It is very strange, actually more than strange, how sometimes what you are writing about actually happens in “real life.” Life has been a bit eerie and frightening on this front for the past month or so.
For some reason I have hesitated to talk too much about my new novel here. I can’t figure out why that is, unless it’s some old superstition left over from my distant peasant past. But I’ve moved two generations beyond that now and I need to talk about something that is happening in today’s world, and that also means talking about my new novel. The working title is “An Everywhere of Innocents,” and it is set in the year 2007 in an orphanage in Phnom Penh, Cambodia which is run by a 60-year-old American woman. One day a young American backpacker shows up saying she wants to stay and help. The mystery of the book surrounds the questions who is this young woman, who is the older one, why are these Westerners there in the first place and what are they running away from? Those are the questions. But the big theme is murder — who takes responsibility for it, who doesn’t. Perhaps that theme seems obvious in the context of Cambodian history and the nightmare of the Khmer Rouge regime. But it spills over onto recent, and now current history in America, specifically the tragedy of campus shootings.
We all know about the terrible tragedies that have occurred over the past years on US high school and college campuses. For me, they always seemed far away in some part of the country I never went to, never knew much about. But over the past few weeks, killings have occurred on two college campuses that are very important to me — one is my alma mater, the other is my husband’s and the place where I am about to send Number 2 Son. And while this was happening, I was in the midst of writing about the long term effects being involved in such a shooting can have. The overlap is terrifying.
I often say that one reason why I write novels is so that I can work out the emotional impact of events that I hopefully then never have to really experience. As an American adult who has chosen to spend her life outside of America, and who is now about to send her flesh and blood back into that melting pot which often seems more like a cauldron, I look at the United States with a very critical eye. Yes, it is true that murders occur everywhere. I have spent my life living in cities. I know that danger lurks around every corner. I also know, from recent visits, that security on American campuses is very high, very well-considered. Campus administrations act responsibly and are generally doing everything they can. But I still feel as if there is blame to be passed on, and I place that blame squarely on the shoulders of a citizenry that believes it is more important to have the right to misinterpret a declaration written hundreds of years before than to ensure the safety of its children. Guns are too easily available in America. There is no excuse for the fact that just about anybody at anytime can go into any store and purchase such a weapon, a weapon which can then be turned on innocent children.
I am angry with my native country, and so far no amount of written words has quelled that anger. There aren’t enough words in my pen to wash away the blood.
Such powerful feelings. Thanks for sharing them.
I am so so sorry, and I feel your anger. It makes my blood boil. It is incomprehensible to me how these things happen.
Sue, it’s nuts, isn’t it. And then people go on about these incidents as if they were some terrible, yet inevitable thing. As far as I’m concerned. American has bought into its gun laws, so it’s bought into these shootings. All the gnashing and wailing is just hypocrisy, except on the part of people who actively oppose the gun laws.
By the way, a classmate of my kids was shot dead in Stoke Newington a year and a half ago… not that things are “as bad” here, but it is also a fallacy for anyone to assume that the US stands alone. I can remember when there weren’t guns in London; the world is small these days.
Great post Sue. It’s a terrifying subject for sure.
Helen: I find if I don’t share these things they fester and burst. The hard part is knowing where, when and how, you know?
Tania and JJ: It does seem endless, and its the randomness which is so terrifying to me.
Ms B: Yes, of course you’re right about guns in London. The violence is everywhere. But I do remember in ’97 after Dunblane, being amazed that some restrictions were made into law, seemingly just like that. Whether they are upheld or subverted is another thing.
I’m reading ‘The Day I first Believed’ by Wally Lamb at the moment. The first half is superb, the second half a lot of self indulgent nonsense.
However to the first half. That deals with Columbine and its victims, the protagonists being the victims as well of course. Who is to blame etc etc? A lot of times during the reading I was in tears. As much for Dylan and his sidekick as well the other’s who lost their lives. What kind of society is it that produces these killers?
I think for as long as we idolize the ‘gun’ then these killings will go on. For as long as the popular press worships our boys in Iraq and Afghanistan and sees then as heroes rather than killers then our society will continue to worship the gun. What type of man and woman want to join the army? To my mind a psychopath:
‘I wanna kill, I wanna kill. I wanna see blood and guts and gore…and the psychiatrist pinned a medal on me and said you are our boy.’ (Arlo Guthrie ‘Alice’s Restaurant.’)
There’s a guy here in the British community who had just finished his time with the British Army. He joins the French Foreign Legion in October. Some are in awe of him. At social occasions I refuse to shake his hand or speak to him. Some people are appalled and call me ignorant. Why do I want anything to do with this killer?
Sue, I don’t share your credentials to criticize the US, but much support for this excellent post.
How many of the world’s problems are down to misunterpreting the writings of the past? There’s a novel – or a PhD – in that, for sure!
Great post Sue. The rise of gun incidents over here is scary enough, I can only begin to imagine how it must feel to be a parent in America.
Sue I think you and I are in a similar position though in different longitudes and latitudes. There are many things I love and miss about my birth country, but I will never return. It is so obvious the problem is guns. Everyone watches video games, everyone glorifies gangsters- but not everyone shoots their classmates down. Get rid of the guns. No guns- no shootings.
I know this is very serious but I can’t help but think of Chris Rock when he said forget about regulating guns since there is that whole Constitution hang-up- just make the bullets wildly expensive, like one bullet for $1000. You’d really have to hate someone pretty badly to shoot them and it would be very unlikely there’d be innocent bystanders shot.
Oh Sue…this is going to be such a powerful and important book. I hope you can come to terms with your feelings about the States but I doubt that will happen until the ‘gun culture/ethos’ changes.
This is a very powerful post Sue!! It’s a subject that makes my blood boil…..I just don’t understand why ‘the right to bare arms’ is so important!!
You are totally right about guns being too easily available. I remember watching a documentary about gun crime in America (can’t remember the name of it) and one of the major banks was doing a promotion ‘Free gun with every bank account opened’….I couldn’t believe what I was seeing!!!
Make it difficult to buy guns or, as Lauri said, make bullets incredibly expensive and I bet the loss of life would be dramatically reduced!!
C x
Ps. Your book sounds really interesting…can’t wait to read it!!
Not sure I can do justice to this in a small blog post, but yes, Sue, in general, fewer available guns should mean fewer of these terrible incidents.
But…
Unfortunately this is human nature. We’ve spent our entire existence as a race pitting humanistic tendencies against human nature. If there are no guns available, then the individual hell bent on violence will use a knife, a machete, a baseball bat, etc. Obviously, getting rid of the guns would reduce the kind of killings we’ve all seen, and of course that would be a first step and very worthwhile, but there will then be something else. Witness the rash of knifings in London and the UK. Violence is part of the human condition, not that we should accept that, and not that we shouldn’t try to change it by education, by increasing hope and purpose in those who seem to have none, by closing the gap between rich and poor, but we also have to recognise that it is there. In short, there are people who don’t care and yes, we shouldn’t make it easy for them, but we will always have to guard against them as well.
And I agree that the UK did change its laws and that is important that a country should be seen to act like that. It’s important that the law should exist. But as you know, it is currently easy to subvert that if you choose to.
Glyn and Joe: I suppose as long as there are wars there will be soldiers and I guess some of those soldiers don’t mind killing. And it is true that people who want to kill will find a way whether there are guns or not. What can we do? Just live our lives the best we can and try to be a role model for “the other side,” I guess.
Brian, Cathy, Carol, DJ: Thanks. I struggled with whether i should write about this but I’m so glad I did. the response has been amazing!
Dot: You are so right! I’ll race you to it 🙂
Lauri: I love that Chris Rock joke! It’s perfect…and about all we can do is rant and joke, I guess.
Wow, two posts from me in one day. I think that’s a record!
I’m sure there are soldiers who kill easily, just as I’m sure some don’t. There’s an argument that a conscripted army is therefore better than a professional one as it includes all walks of life, rather than just those who have chosen the profession.
On the role model bit, for me, writing crime books is a problem. (Actually on that line, my whole life is a problem.) But in writing, if you want to portray criminal activity and violence, can you do it both sensibly and realistically, without being gratuitous, or sensationalist. Violence exists and, I think, is a valid subject (as an extreme of human behaviour) for writing, drama, etc. What I think is necessary though is some moral framework to set that against. Possibly sometimes, even a lack of moral framework to illustrate the point. And consequences. The fact that violence has huge consequences on all sides.
What dreadful incidents, and ones in places that you and your husband are familiar with too?
Your book sounds excellent. My son went to Phnom Penh last year and found it fascinating.
I wonder what the news would be like if there were no arms/guns and other killimg machines in the world. I wonder how many thousands would still be alive?
Thank you for sharing that and i am glad i found your blog.
Joe: I had actually wondered what you were thinking vis a vis your books. But by writing about crime you’re not glorifying it or glamorizing it. I don’t think it’s problematic at all as a writer, and I agree with you: violence is an important subject for writing. And yes– 2 posts in one day! I guess I hit a chord!
Debs: Thanks. Interesting that your son went. It really is a fascinating place, although many people find it too disturbing to “like.” I loved it, though.
Aminah: I’m glad you found me. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to post!
Sorry, I’m back again, Sue, but yes it is a chord with me, because unfortunately it’s something I understand and I do have trouble in how I should write about it. I think it’s too easy to simply write an act of violence, which is the problem with many books. Too often it’s a hook to hang a story on, rather than a consequence of the story and characters. The first short story I wrote (which I think is still on my website and I must update that!) included an act of violence from a man to a woman which I had serious trouble with. I know several women who have been victims of violence, or in abusive relationships of different kinds and I didn’t want to write another reinforcement of that abuse of power. So how to write what was necessary for the story, but in a non-gratuitous way. In the end, I manoeuvred around the act and hopefully it works. But maybe it doesn’t. It’s still something I struggle with. Not writing the scenes, but trying to set them in context. (I’ll shut up now!)
Joe: You say “It’s still something I struggle with. Not writing the scenes, but trying to set them in context.” And isn’t that true of everything we write.? Maybe it is the context which creates a “balanced” reality. It is a difficult issue to be sure. Not to give you more work, but it would be great to read your feelings on the subject in an article, maybe for a writing magazine. You discuss it so sincerely and cogently.
I totally agree. The trouble in the US is that everyone has the ‘right’ to own a gun. You can’t legislate on the assumption that everyone will behave reasonably and responsibly. Within any population, there will be lunatics. Allow everyone to own a gun – you’re giving lunatics a licence to own guns. That in itself is insane – in my opinion. I thought Michael Moore’s film, Shooting for Columbine, put the case very well.
Great meeting you today, Sue.
Hi Sue, I’m back, responding to Joe Stein – his blog doesn’t take comments. You can kill a lot more people with a gun than with a knife. I know it’s not a numbers game – all life is precious – but still…
As an author of crime thrillers, I sometimes have to write about violence. The important thing to me is not to glamourise it in any way. The only sane response to violence should be pity and revulsion. There’s nothing entertaining or heroic about it. Or there shouldn’t be.