American Static in your ears -- and more

By Steve Weddle

First, I'm on the French radio waves, with a musical mixtape. Check it out.

Second, the newest episode of 7 MINUTES WITH is up. I chat with Jedidiah Ayres about movies, Holly West about the small screen, and Chris Holm about music. Check it out on iTunes or SoundCloud.

And our main attraction today -- Tom Pitts, whose AMERICAN STATIC is now available on audio.

Audio Shock

Guest post from Tom Pitts

I had a strange experience recently. I drove roundtrip from San Francisco to Los Angeles and got lost in an audiobook. Why is that strange? Because I wrote the book.

I’d always wanted to record my own audio version of my novels, at least I thought I did, but something always got in the way. Something? Let’s face it, procrastination got in the way, along with finances, equipment, and the pure hatred of hearing my own voice.

That last one may seem odd—especially coming from someone who’s got a live interview show up the on the internet, someone who’s sung for a rock ‘n’ roll band and is comfortable behind a mic—but I’ve never been able to playback an episode of Skid Row Chatter without shuddering. Can’t do it. 

I’ve been told I read well at live readings, but those are short stories with arcs like a well-oiled joke. The audience’s laughs and gasps had a lot to do with my perception of how well I did too. Then I thought I’d maybe try one of my novellas first. You know, dip my toe in the water. Enter procrastination.  I finally faced facts; I didn’t possess the wherewithal to get the ball rolling.

So I finally took the leap with American Static. I put it up on ACX and found an actor, a pro. The search didn’t take too long. I received a handful of auditions and knew right away when I heard the man best suited for the job: Daniel Greenberg. Straight forward, not too much acting with the characters voices, but enough to let you feel them and grow to know them, and, above all, a focus on clarity.  I knew what I wanted in a reader.

You see, a few years back my wife and kids straddled two apartments, one in San Francisco and one in Sacramento. That made for a long lonely drive between cities, and a lot of time for audiobooks. I started my habit by digging used cassette tapes from bins at thrift stores (a practice I highly suggest, because when you’re paying a buck for a book, you’re likely to try something you otherwise wouldn’t) and then moved on to CDs. Eventually I’d burned through every thrift store in Sacramento. When I was forced to upgrade my car, I upgraded my audiobooks too, with Audible. Now I could listen to what I wanted, not just what I found. Anyway, the point is I listened to a lot of audiobooks and I found a style I liked, and that’s what I found when I heard Mr. Greenberg’s audition.  How was it working with a total stranger? Nice. Daniel was responsive, helpful with the process, and let me lean on his experience a little ‘cause I’m a rookie.

On the drive to L.A., listening for glitches or mistakes that may need correcting, I found myself getting lost in my own story, forgetting about the structure and the sentences, forgetting I wrote the damn thing ,and just enjoying the motion of the tale. I wondered, how the hell did this thing come out of my brain? It’s a strange thing when you listen to your own prose read back to you. You start off by being hyper-critical, second-guessing every inflection, every intonation. Soon you’re judging the narrator’s choices—I would have done it this way, I would’ve read it that way—until you finally let go and let the reader tell the tale, and before you know it you’re caught up in the action, waiting for whatever happens next. It was a treat just to be along for the ride. I hope—if you give it a shot—you’ll enjoy the same ride. 

American Static’s audio version is available on Audible, Amazon, and iTunes.

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Tom Pitts received his education on the streets of San Francisco. He remains there, working, writing, and trying to survive. He is the author of AMERICAN STATIC, HUSTLE, and the novellas PIGGYBACK and KNUCKLEBALL. 

His new novel, 101, will be released by Down & Out Books November 5th, 2018. 

Find links to more of his work at: TomPittsAuthor.com

Talking American Static with Tom Pitts

Tom Pitts is a fellow crime writer I consider a friend and mentor, so when given the chance to talk shop about his new novel, American Static, I was eager to jump in. The book isn't out until the end of the month, but anyone familiar with Tom's writing is excited for this one. (Preorder here) We talk about cynicism in politics, Google Maps, and writing in bathrooms among other things.

1) A lot of your writing seems to come from your own experiences and interests - I know Hustle drew on your time living rough, and your love of baseball is ever present in Knuckleball - so what was the way in for American Static? Is there anything particular you’re drawing on this time or is this unchartered territory?What I drew from my own life was the city itself. The methadone clinic (which was torn down while I waited for the book to be published, by the way), the donut shop, the secret spot in Golden Gate Park, etc. The city is very much a part of me and I hope it shows in the work.

Truth is, we don’t have any choice but to draw on our own experience as writers. Even if you’re writing sci-fi, you still mine the people you’ve met and the conflicts you’ve battled to build your story. Now that I think about it, we even do the same as readers. How we relate, hate, sympathize, or empathize with a character has a lot to do with our collected experiences in life. That’s why some of us root for the bad guys too.

2) A hardcore knowledge of setting defines a lot of your longer work - reading Hustle made me feel like I knew the neighborhoods. American Static takes us through San Francisco, Oakland, and Wine Country - did you find it more difficult to balance a map-like handle of the setting while still getting those great descriptions in? And do you feel like a hardcore handle on setting is necessary to your work, or do you take some creative license to make scenes work?I do think it’s necessary. I’m definitely one of those guys who crosschecks the internet while I read a book. Not for accuracy but for feeling. When I read Nic Pizzolatto’s Galveston, I wanted to see the coastline he was talking about. Same as some of the desert in No Country for Old Men. It’s not that I can’t envision it from the descriptions, but I want to be immersed. I want the scenery to wash over me. The internet is a gift, use it.

 Highway 101 and its tiny towns I knew well from the road to Humboldt and back, but I will admit I’ve never been to Calistoga. There’s a pretty big chunk of the book that happens there. Did I lean on google maps? You bet I did. Doesn’t it have to be perfect? No, the story still dictates what’s needed. As the author, you can move mountains if the story calls for it.

3) Government scandal seems like a really appropriate topic right now, but I know writing a book takes a lot longer than an election cycle (most of the time). When we’re talking about cops, ex-cops, and City Hall scandals how much cynicism and distrust comes from the needs of the story and how much comes straight from your gut?
Are you asking me if Mayor Wong in American Static is based on San Francisco’s own Mayor Ed Lee? No. As much as Lee decimated the city, the mayor in the book was entirely fictional. As for the ex-cop Tremblay, good God I hope there’s no one out there like him. What a monster. It was a blast living in his bitter head. I don’t think I’m that much of a cynic politically. I think a lot of what people view as corruption and conspiracy happens organically.  Sometimes politicians don’t have an evil agenda and they believe what they’re doing is the right thing. They just happen to be wrong. Unfortunately the end result is often the same. Okay, maybe that is a bit cynical.

4) I like to write about how music plays into the writing process here, so I have to ask - did American Static have a soundtrack?
No! I must have silence while I work. I know I sent you a picture of the crowded bathroom I used to write in. My present spot is even worse. I write in the hallway of our tiny one bedroom apartment. I can be seen sitting there with wads of toilet paper sticking out of my ears. I’ve even tried white noise, rain sounds, you name it. So I guess you could say the soundtrack was barking dogs, heavy footfalls from the apartment above, and strained TV sounds drifting down the hall.

5) I know American Static hasn’t been released just yet, and all of your anxious readers are waiting for it - but what’s next? Do you have a new project already started?
I completed a novel called Coldwater after American Static. It’s set in Sacramento but ends in Malibu. And the behemoth I just finished is called 101. It’s my opus to the marijuana trade that completes my quartet of California crime novels. It’s chocked full of bizarre and twisted characters. It takes my plan, my style, my thing, whatever it is I’m trying to do, to the furthest extreme. I don’t believe in sticking with one PoV. I’m trying to create a cinematic experience for the reader. I’ve never been a first person kind of a guy. I like to explore several points of view. Like in film, the perspective will jump character to character, setting to setting. I think a lot of simultaneous action and quick cuts build tension across the board. It drives some of my editors crazy, but I think the reader can roll with the pacing.