something characteristic of Danny ’ s nature , or is it a trait of human nature — something you , as an author , wishes was ?
Interesting question . I ’ d like to think it ’ s built into the human condition for most of us . You know , I think that the the majority of people , by far , want to do the right thing ( but ) don ’ t always know what the right thing is . … But I think that there is a basic human moral instinct toward doing the right thing . And most people , with the obvious exceptions , sociopaths , psychopaths …
… Who seem to people these novels in spades .
Well , I mean , they ’ re there for real you know , and particularly in the criminal world . Those ( types ) are real people that exist out there .
And Danny exists in their world , but what makes him different is summed up in a line from the book that ’ s really stayed with me . At one point , about three-fourths through the novel , he says something along the lines that “ everybody pays for my sins but me .” It seems like there ’ s a reach at redemption he can ’ t quite get at , but it ’ s also a skewed thought .
I think it is skewed . And I think that that it ’ s a misperception on his part , because he definitely does pay for his sins . But he has this feeling of you ’ d call Catholic guilt , you know , that he ’ s not , if you will , adequately punished for his sins . And , he does feel guilty that other people are paying the price .
That line from Danny comes at a very dramatic part of the novel involving an extremely well-drawn character . Joshua is young , bright and has a very close , even enviable familial relationship with his grandfather . Is his character , or that relationship , based on any personal experiences ? No , I made all of that up . The characters are based on characters in “ The Aeneid .” When Aeneas goes out of Rome to seek allies and meets a king — whose name is escaping me at this early hour in the morning — who sends his grandson to fight along with Aeneas , ( there ) is the promise that Aeneas will take care of him , and the grandson is killed . So that ’ s tracking part of “ The Aeneid .” Every character in the trilogy has an analogous character to the classics . But the specific relationship between Josh and Abe , that ’ s something I created .
It seems you ’ ve also created other literary connections , unless I ’ m over-reading . There ’ s one character , a gangster , who talks about his dreams that seems to track with , I think , a poem by Edgar Allen Poe , “ A Dream Within a Dream .” The gangster ’ s spiel about his dreams is almost eloquent , poetic — though I don ’ t think Poe would have tacked the descriptor “ f- - king weird ” at the end of the verse . So , what ’ s the verdict , true connection or am I over-reaching ?
( Laughing ) I ’ m afraid I had no reference to that , sorry .
All right , I know I was looking for classic references … but I still think if you reread it , it was there in the back of your brain . …
Oh , I won ’ t deny that , but it certainly wasn ’ t conscious . But that brings up an interesting point , you know , that I would never tell the reader , or correct the reader , on their perception of any of my writing . Reading is such an individual experience . And if that ’ s the reader ’ s perception , that ’ s the reader ’ s perception … and it ’ s valid .
Something that is also valid , though I wish it weren ’ t so , is that you ’ ve been talking about your retirement from writing , after more than two dozen novels , since about April 2022 . I don ’ t want to re-tread over that ground , but I do recall that in one PBS interview you said you had wanted to be a writer “ since I was a kid .” And you ’ ve called writing “ an addiction .” You ’ ve also said you ’ re retiring so that you could concentrate on the political activism that ’ s resulted from an “ existential crisis in America .” I have admiration for you taking all of these steps , but many writers seem fine with just combining activism and writing in very obvious ways . I guess that ’ s my pitch : Why can ’ t you keep writing , in that direction , these wonderful novels that millions of us have come to look forward to ?
It ’ s very simple . It ’ s a matter of time . I would write a novel on these issues and it would take me two to three years to write a decent book . Then there ’ s another year in the publication process , at least , right ? By that time , this fight is over . So , what ’ s happening ( in society today ) requires a more , if you will , rapid response , than is available in the novel form . ( Carl von ) Clausewitz famously said you should fight a battle on the ground of your own choosing . Well , that ’ s great if you get to choose the ground , but we don ’ t always get to , and so you have to fight the battle where the battle is these days — and that ’ s largely social media .
On which you are very proliferative and successful . My understanding is that you ’ ve taken a lot of heat for your views , and that you ’ ve even been personally threatened . True ?
Yes , that ’ s true .
So , is giving up writing to take on these fights an even more personal sacrifice ?
That might be overstated . There ’ s a confluence of things happening with me right now and this sort of all comes together . You know , when I was finishing up this book , “ City in Ruins ,” I made the decision I was going to retire . And that was based on the completion of the trilogy , which took me close to 30
36 • MERIDIAN LIFE