Most writers have moments when they would have like to be J.D. Salinger, holed up in the New Hampshire woods. For me, this usually comes halfway through a lackluster book signing at a chain store, where somebody has just come up to you and asked, “Can you tell me where to find the gardening books?”
But by holing up and refusing to publish, J.D. Salinger missed a lot. Now, I know, he was stalked by fans fixated on Holden Caulfield, making the trek to Cornish and having to be sent packing by J.D.’s protective locals. But still, just in the past couple of days I’ve had delightful exchanges with readers. This is one of the rewards of the writing trade that you don’t anticipate when you start out.
Kerma wrote to give me her reaction to PORT CITY SHAKEDOWN, and she apologized for taking so long to report in. She’s a feisty woman who has lived lived on a boat in Portland Harbor, had a very tough home life, knows the streets of Portland where Brandon Blake meets his friends and enemies.
“All in all I would look forward to another Brandon/Mia book, but, my heart is still with Jack, who by his nature barrels headlong into life without much regard to personal consequences in order to rescue the less fortunates of this world; guess I have always been like that in my life too, sometimes to a fault.”
I wrote back. Kerma replied. We’ll meet up again at a book signing next time around.
Mike, a reader and longtime correspondent from D.C. ,wrote with a plot suggestion, complete with research and writing schedule. It’s a good idea so I’m not going to give it away here. Mike and I think in the same ways about these books. He’s a perceptive and careful reader. He’s an attorney, which cost the book business a good editor. We were discussing Roxanne and her future (I’m working on toughening her up) and Mike wrote: Roxanne becoming “harder” is a good move. A “soft social worker” does not last. They physically harm themselves (ulcers at the least, psycological problems at the most) when unable to save everybody from everything. A close friend fell victim in this way.”
I could go on with more from Kerma and Mike, and other readers who weigh in on the books, the characters. These readers, most of whom I’ve never met, are insightful, surprising, good company. Writing can be a lonely craft and your notes are a good reminder that it doesn’t take place in a vacuum. So keep the comments coming. Sometimes they make my day. I may be having a J.D. Salinger moment but it soon will pass.
In PORT CITY SHAKEDOWN, the first Brandon Blake novel, Brandon gets a full dose of bad guys. A brawl in a funeral home introduces him to Joel Fuller, a sociopathic hustler. Fuller is fresh out of jail and determined to take Brandon out—after Fuller and his sidekick Kelvin shake him down.
Rocky isn’t a tough guy. He’s a skinny little kid with crooked glasses, and he shouldn’t be homeless in Portland, Maine. When McMorrow and Roxanne pluck him from under the stomping feet of a gang of street kids, Rocky latches onto McMorrow–and drags him into a world of murder, both old and new. Why is McMorrow protecting Rocky? The cops want to know. Why is Rocky on the run? McMorrow wants to know. Why does death follow in Rocky’s wake? Jack and Roxanne need to find out before they’re added to the list. 
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Gerry,
We had a discussion thread on Facecrack about Holden, whether he is truly an anti-hero or just a jerk. (we may have used a less-kind epithet) I’ll be very interested to see what kind of posthumous publications pop up since Mr. Salinger has passed away. It seems like the reclusive artist type is outnumbered by “your” type. It’s refreshing that you are open about your craft, and don’t act as though it is some great mystery that others can’t possibly understand. I am probably being TOTALLY unfair in characterizing Salinger this way, since I am no scholar of his work or his life. And from what most people say, celebrity can be a bit of a drag, so maybe secluding himself was a good way to stay sane. But you may be right that he missed out on the benefits of creating something that has touched, inspired, or even pissed off so many people over so many years. I wonder if it is the critics that make writers decide to close themselves off from the world? I am currently getting caught up on all the books I never (but should have) read in high school and college. Okay, let me clarify, only the ones I WANT to read. I’m not dusting off any Dickens. But I am reading all the Steinbeck in the house…I wonder what he was like? Did he go out shopping at the Piggly Wiggly and respond to letters from his fans? He seems to have been brutalized a bit by the critics, everything he did was compared to Grapes of Wrath….what a bummer.
This is not a cohesive posting but I do like how you make me think! Speaking of which, what do YOU think of East of Eden? I just started it, after finishing the brilliant but depressing The Winter of our Discontent…
Interesting. I don’t think of Holden as a jerk at all. I think of him as having been disappointed by life early on and now reluctant to bare himself to anything or anyone. His jerkiness is his defense, his preservation of self. I think a lot of jerky kids are like that. Their hostility is a way of keeping the world at bay. Once burned, twice a malcontent. At some point they trusted.
Anyway, recluse vs. self-promoter. It’s a tough balance. Part of the conflict is that most writers don’t like talking about themselves, even the ones who write about themselves. But we are interested in people and character and motivation and loss and joy and triumph and disappointment. You can feel that time spent not exploring those things is time wasted. I find that readers, like other people, help me try to understand the things that I explore in my books. And I like people, or at least find them interesting, even or especially the jerky ones.
Haven’t read Steinbeck in so long that I hesitate to offer an opinion. I can tell you that I just finished a fascinating book about the Dust Bowl and the forces that created it. THE WORST HARD TIME by Timothy Egan. Riveting. Sad. In many ways, unbelievable that this could have happened on this scale in this country. But we humans are shortsighted at best. It is our most predictable behavior.
And I have to admit, I did just start rereading Dickens. Oliver Twist. Good stuff.