Dear Jacques,
I've told the origin of Dan Fortune
many times, and if you want to follow the definitive
evolution of Dan you can read my intro notes to the stories
in FORTUNE'S WORLD, and the intros to all the stories in the
soon to be published SLOT-MACHINE KELLY: THE ONE-ARMED
BANDIT.
But in nutshell, when I was living in New York and writing
mainstream novels and stories I knew this sleazy character
Harry (last name long forgotten), who was a small-time PI who
scrounged a living on the edge of legitimate PI work. One of
his tricks was to use cripples, mostly a paraplegic on
crutches named Sheik, to serve summonses on the theory no one
hits a cripple. Needless to say this didn't always work out
well for Shiek or for Harry. So when I did write my first
tongue in cheek Kelly story for MSMM, I made my protagonist
the cripple. But I am essentially a serious writer with
mainstream orientation based on observing our flawed society
and asking hard questions and challenging accepted norms, and
Kelly rather quickly evolved into a more serious voice for
our crippled world, and the arm a metaphor for all our
vulnerabilities. (Mind you, I didn't consciously plan all
this, it simply happened because of who I am and what I
wanted to do. What I say now comes from years of thinking
about it, and reading what other people had to say in the
matter.) But if you are interested in following the steps,
then read my stories and the intros in the two
collections.
So you noticed the touch of Faulkner, did you. You may be the
first one, or at least the first to mention it. (People tend
to approach experience and literature with preconceived
notions. We see what we expect to see, what we want to see,
and most readers of mystery and detctive stories don't expect
to see Faulkner, or for most part want to. Hence Barzun and
Wilson.)
But, yes, I have read and reread all of Faulkner's novels
countless times. There is always more to discover in each
one. He is to me the greatest American writer, and possibly,
together with Conrad, the greatest writer. Conrad was my
first great discovery, and to me it is clear that he must
have been Faulkner's too. It is obvious that Faulkner owed a
large debt to Conrad, and the two of them have been large
influences. Not, obviously, in style or meter, as you say,
but in much else. In style I am of that generation in which
no writer could escape Hemingway (not even Faulkner if you
read some of his early stories. I recall one, it's name
escapes me at the moment, that was about WW One, and was
perfect Hemingway.) We did our best to escape Papa, but it
was difficult, and many potentially good were destroyed by
it. I think I succeeded with the help of Conrad, Faulkner,
Hardy, the American proletarian writers, and, above all,
Nelson Algren. Of course none of that is really for me to
say, but I thank you for noticing the Faulkner in me, I
couldn't have a greater compliment.
Best,
Dennis-Michael
----- Original Message ----- From: "Jacques Debierue" <
matrxtech@yahoo.com> To: <
rara-avis-l@yahoogroups.com> Sent: Tuesday, May 03,
2005 10:23 AM Subject: Re: RARA-AVIS: Dan Fortune
series
> Dennis, two questions:
>
> 1) How did the character of Dan Fortune come about?
2) I detect something
Faulknerian in
> your work, not in dialect or meter but in the
intensity and doggedness of
your characters
> and in the situations you create, particularly in
the Fortune series. Do
you think you have
> been influenced by Faulkner?
>
> Best,
>
> MrT
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> RARA-AVIS home page: http://www.miskatonic.org/rara-avis/
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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