Mood:  chatty

H. B. Kurtzwilde discusses cops, uniforms, cowboys, pirates and the inner workings of law inforcement with James Buchanan. More about James Buchanan can be found at his site:

http://www.james-buchanan.com/

H.B. :Your background includes time in the legal trenches as well as the plains of west Texas. Tell us a little about how those two worlds tend to inform the worlds you create in your stories.

James Buchanan: Down in the west Texas town of El Paso....snort.  Lets face it, Texas is a state of story tellers.  Nobody ever tells you about their day.  They spin a yarn a mile long.  Every thing's bigger, badder and better in Texas.  I guess my ability to put life into ordinary situations comes from that.  And El Paso is a city at the cross roads of cultures.  It is at once very big and yet still (at least when I was growing up) small.  I went to school with people from both sides of the border and all across the US...Fort Bliss and Biggs Field are both in the area.  It provides you with a small town sensibility and a big city world view.  I grew up immersed in a culture while not really belonging to it.  I think that allows me to switch it up and look at the little things that we all take for granted that someone from outside our experience wouldn't understand.  I tend to set alot of my stories in the West and Southwest because I'm familiar with the geography and the people. 

Law, besides teaching me to study everything with a critical eye, has put me in contact with a range of people.  I've met politicians, janitors, journalists and police officers in my practice.  I have character studies out the wazoo.  I've worked in the Prosecutors office interview victims, reviewing evidence with defendants and prepping police officers for their hearings.  My civil practice I represented low key mobsters (early on) and litigated against guys who were also up for fraud and corruption charges.  I've had to chase down career debtors.  The whole element of the why of ‘the what’ has always stuck with me, and I hope I bring a sense of that into my stories.  

H.B:American subcultures and mythologies run through your writing, giving depth and scope to your characters. How much research is involved, and how does that connect with your writing process?

James Buchanan: Lots and very little.  A lot of the technical stuff I research.  Books and books and books worth.  Names and place names, I'll spend hours on GoogleMaps just to find the right street name.  I want to know the finest details I can even if I never use it. Knowing it, being able to pull that sense of it out, gives a confidence to the tale, a depth that might not be there otherwise.

But the cultures are also just within me.  I am a sponge for things.  How my Apache dorm mate differed from the Navajo guy I fenced with.  How my Mexican Friends born and raised on the border differed from their counter parts in the interior or in more central US cities.  The mannerisms of the bank VP born and raised in Argentina.  The speech habits of my dad's business partner from Venezuela.  Being an author is walking around with a continuous storage loop in your head.

H.B.: You have some amazing stories that capture the modern American west. When did your romance with the cowboy begin?

James Buchanan: Well, I broke my first horse when I was 13, so I'm guessing long before that.  I grew up with horses.  I pulled a John Wayne when I was about 5 and tried to jump off the barn roof onto my pony's back (knocked my ass out cold).  My friends raised cattle (not large herds but two or three bulls usually named things like Sirloin, Choice and Tenderloin).  Guys with bow legs hung out at Winn's 5&Dime.  Cowboy boots were dress attire.  Hell, my mom and I had knock down drag outs, when she'd try and get me outa my jeans and boots for Sunday Church.  My friends and I used to shoot each other in the ass with BBguns.  I don't look much like a cowboy anymore, but I still am mentally there most of the time.  You say "please" and "thank you" and smile at people you don't know.  So, not so much of a romance with as as sense of being part of me. 

H.B.: Is it the hats? Seriously, what is it about cowboys?

James Buchanan: They are the epitome of self reliance, with a strange vulnerability to them.  A true cowboy is polite and helpful, yet absolutely willing to knock your teeth down your throat if you cross them.  They are the heroes of our childhood. 

H.B.: In your series Taking the Odds, as well as in other stories, you focus not on the practice of law, but law enforcement. Do you find that law enforcement has a sub-culture of its own?

James Buchanan: Yeah, the gang with badges.  My uncle (Det. Ret.) coined that phrase.  He was also the one who told me he'd kill me and save my family the anguish if I joined the force.  I did a few ride alongs with the now defunct CRASH units and they were big pushing on recruitment.  But it is very military in structure and unwritten code.  When I was with the prosecutors office you were part of "US," -- We "tag 'em" you "bag 'em" although you weren't seen as 100% equals.  The rest of the world is "THEM," even the good people.  Its a tight cohesion built on a shared struggle.  Conversely, anything that threatens the status quo within the group is often ostracized.  It takes a lot of effort to realize that uniformity does not have to be 6'2", white male, but the strong survive and the weak do not.  They will rip each other to make certain that you are "strong." 

H.B.: Is it the uniforms? The guns? Or is there something unique to cops that make them so darn sexy?

James Buchanan: Part is the uniform.  Humans are hard wired for symbolism.  Watch how much disrespect a bike cop (no matter how hot) gets in his t-shirt and shorts over an officer in full blues.  Some is controlled power.  These people have the power to save us or destroy us.  Power, and the trappings of power, has always been an aphrodisiac. 

H.B.: In historical fantasy, you blur the line between history and fantasy. Between historic fact and a bit of magic, where is the balance that makes your world so solid and engaging?

James Buchanan: I'm not sure.  I just like playing the what if game.  I think part of it is that I don't make magic an all powerful panacea.  It is, for the most part, the purview of the rich.  And, even if you can afford magic, it may not work.  It is a human construct.  Like art, everyone has some ability to draw a line...most people can't create the Mona Lisa.  The stories give it out in small doses and what there is takes a long time to create. 

H.B.: Have you written stories that touch on the idea of liminality? Do you have characters that embody that ideal?

James Buchanan: Jules, from the Lord Carabas series is liminal.  Besides being bi-sexual (or omni-sexual) he is a half fairy who lives among humans, but he is not fully human.  He is on a continual search for what and who he is.  Like a search for gender identity a search for species identity when you straddle a gap is a continual reinvention of yourself.  He is constantly struggling with people's preconceived notions of what he physically presents as vs. how he was raised vs. how he views himself internally based on the social constructs of how he was raised and was treated.  Book four... when I get it written, is plotted out (as much as I ever plot out anything) to have a transsexual love interest.  That should (if I do it right) bring Jules to some greater understandings of his own fluctuating identity. 

In Inland Empire (book 2 in the Taking the Odds series) Brandon is aided by one of his street contacts, a transsexual hooker.  I know that is stereotypical...some things you have to fit in with the fact that my protagonist is a Vice cop, his circle of contacts is restricted by his job.  However, I really tried to present Roberta as a full fledged human being who may not have made some of the best choices but made valid and understandable choices given her history.  Also, I really worked on making Roberta someone who straddles the gender identity divide successfully.  I feel that she is one of the more positive characters in the book and I hope readers agree with me. 

H.B.: Was there ever a story you wanted to write, but never yet did? The one that got away?

James Buchanan: Lots and lots.  Too many plots and not enough time.  I don't throw anything "away" plot wise.  I have a whole folder titled just "bits."  I do joke that one of these days I'm going to write a story that is just the subject lines of all the spam emails I get. 

H.B.: If a reader is new to your writing, is there any one story you hope they'll find appealing? Perhaps a tale that is close to your heart?

James Buchanan: Depends on what they're looking for.  I have people who love Jules but can't stand my contemporary.  Or they fall in love with Nicky and Brandon but just don't get the whole AU historical universe.  I guess, from the recommendations I've seen, either Cheating Chance or The Good Thief would be good entries into my work.  They're romances with a definite Happy For Now ending and blend a good mix of romantic drama with mystery/suspense.  These are people you could meet on the street.  They punch clocks and have issues with their bosses and their boyfriends.  I think those are my most "accessible" books for most people. 

HB Kurtzwilde recently discussed the ongoing story Sea Of Glass with it's author AJ Wilde.  The story can be found at the Liminal Ink Live Journal Community:  http://community.livejournal.com/liminal_ink/profile

HB: How did the idea of Liminality influence the writing of this story?

AJW: I wanted to write a story which examined the concept of conscious choice of gender.  Human life begins as a dual-sexed being, and the selection is made in utero. We never have the chance to explore the "other".  I wanted to explore the premise "what if we had until the onset of adulthood to make a conscious choice about gender?" For those who feel they walk a line between one gender and the other, this may strike a few chords. If we were able to experience each to the full, would we make the right choice?  Or is it our nature never to be satisfied?

HB: Does this story fit in with your previous work, or is it a new experiment for you?

AJW: This is a new venture into the realm of sci-fi/fantasy. I wanted to do something which was in my heart, but yet quite distinct from anything I have previously published.

HB: Tell us a little about your writing method...

AJW: I don't have one. Ha ha, no. What I really mean is, I have no plan. I write entirely by the seat of my pants, intuitively, instinctively. Some folks call this "stream of consciousness". That sounds too high-fallutin' to me, so I prefer to say that I write by feel, you know - groping my way along in the semi-dark, with only the vague sensation of a storyline and characters whispering in my ear to guide me. Wait! That's a metaphor! How did that happen?! You see, that's how I write ... ;O

HB: How long have you been writing?

AJW: Since I was four, man. Oh, you mean professionally? I wrote my first Harlequin novel when I was twenty. Needless to say, it was rejected. My first publication came in Internet Year 1.1, 1995.

HB: What are your favorite genres? Why?

AJW: My favorite genre to write is contemporary, but with a twist. This could play out either as a supernatural event, or a time-shifting experience i.e. past life recall. Lately, I'm itching to venture into the vampire genre.

HB: How has the Internet changed writing?

AJW: I think it has created a wealth of opportunities, but also pitfalls. Writers have to be very careful when choosing a publisher, and readers need to learn to discriminate between good writing and bad. There is a lot of bad writing out there - but there is also a vast pool of extraordinary original talent, a lot of which would never have seen the light of day except for the Internet.

HB: How did you create these characters?

AJW: Uh. *scratches head* Dude, they were already there, just waiting for me to hear their voices. This is their story.

HB: Do you know how long the story will be when it is completed?

AJW: I have no idea really, but I'm figuring on around 80,000 words.

HB: Who influenced you to become a writer?

AJW: My Dad, my English teacher, and Virginia Woolf.

HB: Is there anything you do, other than writing, that helps you be a better writer?

AJW: Living. Reading. Loving. Hurting. Being.

Just one of the boys: from my earliest memories, that's how people have described me. 

I remember playing cars with the boys on my street.  By the time I was nine, I had the best toy car collection on the block.  The pride of my collection was a James Bond 007 Aston Martin, complete with bulletproof windshield, tire slashers and revolving license plate. 

Inheriting my cousin's Action Man knocked all my Barbies into a cocked hat.  He had the "winter whites" kit, with a white balaclava and snowshoes.  I was beside myself.  Oh, and Barbie?  She got a crewcut.  Demi Moore would have been proud.

I remember my Dad, one Christmas.  It was after dinner, and I was expected to go into the kitchen with ‘the women' to wash dishes and gossip and make noises like a neurotic chicken while picking apart the latest episode of Dynasty.  As if I ever watched soaps.  I'd sooner grind thumbtacks into my eyes.  My mother tracked me down in the living room where I was lurking, hoping to avoid my fate.  "You should be helping in the kitchen," she said, like it was written in the Bible.  Maybe it is, for all I know.  I turned big, brown eyes on my father, who was getting ready for the annual saunter to the pub with all the other male members of my family.  He looked me over - my eighteen-year-old self, in habitual torn jeans, t-shirt, ratty sneakers and a chain fastening my wallet to my belt. 

"Nah," he said, thoughtfully, lighting his pipe and winking at me through the curls of blue smoke.  "She doesn't have to do that.  She's one of the boys." 

The look on my mother's face was priceless.  A spike of joy ripped through my chest as I grinned at my Dad. We turned and walked out of that drab little room that tried and tried so hard to contain us.  It had failed.  Off we went to the pub:  my Dad, my uncle, my three male cousins, and me.  Bliss.

Nothing much has changed.  I still go to the pub and leave my dishes in the sink.  I drink beer out of the bottle.  I don't wear skirts, heels or makeup.  I don't own a purse.  I wouldn't be seen dead in pink.  My fingernails are short and naked.  I don't watch soaps, don't cry at movies, and I certainly don't iron.  I walk like a man, and kiss like a man.  I can change a tire by myself.  I can load and fire a shotgun (and yes, I have a permit for that).

But in spite of all this, I'm still a girl.  I'm not butch or frumpy.  I have long hair.  I wear my boi-style with a female touch.  I notice and appreciate hot guys (and my partner?  Heck, he's the hottest guy of them all ... !)  Speaking of guys:  I love ‘em.  My best friends in life have always been male.  They're straightforward, sometimes brutally honest, and they don't gossip.  They don't witter on and on about lipgloss or cookware for half an hour without taking a breath.  They're beautiful and sexy and smart and funny and sweet and loyal and kind and strong and faithful and steadfast.  They are my heroes, and if the measure of my admiration is a lifelong identification as just one of the boys, then I'm happy to buck convention and resist the kitchen sink for as long as I can. 

N.B.  A.J. Wilde is a multi-published author of homoerotic romance.  Currently published with Torquere Press, A.J. writes contemporary, historical and fantasy, always with a bit of a dramatic twist.  From contemporary short stories to historical novellas, you will always find plenty of drama, action and hot guys in A.J.'s work. A.J.'s characters include undercover cops, personal trainers and maverick lawyers to name just a few. If you're looking for an engaging drama, a tear-jerker romance or just a naughty romp, A.J. Wilde will not disappoint. A.J.'s published work to date has been m/m, but she is venturing into f/f very soon.

Originally from England, now residing in Canada, A.J. identifies with Pierre Trudeau as ‘a citizen of the world'.  Check out A.J.'s series of novellas about the experiences of a young man on a journey of self-discovery, entitled Soul Journeys, parts 1 and 2 of which are out at Torquere Press.