Jensen, William
WORK TITLE: Cities of Men
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: http://www.williamjensenwrites.com/
CITY:
STATE: TX
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY:
http://wellwortharead.blogspot.com/2017/03/cities-of-men-novel-by-william-jensen.html
RESEARCHER NOTES:
LC control no.: n 2017012465
LCCN Permalink: https://lccn.loc.gov/n2017012465
HEADING: Jensen, William, 1981-
000 00493cz a2200145n 450
001 10392688
005 20170306100155.0
008 170306n| azannaabn |n aaa
010 __ |a n 2017012465
040 __ |a DLC |b eng |e rda |c DLC
046 __ |f 1981-08-05 |2 edtf
053 _0 |a PS3610.E5665
100 1_ |a Jensen, William, |d 1981-
670 __ |a Cities of men, 2017: |b ECIP t.p. (William Jensen)
670 __ |a Email from publisher, March 6, 2017: |b “b. 8/5/1981, Not the same author as William Jensen, Adder in the Path (2012)”
PERSONAL
Born August 5, 1981.
EDUCATION:Attended Texas State University.
ADDRESS
- Home - TX.
CAREER
Writer and editor. Editor of Southwestern American Literature and Texas Books in Review.
WRITINGS
- Alfred Jensen: The Number Paintings, PaceWildenstein (New York, NY), 2006
- Cities of Men: A Novel, Turner (Nashville, TN), 2017
Contributor of short stories to publications, including the New Plains Review, Texas Review, and Stoneboat.
SIDELIGHTS
William Jensen is a writer based in Texas. He attended Texas State University, Jensen has served as the editor for Texas Books in Review and Southwestern American Literature. His short stories have appeared in publications, including the New Plains Review, Texas Review, and Stoneboat.
In 2017, Jensen released Cities of Men: A Novel. The narrator of the book is a twelve-year-old named Cooper Balsam, whose mother has abandoned him and left him to live with his father, Percy. Percy is a veteran, who is dealing with PTSD from the time he spend in Vietnam. Cooper begins palling around with a delinquent classmate. Later, Cooper and Percy go on a lengthy journey to find Cooper’s mother, Arden.
In an interview with Fiona McVie, contributor to the Author’s Interviews website, Jensen explained how he developed the idea for the story. He stated: “I had this image in my head, a type of Treasure Island scene. I saw this boy hiding behind some crates in a church basement, and he was watching his father fight in a bare-knuckle boxing competition. I kept thinking about what was going on, who were these people. The more I thought about all of it, the more things began to take shape.” Regarding the book’s title, he told McVie: “I had a real hard time finding the right title. I had a few ideas but none felt right. I searched the Bible and Shakespeare for inspiration. Then one day I was rereading Tennyson and came across the line ‘For always roaming with a hungry heart/Much have I seen and known; cities of men/And manners, climates, councils, governments,/Myself not least, but honour’d of them all;’ and I knew I had my title. The themes of Ulysses connect to my book in multiple ways.” In an interview with Michael Noll, writer on the Read to Write Stories website, Jensen commented on how he developed the characters and themes in the book. He stated: “Obviously, my characters have a clear and distinct conflict, which is a missing person. And this could have become a thriller if the characters were a little different—a bit harder, darker—or if I was just a different type of writer. I did have some scenes in the first draft that were slightly inspired by Richard Stark’s stuff, but these felt out of place and didn’t ring true—however I admit I love writing those types of scenes. I enjoy mysteries and thrillers.” Jensen added: “I am a big fan of Raymond Chandler and James Ellroy. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris is excellent. There’s a reason why David Foster Wallace used to teach it. I like the Jesse Stone novels by Robert B. Parker a lot. Jim Thompson’s The Grifters is a total masterpiece. Some of those books are incredibly tight. Though I tend to have crime and violence in my fiction, my first and main concern is writing about devastating moments in the lives of ordinary people.”
According to a reviewer in Publishers Weekly: “Jensen memorably portrays Cooper … but poorly developed secondary characters detract from the novel’s impact.” A writer on the Thoughts from Irene website described the book as “a tense but not over emotional read, touching on the subjects of depression, PTSD and parental relationships. It makes you wonder how much you really know about your parents, and how much you would really want to know.” “If you are looking for a book in which the author explores and writes a wonderful twelve year old MC and to feel like you are that age again, this might just be the book for you,” remarked a contributor to the All Books Considered website.
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Publishers Weekly, March 27, 2017, review of Cities of Men: A Novel, p. 73.
ONLINE
All Books Considered, http://booksconsidered.blogspot.com/ (May 9, 2017), review of Cities of Men.
Author’s Interviews, https://authorsinterview.wordpress.com/ (August 5, 2017), Fiona McVie, author interview.
Read To Write Stories, https://readtowritestories.com/tag/cities-of-men/ (September 7, 2017), Michael Noll, author interview and review of Cities of Men.
Thoughts From Irene, http://wellwortharead.blogspot.com/ (March 3, 2017), review of Cities of Men.
William Jensen Website, http://www.williamjensenwrites.com/ (December 15, 2017).
- Alfred Jensen: The Number Paintings PaceWildenstein (New York, NY), 2006
- Cities of Men: A Novel Turner (Nashville, TN), 2017
- William Jensen Writes - http://www.williamjensenwrites.com/about.html
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I grew up in California and Arizona. My short stories have been published in places such as The Texas Review, New Plains Review, Stoneboat, and elsewhere. I can literally say I've been writing for over half my life now, and I still have the first rejection letter I got. In 2011, 2014, and 2017, I received Pushcart Prize nominations. Currently, I am the editor of Southwestern American Literature and Texas Books in Review. Both journals focus on the men and women of letters in Texas and the greater Southwest.My debut novel, Cities of Men, is in bookstores now.
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QUOTED: "I had this image in my head, a type of Treasure Island scene. I saw this boy hiding behind some crates in a church basement, and he was watching his father fight in a bare-knuckle boxing competition. I kept thinking about what was going on, who were these people. The more I thought about all of it, the more things began to take shape."
"I had a real hard time finding the right title. I had a few ideas but none felt right. I searched the Bible and Shakespeare for inspiration. Then one day I was rereading Tennyson and came across the line 'For always roaming with a hungry heart/Much have I seen and known; cities of men/And manners, climates, councils, governments,/Myself not least, but honour’d of them all;' and I knew I had my title. The themes of Ulysses connect to my book in multiple ways."ABOUT
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MIKE WALSH INTERVIEWED ME ( FIONA MCVIE )
authorsinterviews ~ My interviews with many authors
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Here is my interview with William Jensen
05
Saturday
Aug 2017
Posted by fionamcvie1964 in Uncategorized ≈ 1 Comment
Hello and welcome to my blog, Author Interviews. My name is Fiona Mcvie.Thank you for having me here, Fiona.
Let’s get you introduced to everyone, shall we? Tell us your name. What is your age?
My name is William Jensen. And as of August 5th I am officially thirty-six, and I still have all my fingers and all my toes.
Fiona: Where are you from?
I grew up in California and Arizona, but I now live in Central Texas in the area known as The Hill Country. I live between Austin and San Antonio, so I’m near a lot of metropolitan things while remaining close to the wide open spaces of the Lone Star State.
Fiona: A little about your self (ie, your education, family life, etc.).
I went to public schools in out west. As soon as I graduated I went to an old and prestigious college on the east coast. Things didn’t work out too well for me there, so I left and started to really try to write. I bummed around for a while, catching some education here and there. I did odd jobs while writing short stories and novels that no one wanted to read, and I collectedmany rejection letters along the way. I think every literary journal in the country rejected me once. I got my first rejection note when I was seventeen, I got my first two acceptances back to back when I was twenty-nine. Persistence paid off.
Fiona: Tell us your latest news.
I’m proud to announce that in May I published my debut novel, Cities of Men, a coming-of-age story set in the 1980s. The book is about a mother who disappears, and her twelve-year-old son sets out across the American Southwest in search of her. The reviews and feedback have been positive so far, so people are enjoying the book, which makes me super happy.
Fiona: When and why did you begin writing?
I think I’ve been writing for as long as I could hold a pencil. I grew up in a house full of books, and my parents were big readers who had both been English majors in college, so I was raised with the idea that writing was a noble pursuit. Even before I could read I thought books were magical. They had a warm and pleasant smell. And I loved opening up my parents’ books and finding old receipts and notes. I tried writing all types of stories as a kid. Then when I was thirteen I discovered Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, and that book seared the writing bug in me. To really write something beautiful about the human heart, the human experience.
Fiona: When did you first consider yourself a writer?
I think I had several “first times” to be honest. When I was in high school, I was writing these short stories—not very good ones—but I wrote a few that were probably decent for a teenager who hadn’t really done or seen anything. I wrote one story about a kid who meets his estranged and criminal father for the first time. That was a breakthrough for me. Then a few years later, when I was living in this dilapidated house in downtown Chicago, I wrote my first story about Arizona, about the stuff I knew and not trying to imitate someone else. That was another time, a regeneration if you will, when I felt like a writer.
Fiona: What inspired you to write your first book?
I had this image in my head, a type of Treasure Island scene. I saw this boy hiding behind some crates in a church basement, and he was watching his father fight in a bare-knuckle boxing competition. I kept thinking about what was going on, who were these people. The more I thought about all of it, the more things began to take shape.
Fiona: How did you come up with the title?
I had a real hard time finding the right title. I had a few ideas but none felt right. I searched the Bible and Shakespeare for inspiration. Then one day I was rereading Tennyson and came across the line “For always roaming with a hungry heart/Much have I seen and known; cities of men/And manners, climates, councils, governments,/Myself not least, but honour’d of them all;” and I knew I had my title. The themes of Ulysses connect to my book in multiple ways. At least I think so.
Fiona: Do you have a specific writing style? Is there anything about your style or genre that you find particularly challenging?
I find everything about writing incredibly challenging! It’s all hard! I think of my writing style a bit like the way guys like Ty Cobb or Pete Rose played baseball.… by sheer force of will. For me writing sentences is like hammering spikes. My back and shoulders ache at the end of the day. Having a solid routine helps.
Fiona: How much of the book is realistic and are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
Really none of it. It’s common for people to wonder how much of a novel is autobiographical, but my real life is way too boring to be a book. And I was nowhere near as tough as my narrator when I was twelve. I tried to capture California and Arizona as best I could, but I don’t think of that being autobiographical.
Fiona: To craft your works, do you have to travel? Before or during the process?
I tend to imagine places long after I’ve been there—for me it has to be natural. I have to know the places already to write about them. Driving out to some place for research won’t work for me, it will come across as fake and insincere. I learned that the hard way.
Fiona: Who designed the covers?
A wonderful artist just up the road in Austin. His name is Kevin Tong, and he does a lot of movie posters. When my publishers showed me the initial sketch I jumped out of my seat in excitement. I think it captures everything about the novel perfectly. You can see more of his artwork at
https://tragic-sunshine.myshopify.com
Fiona: Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
I’m not sure I would say there’s a message, but I think the characters learn some things about life and themselves that readers will be able to identify with.
Fiona: Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest? Who is your favorite writer, and what is it about their work that really strikes you?
I could go on for hours. I’ve discovered so many new wonderful writers lately, it’s insane. Chris Riley, whom you’ve interviewed, I think his book is superb! A total page turner. Casey Pycior has some amazing short stories. And though she isn’t “new” the (fairly) recently released collected stories of Lucia Berlin (A Manual For Cleaning Women)was the best book of the year in my opinion. All of them write about real people who get into real conflicts. I can’t stand fiction that’s just someone staring out a window. That’s not for me.
My favorite writer changes daily. I still return to Faulkner a lot. I got to study under Tim O’Brien, and his work has had a huge impact on me. All of his sentences arehome-runs. I’m also a big fan of James Jones who wrote From Here To Eternity. His prose is so incredibly raw and honest, I really think he is as close to Tolstoy as an American writer has gotten. I look to him for inspiration not just as a writer but as a man—he proved to me that writing should be an act of self-improvement, that writing well should make you a better person, more patient, sensitive, and sympathetic.
Fiona: Outside of family members, name one entity that supported your commitment to become a published author.
That would easily be John Mark Sibley-Jones. He’s a fantastic southern writer whose bookBy The Red Glare is about the Civil War and Sherman’s burning of South Carolina. He and I met right when I was about to throw in the towel. My room was covered in rejection slips, he read some of my stuff and gave me real encouragement. If it wasn’t for him…I wouldn’t be here now.
Fiona: Do you see writing as a career?
A career, a passion, a religion, a habit, my everything.
Fiona: If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book?
You know, probably not. It took me years and years to write this sucker, so I think I took it as far as I could.
Fiona: Did you learn anything during the writing of your recent book?
Tons! I learned how important it is to juggle when writing a novel. There have to be several flaming swords in the air at all time. After years of focusing on the short story, being obsessed with being concise, I had to switch gears and figure out how to let my world grow, let other elements seep into the narrative. I’ll always be learning.
Fiona: If your book was made into a film, who would you like to play the lead?
Well, I think a young Gene Hackman would have made a fine Percy—the father in the novel who struggles with PTSD. Of course he’s too old now (and retired). Probably someone like Tom Hardy or Jeremy Renner would get the role today. It would be a tough character to take on. Maybe Christina Hendricks or Jessica Chastain for Arden, the missing mother.
Fiona: Any advice for other writers?
Read, read, read. You should read more than you write. You should be able to talk about Twain like he lived down the street. Read the classics, see what has endured and why. Read poetry, too. Read William Blake, Alexander Pope,John Donne. Another thing to think about when you’re writing is to never forget the reader. Don’t confuse the reader, don’t bore the reader. Think about what information the reader needs, cut out the rest. Elmore Leonard nailed it when he said he started getting good when he beganleaving out the parts readers skip.
Fiona: Anything specific you want to tell your readers?
Thank you! You’re beautiful.
Fiona: What book are you reading now?
A few months ago I read this great biography of Shirley Jackson called A Rather Haunted Lifeby Ruth Franklin, so now I’m revisiting the short stories of Mrs. Jackson, The Lottery and Other Stories.
Fiona: Do you remember the first book you read?
I think it was one of those Berenstain Bears books. The Spooky Old Tree, if I recall. It was a long time ago. I remember I was in kindergarten, and my friend Kevin had already learned to read, and I was incredibly jealous of him. One day Kevin and I were sitting in the classroom during play-time, both of us had our books in our laps, he was reading while I was struggling and then *snaps fingers* it was like everything came into focus. Just like that. I even yelled out, “I can read!” I was very proud.
Fiona: What makes you laugh/cry?
My sense of humor is pretty dark. I’ll leave it at that.
Fiona: Is there one person, past or present, you would love to meet? Why?
There are many fictional people I’d like to meet. But not that many historical ones.
Fiona: Do you have any hobbies?
I’m not sure if I do. I’m always so busy these days. I enjoy exercise, bicycling, cooking, playing chess. I used to play a lot of guitar but not as much now. I really like hiking and camping, but it’s hard to get off into the wilderness when you use all your free time to write.
Fiona: What TV shows/films do you enjoy watching?
I’m a huge movie buff. I have probably close to a 100 films on Blu Ray and DVD. I love the film noirs of the ’40s—anything with Bogart. I can watch Abbott and Costello just about anytime, no matter what mood I’m in. I’m also a huge fan of westerns. Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch is easily my favorite film, and I watch it at least once a year. Lots of foreign language films, too. Bergman’s Cries and Whispers, Kurosawa’s Ikiru—those films are masterpieces comparable to the greatest works of literature. Television is going through a complete golden era right now. I hope it goes on for a while. True Detective, Fargo, The Knick, Boardwalk Empire, Mad Men—I think those shows are wonderful. Every episode of Mad Men was like a great short story by John Cheever.
Fiona: Favorite foods, colors, music?
Porterhouse with scallops and mashed potatoes. And all types of breakfast foods—I love eggs. My music taste is all over the place: classical, jazz, Americana, you name it. There’s a Swedish group called First Aid Kit that I’ve been listening to a lot lately. I love to play Bach and Vivaldi in the morning, Diana Krall or Miles Davis at night, and Johnny Cash while I’m driving with the windows down.
Fiona: Imagine a future where you no longer write. What would you do?
If I had to do it all over again but writing wasn’t an option, I’d like to be an actor in a Shakespeare company. That way I could always be around the master’s language.
Fiona: What do you want written on your head stone?
“To be alive is to be happy.”
Is that hokey?
Fiona: Do you have a blog or website readers can visit for updates, events and special offers?
Yes! People can read more about me, about my novel, and find out about upcoming readings and other events at www.williamjensenwrites.com
I often blog there about books and give writing advice. People can also follow me on Twitter @wjwriter, and they can easily find me on Facebook.
Thanks so much for having me as a guest, Fiona. This has been a lot of fun.
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1 THOUGHT ON “HERE IS MY INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM JENSEN”johntsheasaid:August 7, 2017 at 2:29 am
Interesting! Thanks to Fiona McVie and William Jensen and slightly belated birthday greetings to Mr. Jensen!
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QUOTED: "Jensen memorably portrays Cooper ... but poorly developed secondary characters detract from the novel's impact."
11/13/2017 General OneFile - Saved Articles
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MARK_LIST&userGroupName=schlager&inPS=true&prodId=ITOF&ts=1510633932861 1/1
Print Marked Items
Cities of Men
Publishers Weekly.
264.13 (Mar. 27, 2017): p73.
COPYRIGHT 2017 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Cities of Men
William Jensen. Turner, $15.95 trade paper
(256p) ISBN 978-1-68336-666-9
Cooper Balsam, the 12-year-old narrator of Jensen's uneven debut, has a serious family problem. One day late in
January 1987, his mother, Arden, disappears from their home in San Diego, Calif., not for the first time, and leaves him
alone with his father, Percy, and lots of self-doubt. Percy, a taciturn Vietnam vet subject to terrifying flashbacks to the
war, can't offer Cooper much reassurance. A middling student, Cooper lets a school bully, who can be either a friend or
an enemy, lead him into increasingly dangerous vandalism. Cooper's memories of his mother combine with other
sources--extracts from Arden's diary, phone talks with his maternal grandmother, and a rude encounter with a jilted
woman friend of Arden's--to form an incomplete picture of the woman. Tips prompt Percy and Cooper to make road
trips to Arizona and Mexico in search of the elusive Arden. Jensen memorably portrays Cooper as the boy copes as best
he can with life's vicissitudes, but poorly developed secondary characters detract from the novel's impact. (May)
Source Citation (MLA 8th
Edition)
"Cities of Men." Publishers Weekly, 27 Mar. 2017, p. 73. General OneFile, go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=schlager&v=2.1&id=GALE%7CA487928088&it=r&asid=559e0d4344e0b5749dde3ecc759776a8.
Accessed 13 Nov. 2017.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A487928088
- Thoughts From Irene
http://wellwortharead.blogspot.com/2017/03/cities-of-men-novel-by-william-jensen.html
Word count: 786QUOTED: "a tense but not over emotional read, touching on the subjects of depression, PTSD and parental relationships. It makes you wonder how much you really know about your parents, and how much you would really want to know."
Thoughts From Irene
Book ReviewsHome Miscellaneous Musings
FRIDAY, MARCH 3, 2017
Cities of Men: A Novel by William JensenDescription
In 1987, twelve-year-old Cooper Balsam's mother, Arden, disappears without a trace. Cooper's father, Percy, a Vietnam veteran struggling with PTSD, doesn't seem too concerned. "This isn't the first time. She's done it before." As days pass, Cooper begins to act out and withdraw from the world, and his growing animosity toward his father's ambivalence begins to escalate even as Percy and Cooper begin to actively search for the woman in their lives. From the hills of Southern California, to the deserts of Arizona, and down to the beaches of Mexico, the father and son will look for someone who may not want to be found for reasons they don't yet understand.Cooper, up until this point has been living an unremarkable life. His parents are neither rich nor poor, his house neither big nor small. His mother Arden seems to long for the finer things, not just for herself but she wants Cooper to want them for himself as well. His dad is a hard worker, and seems to be a good father and husband.
One day 12 year old Cooper and his father Percy come home from a movie to an empty house. Cooper's mom is gone. A note simply stating "good-bye. I've gone off on an adventure" is all she left behind. She didn't even bother to sign it.
Cooper is understandably shaken. He's also angry that his father Percy doesn't seem to share his concern. His attitude is "she's done it before" and he tells Cooper she'll be back.
As the days go by without Arlen's return, Cooper's anger needs an outlet and he begins to act out in inappropriate ways. He has nobody he can really confide in since his mother is the one he always felt able to talk to. He has no close friends, only the neighborhood ne'er-do-well who is a poor choice and a worse influence. The tension builds as Percy and Cooper begin searching for Arlen.
This was a tense but not over emotional read, touching on the subjects of depression, PTSD and parental relationships. It makes you wonder how much you really know about your parents, and how much you would really want to know.
4 out of 5 stars from me.I received an advance copy for review
Posted by Irene Cole at 7:54 AM
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http://booksconsidered.blogspot.com/2017/05/review-cities-of-men-by-william-jensen.html
Word count: 1057QUOTED: "If you are looking for a book in which the author explores and writes a wonderful twelve year old MC and to feel like you are that age again, this might just be the book for you."
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Tuesday, May 9, 2017Review: Cities of Men by William Jensen
Cities of Men by William Jensen
Blurb from Goodreads:
In 1987, twelve-year-old Cooper Balsam's mother, Arden, disappears without a trace. Cooper's father, Percy, a Vietnam veteran struggling with PTSD, doesn't seem too concerned. "This isn't the first time. She's done it before." As days pass, Cooper begins to act out and withdraw from the world, and his growing animosity toward his father's ambivalence begins to escalate even as Percy and Cooper begin to actively search for the woman in their lives. From the hills of Southern California, to the deserts of Arizona, and down to the beaches of Mexico, the father and son will look for someone who may not want to be found for reasons they don't yet understand.
My Review:I'm not sure how I feel about this book, even a few days after I've read it. It was a quick read but I was still expecting more. This is a just a glimpse of a few months in a twelve year old's life and, yes, it was likely the most important thing to happen to this person but I'm not sure it was the stuff that books are made of. What I'm trying to say is that I'm not sure it is enough to have this micro-focus on a twelve year's mother leaving and the ensuing but short-lived search for the same. But even considering this criticism, and I am still on the fence about being critical of this hyper-focus, Cooper was well written - he seemed like this age and all of his confusion, his intense feelings and his struggle were very genuine and written perfectly. If you are looking for a book in which the author explores and writes a wonderful 12 year old MC and to feel like you are that age again, this might just be the book for you.
Cities of Men comes out later this month on May 23, 2017, and you can purchase HERE.
I realized early on that my parents were people, individuals with histories from long before I was born. Obviously, everyone understands this, but I knew it almost from the beginning. I knew my parents had backstories, some I'd never know, and I had to be okay with that. There wasn't anything I could do about it if I wasn't anyway.
I thought about this, all of this, that night as I stood outside staring at the empty roads and the night sky. I wondered about my parents and their lives and the secrets of everyone else, the people in all of the houses, everybody sleeping, dreaming, their joys and regrets. I stood there and waited for Mom. I waited a long time.Posted by Eva @ All Books Considered at 12:00 AM
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1 comment:Grace @ RebelMommyBookBlogWednesday, May 10, 2017 at 1:17:00 PM PDT
Sounds different than anything I have really read before which can be a good thing. I can't even remember what is like to be 12 though! Great review!Reply
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September 7, 2017
Word count: 2887QUOTED: "Obviously, my characters have a clear and distinct conflict, which is a missing person. And this could have become a thriller if the characters were a little different—a bit harder, darker—or if I was just a different type of writer. I did have some scenes in the first draft that were slightly inspired by Richard Stark’s stuff, but these felt out of place and didn’t ring true—however I admit I love writing those types of scenes. I enjoy mysteries and thrillers."
"I am a big fan of Raymond Chandler and James Ellroy. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris is excellent. There’s a reason why David Foster Wallace used to teach it. I like the Jesse Stone novels by Robert B. Parker a lot. Jim Thompson’s The Grifters is a total masterpiece. Some of those books are incredibly tight. Though I tend to have crime and violence in my fiction, my first and main concern is writing about devastating moments in the lives of ordinary people."WRITING EXERCISES INSPIRED BY CONTEMPORARY STORIES
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EXERCISES AND PROMPTS
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INTERVIEWS WITH WRITERSTag Archives: Cities of Men
An Interview with William Jensen7
SEPWilliam Jensen is the author of the novel Cities of Men, which has been called “deeply moving and complex.”
William Jensen has been a landscaper, a construction worker, a dishwasher, a groundskeeper, and a teacher. His short fiction has appeared in various literary journals. He has been nominated for multiple Pushcart Prizes. Mr. Jensen is currently the editor of Southwestern American Literatureand Texas Books in Review.To read an exercise about bridging between scenes in a novel, inspired by Jensen’s Cities of Men, click here.
In this interview, Jensen discusses invisible first lines, the inspiration of Richard Stark and Thomas Harris, and pushing characters into situations where they must act in ways that contradict their tendencies.
Michael Noll
There are moments in the novel when you flash forward into the narrator’s present tense–moments when he’s reflecting back on the events of the novel and in the time between its end and when he tells the story. What was your strategy for these? When did you know when to include them?
William Jensen
There really wasn’t any “strategy.” At least not in the first draft. I relied a lot on instinct to know when to have the narrator reflect. I tend to write a lot in the first person, and when I do this I mentally slip on that character’s skin and think about why this person is even telling the story—why these events are important, what he hopes to express to his audience. I tend to think of everything I write as having an invisible first line that goes, “This is what changed everything.” So I keep that in mind. I’m trying to explore how these incidents, this story, changed the course of life for a particular character or characters. After a while you can really hear your characters, and I listened my protagonist’s voice as he guided me along. There are times to zig and times to zag, times to stay in the scene and times to get deep into a character’s thoughts, so during revision I asked myself if I needed more or less reflection to earn an emotional impact. It’s important for me to have my characters move on after I’ve set the pencil down.
Michael Noll
You and I both attended the MFA program at Texas State and took classes with Tom Grimes, who likes to talk about how stories and novels need a ticking clock. Your book introduces that clock at the end of the first chapter, which ends with the words “my mother disappeared.” Did you always know what the clock (and, therefore, the frame) of the novel would be? How long did it take you to figure it out?
William Jensen
William Jensen’s debut novel, Cities of Men, tells the story of a boy whose mother disappears, leaving him to search for her with a father who may not want to find her.
Honestly, it’s hard for me to remember. Novels take years to write, and I tend to get a little lost along the way and go down rabbit holes and come across subplots that work or have to be entirely cut. I think the clock for me was more in the opening line, “I saw my father get into only two fights.” Since the beginning chapter is about the first fight, the rest of the book is a countdown to the second (and final) rumble. I’m not sure how I actually even came up with that now, I think I just heard the line in my head and wrote it down. By the time I had the first chapter drafted, I knew I had a clock and Tom would be proud. I wonder if he’s read it.Michael Noll
The search for the mother defines the book, but it’s not a police procedural or really any sort of detective novel. It has some moments where clues lead to investigations, but they happen quickly. I wonder what this novel looked like in its early stages, when you figuring out what direction the story would go and which characters it would focus on. Were you ever tempted to lean more heavily on the conventions of the mystery/thriller genre?
William Jensen
No, I was never that interested in those conventions. Obviously, my characters have a clear and distinct conflict, which is a missing person. And this could have become a thriller if the characters were a little different—a bit harder, darker—or if I was just a different type of writer. I did have some scenes in the first draft that were slightly inspired by Richard Stark’s stuff, but these felt out of place and didn’t ring true—however I admit I love writing those types of scenes. I enjoy mysteries and thrillers. I am a big fan of Raymond Chandler and James Ellroy. Red Dragon by Thomas Harris is excellent. There’s a reason why David Foster Wallace used to teach it. I like the Jesse Stone novels by Robert B. Parker a lot. Jim Thompson’s The Grifters is a total masterpiece. Some of those books are incredibly tight. Though I tend to have crime and violence in my fiction, my first and main concern is writing about devastating moments in the lives of ordinary people.
Michael Noll
There are a few big fights in the novel, and what’s interesting is that those scenes keep going even after the fight ends. The focus becomes less on what the fight was about or who won and more about what happens afterward. I suppose that’s really what the entire novel is about. Did you always intend to write those fight scenes in this way, or was it a case of discovering what you had as you were writing it?
William Jensen
I’d have to say it was a combination of both. Like a lot of guys, I got into my share of scrapes as a boy, luckily nothing serious, but regardless of how it ended—in tears or friendship—it was never like the fights I saw on television or the movies. It was always messier, more chaotic…and a lot more sad. Pain hurts. And pain is scary. I knew from the start that the father figure would get into some fights yet he wasn’t a violent guy, and I wanted to explore that. I’ve always been fascinated by the stories where characters are pushed into situations where they’re forced to act in a contradictory way. The more I wrote about the father, the son, the more I was able to meditate on them and their own views of violence, too. So I knew where things were going, I just didn’t know how it would get there. But that’s writing. Buy the ticket. Take the ride.
September 2017
Michael Noll Michael Noll is the Editor of Read to Write Stories.
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How to Bridge Between Scenes in a Novel5
SEPWilliam Jensen’s debut novel, Cities of Men, tells the story of a boy whose mother disappears, leaving him to search for her with a father who may not want to find her.
When you move from writing short stories to writing a novel, you quickly realize that the novel’s length means that one or two hard-hitting scenes can’t carry it. More is needed. Each scene must immediately suggest another scene, again and again, until the end. In a way, it’s the opposite of the famous epiphany ending we all learned when reading Joyce’s “Araby”—the concluding sentence to a scene that makes us all grab our hair and sigh. In a novel, a scene must resist epiphany, even if it’s tone and momentum seem to be taking it toward that sort of ending.A great example of how to create a bridge to the next scene in a novel can be found in William Jensen’s novel Cities of Men. You can read the opening pages here.
How the Novel Works
The novel’s opening chapter begins, “I saw my father get into only two fights” and then proceeds to tell us about one of them, a fight in a grocery store parking lot. The father and his wife have bought their son, the novel’s narrator, ice cream, and their father is walking back to the car when he hears an argument between a man and woman in another car. He steps in, and a fight ensues. The scene is well written and clearly memorably for the narrator, who observes not just the fight but the ways it could have played out but did not—and also his mother’s reaction and the weather. He’s beginning to place himself in the universe, the sort of coming-of-age moment that naturally builds to an Araby-like concluding line: “Gazing up into the darkness I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger.” But that’s not what Jensen does because Cities of Men is a novel, not a short story.
Instead, the scene ends like this:
I ran to my room. Seeing Dad cry scared me more than the night’s violence. But I couldn’t tell you why. I pulled the sheets up to my collar. I dug my face into my pillow, closed my eyes, and tried not to think.
I saw Dad fight only one other time. And that wouldn’t happen until four years later, shortly after my mother disappeared.
The ending line echoes the first line of the novel, which is no coincidence. I don’t know which one was written first, and it doesn’t matter. At some point, Jensen knew that there would be a second fight and that the mother, who is so present in this opening scene, would leave, and so the scene is written to introduce both of those elements. Naturally, we want to know more. It’s the last two sentences that do the important work, veering away from epiphany to what-happens-next.
The Writing Exercise
Let’s create a bridge between scenes in a novel, using Cities of Men by William Jensen as a model:
Write the scene you want to write. It’s the thing that likely drew you to this story, and so don’t give it short shrift. Jensen’s opening chapter, minus the first and last lines, could be a quick short story, almost flash fiction. It has its own narrative arc and emotional impact—which is good. If you have a scene like this in mind, one that you’ve been writing in your head for years or one that you’ve written and don’t know what to do with, let it be itself. Don’t run away from the story you want to tell.
Take away or add something. Play a simple what-if exercise with your scene. What if something essential to the scene was taken away? Or, what if something new and burdensome was added? You’re not subtracting or adding to the scene itself but to what comes next. Jensen takes the mother away at the end, after the scene has wrapped up. It’s a simple move that provides the foundation for the entire novel: establish the emotional relationships in the novel and then mess them up. What can you subtract from or add to your scene in the scene that follows?
Be explicit about the addition or subtraction. I may have said this so many times that I’m beating a dead horse, but there’s nothing wrong with coming out and being direct with your readers—especially if being direct forces you to be direct with yourself about your characters’ motivations. Jensen could not be any more explicit unless he wrote, “Then my mother disappeared.” Actually, that’s basically what he writes, only more artfully. And it’s great. Save your nuance and subtlety for the moments in between big, plot-changing sentences. Make those sentences hard-hitting. Tell the reader what you’ve added or subtracted.
The goal is to turn any scene in a novel into a bridge to the next scene.Good luck.
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