Q& A with Mystery Author David Housewright
Interviewed by Jeff Foster
David Housewright is the Edgar Award-winning author of the Holland Taylor and Rushmore McKenzie novels and other tales of murder and mayhem in the Midwest. His books include: Dead Boyfriends, Pretty Girl Gone, Tin City, Hard Ticket Home, Penance, Practice to Deceive and Dearly Departed.
David Housewright had just completed a book signing at Barnes & Noble in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. Being a Minnesota-born-and-bred author, David (he calls Roseville his home now, but affirms he is a St. Paul native at heart) takes great pride in meeting his fans at local venues. He also talked with the members of the Lady Killers Mystery Book club and spent the better part of an hour and a half, answering all questions and of course, signing books. I was lucky enough to be able to spend forty minutes interviewing this very intelligent and entertaining man.
Q: When did you start writing?
A: I really can’t remember, but I have been doing it for a very long time. My first book, SWINGING DANGER, was eight pages long, broken into four chapters. Most of my first books were really glorified essays where I was trying to get a message across—and failed miserably.
Q: How do you come up with your characters?
A: To answer, I need to tell you a story. After my first three books, W.W. Norton bought my publisher and inherited me. At first they liked what I had done. Then for a reason I have yet to find out, they decided to go in another direction. I had a tough time getting in touch with them, and they did not return my calls. They just went silent. My next publisher was not interested in picking up a series that already had three books, so I had to start over. This is when I came up with Rushmore Mackenzie. I wanted to create a character that was accessible—one that made you want to read more about him. Very real, emotional, and a genuinely good guy. A man satisfied by his actions.
Q: When do you write?
A: When the mood hits me. I don’t have a set time schedule as other authors might. I don’t sit down and say today I am going to write a page or four pages. I might have a day where I write a sentence, another day I write eight pages. I have never had a set schedule, as it does not work for me. I will say though, that as a manuscript gets closer to the finish, and the story in coming to a close, I get much more intense and will stay at it until I am done.
Q: What do you use to inspire your writing?
A: I am constantly researching. I have these set of envelopes that I put stuff into all the time: Newspaper clippings, magazines, personal experiences, current—events all sorts of stuff. I once found an article about a meat raffle, you know the kind that bars hold to benefit they local softball team? Anyway I liked that and figured out a way to work it into a story, I needed to meet a guy and wanted a unique place to do it, why not at a meat raffle? I also go to lunch with local cops, I have a friend at the BCA (Bureau of Criminal Apprehension) and listen to their stories. When I am done I quickly get my notebook out and write their stories down. That stuff goes into the envelopes. I’ve kept those things for years, some I’ll never use, but you never know. My family is not so sure about me in that regard.
Q: How long does it take you, on average, to complete a manuscript?
A: I really don’t have an average as they’re all different. TIN CITY took about four months. DEARLY DEPARTED took thirteen months. DEAD BOYFRIENDS took about six months. My new novel took about seven months. So it really depends—it takes as long as it takes.
Q: Q: Who is you’re favorite author?
A: E.L. Doctrow, who wrote RAGTIME. What a great story. I am reading more literature now than mysteries. It helps me keep out of the groove. If all I read is mysteries, I fear I will become just another mystery writer and not be all that different from the others. The best mysteries are the ones you can read over and over because they are just so well written and are about more than who killed whom. They have a theme like you usually only read in well-written literature.