Q&A with Daniel

WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO BECOME A WRITER?

You put your finger on it with the word “Decide.” With me It’s not so much a decision as a compulsion. And I think of myself as more of a story-teller than a writer.

HAMLET AMONG THE PIRATES SEEMS LIKE A DEPARTURE FROM YOUR OTHER BOOKS.

Not really. I’ve been fascinated by HAMLET since I saw Olivier’s magnificent film at the age of 14, and it always seemed to me that the Dane who arrives back in Elsinore in Act IV is much more forceful and less melancholy than the Prince who left for England to be killed. So why? What happened on the voyage to change him?

It seemed to me there was a story there, and when I began writing it, the first thing I realized is that I couldn’t tell it from Hamlet’s point of view; the character is simply (and deliberately, I think,) too complex and contradictory, as witness the scores of volumes purporting to analyze him, each with its own definitive “truth.”

The most likely narrator then, was a hard-working and articulate pirate captain, and for purposes of clarity, it might help if he wasn’t terribly familiar with the job, so I could tell the reader about things like forecastles, poop decks, and sheet anchors, by acquainting my narrator with them.

At which point I saw that this had to be a Comedy, and the whole thing just turned plain damn silly. There was a risible contrast between the perplexed pirate and the pouty prince, and as they faced sword-fights, cannon-fire, mutiny, and storms at sea, it just got funnier.

DO YOU WRITE ABOUT REAL CASES YOU WORKED ON AS A POLICE OFFICER?

No. Not once, not ever. But my years in that job gave me an understanding of guns and the psychology of people who use them, and I try to bring that to my writing. Anyone can write a scene where someone gets shot, but sometimes it’s more interesting to see how it affected the shooter.

WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO WRITE ‘NADA?

I’ve read a lot of books, and seen a lot of movies where the hero or leading man has to recover something valuable and get it to its rightful owner, they never seem to do it just to get rich. Anyway, the hero generally hooks up with a shifty character, necessary to get the job done, but not to be trusted. And at the end, this character always tries to double-cross the hero, and he gets shot dead for his efforts, and the hero says something like, “He was a nice guy. Too bad he got greedy.” Gets on his horse and rides off into the sunset. And I started wondering. What would the story be like if this shifty guy were telling it? ‘NADA is the result.

HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT WRITING A BOOK?

I like to map out the action in my mind, figure out where I want the story to go, then let the characters get there on their own. When it works, I can immerse myself in a character the way a method actor studies a part. When it doesn’t work, I know I’m doing something wrong. And at its best, a character will do something I wasn’t expecting.

WHAT WRITERS INFLUENCED YOU?

Mostly ones who went out of fashion before I was born. Dashiell Hammett taught me how to write a lean, fast-moving story with a minimum of prose. Raymond Chandler showed me a narrator who tells us about himself without talking about himself. Joseph Conrad demonstrated that action must have meaning. Somerset Maugham charmed me with the richness of his characters, and PG Wodehouse laughed it all off.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO ASPIRING WRITERS?

Don’t do it. I can’t stand the competition.

But seriously, folks, a lot of people read my books and say, Well how hard can this be? And they’re right. But writing a book isn’t even half the battle. It took me a year to write ‘NADA and seven years to get it published. Two firms contracted for it and folded before they could print it. And when you get a book published, it takes enormous effort and creativity to publicize and market it.

So I guess what I’m saying is, have a lot of patience first, and it’s a lot of work after getting published. And if you’re lucky enough to hook up with a good publicist, as I did, make the most of it.