Greetings from Idaho, which despite popular belief is not the Potato State, but the Gem State. Have you ever seen a Star Garnet? Most likely not, because the only two places on Earth this rare semi-precious gem are found is an undisclosed location in India, and in northern Idaho.
Fascinating, no?
The few of you who know a little about me are probably thinking I thought he lived in Washington. I do live in Washington, in a small city called Clarkston, right on the border with Idaho. I work in Lewiston, Idaho, which is where I am right now. Stretched out on a lawn chair on a one-hundred degree day, typing this bit of fluff while waiting for a rail-car of propane to unload into storage tanks. I’m in the shade of the pump house, AKA The Jack Shack, where it’s reasonably comfortable, for now.
In almost all respects, Lewiston and Clarkston are one city, but it’s a divided city, split down the middle by the Snake River, which happens to be the Idaho/Washington border up here. Clarkston is the economically depressed first half of the city, Lewiston the slightly less depressed second half.
Lewiston and Clarkston are named after the explorers Lewis and Clark, and at one time, Lewiston was the capitol of Idaho. Before that, when the state of Idaho was still part of a huge chunk of land called the Washington Territory, this place was called Jawbone Flats.
Fascinating, no?
Well, it is to me. I love local history. There isn’t much of it here, we’ve only been around this area for a few hundred years, but what history we do have is colorful.
A few blocks from where my mother, a paralegal, works, there is a small city park. There used to be a Boys & Girls Club and city swimming pool above it, and for at least a few summers, a kick-ass water slide. Those are all gone now, the buildings that housed them empty for all I know, but The Hanging Tree is still there.
I discovered The Hanging Tree when I was fourteen or fifteen, after a half-day of summer school on the Lewis Clark State Collage campus not too far away. With nothing better to do, a few friends and I decided to go make some trouble in the nicely shaded park.
The Hanging Tree had a plaque on it, telling its history, who had been hanged there.
There’s another Hanging Tree not too far from where my grandparents live near Pierce, Idaho. Five Chinese men were on their way to trial for the murder of a local merchant, who was found hacked to pieces after an argument with the immigrant workers. A lynch mob liberated them from the Sheriff’s Posse and strung them up.
Lynching used to be all the rage in these parts. Lynching and Indian Massacres. History is always bloody, and the history of the American West is no exception.
I’ve learned most of the local history I find so fascinating, including a story about a crazy mountain man known as Ridgerunner, from my grandpa and grandma Cole, who are in their own way as much a part of local history as The Hanging Tree only a few miles from their home. I’m even related to a famous old west outlaw through my grandma (first person to guess who it is wins a small prize. Post your guess in a reply).
They are prospectors, loggers, and mill owners from a family of the same. They lived the original American Dream; independence, ownership, and family. Their dream is dead now, crushed by its bastard offspring, what I call the New American Dream. Fame, wealth, big houses and fast cars, overindulgence, instant gratification, all served with a sloppy, steaming heap of sex.
Don’t get me wrong, I love fast cars, instant gratification, and sex, but what about the common man/woman? The only respect that belongs to the hardworking family man/woman these days is self-respect, and the New American Dream is doing its damndest to kill that too.
Sorry, I strayed a little.
Or did I?
When my grandpa found out I was a writer, a thing I didn’t advertise to most of my family because of what I write, he wanted to know what I was working on. At that time I was writing a novel called Feral, so I told him about it.
Have you ever been in a crowded elevator with one of those folks who only baths on February 29th, and who missed their last date with the bar of soap because they forgot to change the calendar? You know the faces the other people make as he cozies up to them, introduces himself, and begins a long, complex story about how the CIA, Fish & Game Department, and Bill Gates are out to get us all?
That was the face my grandpa made when I told him about Feral.
My mom, who has been making that face about my writing since I was in High School, hid a smile behind her hand. My grandma continued to look politely interested, but I could tell it was a struggle.
Finally, grandpa said, “Well, maybe someday you’ll write a nice western.”
It’s a reasonable expectation, I guess. With so much interesting regional history around here to base a story on, and so much interesting family history to tie in with it, it’s probably what he expected I’d write.
I swallowed the first response that came to mind (not bloody likely) and gave him the synopsis for a weird western/horror story that’s been sitting unfinished on my hard drive for a few years now. It includes a fictional member of the Cole family (it would have been his great uncle), and a crazy Frenchman who looks like Alice Cooper and behaves like Marquis de Sade.
Grandpa was not amused.
Looking back, not bloody likely seems like a foolish attitude to take. Tom Piccirilli and Ed Gorman both write westerns, and Charles Grant writes romance under a pen name (or so I hear). Who am I to argue with them, especially when the mainstream has so little interest in horror these days? I’ll mention no names, but a well known author who knows my work once told me that if I wrote mysteries or thrillers instead of horror, I’d probably have a big fat multi-book deal by now.
I should probably be content with what I do have; a decent paying day job, some small press book deals that help me get through some of the tighter times, and just a modicum of self-respect.
I’m not content with that though. I want a bigger audience, better deals, and to be able to answer the question what do you write? without everyone looking at me like I’m a circus geek. I want to be able to quit my day job, buy a big house, and drive a fast car, instead of an old mini-van with broken door handles, broken power windows, broken air conditioner, broken heater, bad fuel injectors … oh hell, you get the picture.
And sometimes I do get other, non-horror, ideas.
Who knows, maybe some day I’ll experiment and try something different, a story without maniacs, monsters, or ghosts. Everyone is doing it these days. Genre bending and cross-writing is all the rage, now that public lynchings are held mostly online. I certainly have to do something different if I’m ever going to live the New American Dream.
Maybe I’ll write a thriller next, or a romance (what my dad used to call crotch rippers), or a mystery.
Maybe even a nice western.
Brian Knight
24 Comments, Comment or Ping
Anonymous
What a great post. You evoke a great sense of place. Makes me want to go and live in America. Also makes me want to read some of your stuff!
Sarah P
Jun 23rd, 2005
James Goodman
That was a great post. As for my guess at the famous outlaw, I will go with Henry Plummer.
Jun 23rd, 2005
Daivd Niall Wilson
Cole Younger? (grin) How close are you to “Robber’s Roost?” I think that was in Idaho…
US History is almost a sad thing. We are tearing it down and building over it - writing about video games instead of listening to the old folks and writing down what they say - at an alarming rate. In Europe I noted that they take the history for granted and it gets commercialized - but at least it’s there…here in the good ol’ U.S. of A. you have to hunt it down, and then you better look quick before they bull-doze it.
Great post, Brian..the kind of thing In enjoy reading, getting a feel of the author, and where he lives, and where he comes from.
I’ve found myself branching out without even knowing I was doing it. When I wrote all horror, all the time, I did it on purpose. Now I just write … well… DAVE - and sometimes it’s horror, and sometimes not. My last book sale was an SF book with a PG rating - my kids love it…go figure.
DNW
Jun 23rd, 2005
Bev Vincent
Not bloody likely
The same response I held back when my mother said she’d like me to write a love story or romance some day.
Fine post, Brian. Very evocative and moody!
Jun 23rd, 2005
Paul Dracon
I’d never heard the term “crotch rippers” before. Probably makes the romance genre sound more exciting than it actually is!
Jun 23rd, 2005
Ed Gorman
I’m pretty sure that I speak for Tom Pic when I say that we write our particular brand of westerns because we love the form. The ones I put my name on are western noirs, which is what Dashiell Hammett said hardboiled fiction is anyway–the cowboy of America’s frontier became the city detective around 1920. Many of Hammett’s own early stories are in fact set in the west, the best of them being the brilliant The Killing of Dan Odam. In the 1940s and 1950s there were as many as thirty western noir movies and Gold Medal writers such as Clifton Adams wrote some of the grittiest crime fiction I’ve ever read–set on the frontier. Then there was one of the flat-out greatest short stories I’ve ever read (a modern western) written by another Gold Medal guy, My Brother Down There by Steve Frazee (he turned it into a Gold Medal called Running Target (the title under which it was also filmed) but the short version was best. I mention all this to buttress the notion that we write western noir out of respect for the form not just to turn a buck. God knows I’ve done my share of work-for-hire but any western that bears my name is done out of passion for the form. I’ve been a full-time free-lancer for going on twenty-five years and with a handful of exceptions I can’t think of anybody who’s had enormous success with material they don’t love. I once surprised a writing class I taught by defending Danielle Steel. I read a couple of her books and got the impression they represented her true world view. It’s not mine but it’s a view obviously shared by millions and millions of readers around the world. If you really dig what you’re doing now then that’s probably your surest path to success despite all the the suggestions you get from other people. Ed Gorman
Jun 23rd, 2005
Mark Rainey
Nice post. Had a bad guy for a relative, did you? What a shock.
Dave’s post is right on the money. Hate to see so much history . . . and beautiful land . . . disappearing to development. What a blight.
–M
Jun 23rd, 2005
Brian
Sarah, if you ever do decide to move to the states, you should at least consider this area. It has a lot of things going for it, and no one outside of here seems to realize it
Goody, thanks for reading it
Sorry though, Henry Plummer is incorrect.
Feel free to guess again
David, I’m not sure where Robbers Roost is, but I’ll have to check it out now. Sounds fascinating
Yeah, it’s a shame the way our history is destroyed to make room for the future. I wish there was a way for progress to keep on keeping on without burying the past.
Interesting story, I found out the night after writing this, from a neighbor who’s a bit of a local history buff, that Lewiston is honeycombed with tunnels from way back when, when Chinese were imported for cheep labor. Many of them lived, and died, in those tunnels. The story I hear is once the jobs they did were finished, their “Bosses” would pay them a visit in the tunnels and shoot them.
Oh, and Cole Younger isn’t it
Bev, if you ever decide to write a romance, let me know. I’ll check it out, just because your name is on it
I really enjoyed The Road To The Dark Tower. What’s coming next?
Paul, fitting or not, it’s a colorful phrase.
Ed, first, wow! Thanks for posting here
It’s always great to hear from you.
I hope it didn’t sound like I was implying you only write westerns to turn a buck. I’ve read your westerns, and I can tell you love writing them. You do great work.
The post was more about keeping an open mind to genres that may offer other, or better, chances at success. Versatility is a good thing, and I think I’ve always been too focused on only writing horror to give my other ideas a chance.
Again, great to hear from you, Ed
Mark, I used to think it was pretty cool having a famous outlaw in the family (OK, I still do, a little), but my grandma put it in perspective for me. She asked why I was so proud to be related to a man who stole horses and shot people in the back.
I think if we all did a little bit to learn the history of our areas, we could do a lot to help keep that history alive. You know, the more I think about it, the more I may just write that western …
Bran Knight
Jun 23rd, 2005
Brian
PS, Sarah, I have to find a copy of The Hidden now. The synop on your site hooked me!
Brian
Jun 23rd, 2005
Anonymous
Brian!
Longtime fan and Feral is one of my recent favs- cries for a sequel, eh?
My guess on your famous or infamous relative is Suge Knight but is he West Coast or East Coast?
Take care,
Troy in TN
P.S. When is Hacks going to hit the market?
Jun 23rd, 2005
Matt Schwartz
Outstanding essay Brian.
Jun 23rd, 2005
Bev Vincent
Bev, if you ever decide to write a romance, let me know. I’ll check it out, just because your name is on it
I really enjoyed The Road To The Dark Tower. What’s coming next?
Brian: Thanks! Next, I hope, is a novel called Missing Persons. That’s up to my agent to place it once I finish my last round of revisions. It’s definitely not a romance.
Jun 23rd, 2005
dan0oo
great essay.
how about jesse (and frank) james?
dan
Jun 23rd, 2005
Mike
Very insightful, Brian. Write whatever you want. I’ll still buy it. Well, maybe not a crotch-ripper. That just sounds painful.
Jun 23rd, 2005
Robert Lewis
Very nice essay.
A few comments:
1) Thanks for the term “crotch ripper.” Now I’ve got yet another phrase I can use against people I don’t like.
2) Not bloody likely Now that’s exactly what I try hard to refrain from saying nearly every day. My mother, while not completely against horror (like many of the ultra-conservative, ultra-religious fundamentalists out there), she doesn’t like it very much.
She always asks what I’m working on, and, following my mild synopsis (I have to tone it down quite a bit, because, yes, she is very religious–and thus doesn’t like language, sex, gore, etc.), she always says something like:
“Why don’t you read or write about nice things?” (withheld answer: Well, that hooker I wrote about was nice looking. Spoken answer: huh. I like what I write. [followed by turning on the radio to end conversation])
“I wish you’d write hero stories.” (withheld answer: Well, that drug dealer played a hero when he saved the hooker’s life and paid twice what she normally charged. Spoken answer: There are plenty of heros in my stories.)
“I need to get you into more things. I don’t have anything against horror, but you’re getting obsessed.” (withheld answer: Not as obsessed as that character based on you was. But you still don’t know that. Spoken answer: I’m not obsessed [followed by the turning on of one of my dad's CD to end the conversation])
“You really need to stop rotting your brain and write intelligent stuff more often.” (withheld answer: This from someone who asks her son to help proofread her letters to friends. Spoken answer: Not bloody likely [followed by turning on music])
You’re not alone, my friend. You’re not alone.
Jun 23rd, 2005
Robert Lewis
PS-Send me an email, Brian. I have more stories about people I’ve wanted to say “not bloody likely” to, but I don’t want to waste anymore bandwidth on this forum.
Jun 24th, 2005
Brian
Hey Troy, I’ve considered a sequel to Feral, but I think at this point, if I was to write a sequel to anything it would be Broken Angel.
As for Hacks, there’s no date yet, but I think very late this year, or early next.
Matt, thanks
Bev, fingers crossed!
Dan, you are the winner! Please email your address to me at knightmares101 @ cableone.net, and I’ll send you a Star Garnet
Mike, thanks
And yes, that does sound painful!
Bob, your story had me laughing my butt off
An email is on the way bro.
Brian
Jun 24th, 2005
DNW
Robbers Roost is a box canyon near the Nevada / Idaho border. It was allegely used by mexican bandits, as well as some famous US bandits, as a hideout. You’ve seen it, or its like, in Westerns…box canyon, fenced at one end to be a corral, bandits up on the peaks to either side as lookouts, and in the middle is a cave…
Jun 24th, 2005
ed gorman
No, I didn’t take your words about my westerns as being negative at all. What I was pointing out is that most of us do our best work when we’re doing something we love. I’d like to sell a lot more books but I’d have to do it on something resembling my own terms or I’m not sure the books would be worth reading. I wrote two so’called break out books. Neither of them broke me out and neither of them is noteworthy. Best, Ed
Jun 24th, 2005
Anonymous
Lovely essay, Brian! Hope you do write something that is something you would not bloody likely write about. Still, I think you do fine in horror.
-Kyle
Jun 26th, 2005
Brian
Hope you do write something that is something you would not bloody likely write about.
Kyle, that almost made sense
Thanks for your kind comment.
Ed, your point is well taken. Whatever I do decide to write next, it’ll be something I’m excited about. And I doubt I’ll ever really get away from horror completely. It’s what I grew up reading and loving.
Brian
Jun 26th, 2005
April Miller
Ah, history. As a history major, I am asked so many times that I have lost count, “Well, what are you going to do with that?” I have to smile, because if I didn’t, I’d cry when they followed with, “how boring.”
One of my favorite arguments is proving the connective linking, which moves both ways, between literature and history. (In fact, I wrote an essay about it, “A Tale of Two Disciplines: The Intregal Connections Between History and Literature.”)
As far as horror goes, I’ve defended myself enough. You have too. As a student who reads “that stuff” (as it’s referred to most often around here), I can say that it’s done more to enhance my view than most other literature. (Notice that I used the word literature.)
Write a western, please, Brian. Integrate as much history as you can, before we forget. And throw in some blood and gore. Make us think and cringe.
Jun 28th, 2005
Brian
April, you’re making this sound even more interesting
Jul 1st, 2005
April
Thanks, Brian. You’re one of the first, excepting my Civil War professor, to use the word “interesting” to refer to history. LOL
Jul 1st, 2005
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