That's me all the way on the left, trying to flash the photographer.

The writers from Long Island Noir, after our panel on May 5 at Suffolk Community College, Brentwood campus. From left: Irredeemable R. Narvaez, Randy Reed Farrel Coleman, Quick-Witted Qanta Ahmed, Charming Charles Salzberg, Roundhouse Kicker Kaylie Jones, Cunning Kenneth Wishnia, and Snazzy Steve Wishnia.

A suitably eerie photo for an evening of . . . murder! Photo by Denise "Cupcake" Vazquez.

It was a dark and stormy night . . . when I read at KGB Bar in Manhattan, along with the great writers Kira Peikoff (Living Proof), Sheila York (A Good Knife’s Work), and Bruce DeSilva (Rogue Island), as part of An Evening with Edgar® Award Mystery Writers. I read a brief excerpt from my short story “Hurricane” (also “Juracán, which is available now for free on Smashwords and is also part of the Roachkiller and Other Stories collection, which just came out.) Sponsored by the NYC Chapter of Mystery Writers of America, the reading launched this year’s Mystery Week in New York, which celebrates the 66th anniversary of the Edgar® Awards. Thanks to the fun crowd who braved the cold spring rains. Despite the wishes of some of my Facebook friends, I kept my pants on during the reading.

David Lynch recently told Interview magazine, “Ideas are like fish. They just come to you sometimes, and when you’re really lucky, you fall in love with them and know exactly what to do.”

The question before us today is “Where do you get your criminal ideas?” Or more broadly, “Where do you get your ideas?” This is a question that often vexes authors in its apparent ubiquity as it seems to be asked at every author appearance, from signings to readings to when you get recognized waiting in line at Starbucks. Depending on how it is asked, it can seem nosy or intrusive, or even sadly polite, something asked just to fill the yawning silence after a reading.

It may seem like a simple question, but answering it in a complete and genuine manner can be difficult. There is a great blog called WhereDoYouGetYourIdeas—for everything there is a blog—and on it I found some wonderful answers. The author Joe Hill gives a flippant answer: “Schenectady. They have them on a shelf in a Mom & Pop on Route 147. ” JK Rowling tries to be more straightforward: ”The answer is ‘out of my head’, but people don’t seem very satisfied with that, it’s too boring, even though it’s true.” And author Harlan Ellison in his typically irascible manner reportedly once said, “From you, that’s why you don’t have any!”

So, yes, it is a cliché question and is easily mocked. But that is not to say that the question does not have merit and that it does not yield revealing answers about the mysteries of inspiration and creativity. I believe it helps to see the question as being asked from two different intentions. On the one hand, aspiring writers will ask, and they seems to mean, By what strange magicks have you conjured up your publishable works? On the other hand, non-writers may ask it to plumb the depths of your mind. This is especially the case when friends or concerned family members read your work and say, What is wrong with you? Where do you get these ideas??

In either case, as we hope to see today, when the question is asked, it is like the Kobayashi Maru of author questions, one that at the very least shines a light in the midnight-dark workings of an author’s mind. To wit, allow me to introduce our panel today.

“Only one place to go — back to the South Bronze … the university of the streets! Get a good schoolin’ there — if you’re into learnin’ about dope, numbers, rats and poverty!” —El Tigre Blanco

Here are the first couple of paragraphs of what I’ll be talking about at the National Council of Teachers of English this weekend. I’ll be on the panel “We’re On the Case: Latino Writers of YA Mysteries,” featuring Sarah Cortez, Rene Saldaña, Sergio Troncoso, and Ray Villareal.

Tinting Fiction: Writing Genre Fiction Geared Toward Age and Ethnicity

When I was a boy there was a superhero called the White Tiger, who was created by Marvel Comics in 1975. The White Tiger was distinguished among the ranks of Marvel’s heroes in that he was their first Puerto Rican superhero. His secret identity was Hector Ayala, and he found the amulets that gave him his martial arts powers in a trashcan (Mantlo). He used Spanish phrases on every pulpy page, a “¡Madre de dios!” here, a “¡Carajo!” there, to remind us that he was Latino, lest we forget. In time, Ayala becomes psychologically and physically addicted to the amulets. He retires, but years later, in a botched attempt to prevent a robbery, he is caught holding a stolen TV and standing over the body of murdered police officer. At his trial, Daredevil is his lawyer, but after Ayala loses his temper when questioned about his marriage (oh, that fierce Latino temper!), he is found guilty. Distraught, he grabs a gun and is subsequently shot and killed (Bendis). Thus ends the tale of the first mainstream Puerto Rican superhero, a poor guy who searches the trash and ends up shot by cops.

The White Tiger is an example of how writing an ethnic character for a genre market can go horribly wrong. Rather than embodying the thrills of adolescent fantasy, for example, the Tiger is stuck in a stereotypical world of urban ills such as poverty, drug dealers, and gang violence. While the Tiger was meant to diversify comic books and broaden the audience, the result seemed naïve at best and patronizing at worst. This is one of the problems of writing ethnic characters for any market, but it produces particular challenges for the YA audience when you consider that the images and characters young people read can form the basis of their lifelong beliefs.

Left to right: Reed, Mistina, and that's me in the corner

Saucy Mistina Bates, salty Reed Farrel Coleman, and silly me read selections from and signed copies of Indian Country Noir at the Mysterious Bookshop, 58 Warren Street, NYC. Good selection of wine! Thanks to everyone who showed and imbibed, and of course thanks to the folks at Mysterious. Check out pics of the event at the Bookshop blog.

Thanks to all who attended! And thanks to Jim, for the drink!