Oct 5, 2020
I was privileged to invite
Author WL (Bud) Gorman for an interview to discuss his latest book The Brickbox and the inspiration behind it. Enjoy!
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I have had an interest in homeless people for a long time. In the summer before
my last year of university, some buddies and I worked on an isolated railroad
gang in the middle of the British Columbia Rockies. We met a lot of
interesting people that summer … immigrants from Europe, full time railroad
workers, indigenous men. They were all memorable, but the ones who made
the biggest impression on me were the homeless men. I knew nothing about
people who lived on the streets. Some of these men were working on the gang
because they were given the choice of jail or the rail gang.
Most
of them were there so that they could earn some money during the summer months
then return to Vancouver and drink their way through the winter. But as sad as
that may sound, these men were still living, breathing human beings, most of
whom treated me well. It took some time to gain their confidence, but
when they opened up, their personal stories were very interesting. None of them
looked for pity. All of them were honest and most exhibited a capability for
introspection that I never could have imagined had I not met them.
What
I learned from them was that the public’s stereotype of homeless people was not
accurate … there was no “one size fits all” description that could be ascribed
to them. Certainly, some of them were aggressive and hard to live with, but
most of them were kind, thoughtful and shy. And several of them were as smart
and clever as anyone I had met at that point in my life. So, when I
finally got serious about writing my first novel, I knew that I had to take a
crack at knocking down the stereotypes about homeless people. Also,
since I was young and because this experience had a considerable impact on my
perception of things, I wanted to write a coming of age story, but not about
myself.
Is
this book suitable for high school students? What about adults?
To me the book is a crossover. I wrote it so that it would have appeal to
both adults and young adults. The core of the story is the coming of age
journey of a runaway teenage girl and I believe that her transformation from
shy small-town girl to resilient survivor will appeal to young readers. The
street people who take her in and teach her how to survive should be of
interest to both young readers and adults because these characters defy
stereotypes… and they are different.
The language in the story is colourful but it is not coarse. I wasn’t
looking to assault everyone’s sensibilities with verbal harshness. There is
enough physicality and aggressive behavior in the story without having to spice
it up with ever-present expletives.
What
message do you wish to pass across to your readers with this book?
There are a number of social issues in the stories that will hopefully give
readers something on which to reflect and I believe they are presented in the
story with subtlety. These include judging people based on their
appearance; the lack of support for military veterans; domestic abuse; mental
health; and safe injection sites for drug users.
What
was the hardest thing about writing your latest book?
Editing the story. It's not much fun discarding characters and cutting
out dialogue, but it has to be done. First drafts are simply a baseline
for all that follows - the nose-to-grindstone revision process.
As
a writer, is there anything you've learned about yourself while writing this
book?
I think I learned that I had even more concern for people in distress and people
in need than I had before I starting writing in the book.
For
your own reading, do you prefer ebooks or traditional paper/hard back books,
and why?
I read both. E-readers are great for travelling and for those occasions
when you have to sit and wait (for whatever reason) for extended periods. If I'm at home, nothing beats a cup of tea, a comfy chair and hard copy
book.
What
is your niche genre, and if you were to write in a different genre, what would
it be?
My niche genre is adult contemporary. I also write action - adventure. In both cases I like to base my stories on character-driven conflicts and
relationships.
What
books and authors have most influenced you?
Charles Dickens, Leon Uris, Herman Wouk, Stephen King, Lee Child.
Is
there anything you'd like readers to know about you?
I love rock and roll music, classic films, the golden age of television,
well-written stories, tying trout and salmon flies, dogs and ... I am hoping to
reconnect with old friends and acquaintances through the promotion of my
novels.
Do
you have any more books in the works?
I am writing Book 2 in the Grace and Redemption series and Book 3 is done in
outline. I also have the outlines and notes written for two more novels
outside the series.
Do
you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones?
I will read reviews, fully aware that not all of them will be what I'm hoping
for. Readers have different tastes in subject matter, characterizations,
tone and writing styles. Every author must therefore have broad shoulders and a
calm outlook towards criticism.
Any
advice to new/aspiring authors?
If you are serious about writing, understand
that it will be a lot of work, a lot of frustration and ... did I mention it
will be a lot work? But if you are meant to be an author, you will find the fun
while you are doing the hard work.
Why
do you write about military veterans in need?
I served in the Canadian army for twenty-nine years in the Royal Canadian
Armoured Corps (The Royal Canadian Dragoons and The 8th Hussars), so my
experience with soldiering and soldiers is one of my major touchstones when it
comes down what I have learned about life and the memories that I have gained
along the way. It is a sad reality that many of our veterans are living
rough in shelters and on the streets. It is not my intent to point the finger
at the bureaucracies that are charged with the responsibility of caring for
vets. That sort of generalizing is unproductive and unfair. But some vets have
fallen through the governmental administrative cracks and we cannot turn out
attention away from them. They took it upon themselves to serve our
country in some difficult and challenging situations and now they need help. There are two reasons why I write novels … I enjoy writing stories about
interesting characters, and, I hope to generate some financial support for
veterans in need.
Besides homelessness and veterans in need, what other themes interest you?
As I indicated earlier, I like to take a stab at knocking the stuffing out of
people’s attitudes towards stereotypes. These days, people talk in terms
of memes and tropes. Back in the seventies it was “what you see is what you
get”. But I’ve never subscribed to that form of thinking. If you care to
listen to and observe others with interest, you are going to discover that a
lot of people didn’t come out of the box that you thought they were in.
No matter what they look like and no matter what your preconceived
notions of them are, you are going to be surprised by their courage, their wit,
their intellect, their values and their strength of character. I learned that
in the army. Often, what looked like an average, undistinguished soldier in
garrison became a resilient, resourceful and dependable trooper in the field.
So you have to keep your mind open to that possibility; otherwise you’re going
to let a lot of wonderful people pass through your life without giving them a
chance to surprise you.
Will there be a sequel or a prequel to this story?
When I first started writing this story, I saw it as a stand alone … one and
done. But as I continued to write it and wrote notes to myself, I began
to wonder if there was more. So, I’m going to see if I get feedback on
this through my website. If the interest is there …
In the meantime, I have also started a series that will likely be a trilogy. The series is called Grace and Redemption and the setting and characters
are very different from The Brickbox. Book One (Grace and Redemption
– Referendum) is finished and is available as an eBook. I am currently working
on Book Two and have written an outline and notes for Book Three.
How can readers get in touch with or follow you (website, personal blog, social
media handle, Goodreads)?
Amazon, Goodreads, Kobo.
Any
additional comments?
Support
our vets and smile at a homeless person.
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