Quarry at Large

October 13th, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

Quarry in the Middle

We’ve another great QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE review, this one from Craig Clarke. Check it out at his Somebody Dies blogsite:

http://somebodydies.blogspot.com/2009/10/quarry-in-middle-by-max-allan-collins.html

And my friend Ed Gorman, who has long been a booster of the Quarry novels, interviewed me about the series. It’s been linked lots of places, but in case you missed it, here goes:

http://newimprovedgorman.blogspot.com/2009/10/max-allan-collins-talks-about-his-hit.html

And the Fresh Fiction website has singled out the previous Quarry, THE FIRST QUARRY, for some unexpected love:

http://freshfiction.com/book.php?id=2508

Bill Crider posted a nice review and general Quarry write-up:

http://billcrider.blogspot.com/2009/10/quarry-in-middle-max-allan-collins.html

My LAPD cop pal Paul Bishop, who been helping me via e-mail on BYE, BYE BABY research questions, has a great website, and he’s been kind enough to showcase Quarry…and the last time I visited, he was playing Bobby Darin’s “All By Myself”!

Anyway, see the man at:

http://bishsbeat.blogspot.com/2009/10/max-allan-collins-quarry.html

That novel is up for both Barry and Anthony awards at the upcoming Bouchercon. Speaking of which, here are my two panels at the Indianapolis event:

Oct. 15, Thursday:
“This Pen for Hire,” 1:30 pm to 2:30 pm

Oct. 16, Friday:
“PI Novel through the Years,” 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Presumably these will both be followed by one-hour autograph sessions.

Matt Clemens is attending the con, and so is Barb, though neither are doing panels this year.

I’ll be at the Shamus Awards, where the Nate Heller short story “The Blonde Tigress” has been nominated (it appeared in EQMM). That’s Friday evening at 7:00 pm. at the evocatively named Slippery Noodle.

I continue on my insane effort to wrap up the new Heller, BYE BYE, BABY, before Barb and I leave early Thursday morning. I have been maintaining a punishing pace, but I enjoy being immersed in a novel I’m writing. Even if I get the three remaining chapters written, however, the book will not be “done” done. I will still have to put together the bibliographic end note, which is chapter-length, as well as I do a complete polish of the whole thing. So another week’s work awaits. Why batter myself like this? It’s an artificial deadline, to replace the real one I missed long ago, plus I want to avoid the frustration and distraction of going away for four or five days with the story nearly told.

My friend Stu Kaminsky passed away a few days ago. We were often talked about in the same breath, because of his Toby Peters character and my Nate Heller, and in the late ‘80s we seriously considered doing a crossover novel (we even had a subject picked out). Stu was a fine writer, but what I most remember is the warm way he treated me. We spent a day together once, which included seeing ONCE UPON A TIME IN AMERICA (his first time seeing this film for which he wrote the English dialogue in its uncut form), and thereafter whenever he saw me, he treated me the way you would your best friend. We were not close, rarely spoke on the phone, but when we were together, we might have been brothers. This is unique in my experience and I won’t forget it.

M.A.C.

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The Last Lullaby DVD Premiere

October 6th, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

Welcome to our new and improved website! It’s more like a blog, and you can comment and everything.

This time, our UPDATE is not from me, but director Jeffrey Goodman with exciting news about THE LAST LULLABY.

Take it away, Jeffrey….

Quarry was introduced in 1975 and now in 2009 we have the first feature film about Max’s popular, innovative hit man character. After a tremendous festival run (eighteen film festivals from Oregon-New York, with stops in Malaysia, The Bahamas, and Canada in between) and ten weeks in theaters, The Last Lullaby marks its DVD Premiere, October 19th.

The Last Lullaby

This first run, limited edition DVD (in other words, just the movie but no special features) will be available from the film’s website. And for the first month of the release, we are offering several great promotions. First off, anyone who buys the DVD will be entered into a drawing to win several film-related prizes. Also, if you join our Facebook group, our monthly e-mail update list, our Lullaby blog, or follow us on Twitter AND we attain certain numbers by October 19th, each person in these groups will receive a coupon for a 20% discount on the DVD. For more information on these promotions, please visit the following link:

http://cahierspositif.blogspot.com/2009/09/first-run-dvd-update.html.

It’s been a great pleasure working with Max and bringing his tremendous story and character to the screen. Quarry’s longevity is a testament to Max’s special talent. His (Quarry’s) first feature is also my first feature, and a true labor of love. I hope you all enjoy.

Jeffrey Goodman
Director
THE LAST LULLABY

Thanks, Jeffrey. I like this film very much and anybody who enjoys my work should, too.

Speaking of Quarry, here’s our second print review for QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE and it’s just as good as the Library Journal rave:

When Collins decided to bring his hit-man hero Quarry back after a three-decade hiatus, he gave us The Last Quarry (2006), seemingly stamping paid to the series. But then, devilishly, he produced The First Quarry (2008). Naturally, we now have Quarry in the Middle—that’s “middle” both chronologically, in the sense that the events described here fall more or less midway between First and Last, and thematically, in that Quarry is caught in the middle between two gangsters vying for control of a potential gambling-and-vice mecca on the Illinois-Iowa border (the action is set in the mid-1980s, with legalized gambling on the horizon). No longer a paid hit man, Quarry is freelancing, tailing his former associates, determining their targets, and offering his services to the potential victims for a hefty price. This time that strategy backfires, and Quarry finds himself the target. Collins, a consummate craftsman, dipsy-doodles his way through the plot machinations like Earl the Pearl dribbling in traffic, and he’s equally dexterous at balancing Quarry the emotionless killer against Quarry the knight errant. Perfectly emulsified pulp pleasure.

— Bill Ott, Booklist Online

Also, CRUSIN’ is appearing live this weekend—9 to midnight at the Pearlview Ballroom at the Hotel Muscatine, 101 West Mississippi Drive, Muscatine, Iowa (More info: http://www.buttonfactoryrestaurant.com/events.html#e1)

M.A.C.

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FOMAC Update

October 1st, 2009 by Nathan Collins

I’d like to take the opportunity to welcome all new and longtime readers to our updated FOMAC website.

Earlier this year, my father and I decided to switch to a more regular and predictable weekly blog-type posting style to give readers a better incentive to check back frequently and to keep fans better informed of upcoming releases and events. The weekly updates have done not only that but have also enabled Max to talk more in-depth about behind-the-scenes topics and to share more personal blog-like posts about pop culture.

Now the website itself has finally been updated/blogified/Web 2.0ized into the 21st Century to better suit the more blog-like style of Max’s posts. Each post now has its own URL to link on blogs or share with friends. We’ve added the option to leave your comments on each post, and we hope that you will take the time to share your thoughts with us and your fellow readers. The front page has been streamlined to display only the four most recent posts, but you can browse all the way back through every update Max has written. We’re also equipped to handle guest bloggers, so you may see posts from Barbara, myself, or even others as well.

For your convenience, the “Upcoming Releases” pane at the top of the main page now has direct links to order each title from several online retailers, although we hope that those of you lucky enough to have a local independent bookseller will continue to support them. In the past, I’ve avoided having links to online stores primarily for that reason, but we’ve started to hear urgings from some publishers that we need to include these links or we could face unpleasant ramifications from some of the major retailers. It’s my opinion that you all probably have your favorite stores already, and there’s not a whole lot of readers out there as yet unfamiliar with Amazon or Barnes and Noble or whichever. But by including several links we will give you direct access to order — or pre-order — Max’s works from a number of online sources, right from the comfort of this window, and all without any bothersome human interaction. Now there’s no excuse to miss a single book!

I hope you will like the changes we’ve made, and there are still many more in the works. My top priority is now updating some woefully out-of-date content still poking around the website. I will also be toying around with the look and design of the site and better integrating the individual book pages with the blog. Any comments or suggestions are welcome, either to my e-mail listed on the front page or by commenting directly to this post.

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Copy Editing

September 29th, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

Very soon you will be able to leave comments as these updates become more like a regular blog. But it’s my intention only to post once a week. It would be very easy for me to abuse the blog format and write a bunch of stuff for free every day.

This week found me plugging away at Heller, nearing the half-way mark on the new novel. I also did some work on RETURN TO PERDITION, as Terry Beatty has started on the artwork, and my job is to stay out ahead of him. I played a Crusin’ band job Saturday night.

In addition, Matt Clemens and I spent a day comparing notes, and preparing to send back to our publisher, the copy-edited manuscript of YOU CAN’T STOP ME. There is no part of the writing process that I like less than dealing with a copy-edited manuscript. Copy editing should be restricted to preparing the manuscript for typesetting, correcting typos, correcting spelling, noting missing words, pointing out inconsistencies (i.e., a character starts out with red hair and becomes brown-haired by the end), pointing out word repetition, and flagging unclear sentences or passages (for the author to rewrite). About one out of three copy-edited manuscripts I receive seems to have been attacked by a well-meaning soul who anoints him-or-herself as my co-author. I’ve been at this professionally since 1971. I have taught college English, and countless writing seminars. Yet they constantly “correct” and “improve” me.

What do they correct? How about “fixing” grammar in dialogue? How do they improve me? How about turning long run-on sentences in action scenes, designed to hold the reader down into the fray, into a bunch of short, choppy ones? For me a major problem with such copy editors is my use of punctuation, which I view as a tool and use for sound and effect. Style seems to bewilder some copy editors.

Putting Humpty Dumpty back together is a task I have had to undertake many times. This despite the fact that I usually include a note to the copy editor (very politely stated) that lists my preferences and eccentricities. Understand that the copy editor’s real functions (listed above) are crucial, and I am as often grateful to them as I am, well, not grateful….

The other aspect of the copy-edited manuscript that is frustrating to writers is its arrival at inopportune times — these manuscripts (and galley proofs are the same) frequently arrive with little or no warning, with a crazy turn-around-time, even as a short as a couple of days.

I find, when I’m working on a novel that losing days to this necessary but unexpected work can really slow me down. I build up a certain momentum, and these interruptions — again, a necessary part of the process — cause me trouble. For me, writing a novel is akin to reading one. And I like to stay immersed.

M.A.C.

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