Interview with George P. Pelecanos (March 2002)
Author of Hell to Pay (2002)
March 4, 2002
George P. Pelecanos, the author of ten crime/noir novels, was born in Washington, D.C. in 1957. He spent years developing his writing talent and gathering material while working as a line cook, dishwasher, bartender, shoe salesman, electronics salesman, and a construction worker. Mr. Pelecanos is also an award-winning journalist whose work has appeared in GQ, Washingtonian, The Washington Post, and numerous other publications. He currently lives in Silver Spring, Maryland with his wife and three children.
Q. What made you decide to start writing mysteries?
A. I was turned on to crime novels–hardboiled and noir, specifically–by an English professor at the University of Maryland in 1979. There was an immediate shock of recognition. It's not an exaggeration to say that finding these books changed my life. Ten years later, in '89, I wrote my first novel.
Q. How long do you plan to continue the Derek Strange/Terry Quinn series? (We love it, by the way.)
A. I have written another Strange and Quinn novel, called Soul Circus, which will be published by Little, Brown in 2003. So there's one more at least. Glad you're enjoying them.
Q. You have made Washington, D.C. a prominent character in your books. What is it about the District that interests you so much?
A. I've lived her all my life, so there is the love anyone feels for their hometown. Beyond that is D.C.'s deep racial and class divide. The population is majority black with southern roots. We have our own language and traditions. Counter to the myth, we are not a city of transients. Government-types move in and out every four or eight years and real Washingtonians go on about their lives. The citizens pay taxes but have no voting representation in the House or Senate, which goes against everything this country was founded on. This is an east coast, urban environment with a high rate of violent crime. A mile or two away from the White House are hungry kids who go to dilapidated schools and live in a daily, personal hell not of their own making. All of this occurs in the shadow of our hallowed monuments. For a crime novelist, the possibilities are limitless.
Q. Do you read reviews of your books?
A. Yes. If there is a consensus of criticism, negative or positive, you can learn something.
Q. What advice would you give aspiring writers (10 words or less)?
A. Read books and live a full life.
Q. Shoedog is the only one of your books that is no longer in print. Any plans to republish it?
A. It has recently been republished by Serpent's Tail in the UK. Warner Books is bringing it out in the US this year in mass market paper.
Q. What are your thoughts about Hollywood adapting your books?
A. I have gone there, and most likely I will go there again. I've had hangovers, too, and I still drink.
Q. What excites or distresses you about the mystery genre today?
A. No question, this is the Golden Age of crime writing. Honestly, there has never been such an group of talented writers, veterans and newcomers alike, working in the same era. It's exciting and inspiring. I'm naturally competitive, so when the bar gets raised I get fired up. The books I'm speaking of are going to be around a long time.
Q. What's the last book you read?
A. I just finished the ARC of Michael Connelly's upcoming City of Bones. No one writes page-turners with resonance like Connelly, our modern Chandler. This is another extraordinary book in a long line of them.
Q. What's next for you?
A. I'm currently finishing up the screenplay of a basketball movie for HBO Films. When I get back from my tour for Hell to Pay, I am scheduled to write an episode of a new dramatic cop series for HBO called "The Wire," produced by David Simon, the man behind "Homicide" and "The Corner." After that, I will start in on another novel. Tomorrow is promised to no one, etc. I like to work.
Posted by David J. Montgomery in Interviews | Permalink
Comments
Iam agreat fan of Mr Pelecanos.Iadmire andenjoy his books. I RECOMMEND thebooks tomy friends and anyone who likes mystery fiction.i am waiting anxiously to see acopy of his latest novel drama city in my home Jamaica.It is not yet avaible here.In fact wish his books were more widley available they would well .
Posted by: crosswell | Oct 16, 2005 8:52:25 PM
