austin when I was down there this last time, and we had some drinks together and I told him the Wilfred Brimley story. And he says everybody in the business hates Brimley because he won’t do anything they tell him to do, he lives in some fuckin’ trailer house somewhere in southern Utah and he’s been known to punch directors. So it might not be just my “resemblance” to Wilfred Brimley, it might be my <u>resemblance</u> to Wilfred Bremley that keeps me from getting work!<span style=""> </span>Whenever I tell this stuff to Tim Hunter, he just shakes his head, bemused that a friend of his wants to be an actor.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Are there any future roles slated?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, I write one for myself in every screenplay I do, so if something happens, maybe I'll at least get to do a reading!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Do you have any opinions on the election that’s looming, what with Dole withdrawing from gubernatorial activity to concentrate on the Presidential race?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Dole is living proof that political ambition can ruin your life. For many years he seemed like a fairly sensible, decent Senator and as soon as he decided to run for President he became a literal fuckin’ idiot. Whereas Clinton is not exactly the cream of the crop at least he’s not George Bush and he’s not Bob Dole. I don’t think Dole has much of a chance unless Clinton really fucks up somehow but there are a lot of unhappy people in this country. They don’t like the fact that Clinton’s wife is a lawyer, and perhaps a little bitchy about things sometimes. I hesitate to even say Clinton’s heart is in the right place but he’s a Democrat so I’ll certainly vote for him.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>How many congressmen does Montana return?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Only one. He’s been a Democrat for fifteen years but he’s gone and I don’t think there’s much chance we'll elect another Democrat. So we’ve got to try to get the <u>least worst</u> of the Republicans. And also one of our Senators is up for re-election but because of the assault weapons vote he could be in trouble. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK: </span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Could you elaborate on that?<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Congress finally passed a bill that<span style=""> </span>outlaws the making, selling, importing of seventeen different types of assault weapons, military style, semi-automatics. These people out here are really touchy about that stuff. Mostly because people in the East don’t really understand people in the west at all. I’ve owned guns <u>all</u> my life and I belonged to the National Rifle Association until it went crazy. And for some reason out here they find this stuff, stuff like the Brady bill, a five-day wait for handguns, an insult of some sort. I don’t know what the fuck they could be thinkin’ about. I think that before you can own firearms you should have to take safety lessons, I don’t mind that at all. The only people who do mind that are the people who think, “they're going to take all our guns away from us.”<span style=""> </span>I mean, give me a break, that’s not going to happen.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Recently you and Martha were off to Virginia, visiting Martha’s mother. Do you travel around much and if so, where do you tend to go?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Not too much any more. Mostly because it just costs too goddamn much. Last Christmas Martha and I and the kids flew to Tulsa and drove to Fayetteville, Arkansas and spent Christmas with my oldest friend, who lives on a farm outside Fayetteville. This February, Martha and I went to Austin for a week when I finished the first draft of <u>Bordersnakes</u>, because the book I’m working on now is set in Austin.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What’s it about?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s a Milo book, Milo’s gone to live in Austin. This is a book I’ve been wantin’ to do for sometime.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s not the long-promised Texas book?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>No.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You must get tired of people asking you about that book?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Well, I’m the one that didn’t finish the son-of-a-bitch. I don’t know that I ever will. I haven’t forgotten about it and I’ve got a frame for it. It begins on the day of Nixon’s resignation.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I remember watching the televised broadcast of his resignation where he managed that amazing turnaround and said he was leaving “with no bitterness and no regret,” kind of a forgiving of his fellow Americans!</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I was living on Vachon Island at the time, riding bikes with a friend of mine who teaches up there. We walked into a store to have a beer and there was no-one in the front of the store. It was an old hippie kind of place and I hollered out, and they said “come in the back here, fuckin’ Nixon’s resigning on tv.”<span style=""> </span>So we sat there, smoked dope and drank beer while the son-of-a-bitch went to the grave. We were so happy that we got so fucked up that we had to find the <u>least</u> fucked up person to put our bikes in the back of his pick-up and get him to drive us back to my house on the other side of the island. I was really happy because I really hated that son-of-a-bitch.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Does your hatred of him continue through the degree of redemption he achieved in retirement, when he became a kind of statesman-like figure, what with China and all?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Absolutely. An old friend of mine, Mike Koepf, who lives in Mendocino County, and I stayed on the phone all through the televised burial of Nixon. We both had FBI files, and I was the Vietnam Veteran’s Against the War faculty adviser at Colorado State, and I was a SDS affiliate.<span style=""> </span>Nixon was the whore-dog of American politics. He had no honour, no decency. I didn’t find anything even vaguely amusing about Nixon. Everybody talks about Nixon going to China. This seems to me to be a thing of limited value, as we’ve discovered over and over again. Being involved with China is not necessarily a great idea. They say you have the politicians you deserve, but this county has never completely recovered from the beat-up about the threat of Communist rebellion when there simply never was any such threat. After the Comintern in 1932 the Soviets decided that world rebellion wasn’t going to take place and all through the 1950s there were more FBI agents in the Communist Party than there were Communist Party members. That’s really damaged this country in a way that may not be fixable. All you have to do is say, “socialised medicine.” An English friend of Martha‘s said to her, “it must be terrible to live in a country where if you get sick, you don’t know what's going to happen to you.”<span style=""> </span>It <u>is</u> terrible. Because I haven’t worked in the screen business for a while we don’t have any insurance.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>How does it work? You get it paid for if you’re a member of the guild? </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>You have to make between $11,700 and $16,000, which is nothing, if you can get a job.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Is it really important to live in LA in order to get screenwriting work?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>I think it makes a hell of a difference. I think that if I<span style=""> </span>lived in LA I could go to work anytime I wanted to. I like LA, I’ve got a lot of friends inside and outside the movie business. But it’s not a bad price to pay, living here.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What is it about cities like LA you don’t like?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>The fact that it’s a city! And there’s lots of <u>people</u> there. I grew up in the country and the nearest neighbours were the Hardins and I couldn’t play with the Hardin kids ‘cause they'd fling rocks at me till I went home. Unlike a lot of kids who grew up in the country and longed to live in the city, unlike a lot of country Texans, who’ve moved to New York to live, I find living in cities is just too tough. I’m not uncomfortable visiting a city, but Missoula is about as citified as I can deal with.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>How big is Missoula?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s about 40,000 people. It seems bigger because it’s the shopping centre for about 100,000 people. It’s 200 miles to Spokane and 500 miles to Salt Lake, 500 miles to Calgary, 320 to Billings. People from all over the western part of the state, and over from Idaho come here to shop. So it’s deceptive. And there’ve been some recent annexations. People want to have city service but don’t want to pay the higher taxes.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s a really fragile water table here. There’s a river beneath the river<span style=""> </span>about as wide as the valley and that's where all the water comes from. You can drop cleaning fluid in a steel sewer and it’ll show up in the water table.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>When we met in Charlie’s Bar yesterday, it was a lively place, and it's written about in <u>Into the Badlands</u>. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>It’s in the same spot as wonderful old bar called Eddie’s Club was in the old days. I didn’t go into Charlie’s when it first opened because it was too fraught with memory, but it’s sort of the only bar like that left. Friday afternoons, 5 o’clock, you get a good cross-section, a tremendously literate working-class crowd. They just know me as “the writer guy.”<span style=""> </span>A place takes its atmosphere from the owner. It used to be just a wino bar, Eddy’s Club — Mahoneys in <u>The Wrong Case</u>. Charlie’s a great bar owner, he takes care of the old men who live upstairs on their social security cheques and he hires the best bartenders in the world. I’ve known all the people in there for a long time. People like Lewis Davis, the black guy we were talking to, he’s one of the guys I thank at the start of <u>Mexican Tree Duck</u>. He’s a Vet, drifted up here for some reason, maybe because there’s no black people and he figured he’d be OK!<span style=""> </span>In Montana the licences are controlled by population, it only costs $5,000 a year for the licence to keep a bar, but over $120,000 to get one. It was an important bar for me in the seventies.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Missoula used to be a great bar town, you used to be able to walk into a bar on Railroad Street and go out back doors, all the way down to the river without getting onto a sidestreet. What happened in the 1980s was that they went to an 18 year old drinking law and suddenly all the guys realised they could make money on the kids. It changed the nature of the bars in this town.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>French TV crew - last Spring finished shooting on the deck, finishing the TV smoke, some dope. Next thing I know it's gettin' dark, we'd all shit-faced, stumbling around TV equipment. So I called up Ed down at <u>Depot</u> and said, I've got some drunken frogs, I need to feed them. Ed said I'll put you guys down in the wine-room. So we're down in the wine-room, eating/smoking and these little frogs were just impressed shitless. I also inrtroduced them to some good Californian wines.<span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span><span style=""> </span></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Political history values of Montana.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>They had a strong union movement here because the copper industry were such arseholes, and also because of the IWW in a lot of ways. There was a socialist newspaper in Butte and a black newspaper in Butte. There’s some tradition of liberal politics and union politics in this state but mainly because of the power exercised by the railroad and the copper companies, Anaconda copper used to own every major newspaper in the State except for the Great Falls Tribune which was independently owned, and they called the shots. That was as recent as right before I got here. This has been a colony, a place where they’d come to extract the minerals, cut the trees down, overgraze the grass and take the money away somewhere else. One of the reasons the people here feel isolated from the rest of America is because they've been treated like a colony for so long, so they resent all that — but they do so by thinking it’s the <u>government</u> at fault and not the companies. If you could convince the guys who work in the woods that the environmentalist’s are not their enemies, it’s the corporations, which are their enemies. They don’t cut trees down with people much anymore, they use machines, and the corporations want to depreciate the machines they use to cut the trees down, as quickly as possible, and ship them off to Indonesia or Brazil. It’s the <u>companies</u> that are keeping these guys from work.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>What places do you like to travel to around here?</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Chico, Hot Springs is a place I’ve always liked. We spend a week there in the summer with the kids and another week during the year when we can get away. We try to float the Smith River every year. It’s a four day float over into the Missouri River, white shell fish plains. I still like to drive up to Glacier, go through the park, and I still like Yellowstone. Even with the tourists there, it’s always impressive. There’s tons of little towns in Montana you can stop at, stop and have a beer. You buy the first one, they buy the next one.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">NK:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>Next thing, you’re “drinking the heart right out of a fine spring afternoon.”</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-align: justify; text-indent: -42pt;"><b style=""><span lang="EN-AU">JC:</span></b><span lang="EN-AU"><span style=""> </span>That’s for sure.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 42pt; text-indent: -42pt;"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-66352735258432591482011-02-19T20:13:00.000-08:002011-02-19T20:17:45.772-08:00Video Interview—Dave Zeltserman<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTJoBhT1WrITCxuIrOeHonlrVAWhEfLjJW0P6b3zss_73T1yTQ5wmMEXxKKzMsW1yrujV3Fa44oaORMR9Mp7OT3mpkaESTRxL6iBOV2D3at53WgCc5kMwims20jUBBtDuiDgKSvOFfmvQ/s1600/Blood-CrimesCover-Final.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 260px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTJoBhT1WrITCxuIrOeHonlrVAWhEfLjJW0P6b3zss_73T1yTQ5wmMEXxKKzMsW1yrujV3Fa44oaORMR9Mp7OT3mpkaESTRxL6iBOV2D3at53WgCc5kMwims20jUBBtDuiDgKSvOFfmvQ/s400/Blood-CrimesCover-Final.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5575620958206327138" border="0" /></a><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">In recent years,<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://smallcrimes-novel.blogspot.com/"> Dave Zeltserman</a> has become one of the most prevalent and prolific crime novelists to emerge from the 2000’s. His loose ‘Man Out Of Prison’ trilogy—<span style="font-style: italic;">Small Crimes, Pariah, and Killer</span>—were critically lauded by media outlets as far ranging as NPR, the Boston Globe, Publishers Weekly, and the Washington Post, describing the three novels as:</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-style: italic;">“…..A thing of beauty: spare but ingeniously twisted.” </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> <span style="font-style: italic;">"A dozy of a doom-laden crime story that not only makes merry with the justice system but also satirizes the publishing industry"</span></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"> “Spare prose and assured pacing place this above most other contemporary noirs."</p> <p class="MsoNormal">Since publishing the trilogy, Zeltserman has gone on to garner further acclaim with his satirical supernatural horror novel, <span style="font-style: italic;">The Caretaker of Lorne Field</span>, and with his most recently published heist thriller, <span style="font-style: italic;">Outsourced</span>. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Zeltserman has also gone on to be a pioneer in the realm of eBooks with the release of his short story collection <span style="font-style: italic;">21 Tales</span>, the award winning <span style="font-style: italic;">Julius Katz</span>, and the intense pulp novel,<span style="font-style: italic;"> Blood Crimes</span>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">On February 15<sup>th</sup> I had the distinct pleasure of sitting down with Zeltserman at the Poisoned Pen in Scottsdale, AZ to discuss Blood Crimes, Outsourced, his experiences with the publishing and film industry, and his upcoming writing projects.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">I hope you enjoy</p><br /><br /><iframe src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/20138275" width="400" frameborder="0" height="300"></iframe><p><a href="http://vimeo.com/20138275">Dave Zeltserman interviewed by Keith Rawson</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user2407312">Keith Rawson</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com/">Vimeo</a>.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-58755097059510658622011-02-07T16:52:00.000-08:002011-02-07T17:35:42.032-08:00Prepare To Meet Your Destiny<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz9izPE9ys6cWmWI2bnGwGOQF5MHjAt8kysdWQsS8z2RUV58jtRGV-9-QAWF1mGzr5p0chkBgf-gpBTSlimSdM0RYjB1UQHnbpdAtLZFfxBu8wEBXJpcBHcnG2xm-rXwZ6cpbwB2ngjg8/s1600/KFF_2.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 242px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgz9izPE9ys6cWmWI2bnGwGOQF5MHjAt8kysdWQsS8z2RUV58jtRGV-9-QAWF1mGzr5p0chkBgf-gpBTSlimSdM0RYjB1UQHnbpdAtLZFfxBu8wEBXJpcBHcnG2xm-rXwZ6cpbwB2ngjg8/s400/KFF_2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5571116929833669762" border="0" /></a><br />You are about to enter the mysterious...the unknown...the majesty that is....<br />KUNG FU FACTORY!<br /><br />It is coming....Prepare....Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-88412045395771903102011-01-30T08:21:00.000-08:002011-01-30T09:16:26.823-08:00Contest--The Lincoln Lawyer Give Away!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHunWgR3X1TGFcwx7eb0pt2-Z5B2X0_W16biJtNM1S9l7QDX78pp_seK_cvFPZxmVxxH56zx5nLwp9uIZ8VCX1JUXQaHDVQHHlJM2RdC3GnBATBqRD-lhnOJRson4nCUL8e5xfiiwp4ys/s1600/L_Lawyer.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 154px; height: 248px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHunWgR3X1TGFcwx7eb0pt2-Z5B2X0_W16biJtNM1S9l7QDX78pp_seK_cvFPZxmVxxH56zx5nLwp9uIZ8VCX1JUXQaHDVQHHlJM2RdC3GnBATBqRD-lhnOJRson4nCUL8e5xfiiwp4ys/s400/L_Lawyer.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568028943529778738" border="0" /></a><br />As most of you know, I'm a pretty big fan of<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.michaelconnelly.com/index.html"> Michael Connelly</a>, (If you you've never seen my video interview with Connelly, check it out right <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.bscreview.com/2009/10/michael-connelly-interview/">HERE</a>)but I'll be the first to admit that Hollywood hasn't always been kind to Connelly, but that's about to change (Hopefully)with director Brad Furman's adaptation of Connelly's first Mickey Haller novel, <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://thelincolnlawyermovie.com/#/story">The Lincoln Lawyer</a>.<br /><br />So to celebrate the release of the Lincoln Lawyer, <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/">Crimefactory</a> along with the good folks at <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.hachettebookgroup.com/books_9781455500239.htm">Little, Brown</a> publishing and <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.lionsgate.com/">Lionsgate</a> films are giving away five copies of the Lincoln Lawyer and five posters of the theatrical release.<br />To enter, just leave a comment with your e-mail address and five entrants will be chosen at random, the deadline to enter is February 10th and the contest is open to all.<br /><br />Also make sure to check out the Lincoln Lawyer's official website right <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://thelincolnlawyermovie.com/#/story">HERE</a><br />and the theatrical trailer below:<br /><br /><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/gXltS7eznMc" allowfullscreen="" width="640" frameborder="0" height="390"></iframe>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-71790114966667632652011-01-27T07:35:00.000-08:002011-01-27T17:50:13.153-08:00Valentine’s Day Massacre Fundraiser<div>I know, I know, folks, I've been slacking over here at Day Labor, but between starting a new, much better day job, a vicious strain of the flu knocking both me and the tot on our asses, plus my own writing.....Well, you get the point, as usual I'm busy. But I do promise that through the month of February I'll be on a more or less regular schedule.</div>
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<br /><div>Alright, so enough of my rampant excuse making and onto what I'm here for today.
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<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT15rZ4BtAyfIJ_nG8tItp3H1aJmpN5OloP80B69IIJ1jQRoM2uEHUJf7Hiq7YAGKFFNNqRJ3gXbPzNKLWqJD3VQrZ7_Grkazvbz7bUPYihp_STvh73zq43Bx85Oq0zptttRiSLY6pR6M/s1600/Djtafoya+Headshot.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 185px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT15rZ4BtAyfIJ_nG8tItp3H1aJmpN5OloP80B69IIJ1jQRoM2uEHUJf7Hiq7YAGKFFNNqRJ3gXbPzNKLWqJD3VQrZ7_Grkazvbz7bUPYihp_STvh73zq43Bx85Oq0zptttRiSLY6pR6M/s400/Djtafoya+Headshot.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567044871280831954" border="0" /></a><div> </div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT15rZ4BtAyfIJ_nG8tItp3H1aJmpN5OloP80B69IIJ1jQRoM2uEHUJf7Hiq7YAGKFFNNqRJ3gXbPzNKLWqJD3VQrZ7_Grkazvbz7bUPYihp_STvh73zq43Bx85Oq0zptttRiSLY6pR6M/s1600/Djtafoya+Headshot.jpg"></a><div>Every body knows what a big fan of Dennis Tafoya I am, right?</div>
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<br /><div>And most of you know that Cam and I published Tafoya's story, "<a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Crimefactory-2-Issue-3-ebook/dp/B003RISKUY/ref=pd_sim_kinc_2?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2">How to Jail</a>" in issue #3 of <a href="http://crimefactoryzine.com/main/HOME.html"><strong>Crimefactory</strong></a>, right?</div>
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<br /><div>And you know there's a couple of talented film makers who want to make "How to Jail" into a kick ass short film, right?</div>
<br /><div> </div>
<br /><div>The one down side of putting together an independent film is financing the freaking thing, and you have to do all kinds of tap dancing and shucking and jiving in order to put the cash together. </div>
<br /><div>Well, the guys at Killing Joke Films have put together a little fundraising event to get "How to Jail" off the ground.</div>
<br /><div>Check out the press release below:</div>
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<br /><div> </div> <meta name="Title" content=""> <meta name="Keywords" content=""> <meta equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <meta name="ProgId" content="Word.Document"> <meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <meta name="Originator" content="Microsoft Word 2008"> <link rel="File-List" href="file://localhost/Users/keithrawson/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/msoclip/0clip_filelist.xml"> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:trackmoves>false</w:TrackMoves> <w:trackformatting/> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:drawinggridhorizontalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridHorizontalSpacing> <w:drawinggridverticalspacing>18 pt</w:DrawingGridVerticalSpacing> <w:displayhorizontaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayHorizontalDrawingGridEvery> <w:displayverticaldrawinggridevery>0</w:DisplayVerticalDrawingGridEvery> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> <w:dontautofitconstrainedtables/> <w:dontvertalignintxbx/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="276"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Courier New"; panose-1:2 7 3 9 2 2 5 2 4 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";} h3 {mso-style-link:"Heading 3 Char"; mso-margin-top-alt:auto; margin-right:0in; mso-margin-bottom-alt:auto; margin-left:0in; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; mso-outline-level:3; font-size:13.5pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold;} a:link, span.MsoHyperlink {color:blue; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed {mso-style-noshow:yes; color:purple; text-decoration:underline; text-underline:single;} span.Heading3Char {mso-style-name:"Heading 3 Char"; mso-style-locked:yes; mso-style-link:"Heading 3"; mso-ansi-font-size:13.5pt; mso-bidi-font-size:13.5pt; font-weight:bold;} span.apple-style-span {mso-style-name:apple-style-span;} span.apple-converted-space {mso-style-name:apple-converted-space;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> <!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} </style> <![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:";" ><blockquote></blockquote><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Paul von Stoetzel (651) 491-5718, </span><u style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><a href="mailto:killingjoke13@gmail.com">killingjoke13@gmail.com</a>
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<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Valentine’s Day Massacre Fundraiser event for the film “How to Jail” written by novelist Dennis Tafoya.</span>
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<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="apple-style-span">Killing Joke Films presents The Valentine’s Day Massacre Fundraiser for the short film “How to Jail,” which is scheduled to begin production on April 1<sup>st</sup> in the Twin Cities.<span style=""> </span>This event will include a raffle involving signed books and memorabilia from both author Dennis Tafoya the production of “How to Jail”.<span style=""> </span>The event will also include a book signing with the author and a staged reading of “How to Jail.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style=";font-family:";" ><o:p> </o:p></span></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style=";font-family:";" >The short film “How to Jail” will feature Twin Cities actors Peter Christian Hansen and Ryan Parker Knox and will be directed by Paul von Stoetzel. The film will be produced by Killing Joke Films in conjuncture with Chris Buekers, and will be filmed by the Academy Award winning cinematographer Geoff George.<span style=""> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:";" >
<br /><span class="apple-style-span">The adapted short story “How to Jail” by Dennis Tafoya was originally published in <i style="">Crime Factory Magazine</i> in March 2010.<span style=""> </span>Tafoya has published two novels with St. Martin’s Minotaur.<span style=""> </span>After a strong debut with Dope Thief in 2009, Tafoya followed up with Wolves of Fairmount Park, which has garnered critical acclaim.<span style=""> </span>Tom Nolan of <i style="">Wall Street Journal </i>calls Tafoya’s sophomore effort “(A) mesmerizing and most impressive book... Tafoya is finding his own original voice, one that will make readers sit up and listen."</span><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><span class="apple-style-span"> Tafoya is a member of the Mystery Writers of America, the International Thriller Writers, and the Liars Club, a Philadelphia-area writers group.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:";" ><o:p> </o:p></span></p> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:";" >When:
<br />February 18<sup>th</sup> at 7:00 PM<o:p></o:p></span></p> <h3 style="margin: 0in 0in 2.25pt; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span style=";font-family:";font-size:12pt;" >
<br /></span><span style=";font-family:";font-size:12pt;" >Where:
<br />The Black Forest Inn Banquet Room,<o:p></o:p></span></h3> <h3 style="margin: 0in 0in 2.25pt; color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><span class="apple-style-span"><span style=";font-family:";font-size:12pt;" >1 East 26th Street, Minneapolis MN 55404</span></span><span style=";font-family:";font-size:12pt;" >
<br />
<br />Tickets:
<br />Sliding scale $15-$25, tickets will be sold at the door.</span></h3>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">If you can't make it to the fundraiser you can donate at </span><a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" href="http://bruteforcefilms.blogspot.com/"><span style="font-weight: bold;">BRUTE FORCE FILMS</span></a>
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<br /><div> </div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-13219504954392887162011-01-01T23:37:00.000-08:002011-01-02T07:35:41.033-08:00Rawson's Top 5<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal">Like most years since I turned 30, 2010 flew by for me. It was an exciting year, I met and interviewed more than a few of my idols, helped revive a magazine, and started writing reviews along with pumping out fiction. The other thing that set 2010 apart for me was that I read 80 novels this year. Don't get me wrong, I've always been a prestigious reader, but this year there didn't seem to be moment that went by when I didn't have my nose in a book.<br /><br />I enjoyed most of them, but there were more than a few that left me shaking my head and performing a sky hook into the garbage can with them and even more that left me saying Meh. But there were some truly great reading moments with novels where time stopped moving and I was so absorbed by story that nothing existed outside of it. The following lists are the best of what I read this year.<br /><br />Quick note, folks. I know I said I would be writing individual reviews for each of my picks, but time managed to sneak up on me and kick my ass. Plus I had a hell of a time narrowing down my choices and I liked so many different novels that I decided to include a top five of my non crime reads and five notable crime titles along with my top five.<br />Anyway, here we go<br /><br /><br /><b style="">My top 5 Non-Crime novels of the year</b><br /><br />Yes, I read a lot of non crime fiction. For every two crime titles I read, I dip my toes into another genre. With 2010, I found myself reading a boat load of Urban Fantasy and Apocalypse fiction. In case you didn't notice, there was tons of both.<br /><br />5) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.concordfreepress.com/on-rut/">Rut by Scott Phillips</a><br />Phillips told me about this book when I was conning--I mean arranging for him to contribute his 'Under the Influence' piece for issue #1 of Crimefactory. Phillips has been one of my favorite novelists for a number of years and I was chomping at the bit to read his take on science fiction. Rut is very much an apocalypse novel, but it's a realistic take on Armageddon, where the end of the human race is slow and drawn out over decades as opposed to a sudden blinding flash of death and chaos. And, of course, the book is hilarious.<br /><br />4) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Stairway-Hell-Charlie-Williams/dp/184668689X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293953872&sr=1-1">The Stairway to Hell by Charlie Williams</a><br />When I received this novel, Russel Mclean commented on how brilliant he thought the book was. In fact, he called it 'genius'. And Russel, he was right, this is not only a brilliant read, but is Williams best novel to date. Normally I'm not a huge fan of novels about musicians or the pursuit of fame, but Stairway to Hell is so damn funny my predisposed prejudice towards the subject was completely shed. Highly recommended to fans of Neil Gaiman's more vicious novels.</p><p class="MsoNormal">3) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Sandman-Slim-Richard-Kadrey/dp/0061976261/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293953921&sr=1-1">Sandman Slim by Richard Kadrey</a><br />Like I said of Victor Gischler, if there was a Kadrey fan club, I'd be the president. (Okay, vice-president, A.J. Hayes would probably be the president) I've put this book into the hands of more people this year than any other. And, yes, crime fiction fans will love it because along with being one of the best examples of Urban Fantasy released this year, it's also one hell of a hard-boiled read. Also on an only interesting to me note, Kadrey is the one author who I own entirely as e-books.<br /><br />2) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Passage-Justin-Cronin/dp/0345504968/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293953974&sr=1-1">The Passage by Justin Cronin</a><br />This one got tons of ink this year, but there was a reason for it. The Passage is a fully realized, emotionally complex epic and outside of Charlie Huston's Joe Pitt novels, the Passage is one of the most original takes on the vampire novel I've ever read. It's also one of the most original takes on the Armageddon, where Cronin advances the remains of civilization not five or ten years into the future, but 80. Great read.<br /><br />1) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Four-Fingers-Death-Novel/dp/0316118915/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954010&sr=1-1">The Four Fingers of Death by Rick Moody</a><br />This was a bold move by a writer whose previous novels mostly dealt with the malaise of suburban America. Much like Rut, Moody portrays the end times as a slow burn, a culture ravaged by out of control consumerism, short attention spans, and bastardized politics has doomed us. This is a novel within a novel and both story lines are utterly compelling.<br /><br /><b style="">My Five Crime Fiction notables</b>:<br /><br />5) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Damage-Done-Hilary-Davidson/dp/0765326973/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293954045&sr=1-1">The Damage Done by Hilary Davidson</a><br />A slickly written, meticulously researched mystery with heavy noir elements. Davidson's first novel length effort is far from a perfect novel, but it is a highly enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to further entries in the Lily Moore series and where she takes her characters<br /><br />4) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Juju-Other-Tales-Madness-Mayhem/dp/098155797X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954079&sr=1-1">Bad Juju and Other tales of Madness and Mayhem by Jonathan Woods</a><br />My favorite single author short story collection of the year. Woods is a master of the short form and each story in the collection is a insane nugget of desperation and over the top violence.<br /><br />3) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Dreams-Nick-Quantrill/dp/0955407028/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954130&sr=1-1">Broken Dreams by Nick Quantrill</a><br />What I like most about Quantrill's PI Joe Geraghty is that, yes, Geraghty's past life is fraught with tormented moments, but he is not over burdened by them. Geraghty has dealt with his pain and has moved on and is dealing with day-to-day life as opposed to letting it turn him into a self serving prick like most fictional PI's. Broken Dreams is a gripping, atmospheric read and like the Damage Done, it's not perfect, but it is highly readable<br /><br />2) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Print-Legend-Craig-McDonald/dp/0312554370/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954160&sr=1-1">Print the Legend by Craig McDonald</a><br />My favorite ongoing series. Each entry in the Lassiter series keeps getting better and better. I can't wait for One True Sentence.<br /><br />1) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.morriganbooks.com/?cat=23">Requiems for the Departed edited by Gerard Brennan and Michael Stone</a><br />My favorite anthology of the year in a year over flowing with truly amazing anthologies.<br /><br />I know this has been one long winded bastard of a post, but finally, here are my top five novels of the year.<br /><br /><b style="">My Top Five</b><br /><br />5) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pike-Switchblade-Benjamin-Whitmer/dp/1604860898/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954347&sr=1-1">Pike by Benjamin Whitmer</a><br />I commented on Facebook when I first started reading Pike that I felt like I needed to take a scalding hot bath every 50 pages or so. I still hold to this opinion. Pike is stripped down, working class noir. Each chapter is like a punch to the face and is one of the most carefully constructed novels of the year.<br /><br />4) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Expiration-Date-Duane-Swierczynski/dp/0312363400/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954381&sr=1-1">Expiration Date by Duane Swierczyn</a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Expiration-Date-Duane-Swierczynski/dp/0312363400/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954381&sr=1-1">ski</a><br />This genre bender is classic Swierczynski. Whip crack plotting, near nonstop action, and some of the most intelligent, personal writing of Philly's reigning king of pulp's career. One of the few novels I read multiple times this year.<br /><br />3) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Late-Rain-Lynn-Kostoff/dp/1935562126/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954416&sr=1-1">Late Rain by Lynn Kostoff</a> and <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Johnny-Porno-Charlie-Stella/dp/193358629X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293954446&sr=1-1">Johnny Porno by Charlie Stella</a> (tie)<br />Kostoff and Stella seem to be attached at the hip this year and with good reason. Both authors have produced the two best and, far from easily defined novels, of their careers. Yes, both are crime novels on the surface, but there's so much more going on in each of them. Both are tightly drawn character studies without an ounce of fat on either of them.<br /><br />2)<a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Wolves-Fairmount-Park-Dennis-Tafoya/dp/0312531168/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293954499&sr=1-1"> The Wolves of Fairmount Park by Dennis Tafoya</a><br />Tafoya's sophomore effort can be easily compared to the best of Richard Price and George Pelacanos. Tafoya skillfully handles this weighty, character driven tome with the deft skill of a far more experienced novelist. I've said it before and I'll say it again, Tafoya is the novelist to watch in the years to come.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbkHf-3wMovpQ0RjNT5Zbb62WHWIHcFKpohczt5VLA_WMeZc_NwhIrFsS-J4HgLz7WkPoARjMgZo5urKdGQtgxpOmioWbHC6lS1nwsZBCBUh1WsxhT4PPXQjhxdDo3mQPtq8pKKcsawM/s1600/cold_kiss.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 264px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgpbkHf-3wMovpQ0RjNT5Zbb62WHWIHcFKpohczt5VLA_WMeZc_NwhIrFsS-J4HgLz7WkPoARjMgZo5urKdGQtgxpOmioWbHC6lS1nwsZBCBUh1WsxhT4PPXQjhxdDo3mQPtq8pKKcsawM/s400/cold_kiss.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557493263102255442" border="0" /></a>1) <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Kiss-John-Rector/dp/0765326434/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293954645&sr=1-1">The Cold Kiss by John Rector</a></p><p class="MsoNormal">The moment I cracked the ARC of the Cold Kiss open, I knew I would be including it on my ten best of list. Two hours later as I turned the last page, I knew it would be my number 1 pick. The Cold Kiss is a perfect balance of character, plot, and action. No, the plot of a young couple coming across a shit load of dirty cash and then being hunted down for it isn't the most original, but Rector manages to make it fresh by combining it with an intense locked room style mystery. By the way, if I was a betting man, I'd put money down that five years from now, Rector will be ranked as one of the most renowned thriller writers in the states. The Cold Kiss is an amazing, can not be missed novel<br /></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-982770125343784482011-01-01T09:50:00.000-08:002011-01-01T10:04:55.057-08:00The Best of Whatever—Hilary Davidson<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->Top 10 of 2010 <p class="MsoNormal">This was a strange year for my reading list. The more conferences I attended and writers I met, the more my TBR fiction pile grew. But I was preoccupied for months with writing a new novel, and don’t seem to be capable of reading other novels while I’m writing one. That meant I did read an extraordinary amount of short fiction this year, which is obvious when you look at my favorites… (listed in no particular order):</p> <p class="MsoNormal">1.<a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Blood-Guts-Whiskey-Thuglit-Presents/dp/0758222688/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293904561&sr=8-1"> Thuglit Presents: Blood, Guts, & Whiskey, edited by Todd Robinson</a> — Robinson is the person who gave so many crime writers working today their launch pad: Thuglit. This is the zine’s third anthology, and it’s a winner across the board with stories by Craig McDonald, Tom Piccirilli, Stuart Neville, Glenn Gray, Scott Wolven, and Derek Nikitas. (I have a short story in here, too — I’m one of those writers who owe everything to Todd, his partner-in-crime Allison, and Thuglit.)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">2.<span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> Needle: A Magazine of Noir</span> — I remember when Steve Weddle told me he had the idea to start a new print magazine. That was March 2010. By April, Needle had launched. In print, no less. Weddle, John Hornor, and their amazing team of editors work fast, yet brilliantly. This has become required reading. </p> <p class="MsoNormal">3. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pariah-Dave-Zeltserman/dp/1846686431/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293904599&sr=1-1">Pariah by Dave Zeltserman</a> — I was already a huge fan of Zeltserman’s work, but this novel convinced me that the man is the new Jim Thompson. Welcome to the heart of darkness.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">4. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pounds-Eight-Horror-Suspense-ebook/dp/B0047742P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1293904632&sr=1-1">8 Pounds</a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pounds-Eight-Horror-Suspense-ebook/dp/B0047742P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1293904632&sr=1-1"> by Chris F. Holm</a> — I’ve admired Holm’s short fiction for some time, and I’d read six of the eight stories in this collection at one time or another. Still, 8 Pounds felt like a shock to my system. There are threads of suspense and noir and horror that are woven through his stories, making them unusually powerful.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">5. <span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Borrowed Trouble by J.B. Kohl and Eric Beetner</span> — I had the good fortune to get an advance read of this sequel to One Too Many Blows to the Head. Kohl and Beetner have vividly re-created 1941 Los Angeles, ripping apart the city’s glamorous façade to reveal the cold noir heart beneath. Look for it in February 2011.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">6. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Beat-Pulp-Round-David-Cranmer/dp/0615388248/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293904722&sr=8-1">Beat to a Pulp: Round One, edited by David Cranmer and Elaine Ash</a> — Some of my favorite stories of the year are in here, including “Fangataufa” by Sophie Littlefield, “Killing Kate” by Ed Gorman, “Ghostscapes” by Patti Abbott, and “A Native Problem” by Chris F. Holm. (I have a story in this collection, too.)</p> <p class="MsoNormal">7. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Notes-Scandal-What-Thinking-Novel/dp/0312426097/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293904760&sr=1-2">Notes </a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Notes-Scandal-What-Thinking-Novel/dp/0312426097/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293904760&sr=1-2">on a Scandal (What Was She Thinking?) by Zoe Heller</a> — I loved the Cate Blanchett/Judi Dench film, but the novel is even better, not least because of its far darker conclusion. The tale of a schoolteacher who has a sexual affair with a teenage boy — and who is in turn preyed upon by another, older, teacher — makes for truly twisted noir.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">8. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Dope-Thief-Dennis-Tafoya/dp/B0045EPCYG/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293904796&sr=1-1">Dope Thief by Dennis Tafoya</a> — I bought this book in 2009 because Keith Rawson raved about it so much, but neglected to actually read it until I met Tafoya at a library event in New York. I’m actually glad I waited to read it, because I would have been tongue-tied when meeting him otherwise. Lyrical yet powerfully real, this is one book I recommend to everyone.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">9. <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Faces-Gone-Mystery-Brad-Parks/dp/0312574770/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293904841&sr=1-1">Faces of the Gone by Brad Parks</a> — This novel had already won the Shamus and the Nero by the time I started reading it. Not going to make that mistake with Eyes of the Innocent, coming in February 2011.</p> <p class="MsoNormal">10.<a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/"> Cri</a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.crimefactoryzine.com/">mefactory</a> — I love the fact that Keith Rawson, Cameron Ashley and Liam José pulled this magazine from the ashes and set it loose on the world again in 2010. It just gets bigger and better with every issue.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">ABOUT T</b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim0uXfZ91aQ2Kwe5j4Wx5yIe7oV77H1_z6buCg9peTzVPv8mPhuUHzK5yTV6phQ7gOMJp-zfTK1Q89QHmVisQ0rmyuFjO4Xf4nimdKnhLgYDMsGk0Xd7iw-XjE7jS8PUzzdgXOwpEkWxE/s1600/Hilary.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 152px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim0uXfZ91aQ2Kwe5j4Wx5yIe7oV77H1_z6buCg9peTzVPv8mPhuUHzK5yTV6phQ7gOMJp-zfTK1Q89QHmVisQ0rmyuFjO4Xf4nimdKnhLgYDMsGk0Xd7iw-XjE7jS8PUzzdgXOwpEkWxE/s200/Hilary.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557279826142571794" border="0" /></a><b style="">HE AUTHOR</b>: Hilary Davidson's first novel, <em>THE DAMAGE DONE</em>, will be published by Forge in October 2010. Her short fiction has appeared in <em>Thuglit</em>, <em>Crimespree</em>, <em>Spinetingler</em>, <em>The Rose & Thorn</em>, <i style="">Crimefactory, Needle Magazine</i> and <em>Well Told Tales</em>. Her first published story, "Anniversary," is in the anthology <em>A PRISONERY OF MEMORY</em> (Pegasus, 2008), and her "Son of So Many Tears" will be in <em>Thuglit</em>'s upcoming anthology (Kensington, 2010). When she's not writing about murder and mayhem, she's on the road as a travel writer. Visit her online at <a href="http://www.hilarydavidson.com/">www.hilarydavidson.com</a>.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-13151865093816492232011-01-01T09:21:00.000-08:002011-01-01T09:44:36.709-08:00The Best of Whatever—Poker Ben<span style="font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;color:transparent;" ></span><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >PokerBen’s Top 10 Whatever list 2010.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >This is in no particular order.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >10. <b style="">The TV show Justified</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >This little show starring Timothy Olyphant is a winner in my book. The pilot was based on the Elmore Leonard short story “Fire In The Hole”, and features EL’s series character U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens. Who knew there were still U.S Marshals? From the kick ass pilot to the gripping season finale, I was hooked. I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us in season 2, which starts February 2011.Season 1 dvd available January 25th.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >9. <b style="">John Rector’s The Cold Kiss</b>. </span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >It’s hard to believe this was JR’s first novel. A young couple tangle themselves up with a gut shot man, who has a bag full of money. Mix in a horrible blizzard, and being stranded at an old motel full of crazies. This gem of a novel takes off like a rocket and doesn’t let up until the final page. Rector’s 2nd novel, “The Grove”, is sitting on my Kindle waiting to be enjoyed.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >8. <b style="">The Amazon Kindle</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >Speaking of the little guy, it definitely deserves to be on my list. I love having the ability to buy a book, and almost instantly have it available at my finger tips. It’s also nice to have the larger print size available when my eyes are tired, and it’s great for traveling.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >7. <b style="">Needle Magazine</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >I love being able to stay up to date on the latest sewing and knitting trends. Oh wait, not that Needle Magazine. I meant the one featuring all the awesome crime fiction/noir stories from today’s who's who in the industry.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >6. <b style="">Crimefactory Magazine</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >I can’t mention a crime fiction magazine without mentioning the best one of all in my opinion. It’s got everything a crime lover could want, and a lot more. Not a bad purchase price either. Yep, Rawson and company know how to deliver the goods.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >5. <b style="">Ken Bruen’s The Devil</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >What can I say about KB that hasn’t already been said. The man is an extraordinary writer. The Devil is the latest installment of his Jack Taylor series. Everything Bruen writes is gold in my eyes. He could write a computer manual and I’d read it.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >4. <b style="">Red Dead Redemption - PS3</b></span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >First Rockstar games buts out the awesome GTA series, then they take GTA and drop it into the wild west. Yee Haw!</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >3. <b style="">Getting my graphic design work some exposure.</b></span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >I started off just screwing around in Photoshop. I then made Keith Rawson a banner for his blog, sent it to him, he actually liked it, and used it. I did the same thing for Anthony Neil Smith’s blog. He liked it, and down the road actually hired me to design a book cover for his upcoming E-book edition of Psychosomatic.My latest work was for the banner of this blog. All I can say is I’m thrilled. Who knows maybe this hobby can turn into something bigger down the line.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >2. <b style="">Don Winslow’s Savages</b>.</span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >This was my first Winslow. It knocked my socks off. To describe this book in one word---FUN. This isn’t your standard thriller. Sure its got great fleshed out characters, and an intense plot. It also has one sentence chapters, made up words, slang, lists,the author speaking directly to the reader,sex drugs,music. Pretty much the everything but the kitchen sink. You’ll just have to read it.</span><br /><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >1. <b style="">Winter’s Bone.</b> </span><br /><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;" >Both the book by Daniel Woodrell, and the movie directed by Debra Granik. I first fell in love with the book, but after seeing the movie recently, I love it just as much. WB tells the story of Ree Dolly, a 17 year old girl living in the Ozarks struggling to take care of her sick mother and younger siblings. Her father, a meth cook, has gotten in trouble with the law and has put their house down as collateral on his bail bond. He disappears ,and it’s up to Ree to find him before they loose their home. You will not soon forget this powerful tale. It will stick with you long after you’re finished with it.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style=";font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;color:black;" ><br /></span></p> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">AB</b><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow53mfCkwJOg0e7g9Ls2TJ2DmOjQTebnu3ukEpKODEQ8qbMdfc-GDM8SwYXsfRd08Cfwoq3vUPq9Tzfpl_sHFfFKUi8lyTb8fwHdUuYwWgoLfaw69aXQuXu-gapsgs0-Upd9Tps-9vKk/s1600/pokerben.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 73px; height: 73px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgow53mfCkwJOg0e7g9Ls2TJ2DmOjQTebnu3ukEpKODEQ8qbMdfc-GDM8SwYXsfRd08Cfwoq3vUPq9Tzfpl_sHFfFKUi8lyTb8fwHdUuYwWgoLfaw69aXQuXu-gapsgs0-Upd9Tps-9vKk/s200/pokerben.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557272062827222034" border="0" /></a><b style="">OUT THE AUTHOR: </b>Ben Springer (aka Poker Ben) is Crimefactory’s graphic designer at large. He’s created the banners for <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://bloodyknucklescallusedfingertips.blogspot.com/">Bloody Knuckles, Callused Fingertips</a>, (Keith Rawson’s much under used blog) Day Labor, Anthony Neil Smith’s blog, <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://anthonyneilsmith.typepad.com/">Herman's Greasy Spoon </a>and the cover to the e-version of Smith’s first novel,<a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/34834"> Psychosomatic</a>. He’s also written reviews for<a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://spinetinglermag.com/"> Spinetingler Magazine</a></p><br /><span style="font-style: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;font-family:Arial;font-size:11pt;color:transparent;" ><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-38118634529542672972010-12-31T12:26:00.000-08:002010-12-31T12:39:03.907-08:00The Best of Whatever—Stephen BlackmooreI have a memory like a sieve. I'm lucky to remember what day it is, where my pants are, what my name is. You want me to list the top ten anything of the last year? You're kidding right? Well, shit.<br /><br />Fine. Ten things.<br /><br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Feed-Newsflesh-Book-Mira-Grant/dp/0316081051/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293827466&sr=1-1">FEED - Mira Grant</a><br /></b>The zombie apocalypse has come and gone. They're still here, sure, but the world has survived. Security measures that make a TSA patdown look like a kiss in the backseat on date night, cities abandoned to the dead and good for little more than adrenaline junkies to film their narrow escapes. The risen dead have changed everything.<br /><br />Well, not everything. Politics and journalism are still around. FEED follows a team of bush-league news bloggers as they get the opportunity of a lifetime to follow the Republican Presidential campaign of 2039. A presidential race that will show them the uglier side of politics, greed, power and that, as always, the real monsters are the ones that smile and shake your hand.<br /><br />Part political thriller, part horror story, FEED reads like some twisted version of Fear And Loathing On The Campaign Trail written by George Romero. Grant's world building is superb, her science is excellent and has the most plausible zombie infection scenario I've ever read.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hello-Kitty-Must-Angela-Choi/dp/1935562029/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293827502&sr=1-1"><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hello-Kitty-Must-Angela-Choi/dp/1935562029/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293827502&sr=1-1">HELLO KITTY MUST DIE - Angela Choi</a><br /></b>Angela Choi pulls together a compelling story of a young Asian American woman trying to break free of the bonds of family tradition and discover who it is she really wants to be.<br /><br />It just happens that what she really wants to be is a serial killer.<br /><br />American Psycho meets The Joy Luck Club. A satire on murder, money, marriage and what it's like to be Asian in America. Hysterically funny and darkly disturbing.<br /><br /><br /><b>SOUTHERN GODS - </b><b>John Hornor Jacobs</b><br />I was lucky enough to read this novel in manuscript form. It was recently picked up by Night Shade Books. And when it comes out y'all are in for a treat. A beautifully written, gripping story of the Blues, the deep south, and, best of all, Lovecraftian horror.<br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sleepless-Novel-Charlie-Huston/dp/0345501144/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293827531&sr=1-1"><br /><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Sleepless-Novel-Charlie-Huston/dp/0345501144/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293827531&sr=1-1">SLEEPLESS - Charlie Huston</a><br /></b>A disease is sweeping the world that prevents its sufferers from sleeping, eventually driving them mad and killing them. It has no cure. It infects over half the population. It is in every nation, every city, every town.<br /><br />SLEEPLESS is Apocalypse in progress. The world has stepped off the cliff and it's screaming toward the ground at a hundred mils an hour. And in the middle of all this is a good cop, a gay assassin, and a family that is dying in front of our eyes. Fascinating, electrifying and tragic, there are passages that showcase Huston's razor edge humor and whole chapters that will break your heart.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pounds-Eight-Horror-Suspense-ebook/dp/B0047742P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1293827567&sr=1-1"><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Pounds-Eight-Horror-Suspense-ebook/dp/B0047742P6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=books&qid=1293827567&sr=1-1">8 POUNDS - Chris F Holm</a><br /></b>This collection of short stories showcases an incredibly talented writer, showing a versatility many of us would kill for. Can't wait to see his books in print. A writer to watch.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Deputy-ebook/dp/B003G2ZUW2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=merchant-items&qid=1293827621&sr=1-1"><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/The-Deputy-ebook/dp/B003G2ZUW2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=merchant-items&qid=1293827621&sr=1-1">THE DEPUTY - Victor Gischler</a><br /></b>Another in a long line of great books that somehow manage to be hard-boiled noir and incredibly funny, THE DEPUTY follows fuck-up-with-the-best-of-<div id=":173"><wbr>intentions Toby Sawyer who gets pressed into duty as a deputy to guard a body on the road. Too bad he decides to leave it for a quickie with his girlfriend. When he comes back the body's gone and thus begins Toby's descent into a comedic hell as he tries to get it back.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Johannes-Cabal-the-Necromancer-ebook/dp/B002DOSBL6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1293827650&sr=1-1-spell"><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Johannes-Cabal-the-Necromancer-ebook/dp/B002DOSBL6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1293827650&sr=1-1-spell">JOHANNES CABAL THE NECROMANCER - Jonathon L Howard</a><br /></b>Johannes Cabal has sold his soul for the secrets of necromancy. Only his lack of soul is getting in the way of his research and he wants it back. So the Devil makes him a deal. Get the Devil 100 souls within a year and it will be returned. Fail and he goes straight to Hell.<br /><br />With the aid of a demonic carnival that rides the tracks into unsuspecting towns Cabal and his brother Horst, who Cabal was responsible for getting turned into a vampire, the book reads like Something Wicked The Way Comes via the Marx Brothers and Howard has a distinct Pratchett vibe about his work.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Savages-ebook/dp/B003L785PG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1293827696&sr=1-1"><br /></a><b><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Savages-ebook/dp/B003L785PG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1293827696&sr=1-1">SAVAGES - Don Winslow</a><br /></b>The only things I can definitively say about this book is that it's both brilliant and insane. In turns funny and brutally violent, SAVAGES is the story of a pair of weed growers who run afoul of the Mexican Mafia and have their shared girlfriend kidnapped using prose, screenplays, text messages and whatever else he can get his hands on. He takes the conventions of a novel and throws them out the window to great effect.<br /><br /><br /><b>NEEDLE MAGAZINE<br /></b>Not just because they published my story FOR THE CHILDREN, but because they have an eye for amazing fiction, show a passion and a dedication that is awe-inspiring. And now I'm lucky enough to be one of the guys reading some of those incredible stories that come down the pike. It's been an honor and a privilege to be part of that team and I can't wait to see what happens next.<br /><br /><br /><b>DAW BOOKS<br /></b>These folks decided to take a chance on me. An idea that is in turns amazing and terrifying. I'm still having trouble wrapping my brain around it. Two books, CITY OF THE LOST and DEAD THINGS. I'm really trying to not fuck it up.<br /><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><strong>ABOU</strong><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6w8k5eRIdAJ9pVt1Alu9-U7-kb8aE9w4mFY3_x4mmeB_4bSdseUBoKQmNGV237Gab_l0jkqBuouxXBIrr4qT18h8Dy_ZmsCKV5jF5bDsNpQFE1fiCXwp9_q2S8TMopkzgtjEn57v31Bk/s1600/SB.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6w8k5eRIdAJ9pVt1Alu9-U7-kb8aE9w4mFY3_x4mmeB_4bSdseUBoKQmNGV237Gab_l0jkqBuouxXBIrr4qT18h8Dy_ZmsCKV5jF5bDsNpQFE1fiCXwp9_q2S8TMopkzgtjEn57v31Bk/s200/SB.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556948479721401730" border="0" /></a><strong>T THE AUTHOR</strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;">: </span></strong>Stephen Blackmoore is a writer of pulp, crime and urban fantasy who occasionally lapses into talking about himself in the third person. His first novel, <b>CITY OF THE LOST</b>, a dark urban fantasy will be coming out from <a href="http://us.penguingroup.com/static/pages/daw/index.html">DAW Books</a> in early 2012. His short stories and poetry have appeared in <i>Plots With Guns, Spinetingler, Thrilling Detective, Shots, Demolit</i><i>ion, Clean Sheets and Flashing In The Gutters. </i>He has also written essays on Los Angeles politics and crime for the website <a href="http://lavoice.org/" target="_blnk">L.A. VOICE</a>. </p><br /><br /></div>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-79344342279895964652010-12-31T07:43:00.000-08:002010-12-31T07:58:25.537-08:00The Best of Whatever—Chris Benton<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->Here are the things that stuck in my mind this past year, they're pretty old most of them, but it's the first time I read them and it made a hellava impact, won't be offended if you don't include them...<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Catfish-Larry-Brown/dp/1565125363/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293810341&sr=8-1">A Miracle of Catfish by Larry Brown</a>: Brown was the greatest writer in America and this maundering, nearly finished masterpiece proves it. Yes, maundering, he lingers on details with a lyrical love no other writer will ever emulate. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.beattoapulp.com/stor/2009/0422_fb_TheNeed.cfm">The Need by Frank Bill</a>: This story relieved me so much with its primal, timely intensity, Bill is a superb craftsman, and deserves tremendous exposure </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Gypsys-Curse-Harry-crews/dp/0671806882/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293810378&sr=1-2">The Gypsy's Curse by Harry Crews</a>: Every one shits bricks about A Feast of Snakes but this baby is his most physically personal and mentally naked work. if you don't believe me then you know shit about the life of My Man. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Nobody-Move-Novel-Denis-Johnson/dp/0312429614/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293810417&sr=1-1">Nobody Move by Denis Johnson</a>: Johnson is my god, and many people thought this was a lazy work, but his laziness blows away everyone in a fucking second. "He needed to keep seeing his blood." </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Sonny-Liston-Was-Friend-Mine/dp/0316472409/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293810458&sr=1-1-fkmr0">Sony Liston </a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Sonny-Liston-Was-Friend-Mine/dp/0316472409/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293810458&sr=1-1-fkmr0">Was A Friend of Mine by Thom Jones</a>: Jones is the greatest short story writer since fucking Babel, case closed. His voice his vivid, vicious, and scarily ambidextrous and this collection is his best so far. I'm pretty jacked about his upcoming novel in waiting for over a decade, Deep Blue Dream, oh, baby, don't get me started on that one...) </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Collected-Stories-Isaac-Babel/dp/0393324028/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293810516&sr=1-1">The Collected Stories of Issac Babel</a>: This Russian writer serving in the Red Calvary, who eventually got whacked by Stalin's secret police taught me more about brevity and macabre humor than any fucking writer on earth. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Ninety-two-Shade-Thomas-McGuane/dp/0679752897/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293810556&sr=1-1">Ninety Two in the Shade by Thomas McGuane</a>: "Will I find it hard to die?" I don't think I will thanks to this masterpiece, oh by the way this was made into a film, directed by the author staring Peter Fonda and Warren Oates and Margot Kidder, which I've never seen yet to my eternal fucking chagrin. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://a-twist-of-noir.blogspot.com/2010/06/twist-of-noir-483-aj-hayes.html">House of Bones by Aj Hayes</a>: Hayes nailed me forever with this fever dream. It's awful in all the right ways. </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Rock-Springs-Richard-Ford/dp/0802144578/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293810594&sr=1-1">Rock Springs By Richard Ford</a>: Before Ford got devoured by Frank fucking Bascombe, he actually wrote some beautiful quiet noir stories set in Montana and Wyoming, he taught me that lingering unease is sometimes better than gunshots </p><p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Where-Money-Went-Vintage-Contemporaries/dp/0307389219/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293810628&sr=1-2">Where The Money Went by Kevin Canty</a>: <span style=""> </span>Canty is the closest thing we have to Carver these day's, his edgy melancholy is unmatched anywhere, he actually taught at my hometown college for a while, before he moved to Montana.<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh22C_xBc-Jnqo6Ctek7_4K0usiAkKaB0JDrip4d8jsHnLMlDyIFg04SvWlZw6Y2JaL6uTcfwpucvbpyFwLSSTz7eDOyMvCbTGho7puuEY6JUjV2qtktTDKj3g8jfcEQ2euxOL8xkKyy7A/s1600/Chris.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh22C_xBc-Jnqo6Ctek7_4K0usiAkKaB0JDrip4d8jsHnLMlDyIFg04SvWlZw6Y2JaL6uTcfwpucvbpyFwLSSTz7eDOyMvCbTGho7puuEY6JUjV2qtktTDKj3g8jfcEQ2euxOL8xkKyy7A/s200/Chris.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556876117647800354" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</b>: <strong><span style="font-weight: normal;">Chris Benton was born and raised in Wilmington, North Caro</span></strong><strong><span style="font-weight: normal;">lina where he still resides. He’s had fiction appear in Plots with Guns and A Twist of Noir and can be found on Facebook</span></strong></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-43676701381905159462010-12-30T17:10:00.000-08:002010-12-30T17:36:31.136-08:00The Best of Whatever—Peter Farris<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">Favorite Books of 2010</b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18pt;"><i style=""><span style="">I read a lot of great stuff this year...</span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><i style=""><span style="">But I should preface this list with the admission that I haven't read every '10 release I would have liked. In fact, I'm staring at the city skyline of TBR stacks in my office and I can see from here Ron Rash's </span></i><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Burning-Bright-Stories-Ron-Rash/dp/B0044KN0LS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293069463&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >Burning Bright</span></a></span></i><i style=""><span style="">, Joseph Wambaugh's </span></i><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hollywood-Hills-Novel-Joseph-Wambaugh/dp/031612950X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050638&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >Hollywood Hills</span></a></span></i><i style=""><span style="">, Hilary Davidson's </span></i><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Damage-Done-Hilary-Davidson/dp/0765326973/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050670&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >The Damage Done</span></a></span></i><i style=""><span style=""> and a just-published posthumous collection by Barry Hannah: </span></i><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Long-Last-Happy-Collected-Stories/dp/0802119689/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050695&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >Long, Lost, Happy</span></a></span></i><i style=""><span style="">—fo</span></i><i style=""><span style="">ur titles that I'm sure belong here based on reputation and reviews alone. Probably fodder for another blog post, right? For the paperback enthusiasts: <span style="">The Best Fiction Released Last Year That I Didn't Read Until This Year</span>...or something like that. </span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><i style=""><span style="">Anyway, here's some recommendations for what to spend those holiday gift cards on:</span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hilliker-Curse-My-Pursuit-Women/dp/0307593509/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293758115&sr=8-1"><b style="">JAMES ELLROY – THE HILLIKER CURSE: MY PURSUIT OF WOMEN</b></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">A perfect</span><span style=""> companion to Ellroy's first foray into memoir-land with My Dark Places, </span><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Hilliker-Curse-My-Pursuit-Women/dp/0307593509/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293050736&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >The Hilliker Curse</span></a></span></i><span style=""> is an absolutely fascinating piece of literary psychoanalysis. I couldn't help but feel like a voyeur while reading this, as Ellroy meticulously catalogs his relationships with women in that telegraphic prose that belongs in the Smithsonian. Every obsession, spank session, brood job, perv-out, tryst, toxic relationship, divorce, heartbreak and awkward interaction is all there on the page—the minutiae of Ellroy's sexual history, with his mother's ghost languishing over him through the decades. I'm convinced that Ellroy is a functional sociopath, and if it wasn't for his literary success he'd be on a park bench somewhere, eye-fucking women from afar, rubbing himself through his pants. Thank god we discovered and appreciated his talents while he was still alive. But </span><span style="">after reading The Hilliker Curse, I couldn't help but feel bad for Ellroy. Despite the public persona he's cultivated during a bestselling career, underneath was a fragile personality, a man seeking love and sex on his own selfish terms, and a life full of personal disasters to show for it. Certainly not the best place to start if you're curious about James Ellroy, but an amazing peek behind the curtain of a genius.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Kiss-John-Rector/dp/0765326434/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293758152&sr=1-1-fkmr0"><b style=""><span style="">JOHN RECTOR – THE COLD KISS</span></b></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">I recently got hip to what is technically John Rector's debut novel, although you don't have to read more than a few pages to figure he's got a few (publishable) books hibernating on a hard drive, and another (</span><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Grove-John-Rector/dp/1935597132/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293052877&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >The Grove</span></a></span></i><span style="">) that I'm eager to read. Rector's prose is so economical, so effortless that my first impression was that Raymond Carver had, uh, risen from the grave, watched <i>Fargo</i> and decided to write crime-noir fiction. What I loved about </span><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Kiss-John-Rector/dp/0765326434/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050762&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >The Cold Kiss</span></a></span></i><span style=""> was Rector's a</span><span style="">bility to pile on the <i>bad</i>, a technique I'm a big fan of. As in how much <i>bad</i> can my main characters take? And how many <i>bad</i> (but not stupid) decisions can they make? That makes for great fiction, which The Cold Kiss most certainly is. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18pt;"><b style=""><span style="">PETER RICHMOND – <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Badasses-Legend-Maddens-Oakland-Raiders/dp/0061834300/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293758184&sr=1-1">BADASSES: THE LEGEND OF SNAKE, FOO, DR. DEATH, AND JOHN MADDEN’S OAKLAND RAIDERS </a></span></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">The novel that landed me an agent was partially inspired by Peter Gent's <i>North Dallas Forty</i>, and to a larger extent inspired by the Oakland Raiders teams of the 1970's. Although my novel was set in the world of NASCAR, it was the spirit of that renegade franchise that captivated my imagination and influenced the writing without a doubt. Peter Richmond's </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Badasses-Legend-Maddens-Oakland-Raiders/dp/0061834300/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050826&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >tale</span></a></span><span style=""> of the NFL's wildes</span><span style="">t decade, and in particular the most outlaw squad ever to step on a football field, proved to be one of my favorite non-fiction reads of the past decade. Drugs, booze, hookers, pistols, gambling, driving motorcycles through a bar...and that was just training camp. Jack "the Assassin" Tatum, George "the Hit Man" Atkinson, Kenny "the Snake" Stabler, Gene "the Governor" Upshaw, Fred "Freddy" Biletnikoff and John "Tooz" Matuszak. Today's game is a Pop Warner grab-ass by comparison.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18pt;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Crooked-Letter-Letter-Tom-Franklin/dp/0230753051/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293758217&sr=1-1-fkmr0"><b style=""><span style="">TOM FRANKLIN – CROOKED LETTER, CROOKED LETTER </span></b></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">I've been a big fan of Tom Franklin for years now, one of the South's best talents (along with Ron Rash and William Gay) that seem hell bent on carrying the torch lit by Harry Crews, Larry Brown</span><span style="">, Barry Hannah and before them Flannery O'Connor, Faulkner, Welty, Erskine Caldwell and Thomas Wolfe. But <i>Crooked Letter</i> works on so many levels: a crime novel at its core, a coming-of-age story full of estrangement and tragedy that could appeal to a mass audience, and a commentary on the lies and misunderstandings that can haunt a life spent in the “country”…all written by a guy firmly rooted in the aforementioned literary tradition. It's a challenge for a marketing department, sure, but all I know is that Tom Franklin can write like a motherfucker. Nobody has captured race relations and rural decay in the 21st Century South quite like Franklin has with this novel, the fringe existence of folks in his Mississippi no different from what you might find in Georgia, South Carolina or Alabama and no less depressing. </span><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Crooked-Letter-Novel/dp/0060594667/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050904&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >Crooked Letter, Crooke</span></a></span></i><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Crooked-Letter-Novel/dp/0060594667/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050904&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >d Letter</span></a></span></i><span style=""> has heart and soul, an authenticity you can't teach, and that magic that the finest storytellers are able to perform. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18pt;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Expiration-Date-Duane-Swierczynski/dp/0312363400/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293758244&sr=1-1-fkmr0"><b style=""><span style="">DUANE SWIERZCZYNSKI – EXPIRATION DATE</span></b></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><i style=""><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Expiration-Date-Duane-Swierczynski/dp/0312363400/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293050936&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >Expiration Date</span></a></span></i><span style=""> really defies categorization. This is the second novel by Duane Swierczynski that I've read, and a brain-busting treat it is, with dialogue that pops and sizzles and a plot that I can only describe as galloping. His latest is unique in that it refuses to sit still or be defined by genre trappings. It's a thinking-man's thriller, a post-modern mystery, a love letter to his hometown of Philadelphia, a sci-fi noir and ultimately, a story about a man scouring the Microfiche of his shattered family history for closure. Not to simplify what Swierczy pulls off here, but ED really does for astral projection what <i>Inception</i> did for dreams or <i>12 Monkeys</i> did for time travel...all with an ending that is absolutely knee-buckling. But the highest compliment I can offer to any work of fiction is to say how much I learned by reading it. And I learned a helluva lot about writing by reading Expiration Date. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="line-height: 18pt;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Internecine-David-J-Schow/dp/0312571364/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293758271&sr=1-1-fkmr0"><b style=""><span style="">DAVID</span></b></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Internecine-David-J-Schow/dp/0312571364/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1293758271&sr=1-1-fkmr0"><b style=""><span style=""> J. SCHOW – INTERNECINE</span></b></a></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><i style=""><span style="">My review from Amazon with a few alterations:<span style=""> </span></span></i></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">Schow has written the thriller of the year...</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">But </span><span style="font-family:Verdana;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Internecine-David-J-Schow/dp/0312571364/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293051090&sr=1-1"><span style=";font-family:";color:#000000;" >INTERNECINE</span></a></span><span style=""> is not just a thriller. It's a satire, a spy novel, a roid-raging Doc Savage action yarn and a post-modern gun porn masterpiece. INTERNECINE is seven novels working seamlessly at once. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">1) GUNS: As in Stephen Hunter would give this novel an enthusiastic double tap. The weapons are exotic, realistic, loud on the page, sinister when holstered, blamming and blaaaawhing every other paragraph and killing EVERYONE. INTERNECINE is righteous literary Peckinpah. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">2) LOS ANGELES: INTERNECINE is one of the best novels about L.A. well...ever. Bruce Wagner would smirk with jealousy. Michael Connelly would scratch his goatee in admiration. James El</span><span style="">lroy would shrug his shoulders in arrogant indifference and Raymond Chandler would barf up his liquid lunch in appreciation. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">3) SATIRE: This is the post-modern, ironic, meta-transgressive Don Delillo novel Chuck Palahniuk wishes he could write. But Schow is too articulate, too original and far too deft to mimic any voice but the one he's created in INTERNECINE. It is a first person narrative that should be studied in writing seminars. </span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="">Believe the hype here, folks. Want to read a thriller with brains? Put down the Patterson and Koontz no</span><span style="">vels for that flight and let INTERNECINE be your legacy at the crash site.</span></p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style=""> </span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEpgnJdB-JP45di8GRfp_PaUem9BhQ4soD0kgEgbyTpMf9dcf45o4-bGjvlqzo00zNDfQbFMVdzH2ENO6_8FLCq8bbtB9Gx3MANkyFttncosONAv7MY_OZeKoGJqqcS7spWPju_aL6GEA/s1600/Peter.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 148px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEpgnJdB-JP45di8GRfp_PaUem9BhQ4soD0kgEgbyTpMf9dcf45o4-bGjvlqzo00zNDfQbFMVdzH2ENO6_8FLCq8bbtB9Gx3MANkyFttncosONAv7MY_OZeKoGJqqcS7spWPju_aL6GEA/s200/Peter.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556651044500189138" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style=""><br /></b></p><p class="MsoNormal"><b style="">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</b>: Peter Farris is a writer from Cobb County, Georgia. His debut novel will be published by Tom Doherty Associates/Forge Books next winter. Find him raving and drooling at the <a style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;" href="http://peterfarris.blogspot.com/">Sentence Salvo</a><br /></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-26050401754322867382010-12-29T20:33:00.000-08:002010-12-29T20:53:58.873-08:00The Best of Whatever—Jon & Ruth Jordan<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ruth’s (Mrs. Crimespree) favorite books & comics </span><br /> <p class="MsoNormal">The best of pretty much begins and ends with the reading this year. What moments I had. Michael Koryta's <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">SO COLD THE RIVER</span>, Laura Lippman's <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">I'D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE</span>, Don Winslow's<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"> SAVAGES</span>, Reed Farrel Coleman's <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">INNOCENT MONSTER</span>. There were new writers, too, Hilary Davidson, Angela Choi & Stephen Jay Schwartz just to name a few.<br /><br />We had two books from <span style="font-weight: bold;">Lee Child</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Michael Connelly</span> brought us two protagonist to the same book. John Connolly made me cry and Gregg Hurwitz had me looking for fiber optics in my home. I owe a special tip of the hat to <span style="font-weight: bold;">Duane Swiercynski</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">Charlie Huston</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">EXPIRATION DATE</span> & <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">SLEEPLESS</span> are two wonderful books that are making me re-think my whole Sci-Fi position.<br /><br />The most wonderfully strange moment was cracking open Dennis Lehane's MIDNIGHT MILE. I haven't quite decided if it was more de ja vous or going back in time, but what a nice visit with Patrick and Angie.<br /><br />Like everyone I'm excited about Mulholland Books but I'm also thrilled with the Tyrus Books/ Busted Flush merger and I thank God that Hard Case Crime has a new home.<br /><br />I continue to enjoy my Comic Books. Denise Mina's <span style="font-weight: bold;">A SICKNESS IN THE FAMILY</span> was brilliantly horrifying while <span style="font-weight: bold;">FABLES 100</span> was a true treat for those of us along for the ride. I adored Victor Gischler's DeadPool run and am liking the X-Men. The Evan Dorkin/Jill Thompson <span style="font-weight: bold;">Beasts of Burden</span> is also a comics must read.<br /><br />Comics to screen? <span style="font-weight: bold;">Kick Ass</span> and <span style="font-weight: bold;">The Walking Dead</span>. I'll refrain from talking about movies because, damn it, Winter's Bone didn't make it here. For must watch TV, I'll keep it short. Craig Ferguson does great interview. Laura Lippman's Naughty Librarian and Dennis Lehane's Zombie conversation captivated me. Intelligent, funny, and relevant I'm glad I saw him in person this year. I continue to adore True Blood and giggle at <span style="font-weight: bold;">Charlaine Harris</span>' success.<br /><br />It's the up close and personal moments that make a year though so I thank all of my friends for sharing their lives with me in 2010 and here's to next year.</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Jon's (Cri</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">mespreeJon) favorites</span><br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal">Favorite comics of 2010<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Fables </span>from Vertigo Comics - the series gets better and better and Bill Willingham even added a prose novel to the mix this year. Great stuff.<br /><br />The vertigo Crime books have all been really good, loved the Jason Starr book <span style="font-weight: bold;">THE CHILL</span> and AREA 10 by Christos Gage as well as the creepy Denise Mina <span style="font-weight: bold;">A SICKNESS IN THE FAMILY</span><br /><br />Gregg Hurwitz's work on Moon Knight has been fun.<br /><br />Victor Gischler on <span style="font-weight: bold;">DEADPOOL</span> has been <span style="font-style: italic;">REALLY</span> fun.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">GREEK STREET by Peter Milligan</span> has great crime fiction mixed with Greek tragedy and is some cool reading from Vertigo.<br /><br />Brian Bendis and Michael Oeming have brought <span style="font-weight: bold;">POWERS</span> back to a more regular schedule. Not as awesome as when the series started but still damn good reading.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">VICTORIAN UNDEAD</span> from Vertigo is a nice take on zombies, being hunted by Sherlock Holmes no less.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">THE BOYS by Garth Ennis</span> gets better and better.<br /><br />I also really like <span style="font-weight: bold;">CHEW</span>. A weird book involving food crimes and a guy who eats things to get insight into them, like bodies....<br /><br />The <span style="font-weight: bold;">ASTRO CITY</span> books by Kurt Busiek are some of the best reading of done recently. </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">BEASTS OF BURDEN by Even Dorkin and Jill Thompson</span> is a must own, out in a collected hardcover. Dogs and 1 cat solving supernatural mysteries. And not really for kids.... </p><p class="MsoNormal">And if you are anywhere near Chicago, check out Challengers comics, a great store. My local is Collector's Edge and they are amazing.</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">Jon’s favorite books</p> <p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal">Benn, James R., RAG AND BONE<br />Bolton, S.J., BLOOD HARVEST<br />Box, C.J., NOWHERE TO RUN<br />Connolly, John, THE WHISPERERS<br />Cotterill, Colin, LOVE SONGS FROM A SHALLOW GRAVE<br />Crais, Robert, THE FIRST RULE<br />Dorsey, Tim, GATOR A-GO-GO<br />Dunlap, Susan, POWER SLIDE<br />Estleman, Loren D., LEFT-HANDED DOLLAR<br />Freveletti, Jamie, RUNNING DARK<br />Grant, Andrew, DIE TWICE<br />Grant, Helen, THE VANISHING OF KATHERINA LINDEN<br />Hamilton, Steve, THE LOCK ARTIST<br />Hurwitz, Gregg, THEY'RE WATCHING<br />Huston, Charlie, SLEEPLESS<br />Lippman, Laura, I'D KNOW YOU ANYWHERE<br />Robinson, Peter, BAD BOY<br />Todd, Charles, AN IMPARTIAL WITNESS<br />Wiprud, Brian, BUY BACK</p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p style="font-weight: bold;" class="MsoNormal"></p><p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-weight: bold;">ABOU</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrDLx4h9VecjKbGkmAvDTixnDCKqXwxGewNyxsKhXFQCrjEnt-bKgyJmDskqgAgAq1Oyva6GB2Sva_yjKVJBpE1JsfQZYKlnfdDHh_6u10n1QRpdu89KN6_ZWYS85t_NaYJalqhigrqs/s1600/Jon+and+Ruth.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 194px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrDLx4h9VecjKbGkmAvDTixnDCKqXwxGewNyxsKhXFQCrjEnt-bKgyJmDskqgAgAq1Oyva6GB2Sva_yjKVJBpE1JsfQZYKlnfdDHh_6u10n1QRpdu89KN6_ZWYS85t_NaYJalqhigrqs/s200/Jon+and+Ruth.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5556330956726641682" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">T THE AUTHORS:</span> Jon and Ruth Jordan are the publishers of Crimespree Magazine and some would say they're the heart and soul of the crime fiction community. The Crimefactory crew thinks they’re the bee’s knees</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-28355693334571356672010-12-27T11:47:00.000-08:002010-12-27T12:04:33.846-08:00The Best of Whatever—Jason DukeThis was a very exciting year all around, but looking back, the top of my list for 2010 was <span style="font-weight: bold;">Bouchercon</span> in San Francisco. I got to meet a lot of wonderful crime writers, hang out at parties like the one Mulholland threw at Gordon Biersch, and drink ridiculous amounts of liquor. I also bought a lot of books while I was at Bouchercon, some were bought for me, and some were given to me. I haven't had a chance to read all of them yet, but most of these books on my list I picked up at the con:<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Hogdoggin-Anthony-Neil-Smith/dp/1606480251/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479317&sr=8-1">Hogd</a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Hogdoggin-Anthony-Neil-Smith/dp/1606480251/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479317&sr=8-1">oggin' by Anthony Neil Smith</a>: granted this isn't from 2010, but it's still my favorite because I really dig Neil's style. Also check out Yellow Medicine, the first in the series (I hope this will be a series, you hear me Neil?)<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Do-They-Know-Im-Running/dp/0812977556/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479400&sr=1-1-spell">Do They Know I'm Running by David Corbet</a>: this one I was fortunate to pick up from David himself when he read from it at the City Lights black envelope event. Some of it deals with soldiers and Iraq, which is right up my alley.<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Last-Known-Address-Theresa-Schwegel/dp/0312357346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479437&sr=1-1">Last Known Address by Theresa Schwegel</a>, <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Jump-Tim-Maleeny/dp/1590585747/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479469&sr=1-1">Jump by Tim Maleeny</a>, <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/One-Too-Many-Blows-Head/dp/1935171321/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479506&sr=1-1">One Too Many Blows to the Head by Eric Beetner and JB Kohl</a>: also not from 2010, but great books nonetheless and definitely worth reading.<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pike-Switchblade-Benjamin-Whitmer/dp/1604860898/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479540&sr=1-1">Pike by B</a><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Pike-Switchblade-Benjamin-Whitmer/dp/1604860898/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479540&sr=1-1">enjamin Whitmer</a>, <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Underbelly-Outspoken-Authors-Gary-Phillips/dp/1604862068/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479575&sr=1-1">The Underbelly by Gary Phillips</a>: two I picked up from the PM Press booth at Bouchercon. Gary never disappoints, and Ben's first book Pike will knock you on your ass.<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Young-Junius-Seth-Harwood/dp/1935562282/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293479611&sr=1-1">Young Junius by Seth Harwood</a>: what can I say, this book is all kinds of dope, and not because there's a lot of drugs and drug dealing going on. Plus, the special edition was a really nice touch, with the extra artwork and cloth cover, if you preordered like I did.<br /><br /><a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Killer-Tease-Danny-Hogan/dp/1906710414/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479654&sr=1-1">Killer Tease by Danny Hogan</a>, <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Broken-Dreams-Nick-Quantrill/dp/0955407028/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293479684&sr=1-1-spell">Broken Dreams by Nick Quantril</a>: a little shout out to my blokes across the pond. Don't get me wrong, all of the Pulp Press line is top notch, this one just happens to be my favorite. A big plus for me because I'm a lazy reader is that these books can all be read in about an hour or so. And Nick hit it out of the park with his first try with Broken Dreams, featuring his private investigator Joe Geraghty. I expect more grandslams in his future, and lots more of Geraghty.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6IeBUS4sFhez92_2EIU6PqQdtlNRtRSB3B2AmhNytmgR8xLb-c43YDB86MB4agdZo-3RQvD-jiCGSUncoZ3TdHohUqcRZAne4jGiiToZp0j1F8y6fdZ3S1u9ylf3PR1728FuUfsf2Lk/s1600/JD.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6IeBUS4sFhez92_2EIU6PqQdtlNRtRSB3B2AmhNytmgR8xLb-c43YDB86MB4agdZo-3RQvD-jiCGSUncoZ3TdHohUqcRZAne4jGiiToZp0j1F8y6fdZ3S1u9ylf3PR1728FuUfsf2Lk/s200/JD.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555455218214212706" border="0" /></a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">ABOUT THE AUTHOR</span>: Jason Duke is a Sergeant in the U.S. Army with a 15 month deployment to Iraq under his belt. His stories have appeared in Plots With Guns, Thuglit, Spinetingler Magazine, Crimefactory, Crimewav.com, Darkest Before the Dawn, and A Twist of Noir, among others. Jason can be reached at <a href="mailto:dm_jasonduke@hotmail.com">dm_jasonduke@hotmail.com</a> or on FacebookAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-45069948326407030012010-12-26T20:24:00.000-08:002010-12-26T20:37:34.266-08:00The Best of Whatever—Mike Maclean<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]-->Okay, let’s get this out of the way. I’m well aware that the previous contributors to this blog admire the works of (INSERT fancy-pants literary types HERE) with their searing portrayals of the modern human condition, shedding light on man’s innate, Freudian propensity towards self-deconstruction. But admit it, sometimes don’t you just want to sit back and watch monsters eat some people?<br /><br />For those of you who screamed, “HELL YEAH,” I give you my top ten Syfy original movie moments (In no particular order).<br /><br />Full disclosure: I worked on two of these and considered recusing myself from the candidates, but then realized no one gives a crap.<br /><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Sharktopus</span> (2010): Easily the most memorable scene in the film. A swimsuit-clad chick becomes a human metaphor when she hangs like bait for Sharktopus to chomp, striking a blow for fish-kind everywhere. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eq3Y5OJbSRl5nDyu86z3rkg;www.fancast.com/tv/Sharktopus/106799/1592253468/Bungee-Jump---Sharktopus/videos?cmpid=syn_rss" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eq3Y5OJbSRl5nDyu86z3rkg;<wbr>www.fancast.c</a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eq3Y5OJbSRl5nDyu86z3rkg;www.fancast.com/tv/Sharktopus/106799/1592253468/Bungee-Jump---Sharktopus/videos?cmpid=syn_rss" target="_blank">om/tv/Sharktopus/<wbr>106799/1592253468/Bungee-Jump-<wbr>--Sharktopus/videos?cmpid=syn_<wbr>rss</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Ice Spiders</span> (2007): When faced with the threat of massive blood-thirsty spiders, one should…<br />a. Die gruesomely.<br />b. Cower behind a sofa cushion like an eight year-old girl.<br />c. Beat said spider to death then make a lame joke, disregarding the fact that two people just died gruesomely in front of you.<br />d. All of the above<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eOxXRVu2_0xAb2njgz0I4Ng;www.youtube.com/watch?v=LM25VV_Aq5E" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eOxXRVu2_0xAb2njgz0I4Ng;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=<wbr>LM25VV_Aq5E</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Alien Apocalypse</span> (2005): Because no list of B-movies would be complete without an appearance from Bruce Campbell. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462evB-XFzHvF2hoY4o-e3AoTA;www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEBTPZP0hro&feature=related" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462evB-XFzHvF2hoY4o-e3AoTA;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=<wbr>dEBTPZP0hro&feature=related</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mega Piran</span><span style="font-weight: bold;">ha</span> (2010): If jazzercise just isn’t cutting it anymore…<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462e70AAe8L8DcUXjz6r_BjHtw;www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mMEDRdcMeo&NR=1" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462e70AAe8L8DcUXjz6r_BjHtw;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=_<wbr>mMEDRdcMeo&NR=1</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dinocroc</span> (2004): Now let’s get this straight—I get no joy out of witnessing violence towards children. I wish Dinocroc had gone after a bimbo or frat boy instead. Still, there is no denying this scene’s genuine intensity (a rare commodity among the cheese-infused Syfy films). And given the budget of these flicks (very, very low), it’s damn well produced. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462efniSvwNbIU1RPX3KyMFcsg;www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_y0hyDIJWo" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462efniSvwNbIU1RPX3KyMFcsg;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_<wbr>y0hyDIJWo</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Dinocroc vs. Supergator</span> (2010): Raise you hand if you’d like to see a douche-bag movie producer brutally chomped to death by a giant, mutant crocodile (the bottom clip). This scene pisses me off because it’s my favorite part of the movie, and I had absolutely nothing to do with it. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eIyGS8aNHBCbCGUGi599sYQ;blastr.com/2010/06/3-must-see-scenes-from-di.php" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eIyGS8aNHBCbCGUGi599sYQ;<wbr>blastr.com/2010/06/3-must-see-<wbr>scenes-from-di.php</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Shark Attack 3: Megalodon</span> (2002): If anyone badmouths the CGI on Sharktopus, I just show them this clip. I love the jet-ski guy’s evil, sneering laugh. Pure golden cheese. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eSQAngAd6gZHf3O4cm6LMHQ;www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nzd0R_OeOc&NR=1" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eSQAngAd6gZHf3O4cm6LMHQ;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=<wbr>1nzd0R_OeOc&NR=1</a><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Mega Shark vs. Giant Octopus</span> (2009): Wait a second. I got anal probed from the TSA for this!!!<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eha5mL1e1__uEogKXB6nzeA;www.youtube.com/watch?v=I16_8l0yS-g&feature=related" target="_blank">http://ww</a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eha5mL1e1__uEogKXB6nzeA;www.youtube.com/watch?v=I16_8l0yS-g&feature=related" target="_blank">w.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eha5mL1e1__uEogKXB6nzeA;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=I16_<wbr>8l0yS-g&feature=related</a><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Mega Snake</span> (2007): Lot of “Mega” going on in the Syfy world. My favorite from this gem is the scene where the guy gets chomped on the sofa while watching Mansquito. Is it me, or does he actually scream “Oh, ho, ho, ho,” as his head is being devoured?<br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eWjK4O0xH2gAEJ2F5QC7uxA;www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyT9rOTy9Tc&feature=related" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eWjK4O0xH2gAEJ2F5QC7uxA;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=<wbr>PyT9rOTy9Tc&feature=related</a><br /><br />I couldn’t find another good one, so here is my favorite scene from Seinfeld. <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eHPRHerk7mrD3lt_niVAj9g;www.youtube.com/watch?v=CwinnODU0yo&feature=related" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eHPRHerk7mrD3lt_niVAj9g;<wbr>www.youtube.com/watch?v=<wbr>CwinnODU0yo&feature=related</a><br /><br />Cheers and happy New Year!<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">ABOUT THE</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYYBI2nIGgE2oCCqqp8Cfe-rvXQ0_mrd_T4MHxS5Gj0qLzl2pVAsH2H2CxQBg9T917pYcVEZ8kZxD4YbLzk2X_96Zu6QgazL2RXew8eHdKQ0tcwee7iaMvJi5ZPLkOgEar_KhPcEVvAOM/s1600/Mike.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 186px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYYBI2nIGgE2oCCqqp8Cfe-rvXQ0_mrd_T4MHxS5Gj0qLzl2pVAsH2H2CxQBg9T917pYcVEZ8kZxD4YbLzk2X_96Zu6QgazL2RXew8eHdKQ0tcwee7iaMvJi5ZPLkOgEar_KhPcEVvAOM/s200/Mike.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5555215663837450946" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;"> AUTHOR</span>: Mike MacLean wrote the Syfy original movie Sharktopus and co-wrote Dinocroc vs. Supergator. In addition, his short crime fiction has appeared in The Best American Mystery Stories, Thuglit: Hardcore Hardboiled, and The Deadly Bride. Teaching high school by day, Mike lives in Tempe, Arizona with his wonderful wife and daughter. Visit him online at <a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eLTjeRnQmQ4V8wmmjKZ35QQ;www.mikemaclean.net" target="_blank">http</a><a href="http://www.facebook.com/l/3462eLTjeRnQmQ4V8wmmjKZ35QQ;www.mikemaclean.net" target="_blank">://www.facebook.com/l/<wbr>3462eLTjeRnQmQ4V8wmmjKZ35QQ;<wbr>www.mikemaclean.net</a>.</p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-79878181540010580352010-12-24T06:54:00.000-08:002010-12-24T06:58:53.937-08:00Merry Christmas and what not<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAKCm1rrq3iKU8BQ4bAJnc1Yu9a_0BbtvAqUUl1D3h3f6FTyvnLbsNKq1WdRpmS0VGqLwNxo4sjPLEX5GaQipzHvUIZxRaFiNzVuK0xM57sOeZRKYrPtG6InGjbiWQhGYayQzviuef_PM/s1600/santa.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 250px; height: 248px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAKCm1rrq3iKU8BQ4bAJnc1Yu9a_0BbtvAqUUl1D3h3f6FTyvnLbsNKq1WdRpmS0VGqLwNxo4sjPLEX5GaQipzHvUIZxRaFiNzVuK0xM57sOeZRKYrPtG6InGjbiWQhGYayQzviuef_PM/s400/santa.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554263307771612706" border="0" /></a><br />So, gang, I'm going to be taking the next couple of days off to enjoy the holiday with the family here at Casa del Rawson. But I wanted to take this opportunity to wish you and yours the best of holidays from the entire Crimefactory ganng.<br /><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-style: italic;">Merry Christmas!!! </span></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-5386279056958021602010-12-24T06:26:00.000-08:002010-12-24T06:52:24.079-08:00Rawson’s Best of Whatever #6: Wake Up Dead by Roger Smith<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHavditL_eKBVIgSz-qSMJD4jbShDFNGsjrCD6rsGqfcAky4oZVLjVPbB6UWE73Tyuay5Ak2Dl8wY4xqPuPkDRaLRSy28W93XOBxgTCeRjJRR-ajPUndnUC7i-LgglmiiGrUn5bzPxQVc/s1600/wake-up-dead-roger-smith-198x300.jpg"><img style="display: block; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 198px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHavditL_eKBVIgSz-qSMJD4jbShDFNGsjrCD6rsGqfcAky4oZVLjVPbB6UWE73Tyuay5Ak2Dl8wY4xqPuPkDRaLRSy28W93XOBxgTCeRjJRR-ajPUndnUC7i-LgglmiiGrUn5bzPxQVc/s400/wake-up-dead-roger-smith-198x300.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5554261691827410722" border="0" /></a><br />What set 2010 apart for me book wise was the stellar wave of sophomore novels which made it onto bookstore shelves. Dennis Tafoya's <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Wolves-Fairmount-Park-Dennis-Tafoya/dp/0312531168/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293202177&sr=1-1">The Wolves of Fairmount Park</a> (more on that one later) Stuart Nevile's heartbreaking <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Collusion-Stuart-Neville/dp/1569478554/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1293202137&sr=1-1">Collusion</a> and Roger Smith's <a style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.amazon.com/Wake-Up-Dead-Cape-Thriller/dp/0312680481/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1293202092&sr=1-1">Wake Up Dead</a>. None of these author's suffered from the so-called "sophomore slump". In fact, their second novels were far more satisfying, complex pieces of writing. This, in particular, can be said about Smith's Wake Up Dead. Below is my original review of Wake Up Dead from <a style="font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.spinetinglermag.com/">Spinetingler Magazine</a>, I hope you enjoy.<br /><br /><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> <w:browserlevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--> <p></p><blockquote><p>Review—Wake Up Dead by Roger Smith</p> <p>Imagine the worst ghetto you’ve ever been in.</p> <p>Imagine the poverty, strife, and outward hostility you experienced while you were there stranded in your broken down car, or because you got off on the wrong subway stop.</p> <p>Now, what I want you to do is multiply that by a hundred.</p> <p>No, screw a hundred, make it a thousand.</p> <p>If you can even remotely picture this, you might have an idea about the world in which Roger Smith’s Cape Town, in his stellar sophomore novel, <em>Wake Up Dead</em>, exists. </p> <p><em>Wake Up Dead</em> is the Story of Roxy Palmer, an on the wrong side of thirty ex-runway model who has tumbled into the arms of one rich man after another until she lands in the gruff, alcoholic embrace of her husband, Joe. Joe is an arms dealer and freelance private security broker. After a charming evening dining with a central African cannibal/terrorist and his Russian whore, the couple is carjacked in the driveway of their home. Joe suffers a minor gunshot wound to the leg. However, as the thieves speed away in Joe’s former luxury automobile, his loving wife recovers the weapon Joe was shot with and decides to put an end to their lackluster five year marriage by blowing his brains out with plans of blaming it on the carjackers. </p> <p>Enter Billy Africa.</p> <p><span id="more-548"></span>Billy is a native of the ruthless slums of Cape Town, a former gangbanger and cop who worked for Joe’s private security firm. Billy returns to Cape Town after being injured—and subsequently fired—from a protection job in Bagdad. Billy dreads coming home because of the violent ghosts—including suffering a brutal attack where he was burned over 50% of his body and then buried alive <em>and</em> witnessing the murder of his mentor and partner by the same malicious animal, Piper—which haunt its streets. But Joe owes Billy money, thirty thousand dollars to be exact, for his nearly flawless service. </p> <p>Roxy and Billy’s paths inevitably intertwine once the carjackers return to the scene of the crime after one of the speed freaks—Disco, who also happens to be the former “wife” of Billy Africa’s nemesis, Piper in Pollsmoor maximum-security prison—is brought in for a lineup and they get it into their <em>tck-tck</em> (South African slang for crystal Methane) addled skulls to blackmail the unrepentant widow with their knowledge that she was the one who murdered Joe. </p> <p>Billy comes onto the scene after the two junkies kidnap Roxy off the street and bring her back to her and Joe’s home to terrorize her and steal whatever isn’t nailed down. Billy, of course, is looking for his money and after untying Roxy, quickly comes to the realization that Roxy killed Joe due to her reluctance to call in the police about the home invasion and in turn decides that it’s in his best interests to more or less blackmail Roxy in order to recover his earnings, but he also decides to act as her bodyguard in order to insure that he gets his money. </p> <p>To further muddy the waters, the vicious Piper, has become obsessed with his former “wife” Disco and wants the pretty boy back at any cost, including breaking out of prison and leaving behind a long line of corpses in order to get him back inside of Pollsmoor at Piper’s side to spend the rest of their lives together. </p> <p>As you can guess there’s a lot going on in <em>Wake Up Dead</em> (and a lot more that I’ve failed to mention.) and in lesser hands, this book might have been a hazy, lackluster mess of a novel. However, with his second effort, Smith has proven what a natural born storyteller he is. Smith takes the multiple strands of his broken, tragic characters and weaves them into a complex, cinematic tapestry, which keeps you turning pages at a machine gun fire pace. Smith’s prose is simple and straightforward. His sentences are clipped and unadorned, but yet have unique, poetic quality. </p> <p>And yes, much has been said about the violence of <em>Wake Up Dead</em>, (and of his equally impressive debut, <em>Mixed Blood</em>.) and no question about it, the novel is a virtual bloodbath, but you never feel that it’s too gratuitous or simply inserted to shock the audience. I felt each dramatic episode was absolutely necessary in moving the plot towards its brutal, emotionally exhausting climax. </p> <p><em>Wake Up Dead</em> is an intense, visceral experience and the type of novel where you’ll almost want to immediately turn back to page one and experience the harder than nails ride all over again. And I for one whole heartedly believe that if Smith continues to write with this level of self assuredness and quality, that his work may very well stand as equal to such hard-boiled masters as Bruen and Ellroy. </p></blockquote><p></p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7907015820258768087.post-61053755110512486512010-12-22T19:31:00.000-08:002010-12-22T19:40:01.015-08:00The Best of Whatever—Cameron Ashley<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:officedocumentsettings> <o:allowpng/> <o:targetscreensize>1024x768</o:TargetScreenSize> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:worddocument> <w:view>Normal</w:View> <w:zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:punctuationkerning/> <w:validateagainstschemas/> <w:saveifxmlinvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:ignoremixedcontent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:alwaysshowplaceholdertext>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:compatibility> <w:breakwrappedtables/> <w:snaptogridincell/> <w:wraptextwithpunct/> <w:useasianbreakrules/> <w:dontgrowautofit/> </w:Compatibility> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:latentstyles deflockedstate="false" latentstylecount="156"> </w:LatentStyles> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id="ieooui"></object> <style> st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) } </style> <![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 10]> <style> /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} </style> <![endif]--><span lang="EN-AU">The Top Ten things I love about Crime Factory founder Dave Honeybone:</span> <p class="MsoNormal"><span lang="EN-AU"> </span></p> <ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave is the world's tallest librarian. Fact. <span style=""> </span>He hates when people point out his height, but sorry, it must be pointed out. Seriously, if I had to go collect money, I'd take Dave and Seth Harwood for back-up. Plus, he's always good for fucked-up library stories, like the time he caught a guy having a wank while watching porn on not one but TWO library computers. Dave had to tell the guy that masturbating in the library is not the done thing and see to it that he zipped up and left. Dave calls the guy a perv, I call him an innovator. Whatever. We don't always see eye to eye, Honeybone and me. Oh! And if you ever meet Dave, he may bust out his librarian voice – hilarious.</span></li></ul><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave will lend you books with absolutely no need to ever get them back again. Seriously, he hands them out like Halloween candy. Not just to me but to CF reviewer Andrew Prentice and others. Dave has such love of crime fiction that he will share it with anyone who gets it, simply for the love of sharing it.</span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave now loves comics. Took him some time to come around, but you will not meet a bigger SCALPED or UNKNOWN SOLDIER fan than The Honeybone. Dave: when are we writing our “Outback Scalped”?</span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Back when Dave ran the Ned Kelly's (the Aussie crime fiction awards) with the awesome Peter Lawrence, the night was waaaay cooler, more enjoyable and held in a much more aesthetically-appropriate venue (a fucking jazz bar!). Now, co-opted totally by the Melbourne Writers Festival (at which barely any crime writers appear), they are kind of odd, de</span><span lang="EN-AU">tached from the spirit of the event, and filled with people who have barely read a crime novel in their lives. Basically, the Ned's lack the noir power of Dave.</span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave recently threatened to move to Canberra, thus depriving me of a reliable drinking partner and one of the only people here who understands what the fuck I'm rambling on about. Fortunately, sanity prevailed and he and his family are staying put in Melbourne. Unfortunately, he is still not willing to bear arms with me in our fight with the Literary establishment. Ahh well. At least we can still have Hightail Ale with Jamie chasers.</span></li></ul><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave has an idea for an Aussie crime novel that starts with a decapitated head floating in a<span style=""> </span>cop shop aquarium. Yeah, I think he should finish it too.</span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave could barely hear the interview he did with Peter Temple in CF 4. He had to sit there with his ear right up against the recording device, listen to the recording, pause it, transcribe and repeat and repeat and repeat. The interview was later significantly changed, much to Dave's amusement. Oh, prospective writers take heed: <span style="font-weight: bold;">DAVE STILL MADE DEADLINE.</span></span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave is under-appreciated by the country in which he lives and the genre which he loves. Fact. If he had moved to America instead of Australia, he'd be David Thompson (and I mean that with all due respect to the late Mr Thompson – that's just how special Dave is).</span></li></ul><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Ken Bruen came over to dinner at Dave's house in 2003. I was there too. In Dave's backyard, we smoked and Ken told me that the secret to writing was to write every day for two hours a day, first thing in the morning and then...stop dead. Dave and I told this to Jason Starr a couple of years later. Starr laughed, called it “bullshit.”</span></li></ul><br /><ul style="margin-top: 0in;" type="disc"><li class="MsoNormal" style=""><span lang="EN-AU">Dave gave CF to me when he realized that he could not participate in its relaunch, much to my own personal heartbreak. It's a scab he simply did not want to pick. Fair enough. I still like to think that one day he'll be back and we can dust off his desk once and for all and get some <i>real</i> shit done. We'll see. Remember: this is a man who single-handedly created CF (okay, he had a designer friend help), in Australia, back before massive internet exposure, print on demand, or any of the nonsense that the magazine so comparatively easy for us today. We had subscribers all over the world – including, no shit, S</span><span lang="EN-AU">yria – and the mag was so highly regarded that the first person to reply to my tweets about the relaunch was none other than Duane Swierczynski.<span style=""> </span>So, here's to Mr David Honeybone, Crime Factory godfather, pulp-fiend and my dear friend. Thank you for everything, Dave. We may do things differently in this newish factory, but everyone who works in it owes their shifts to you.</span></li></ul> <span style="font-weight: bold;">ABO</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC555oKs4Fk1qJttJROre0QWD1a8ktunWXdHtV8c2YYi08kWxXrElLHrdSKssF7yCVNXSzQ1pwbLYJXEOklWdAvP2qM2HBu37vObH9n2K3yaK4e4Clr6ZOH5_WfmZga57vSsBbLVPpiYY/s1600/cam.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC555oKs4Fk1qJttJROre0QWD1a8ktunWXdHtV8c2YYi08kWxXrElLHrdSKssF7yCVNXSzQ1pwbLYJXEOklWdAvP2qM2HBu37vObH9n2K3yaK4e4Clr6ZOH5_WfmZga57vSsBbLVPpiYY/s200/cam.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5553717112050443858" border="0" /></a><span style="font-weight: bold;">UT THE AUTHOR</span>: Uuuuummmmm, yeah, it's Cam people. The picture on the left is his usual stateAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06827652636843928373noreply@blogger.com5