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Quarry in the Middle Cover Sketches

September 21st, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

We’ve had our first print review of QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE, by Mike Rogers in Library Journal and it’s a rave:
Collins’s eclectic hit man returns. With his “Broker” (the guy who arranges his kills) dead and Quarry in possession of the man’s records, he begins turning the tables on his fellow assassins by warning their soon-to-be victims and offering to save their skins by cleaning the cleaners—for a hefty fee. Looking to make one last juicy score so he can retire and get out of the life before his own ticket inevitably is punched, business takes him to Haydee’s Port, IL, a backwater sleaze pit that’s “all sex and murder and money.” There he approaches Richard Cornell, a casino owner who’s about to have a fatal accident courtesy of rival gambling boss Jerry Giovanni. As usual, things don’t go quite according to plan, and Quarry finds himself between the two when his cover is blown and Giovanni’s crew come gunning for him instead. Of course, in between shootings and beatings and double crosses Quarry manages to engage in satisfying sex with top-shelf honeys from their 20s to their 50s (he doesn’t discriminate).

Collins masterfully balances the standard sex and violence with humor and style, and like the series’ previous installments, Quarry in the Middle is a lightning-fast-can’t-put-it-down read. As soon as you finish it, you’ll be aching for the next one. Let’s hope Quarry never retires. Highly recommended for mystery collections.

Copyright 2009, Library Journal
Speaking of Quarry, Nate suggested that we show you the preliminary sketches by master noir paperback artist Ron Lesser that led to the published cover of QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE. One of the things that has made Hard Case Crime’s great reputation are the retro covers; another thing that makes the company great is editor Charles Ardai allowing the writer to have input into those covers.

The three rough sketches Charles sent me were all terrific, and he liked them all, but his least favorite was the sketch that ultimately became the basis of the cover. Charles actually allowed me to overrule him. I think he was surprised that I wanted to go with the slickest of the designs, the other two being very much the kind of dark, sexually disturbing image you’d see on a Spillane paperback (or imitation Spillane paperback) in the late fifties or early sixties.

But I liked making the obvious visual pun of having Quarry in the middle of two beauties, and I also liked the fun of putting my everyman hitman into a James Bond-ish image. The book wasn’t written yet, and I knew I could justify Quarry’s spiffier look, clothes and all, in the text. That’s something that happened with THE FIRST QUARRY—the painting came first, and I wrote the scene into the book, just like pulp writers used to in the old days.

The painting itself was tweaked a little to my specifications, as Quarry was depicted as very blond at first and, at my request through Charles, artist Lesser darkened the hair.

Quarry in the Middle

Now that Quarry is “back” (for at least a few novels), embracing the Bond-ish series look in one of the covers seemed appropriate and a hoot.

M.A.C.

Tags: Covers, Quarry, Quarry in the Middle, Reviews
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A Week in the Life

September 15th, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

I don’t have any news to report that I can think of, but I hear all the time from people wondering how I write so much, when do I sleep, etc.

And I have frequently talked about how by nature I am lazy (a fact, not an opinion). But when I’m working, really working, I work my ass off and I work steadily. This week is a case in point. I wrote six of the seven days, taking off Friday (Barb and I went to the nearby Quad Cities and saw the very funny EXTRACT and had a nice meal and shopped). But every other day I wrote in the morning, the afternoon and later that night, spending the evening watching stuff with Barb (last week, we ran through both seasons of the wonderful MAD MEN as well as a new MIDSOMER MURDERS from England on a PAL disc).

That’s a typical week when I am in the “bunker,” really, really working. I turned out four Heller chapters (not hacked out or churned out — worked many, many hours on them, with much revision and polishing). I also did my drafts of the synopsis and first chapter for the second serial-killer book for Kensington (the first, YOU CAN’T STOP ME, will be out in March), working from Matt Clemens’ excellent rough drafts (Matt and I spent several hours discussing plot problems and tactics on that project as well).

Other things I did last week include take my 84 year-old mother out to dinner, talk Heller and historical research concerns (and original art collecting) with George Hagenauer, decide to buy the Beatles mono box and not the stereo, talk my wife into letting me buy a second new keyboard for the latest version of Crusin’ (I have now replaced two mid-’80s keyboards with current ones, a Nord and a Roland Juno) . I had no Crusin’ rehearsal last week, though I did rehearse myself several times, and bass player Chuck Bunn and I prepared (with Matt’s help) a lengthy history of the band with photos for use as promo and possibly to help get us into the Iowa Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame. (Daybreakers are in, but Crusin’ would like to get in separately — next year is the Crusin’s 35th anniversary.)

Speaking of which, if you’ve ever enjoyed Crusin’ over the years, live or on record/CD, go to the Iowa Rock ‘n Roll Music Association web site and nominate Crusin’ for next year’s Hall of Fame.

That’s a fairly typical week in the life, for when a major project is under way. Before you say, “Wow!”, please note that this is my job. I do not teach or go to a law office or greet at Walmart (yet).

Please observe that Nate is going to have an ongoing list of forthcoming books, right at the top, from now on — the first of many new and exciting changes here at FOMAC.

M.A.C.

Tags: Crusin', Nathan Heller, You Can't Stop Me
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First Review for Quarry in the Middle

September 8th, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

Quarry in the Middle

The first review for QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE (out next month) is in — Ron Fortier has provided a rave review, and here it is:

Link

You’ll see that Ron connects the book to the classic Kurosawa film Yojimbo, and to Fistful of Dollars and Dashiell Hammett, although Ron mentions THE GLASS KEY as the original source. Kurosawa may have mentioned THE GLASS KEY himself, but the real source is Hammett’s first novel, RED HARVEST, the first major hardboiled PI novel and still one of the best, if not in THE MALTESE FALCON’s league. RED HARVEST was Mickey Spillane’s favorite Hammett novel, by the way.

I tip this off myself in the epigrams for the novel, which quote Hammett, Kurosawa and Serigo Leone. By the way, I pride myself on selling this book to Charles Ardai with, essentially, a title and a one-word pitch. In line at the buffet table at last year’s PWA banquet, I said to Charles that I would like to do another Quarry.

He said, “But you’ve done THE FIRST QUARRY and THE LAST QUARRY. What’s left?”

“QUARRY IN THE MIDDLE,” I said.

He laughed and said, “Okay, but what is it?”

And I said, “Yojimbo.”

He stuck out his hand and we shook. We’d made a deal.

Two items on a personal note: Barb and I spent a lovely three days in St. Louis with our son Nate, who lives there now, showing us around and taking us to various great restaurants. Beautiful weather to go out walking with our “granddog,” Toaster (an insane Australian Blue Heeler and my favorite animal on the planet, but for a handful of humans). We also dropped by the Big Sleep mystery bookstore, a wonderful browser’s paradise. I think it’s a safe bet that we’ll be doing a signing there next year, probably for the new Barbara Allan and the new Mike Hammer.

And Crusin’ played at a local pub in Muscatine, the Brew, and while the crowd could have been bigger, the response was terrific and it was a pleasure playing a venue with an in-house sound man/sound system. I’m enjoying playing a little more often, and it’s gratifying to see the broad demographic our mix of originals and classic ’60s rock seems to work for. Just a year ago today, the band (under its original name, the Daybreakers) was inducted into the Iowa Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame at Arnold’s Park. Our friends from Wilton, the XL’s, got in this year. If you haven’t ordered the Daybreakers “Hall of Fame” CD, scroll down and do so — not many copies left, and less than 10 of the signed ones. The SEDUCTION OF THE INNOCENT signed CD’s are similarly in low quantity.

Tomorrow (Monday as I write this) I begin the new Nate Heller novel.

M.A.C.

Tags: Crusin', Quarry, Quarry in the Middle, Reviews
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The Big Bang Cover Proofs

September 1st, 2009 by Max Allan Collins

My Nathan Heller story, “The Blonde Tigress” (which appeared in ELLERY QUEEN MYSTERY MAGAZINE), has been nominated for a Private Eye Writers of America “Shamus” award. The awards are given at the annual PWA banquet at Bouchercon. This is the third award I’m up for at the con — THE FIRST QUARRY is up for Best Paperback “Anthony” and Best Paperback “Barry.”

Last week, my longtime research associate George Hagenauer came to Muscatine to stay for several days as we discussed and compared notes on our respective Marilyn Monroe death research for the first new Heller novel in almost ten years — BYE BYE, BABY. The book is now plotted and fulltime work on it begins very, very soon. TOR will publish either next year or early the year after.

People seem to enjoy inside stuff about the publishing process, so here’s something a little special. Over the last several weeks, the cover for the new Mike Hammer novel (to be published by Harcourt next Spring) has been developed. Oftentimes publishers just foist a cover on an author, but Harcourt allowed Jane Spillane, editor Otto Penzler and myself to weigh in.

Their first attempt was a bold one:

Big Bang Cover First Revision

The shocking pink was calculated to really attract attention — a slap. But none of us felt pink was remotely appropriate for Hammer. Also, Otto reminded Harcourt that the contract required equal billing for me (starting with Hammer #2 — you may recall my microscopic byline on THE GOLIATH BONE). And I submitted a laundry list of suggestions, including a “reading line” as follows: “The Lost Mike Hammer Sixties Novel.” I wondered if we might have go go girls, too — something sexy and of period. Everyone agreed that the notion behind the use of pink, to suggest the wild colors of the ’60s, was a good one, just too off-the-wall for a Hammer book, pink having “chick lit” connotations.

What Harcourt’s art department came up with next responded to all of my concerns and all of my suggestions — perhaps too much….

Big Bang Cover Second Revision

This cover seemed too busy to Jane, Otto and me — not a bad cover, but more like a trade paperback edition of a classic hardboiled novel, not a new hardcover. Most bestseller type books (and Mickey was the bestselling writer of the 20th century) put the byline on top. I liked this much better than the first cover, but Jane liked it less, who found the emphasis on white off-putting.

Our editor at Harcourt, Tom Bouman, was beyond patient with us. Any other editor would have thrown us out the window by now. But I wrote suggesting we revert to to first cover with a different ’60s-centric color, and that we keep my “reading line.”

What they came up with was very strong, I think. And this is the cover to look for next March:

Big Bang Cover

M.A.C.

Tags: Bye Bye Baby, Covers, Nathan Heller, Spillane, The Big Bang
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