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Interview with Richard Barre
2/15/00
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Jon
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Richard Barre
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| Could you describe the series for people who may not have read any yet? | Wil Hardesty is a Southern-California-based P.I., Vietnam survivor, lifelong surfer, a man still haunted by the death of his young son. I wouldn't characterize the series as hardboiled, it has too much heart for that, but he does get down with the bad guys. And he gets around. |
| http://www.media-sfera.com - internet marketing A lot of people I talk to seem to really identify with the books. Why do you think that is? | A reviewer once said about Hardesty: "You can imagine having a beer with him. He and the others pop into 3-D and transcend the posture of their own drama." It's about character, I think—who and what they are, the forces that shape them. At least it is for me. |
| How much of your self or your own experiences become part of your writing? | A certain measure of self is inevitable in these things. Thus said, I counter a relatively sheltered life with a lurid imagination. |
| What made you want to become a writer? And do you mind being classified as a mystery writer? | To answer the second part, not at all; some of the best writing today, bar none, is in the field. As for the first part, Raymond Chandler called me. I just wanted to be him. That's all. Seemed so simple... |
| What did you do before writing, and what other jobs have you had? | I wrote copy for my advertising agency for 15 years. Which teaches you to be succinct and powerful in your word choices or die. Wonderful discipline, especially for shaping a book during the editing process. |
| Do you strive for realism in the books, or do you prefer the reader to understand that it is fiction? | To me, the best crime fiction is an amalgam of fact and made-up. The trick is to make the end result both seamless and integral. So yes, I strive for realism. Just not to the point it inhibits the impact. Bottom line: I'm trying to make you feel what I did in the creation. |
| If you could go back and talk to a twenty-year-old Richard Barre, what would you say to him? | Start writing now, this minute. Experience. And for crying out loud, read more. |
| Is there anything about the writing and or publishing field that makes you nuts? | These days, just about everything. Which is why I try to focus on the work. The rest is like trying to win at casino games. With ulcers compliments of the house. |
| I understand you have a stand-alone book in the works. Can you give some details about it? | It's a suspense novel about a coming-apart family—husband, wife and daughter—who try to pull their lives together aboard a sailboat off Costa Rica. And whether they die trying. |
| Who and/or what do you enjoy reading? | So many good crime writers: James Ellroy, Martin Cruz Smith, Don Winslow, Dennis Lehane, Bob Crais, James Lee Burke, S.J. Rozan, G.M. Ford, to name some—great voices classic and new. And Chandler...always Chandler. |
| Do you write on a schedule, or is it more in bursts? | Schedule. I write from two in the afternoon until nine or so at night. Seven days, usually. But I divide the day into two parts, pre-nap and post-nap. |
| What is the one thing that is always in your refrigerator? | Yogurt. How's that for exciting? |
Interviews may not be used without permission of Mystery One or Jon Jordan
Webmaster -- Last modified December 30 2001 12:53:23 PM