City as a Novel Character: Detroit
Last night, I was at the local pub, throwing back a few cold ones, and discussing settings for short stories and novels with a buddy. The subject turned to a recurring theme in most of my short stories and novel: Detroit, though in most I don't name it. He was emphatic that if I were going to use Detroit as a setting then I had better go there and get to know it as a city and understand its culture.
Yesterday, I had similar conversation with a novelest friend that is writing a series. He is making a certain type of animal a reoccuring character in his novels. I was intrigued and have been pondering the plot possiblities and parallels of a city as a character too.
All of the authors I admire use a city as a theme or character in their books; Hammet, Chandler, Connelly, Grisham, Dehane, all flavor their stories with the true local vibe that permates each respective city. The cities themselves become alive and as I read their stories, I want to be there, walk the streets, and participate in the life that occurs there.
I have long been intrigued by Detroit. The beauty and grittiness, better than any city, Detroit reflects the effects of America's move from an industrial economy to an information economy and its decline. Hopefully, Detroit will re-estabish itself as a cultural center and destination sometime in the future. Many of the cities' problems and triumphs mirror those of our nation. Blind pigs and speakeasies of the 1920's and thirties, bootlegging, race riots of 1943 and 1967, all reflect that turbulent time. Proserity brought by the automobile and WWII industrial production demonstrate the increase of wealth of our nation for similar reasons. Detroit's earlier influence has left many great marks of achievement across the United States.
So, after reflection, I have decided to make several visits to Detroit to emerce myself in it and its culture. Elmore Leonard lives outside of Detroit and is the only popular author that I know of that uses Detroit as his novel's setting. It will be a central theme and subltle character my coming stories and novels. It is my goal that this addition will add another layer of complexity and flavor to my stories and novels.
Yesterday, I had similar conversation with a novelest friend that is writing a series. He is making a certain type of animal a reoccuring character in his novels. I was intrigued and have been pondering the plot possiblities and parallels of a city as a character too.
All of the authors I admire use a city as a theme or character in their books; Hammet, Chandler, Connelly, Grisham, Dehane, all flavor their stories with the true local vibe that permates each respective city. The cities themselves become alive and as I read their stories, I want to be there, walk the streets, and participate in the life that occurs there.
I have long been intrigued by Detroit. The beauty and grittiness, better than any city, Detroit reflects the effects of America's move from an industrial economy to an information economy and its decline. Hopefully, Detroit will re-estabish itself as a cultural center and destination sometime in the future. Many of the cities' problems and triumphs mirror those of our nation. Blind pigs and speakeasies of the 1920's and thirties, bootlegging, race riots of 1943 and 1967, all reflect that turbulent time. Proserity brought by the automobile and WWII industrial production demonstrate the increase of wealth of our nation for similar reasons. Detroit's earlier influence has left many great marks of achievement across the United States.
So, after reflection, I have decided to make several visits to Detroit to emerce myself in it and its culture. Elmore Leonard lives outside of Detroit and is the only popular author that I know of that uses Detroit as his novel's setting. It will be a central theme and subltle character my coming stories and novels. It is my goal that this addition will add another layer of complexity and flavor to my stories and novels.
