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February 21, 2014:

LAYING THE CARDS ON THE TABLE

Bruce Kimmel Photograph bk's notes

Well, dear readers, it is time, as they say, to lay the cards on the table.  It is time to tell you a little more about the new book I have written.  Over two decades ago I came up with an idea for a movie, what I felt was a clever idea.  I developed it with my pal David Wechter.  We pitched it quite a few times over the course of a few years, came close once, but ultimately nothing happened and we put it away.  Normally, that would be the end of that, but it was Muse Margaret who kept the idea alive – I don’t think a year went by when she wouldn’t bring it up, saying she felt that it could be great.  But I was really out of that business and I just couldn’t ever see it getting made.  True to form, she mentioned it again last August.  This was when I was just starting to think about what book fourteen would be.  I already had a new Hofstetter story in my head, but I really didn’t want to write two in a row.  What I wanted to do was something I’d never done before, something completely different for me.  And when Muse Margaret once again brought up the old idea I just listened as I always did and got off the phone.  But her mentioning of the idea stayed with me and I called her back thirty minutes later and said, “What if it’s not a movie – what if I write it as a novel?”  She loved the idea of that instantly.  I told her I’d pull out the treatment that David and I had done, read it, and then call her back.

I found it and read it and was really quite surprised to find that I did not really like one thing about it, other than the central idea.  It seemed jokey to me, very Screenwriting 101, with too many characters, and a second leading character that was way too much like others that had been done.  The title was cute, but jokey.  The secondary lead character’s name was clever but jokey.  I called Muse Margaret and told her, and then we just began talking and out of that and about six other conversations I came up with a completely different story that had no resemblance to what David and I had done (I’d already called David to tell him I was going to do it as a book and he’d given me his blessing).  As always, I never outline, I just do lots of notes, so I began writing stuff down and the idea of the plot seemed good to me and as I came up with the ideas for the characters, I was just having way too much fun.  I knew it would be daunting, but I couldn’t wait to begin on January 1.  Muse Margaret and I continued to talk about it, and then I finally began writing.

I’ve written in these here notes what fun I was having, and how heartening Muse Margaret’s reaction to it was.  And believe me, if Muse Margaret doesn’t like something or doesn’t think something works, I hear about it – in a very positive way, of course – and then I change it so we’re both happy.  I don’t believe there has ever been an instance of my not changing something she was not comfortable with – she gets me and she knows what makes the story and characters tick.  As I said, each time I’d get her call after a new batch of pages, she was so specific about what she liked that it just felt really good.

I have tried to say that I don’t think it’s a book everyone will love.  I don’t try to predict stuff like that – I ultimately write the book I want to write and I just hope people will go along for the ride.  From the get-go I knew I was writing what in essence would be a “Young Adult” book, but it was one I hoped that Young Adults and adults could enjoy.  Muse Margaret felt strongly that it worked and would appeal to young readers (by young, I mean eight to twelve), but that older folks might just respond to it, too.  In any case, it was a joy to write, it required a lot of futzing and finessing in terms of details and research, and in the end Muse Margaret and I were very happy.

The first person to read the book was our very own JohnG – he proofed it and sent me his suggested fixes and then let me know how much he’d enjoyed it, so that was good to hear.  The second proofer was dear reader Laura, who also said she liked the story.  The third proofer was Adryan Russ, and she really loved it – loved the story, the setting, and the characters and even quoted dialogue from it.  Then I decided to ask our very own Mr. Nick Redman to read it and, if he liked it, to blurb it.  I thought he was a good candidate because he, like me, loves the milieu of the story.  His reaction was simply wonderful. And he wrote me a wonderful blurb, which I will share with you momentarily.

Finding the title was really interesting.  As I said, Muse Margaret really didn’t want the jokey titles, because as the story evolved it was clearly not going to be a jokey book.  Then I wanted to call it the name of one of the characters – that name kept changing and ultimately I didn’t want the book’s title to be a character that wasn’t the lead – so we began to go away from that concept.  After one long conversation I finally hit a title we both loved and I guess it’s time to share it, at long last.  Sorry for the long preamble and history.  The book’s title is: Red Gold.  I’ll let Nick’s blurb tell you the rest:

“For his first foray into the Western genre, irrepressible author Bruce Kimmel has saddled up and delivered another genuine nugget.  With the sure hand of a dead-eyed gunslinger, he’s drawn down on the story of young Jeremiah Goldberg, a 10-year-old in the burg of Stillwater, California, circa 1880, a boomtown with mystery, murder, and intrigue at its core. For Jeremiah and his trusty pals, Rachel Burgoyne and Fong Lee, there’s adventure to be mined, and RED GOLD delivers the mother lode with aplomb. Like the dime novels featuring the setting-the-world-to-rights avenger McAlester, so beloved of our pint-sized hero, RED GOLD tells the tale of a Jewish boy becoming a man when events threaten to turn Jeremiah’s actual life into a story torn from the pages of pulp fiction.

For those familiar with Kimmel’s other creations — those lovable youngsters Benjamin Kritzer and Adriana Hofstetter — here’s Jeremiah Goldberg, a short stack plumb-full of gall and sand — who’s about to grow big and tall as the West’s newest legend.”

-Nick Redman, Oscar-nominated producer of The Wild Bunch: An Album in Montage and the director of Becoming John Ford.

I have loved westerns since I was a very young boy – especially The Lone Ranger, Wild Bill Hickok and other TV westerns.  I also loved the big-screen oaters, too.  As you’ve read above, the protagonist of the book is a ten-year-old boy, a Jewish kid in the west.  But before you make the leap, the kid is not Benjamin Kritzer and those expecting the kid to be that will be in for a disappointment – but the minute you know the kid’s history you will understand why that never would have worked for this story.  That and the fact that I’ve already written Benjamin Kritzer.

As I’ve said, I don’t think the book will be everyone’s cup of tea (one person who’s read it didn’t like it at all), and that’s fine.  But I’m proud of it and I wrote the book I wanted to write.  It’s like my first mystery, Writer’s Block.  A few people really loathed the book, while others thought it was great.  In the end, I wrote the mystery I wanted to write in the way I wanted to write it, and that’s really all you can ever do.  Then you just hope people come along for the ride.  I’m truly hoping some will find Red Gold pleasurable and I’m really hoping young readers will.  And there you have it.  I’m hoping to have the cover art by mid-next week.

Yesterday was a funky little day.  I was up at seven.  That was funky.  I fell back asleep at eight, then woke up at eleven.  I had an e-mail from Nick Redman telling me to come by the local Thai place at noon to visit with him, Julie Kirgo and Andrea Marcovicci, who was going to sign some Twilight Time booklets for The Front.  So, I answered e-mails, had a couple of telephonic conversations, then moseyed on over to Talesai.  It was way too much fun, I must say and I stayed there two hours.  Then I had to immediately have a late lunch meeting across the street at the Studio Café.  I spent two hours there, going through the Li’l Abner script, making notes about this and that and also that and this, and just talking through stuff.  After that, I picked up one package, then came home.  I spent the rest of the evening doing work on the computer, talking on the telephonic device, and puttering around the home environment.

Today, I shall write liner notes, then I’m having some auditions at LACC for Li’l Abner – it will be fun to see the kids I’ve already seen and the ones I haven’t.  I’ll try not to eat before that, so that I can go sit somewhere afterwards and just relax and wait till most of the traffic is done.  Then I’ll come home and relax.

Tomorrow, I’ll write, I’ll jog, and then I’ll see our show, after which I’ll sup at Ruth’s Chris.  Sunday, I have to be finished with the liner notes, otherwise I’m just relaxing and getting ready for the very busy week ahead.

Let’s all put on our pointy party hats and our colored tights and pantaloons, let’s all break out the cheese slices and the ham chunks, let’s all dance the Hora or the Continental, because today is the birthday of dear reader Matthew.  So, let’s give a big haineshisway.com birthday cheer to dear reader Matthew.  On the count of three: One, two, three – A BIG HAINESHISWAY.COM BIRTHDAY CHEER TO DEAR READER MATTHEW!!!

Well, dear readers, I must take the day, I must do the things I do, I must, for example, write, hopefully pick up packages, audition, eat, and relax.  Today’s topic of discussion: It’s Friday – what is currently in your CD player and your DVD/Blu and Ray player?  I’ll start – too many to mention.  Your turn.  Let’s have loads of lovely postings, shall we, whilst I hit the road to dreamland, happy to have finally laid the cards on the table.

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