Interview: Andrew Klavan on His Latest Thriller and Conservatives Creating Their Own Culture
by John NolteNote: This is the second part of a two-part interview. Part one can be found here.
Big Hollywood: Where did the idea for “The Last Thing I Remember” come from? I know there’s an evolution to a good story, well told. How did this evolve from that first spark to final draft?
Andrew Klavan: Some of it in this case was a matter of putting my money where my mouth is. For years, I’ve been complaining that there are no books with real boys in them, that when we want to write about manhood or patriotism or battling evil, we suddenly have to write about fantasy lands and dragons or Gotham City or whatever. There’s real evil in the world, real people who do real evil, and they need to be fought and there’s no appeasing them. So I started from that point of view. Let me just speak plainly about what we’re fighting for, what kind of people do the fighting and what they believe that empowers them and why. And I guess it started from that.
BH: I know the secret to your success is having your wife read everything first. Are you like me? Do you get angry at her criticism, especially when she’s right?
AK: LOL. I know your wife, you have the sweetest wife on earth and shame on you for getting mad at that good, good woman when she’s only trying to help. But yeah, I do exactly the same thing. You know how it is. We pour our hearts and souls into these things and at the point when we show them to our wives, we’re still raw with it, the wound is still bleeding. And she says, “This is the greatest novel I’ve ever read but on page 116, you misspelled whirligig,” and you’re, like, “How dare you, you harridan! Don’t you realize I’m an ARTIST??? I meant to spell it that way!!!” Luckily, my wife knows I worship the ground she walks on.
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BH: The writing “process” fascinates me. What’s yours? Do you set aside specific times each day, only write when you’re inspired? Long walks?
AK: I’m all discipline all the time. I’m at my desk between 7:30 and 8:00 and work at least till noon, sometimes more. Then I take a long lunch and get some exercise, tennis or karate or something, then I go back and do different types of writing chores, research and so on. Then at night I do my reading, which is very important. I think inspiration is misunderstood. Inspiration is what you start with. You wouldn’t be a writer if you didn’t have moments of inspiration, stories that appear out of the blue, fresh ways of seeing things, expressing things. In the moment, the work is a matter of craft but the inspiration informs that. It’s not like a light bulb goes on over your head and you have to rush to your keyboard. Not usually anyway.
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BH: Last year you wrote “Empire of Lies“, a brilliant novel that hit number one on the Amazon.com thriller list. You’ve been a best-selling, critically acclaimed author for a couple decades now. What was the reaction from the critics to “Empire,” as compared to your previous novels?
AK: Well, thank you for that. The reaction was pretty dramatic. I’ve been writing novels for years and have won, if I may say so, multiple awards and have gotten generally terrific reviews in hundreds of venues. Suddenly Empire of Lies comes out and the hero is a political conservative who finds Christ and you could’ve heard a pin drop. I think I got one mainstream review. Called me “a right wing crackpot.” That was it. The rest was pretty much silence. Luckily, though, a lot of good people stepped up and helped me publicize the book: Glenn Beck, Mike Gallagher, the people at NRO and, oh yeah, some guy named Nolte. I wonder whatever happened to him. I heard he ripped off some public funds and went to Venezuela to work with Hugo Chavez. Oh no, wait, that was Obama. I always get those two confused.
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BH: It’s amazing how this works. A writer like Stephen King can overstuff his novels, especially some of his later stuff, with left-wing talking points, speak out on politics regularly through his Entertainment Weekly column, and elsewhere – but he remains “Novelist and Storyteller Stephen King.” And there are many other examples. But you do the same thing on the conservative side and the AP writes you off as a “crackpot.”
AK: You know what? It is amazing. And you know what else? We have to stop being amazed. We have to just take it as given that the mainstream venues are against us, the awards won’t go to us, the reviewers will attack us-sometimes without even admitting why. We have to speak up for ourselves, we have to review each other, honestly and fairly, we have to buy the books that stand up for what’s right-assuming they’re good, assuming they do what they’re supposed to do, entertain, tell good stories. We have to understand that the media is our enemy-the enemy of the American idea, our founders’ ideas-and we have to make our own arts, and celebrate our arts and reward our arts-and then we’ll see who wins in the marketplace.
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BH: You have stepped up your profile as a kind of “Culture Warrior” through your editorials in the major newspapers and your work at Pajamas Media, but I think it’s harder for our side to do this, as opposed to a George Clooney or Gore Vidal, who are allowed to compartmentalize their activism and creative work.
AK: Yes, it is easier for them that way. But it’s harder for them too because they’re talking absolute nonsense and we’re telling the simple truth: that liberty is a great good and worth defending, that right is right and wrong is wrong and moral relativity is merely a form of cowardice, that the individual is more important than the state, that our rights come from our Creator. See, they can attack us, try to silence us, maybe crush us-but they can’t beat us because we’re right and they’re wrong. The truth is not so coincidentally a lot like Jesus, dude. You mock it, you torture it, you kill it-and yet there it stands. I try not to worry about what they “allow,” or what they say is permissable. I try to hitch my wagon to the truth and hold on.
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BH: As one of the first out there calling on conservatives to get seriously engaged in the culture, how are we doing compared to a few years ago?
AK: Good. Better. But not good enough. We got guys like you and Andrew Breitbart and you are both, I flatter you not, mighty warriors, cutting a way through the evil minions. Every time I come on your site and see IowaHawk and Steven Crowder or go over to PJTV and see my colleague Alfonzo Rachel there doing his thing, my heart leaps up. This is new, fresh stuff and it’s paving a way. On the negative side, I’m still seeing too much complaining and not enough creating. Not enough novels reviewed in conservative venues, no awards for novels and movies from conservatives, no new cultural infra-structure to oppose the left, no money to make films that defend individualism and American values. The left-and by the left I mean all the so-called mainstream venues-the left is not going to help us, they’re not going to reform, they have to be opposed and outdone. We have to turn our backs on them-stop trying to win their Oscars and Emmys and Pulitzers-and begin to make a new American culture.
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BH: For lack of a better term, since “coming out” what’s the best thing that’s come of it, or happened?
Oh, that’s easy. I wrote a piece for City Journal called the Big White Lie, about what a relief it was to stop paying lip service to liberal lies. To stop pretending that men and women are the same, for instance, or that all cultures are morally equivalent and so on. For an artist to be chained to a system of dishonesty is, in some ways, more destructive than being put in prison. At least in prison, you know you have to resist the power. PC hogwash gets into your head, infects your thinking. Once I freed myself from it, once I broke out of the Matrix, I think I started writing the best stuff I’ve ever written, thinking with greater clarity, seeing life more precisely as it is. I’ll put what I’m doing next to anything anyone’s doing in the field. And that’s pure joy.
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BH: What’s the worst?
AK: Money. It’s a lot harder for me to make money. I can’t just pick up screenplay work in Hollywood like I could before-I can’t work in Hollywood at all. I’m doing the best work of my life and, because the reviewers ignore or attack me, I have to work twice as hard to publicize it and get the word out. But I haven’t lost a moment’s sleep over it. I know I’m doing the right thing.
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BH: Who should read “The Last Thing I Remember”? Who should we be buying this book for?
AK: Well, I’ve shown it to both boys and girls as young as ten and as old as 25 and have yet to get anything but an ecstatic reaction. A friend of mine over at NRO told me he found his two sons, 12 and 14, fighting over it because both were so wrapped up in it. I had to explain to him the whole buy-another-copy concept. Also, Charlie has ambitions to be in the military, so if you have friends overseas, they might like it, they might see themselves in it. And hey, you told me you really liked it and you look like you’re pushing 90, at least, so maybe it can skew older too, I don’t know. But between 10 and 25, so far I’m batting a thousand.
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“The Last Thing I Remember” is published by Thomas Nelson and scheduled for release April 28th. You can pre-order it today at Amazon.com.
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27 Comments
So much of what you say is true, and I'm enjoying watching your progress with this. If asked in a relaxed environment and absent leading or push questions, a huge majority of Americans define their view of what America is and ought to be in very traditional terms. Leaving out the "wedge issues" which force people into the corner of picking a party or a candidate, most sound like modern versions of the Founding Fathers. Yet less than30% of people describe themselves as conservative, because they've been taught "conservative" means "reactionary." It's amazing how many of my self-identified liberal friends have values almost identical to mine, but still manage to vote for candidates and parties which promote the things that destroy those values. Your work is a valuable addition to the absolutely necessary program of clarifying the meaning of the word "conservative" without changing the meaning of the philosophy itself.
I have a friend who has two teenaged boys whom I think might like to read this interview and possibly read the book, however, I cannot email her the interview because the "image verification" fails repeatedly. BH needs to fix that.
it is true that the MSM has been somewhat successful in linking conservatism with their litany of marxist bromides, racism, sexism, (yawn) homophobia, et. al. But we think they are too clever by half- and the need for absolute control in a society that generally rejects such behavior has them spinning and dancing and flip-flopping tortured half-truths… it is good to see authors such as this; we like to think our own efforts at fiction
(more on those later) are also doing the Lord's work- not to be ashamed of, either…
Love your comment. I am currently making a film right now about this very same thing. I am totally with you, Andrew.
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" Interview: Andrew Klavan on His Latest Thriller and Conservatives Creating Their Own Culture"
I would suggest that we have no need to "create our Culture" our culture is and has always been what America is about. It is the left that is "creating a new culture" of Marxism, Communism and Socilisim in America. We should think and act, as if it is US that controls the language.
I was thinking about Stephen King just before I read your remarks about him as I just read a short biography of him. In it he says "I believe in God." He doesn't hedge it or apologize for it, either. Politically he's an avowed liberal, but I love the fact that the literature establishment has always despised him because he sells millions of books and won't beg contrition from them for cashing his royalty checks.
It was always our culture. What went wrong is that we need to deMarxify it… And if that sounds a little too much like a procedure performed by exterminators, I assure it serves much the same purpose. American popular culture has a termite infestation that would make the Orkin man blanch white.
Good to know that you two are on the conservative side. But as to your point about creating on own culture, whatever happened to the Liberty Film Festival? After the fall of the Libertas site, I've seen nothing regarding it's life, or demise.
Though I'm not a big Jason Apuzzo fan, the festival was an important conservative voice in Hollywood. Would hate to see it vanish.
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OK, since conservatives are not going to get the awards or recognition, what are we to do? What is the plan of action. I'm a so-cal mom, what can women like myself do to promote conservatives in the arts? Is there more then just buying the book or attending the movie? And by the way, my fifteen yr old has an Alfonzo Rachel video on her facebook. I believe it's the most recent one where he blows up a condom. Loved that one, but they're all great.
I totally agree about creating our own media culture. As it is now, Hollywood, the newspapers, the networks, etc, are quite literally our enemies and we should stop trying to get them to be fair. They never will be. Abandon them and go our own way.
I agree. We need to just create our own media. Obviously, it is the money that is the issue. Eventually, people will do this and hopefully it will be good enough to replace what's there.
Right – when it comes to telling our stories, about our heroes and heroines, singing our songs, making our movies and writing books about what matters to us – we must do an end-run, and get our creations out there, any way we can, through our friends and fans, through blogs and websites, networks of like-minded fans. I got so tired of trying to get my own books (historical novels, about the American frontier) paid any attention to through the usual suspects… I went with a small boutique press run by another IAG (Independent Author's Guild) writer… whose book I had reviewed, and he did me the honor of also editing my Adelsverein Trilogy. His backing probably contributed to the Trilogy scoring a pre-release review in True West Magazine… but my own mad networking skilz also me got a lovely review from PODBRAM (small press and POD book review site) and another review from yet another IAG member who reviews for the Historical Novels Society publication… and when I got involved in the San Antonio Tea Party last week, it was yet one more blogger-friend (who had put together the committee who planned the whole thing!) who had the notion of presenting Glenn Beck with a complete set of the Trilogy, with all of us on the committee signing it.
So – yes, we have networks, yes we have connections and an audience – stop wasting energy bashing our heads against the walls of the established paradigm. Don't waste your energy, hoping they will let you in. Go around them. Be subversive. Work your own networks. Create them, from the ground up, if the situation calls for it. We have the means, now. When the situation hands you lemons… make Tarte au Citron out of them. Adapt. Overcome. Move on.
[...] C.H. Scarlett’s Blog created an interesting post today on Interview: Andrew Klavan on His Latest Thriller and ConservativesHere’s a short outline…time I come on your site and see IowaHawk and Steven Crowder or go over … and American values. The left-and by the left I mean all the so [...]
Thank you both for the great interview. Lots of good things to keep in mind for those of us seeking to remain true to ourselves as we move about this Hollywood terrain. I hope there are many more of these type interviews @ BH in the future.
AK, I enjoy reading your commentary and your new work @ PMTV is excellent. I wish you continued success.
You're stand up guys…nice job.
[...] Administrator added an interesting post today on Interview: Andrew Klavan on His Latest Thriller and Conservatives Creating…Here’s a small readingNote: This is the second part of a two-part interview. Part one can be found here. Big Hollywood: Where did the idea for “The Last Thing I Remember” come from? I know there’s an evolution to a good story, well told. How did this evolve from that first spark to final draft? Andrew Klavan:… [...]
Good interview, though I would take issue with only one thing, that writing about reality is preferable to writing about fantasy. The use of symbolism and allegories can be really helpful in getting a message, in getting people to think about the principles themselves instead of sometimes controversial concrete examples. Movies/books like LOTR trilogy and The Dark Knight are not only excellent examples of a conservative philosophy, they are also highly popular among the public and therefore potentially better at spreading the message. Other than that, great commentary on conservative culture.
John Grisham does include strong Christian themes in his books such as "The Chamber" and "The Testament", but his politics are certainly lefty (in "The Appeal" quite cartoonishly so.)
Dean Koontz also writes books that have Conservative, Christian values. Sort of the anti-Stephen King although he said that he is surprised that his books are considered to be in the horror genre since he views them as suspense. He is, in my opinion, a heck of a story teller. He also has some very interesting things to say about his dealings with Hollywood producers and directors!
I'm in total agreement HHWoman. I'm a HUGE Dean Koontz fan for that very fact. And because his writing shocks my Broca's Area at every page. I have no idea about his politics, but he spews common sense. And his stories are always about ordinary good overcoming extraordinary evil. His heroes are strong men with strong character and unmistakably honest. And he consistently toys with the shallowness of the glitz and glamor world.
One of my favorite Koontz stories is when he was sent out to, I believe, Conan O'Brian, or some other late night show, to promote a movie of one of his books. The story had been completely butchered, with the Hollywood execs needing to make it more PC.
When asked by Conan if people should see the movie, Koontz replied, "Well, if you have the choice of seeing this movie or nailing your hand to the wall, I'd nail my hand to the wall."
Honesty. I love that about him.
Andrew,
Just picked up your book today. I must say it was a very good read. I do not usually sit down in one day and read a book but this one was well worth spending the time. I do see the conservative side along with a little capitalist towards the end in your writing. Great read! Fantastic character developed! I look forward to picking up more of your writing.
I recently had the misfortune to read a Michael Connelly novel THE OVERLOOK.I could not believe that the supposed protagonist of the book:HARRY BOSCH;a 1st grade det.(God forbid) could be such a limp-brain in 1 chptr that he actually phoned the NY Times upon being informed by the FBI & OHS that a terrorist entered the USA.The author is actually DUMB enough to think Im dumb enough to respect the Times as a source of info on anything,much less terrorism.
I fear dark times ahead for this nation.The "stupid"factor is rising quickly.The funny thing is that all throughout the Reagan & Bush yrs,lefties whined about the "dumbing down" of America cause we voted in conservatives.Where are the whiners now that weve finally fallen down to the dumbest level ever?
The left-and by the left I mean all the so-called mainstream venues-the left is not going to help us, they’re not going to reform, they have to be opposed and outdone. We have to turn our backs on them-stop trying to win their Oscars and Emmys and Pulitzers-and begin to make a new American culture.
I love that statement! In response to some of the posts we are a reactionary group as a whole. The "conservatives" are always reacting to something not pushing an idea or forcing the enemy to react to us. What are we conserving anyway? We're being taxed to death, literally. Our religious freedom is eroding, our military is mocked, the Constitution is barely followed and many times ridiculed and ignored.
The free enterprise is being destroyed. Babies are being destroyed. Marriage is being destroyed and redefined.
What are we conserving? It's time we threw down the gauntlet and tell it like it is!
We are the American Way! If you don't believe in the Constitution in it's original form, that our rights come from our Creator and we're meant to be self sufficient, moral free men than you are an anti-American.
That is about as anti-PC you can get! I no longer use the word "conservative". It means nothing anymore. "But what should we call ourselves?" AMERICANS! PRO AMERICANS! SONS OF LIBERTY! ANY NAME THAT REFLECTS OUR IDEALS!
Sorry, folks but the term "conservative" is dead IMHO. Our culture has been dead for decades. We lost that war in the 60's. Why do you think it was called a "cultural revolution"?
Almost everything "conservative" is a reaction to the anti-American left. Even the so called defenders of the right wimp out in crunch time. Who did Levin, Limbaugh, Hannity, Beck, Savage and Coulter, etc. really push for president?
The flip floppers and lite weights like Romney, Thompson, Huckabee, and even Guliani!
Yet Duncan Hunter, Tancredo and Chuck Baldwin almost never mentioned and at times mocked.
Don't get me started on how Palin was trashed by the GOP and McCain!
Most of those so called leaders of the right ignored hard core "conservatives" in congressional races too.
You all know this to be true. WE need a revolution amongst ourselves! I see it every time a celeb comes out of the closet, so to speak and touts some American ideal and we get all excited! Wow, one of them actually likes us!
Many of us on the "right" act like beggars and defeated. If we truly are on the right side of history and if we truly believe our ideas come from God then why do we act like paupers?
The media will NEVER do the right thing! Our schools will NEVER teach real history!
Until we start kicking ass and taking names. Strength is always respected and revered.
As long as we continue acting like beggars we will lose this until another generation rises up and does our dirty work for us.
[...] the gist of the argument from a recent Klavan interview on Big Hollywood: We have to just take it as given [...]
[...] the gist of the argument from a recent Klavan interview on Big Hollywood: We have to just take it as given [...]
Very insightful. I enjoyed this.
Once again, stumbled on it by checking out John's contributor's link!
Yes, I think the vision has to be exactly that, a vision. We can't try to remake Hollywood or mainstream media, at least not in the way it is set up today. It's a fixed game. You can't go in and play in a fixed game and expect to win with honesty. You need to leave that game, and start another, honest one.
Hollywood is a giant that cannot be convinced or persuaded to be honest, see reason, or accept other views, namely conservative ones.
Here in Asia, history is an important teacher. Here's an example that, I think, relates. China has been invaded many times throughout its history. In every instance, the invaders became Chinese. It's too big to be invaded. The invaders, no matter how powerful or vast were always absorbed into the culture of China.
I see the same thing happening with Hollywood. No matter how much common sense someone makes, when they enter the giant of Hollywood liberalism, they become part of that giant, if they want to get work, that is.
We've got to leave the game and start a new one. The new media, digital technology in filmmaking makes this the very best time to do so. The very best time. We have the vision, the ideas, the stories, and the talent. But we need the financing to start building the infrastructure to get the content out to global eyes, ears and hearts. Quality content.
It's our move, the liberal establishment is not going to lend a hand, that's for sure.
Good luck to us.
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