You Know Where to Find Me
During a conversation last week with my agent, while we were talking about future projects, she asked me to think about where I see myself in crime fiction.
I really don't know.
I don't write a series, unlike so many others in crime fiction. I think a series would be a lot of fun, but it's just not the way my work or interests veer. The tag on my business info and this newsletter says, "Crime fiction...and some other stuff," which seems about right, but it doesn't give readers a true sense of what to expect from my work.
My writing often get classified as noir, and sometimes as hardboiled, but neither is entirely true - those terms have roots in classic crime fiction, and I don't faithfully adhere to their tenets. So, as cool as it would be to call myself a "hardboiled writer," and my nipples did just harden as I typed that...I'm not one.
I know the themes that draw me, and I'm fortunate to have discovered my voice. I'll always write about the ugliness of what men do, particularly to women. My work will be about, and based in, the DC/MD/VA triangle (with an occasional dash to Arizona). My writing will always touch on, to some extent, the horror and potentially unrelenting ramifications of violence (with some jokes sprinkled throughout!).
My friend Shawn Cosby - who has a fantastic book coming out soon, Blacktop Wasteland (more on that below) - writes rural noir. So does another friend and wonderful writer, Eryk Pruitt. Shannon Kirk writes gothic thrillers. Nik Korpon writes noir. Louis Bayard writes historical fiction. Everyone has an identity. And I'm not sure of mine.
I asked my friend Jennifer Hillier, who is making a name for herself with her distinctive unsettling psychological thrillers, for advice, and she recommended I look at Amazon's categories. I did and, four books and a couple of co-edited anthologies into my career, I was able to narrow some things down about myself.
I don't write mysteries, I write thrillers.
They, um, tend to be rather dark.
Dark thrillers.
I've long been a fan of Megan Abbott - not only her writing, but her career arc. She started off writing wonderful books (like Queenpin and Die a Little) that were evocative of 1940s noir, but focused on the femme fatale, rather than a traditional male protagonist. She made a departure from those stories, despite how well-received they were, with books like The End of Everything, fiction that took her studied noir to the suburbs - a move that worked brilliantly. Since then, she's been writing domestic thrillers, and her studied noir background, as I said, transfers terrifically.
Abbott also holds a PhD in Literature, and the duality of looking at texts artistically as well academically is something I admire, and one of the reasons I went for a Masters in Literature. I want to endlessly write novels, but I love the columns I write about race and social issues - as well as rap, even though no one reads those - for the Independent. That's something I want to continue.
And I hope that my career continues to follows this path, and grow. Fiction-wise, the darker elements of The Unrepentant have been washed from me. and They're Gone has opened something else - like a hallway of doors, each leading to a different revelation. It's something I want to explore, even if the themes remain, and likely always will: the cruelty of men, the courage of women, the hopes and failures of distancing from violence, and some jokes...it's all still there. I don't know what to call it, but it's dark and it's a thriller, and it's what I write.
D.C. Virtual Noir at the Bar
D.C. Noir at the Bar is BACK! This Sunday night, at 8 PM, featuring eight awesome writers! Really, it's just a terrific lineup, one I'm excited to share with you.
And Sara Jones will be singing and Chantal Tseng will be slinging drinks! You can register for it HERE.
This will be a good time! I'm on a panel with the James River Writers about maintaining momentum. And they called me AN EXPERT. See?
Many writers find middles are a muddle of lost momentum and branching paths. What kind of map is useful for finding your way? Is it better to plot or feel your way out? Our experts will help you build the most effective bridge from your beginning to your end.
Date: Wednesday, July 29, 2020
Time: 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Location: Online, in the comfort of your own home. Via the Zoom Platform
Price: $10 – Members; $12 Non-members ($5 for students)
Click HERE for more information.
Carrie Callaghan is one of my favorite people. Way back in early 2020 when people went into something called "offices" (Google it, kids), Carrie and I would meet for lunch once a month or so. You know those kind of friends who make you happy when you see them? That's Carrie for me. She's super nice and incredibly smart and a gifted writer, and I feel lucky to call her a friend.
She probably considers me an acquaintance, at best, but that's cool. I'll work my way up there.
And a writer Carrie recommends? Katrina Carrasco:
Katrina Carrasco's Alma swaggers into rainy 19th century Port Townsend with all the bravado of a prize fighter as she infiltrates an opium ring (while slipping into some ladies' beds along the way). This debut historical crime novel is a wild, violent ride, with a helluva plot and no easy answers. I loved every minute of it. Everyone who loves dark, twisty crime novels should read The Best Bad Things.
To learn more about these writers and their work, click on the images above.
It's contest time! The monthly contest winner wins copies of the books listed in my "Two Writers You Should Read" segment. So, for this month, the winners of Salt the Snow and The Best Bad Things is:
s______k@yahoo.com
Congrats! Check your e-mail for a separate note from me, and happy reading!
I wrote a couple of pieces for the Independent. The first is called "The Demise," and it was about the collapse of the International Thriller Writers, and a little information about why I resigned from the Board. And the second was an interview with the aforementioned Shawn Cosby about his new book and his writing, and his WTF stance with DC Comics over Marvel.
Until next time, much love to all of you. Happy Reading!