Hybrid Moments
A list of 8 things worth talking about.
1.
HYBRID MOMENTS IN PUBLISHING (VIBE)
I’ve found myself in a bit of an odd position with my forthcoming novel The Strip. In January, Ultimo Press will be publishing it here in Australia and the UK, but my agent was unable to sell the rights elsewhere. Thing is, I personally own the rights to the book outside of Aus/UK so I’m going to self-publish it in the rest of the world. I’m going full hybrid.
2.
GHANDI (DEMO)
If you know me offline —and some of you do— you’ll be well aware of the fact that Helmet is an all-time rock band for me. I love them, and it goes way, way back to the 1990s. I don’t really rate much of their newer material; they haven’t made a good album since 2004’s Size Matters. But I’ve recently come across the Ghandi demo — Page Hamilton’s band after the initial 1998 break-up and Helmet— and uh, it rules. Sounds about 100 times better than Helmet’s 2006 album Monochrome which is where some of these songs ended up.
3.
What Happens When James Ellroy Gets Mixed Up with Marilyn Monroe? (Article)
The New Yorker reviewed the new James Ellroy novel. Haven’t read the The Enchanters yet but I had some thoughts:
4.
The Chronology of David Peace’s Red Riding Quartet (Article)
In my last list, I linked out to the only David Peace short story I know of. A bunch of you wrote me about it, so I figure this might be of interest: someone on Reddit attempted to write out a detailed, chronological timeline of what actually happens in Peace’s Red Riding Quartet. Seeing it all mapped out is disturbing. Pure chaos, and surely this is the darkest of all the Gen X noirs.
5.
EMILY THE CRIMINAL (STREAMING)
I finally got round to Emily The Criminal on Netflix and loved it. There’s a lot to recommend, but my favourite scene is the revelation around Emily’s backstory/felony rap sheet towards the end. Very hardboiled, modern, and unexpected. Aubrey Plaza is perfect for this.
6.
READING
Currently reading City of Dreams by Don Winslow. Goddamn it’s concise. Late-career Winslow should be the house style for all crime novels going forward.
7.
RESEARCH
Grundy’s (Surfers Paradise) from above, somewhere in the 1980s:
8.
The Small Texas Town With 50 Cops and Only 250 Residents (Article)
This article is a lay-up for any decent noir writer: ‘The Small Texas Town With 50 Cops and Only 250 Residents’ (Rolling Stone). Reminds me of this.
END OF LIST
— IAIN
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"But writing crime fiction is not an appropriate way to show care to the real life victims of real life crimes."
As an Ellroy fan, a crime fiction writer, and someone who writes about real crimes, I completely agree. I write non-fiction articles about real life crime victims, but when it comes to crime fiction all I'm doing is telling a story. Even when it's based on real events, I'm not under any illusions that I'm doing something nice for the victims' families.
By contrast my non-fiction articles often result in families and friends of the victims writing me and thanking me for writing about them. I would never expect such a thing from any of my crime fiction even when based on true stories. It's just not the same thing.
Thanks for the Grundy's flashback. I remember the schoolyard rumours circulating at the time that there were razor blades embedded in a certain section on one of the curves. I think I might of even half-believed it at the time but looking back, yeah just another typical kids thing to say to get attention.