Dave Malone. Poet, Ozarker, ribald. Or so it says on my website.
Could you tell us a little bit about your work in progress?
I will be launching a new website on Friday, April 15th, and I’ll be giving away a free poetry ebook, Spring in Love, which is part of a four-part series, Seasons in Love. It has romance, luv, sex, Ozarks, and nature.
What is the first story you remember writing? What was it about?
Sheesh. I was a sickly child in love with detective and crime stories and Encyclopedia Brown and the Hardy Boys. Often ill with pneumonia, I spent months out of school at home. The first things I recall writing in great depth were long-ass reports for school on all sorts of topics from Kansas history to liver function—but that careful attention to detail and to the habit of writing my ass off has stayed with me. I have structured my life in such a way that I work at a J-O-B very little, (which works very well with my frugal yet rich lifestyle). Thus, I have a shitload of time to write.
Are you more of a “plotter” or a “pantser”?
I’m definitely both. It really depends on the context of the project. As I mentioned, I’m working on a collection of four poetry volumes, Seasons in Love. That takes some plotting. I’m also writing crime fiction, too. On a case my detective has elements to deal with—and I want each of the stories to climax in what I call a “clusterfuck” to take a line form the film Heartbreak Ridge. To get to my clusterfuck takes planning. My friend owns a frame shop and she gave me huge sheets of thin brown paper that go between sheets of glass. I pin the large 3 foot by 3 foot paper to my wall and map out each story. That is the planning, but to get my private detective there, I often go by the seat of my pantalones!
All writers need encouragement. Who first encouraged you to write, and who is it that encourages you today?
I had two high school English teachers. Mrs. Winters and Mr. Clark. They gave me tough love and it worked. What I didn’t know then, which I know now, is the importance of getting my work to my niche audience. Publishing guru and emedia professional genius Jane Friedman has mentored me for some years. Her advice is crucial. Everyone who reads this interview must discover (if he or she has not already) Jane online here. Darrelyn Saloom is a good friend, fellow writer, and editor. Her advice has been crucial and her encouragement equals a whole lotta love. You have to have those kinds of people in your life.
Which authors have had a significant influence on your writing?
Henry Miller (god, he’s sexy). Erica Jong (god, she’s sexy). Diane Wakoski. Anne Sexton. Charles Bukowski. Hemingway, Faulkner, Daniel Woodrell, ee cummings, Wallace Stevens. William Stafford. Denise Low.
What music, if any, do you enjoy listening to while you write?
Hell, yes. Almost always have something goin’. What I listen to depends on the context. As I’ve been working on Ozark-themed (I live in the Ozarks) poems and stories, then I’ve been digging the sounds of the Hank Dogs, and I’m listening to their first album, Bareback. The band is British, but they’ve got some sounds, vibes, lyrics that make me feel the essence of the rural Ozarks. Ha Ha Tonka has also been on the iPod; they are an Ozarks band from my town, and a lilting song, “Caney Mountain,” from one of their older albums inspired a poem in the Spring in Love ebook. Lead man and songwriter Brian Roberts is a real poet—and those guys are real solid musically.
What are your greatest strengths and weaknesses as a writer?
Ah, shit. I love these easy questions. Ah hell, strengths are that I write my ass off, and I follow my heart. And I go balls out (can I use any more fun clichés?). But really, I have incredible energy, and the world stops, and I make the time to write. I have a great writing desk. And I’m a word guy. Starting off as a poet, I have that strength—the ability to put startling images together and to be unpretentious and honest. Weaknesses. How much room do I get here? J Lack of focus. I fall in love with too many projects and it distracts from what I need to be doing in the now. The new website launch and the focus on the poetry ebook series is fabulous for me—because I’m concentrating on my niche market. Most of my fans, all eight of them, when they think of me as a writer, think of me as a poet—and that is where most of my published work is, so I need to play to that (despite my love for writing crime stories, plays, and nonfiction).
What do you hope to achieve with your writing?
I want people to post my poems on their refrigerators. I want people to read my work, dig it, and share it. Lotta love and a lot of sharing. Let’s do it.
What was once traditionally a print medium is now rapidly branching out into many digital formats. What do you think of this trend?
Fuck yeah. I think about Henry Miller a lot and his lack of pretension. He would have leapt at the chance to bypass middlepersons to get his work to readers. We must do the same.
What was the last sentence that you had to re-read over and over again because of its awesomeness? What struck you about it?
I’ve been re-reading last year’s issue of the print literary journal, Spindrift. Amazing photographs and writings haunt this journal. A poem by Daelene King is essentially one long line that I’ll abbreviate here: “[Let’s] Roll into blue-bottled night…Declare ourselves recklessly lost, / Shipwrecked, again and again.” I really like this poem titled “Plans for the Weekend” and the notion of breaking an hourglass and the sense of losing time. That is the beauty of love and lovemaking—that you disappear for a while. And the “Roll into blue-bottled night”—what a great line! I love the sounds, the alliteration, and the image.
What book(s) have you recently read that you would recommend to the readers of this blog?
Philosophical. Alan Watts, Become Who You Are. We all gotta be Zen masters in a way in our writing journey.
Fiction. Daniel Woodrell, Give Us a Kiss. If you need to tighten up your fiction, read this. Woodrell is so tight…(Woodrell is the author of Winter’s Bone, which was adapted into a film that won Sundance this year.)
Poetry. Kevin Young, Dear Darkness. He’s a poet I’ve just discovered. And I’m really digging what he’s up to.
What advice do you have to other aspiring authors out there?
Fuckin’ write, write, write. Fuckin’ read, read, read. Go to graduate school with a great mentor and get a free ride and write your ass off. Wait, wait, wait before you publish anything. Make sure your writing is really tight, really solid. Don’t fuckin’ give up. Find a great editor/friend to work with. And pay them handsomely (if not with money, shower them with love and admiration and chocolate). Find out who your audience is and give ‘em what they want. Think outside the box and be willing to break some rules.
An apocalypse destroys the entirety of human literature, apart from the work of three authors that you can magically save with your wizardry – what do you save from imminent destruction?
Unknown author but the work is Epic of Gilgamesh (we gotta know how we started these literary shenanigans).
William Shakespeare. (I know, I know, but the themes, the drama, the blank verse!)
Alan Watts. (You want to be cool with being alive, no matter what goes down, so you gotta read him because Alan is the man.)
Our time is at an end. For our curious readers, how can we follow your progress?
The usual places. Online: davemalone.net Twitter: dzmalone.
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