Chapter Member
Spotlight Profile
December, 1997
Spotlight Profile
December, 1997
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J. M. Redmann Author and member of the Internet Chapter of
Sisters in Crime Steering Committee
This month's guest is J.M. (Jean) Redmann, author of three New Orleans-based mysteries, featuring Micky Knight, P.I., and member of the Internet Chapter's Steering Committee. Jean has been involved with the online aspects of SinC since the early days, having worked on the original Genie-based chapter's bylaws. Not only is she a talented writer but she has been known to monkey with the internal hardware of her computer. The interview was conducted November 6, 1997 by Louise Guardino for the Internet Chapter (IC)., When asked for her favorite passage, Jean came up with a couple from The Intersection of Law and Desire, her third book in the series.
IC:
I notice that both of your selected quotes are from The Intersection of Law and Desire. If you had to choose your favorite child, would it be L&D?
Jean:
The Intersection of Law and Desire is my favorite, though in the informal polls I've taken among friends, mine seems to be the minority opinion. Most people seem to prefer Deaths of Jocasta. I suspect that my favoritism may be based on some things that have little to do with the words on the page. Law and Desire was my step up from a small, obscure, publisher to the "Big Guys". I also think Norton did a wonderful job on the cover (good enough that Avon also used it for the paperback) so like any proud momma, I can think that my book is the best looking book on the shelf. Also, I felt that the editors for my first two books wanted me to write a different kind of book than the one I was writing, so our relationship was a fraught one. But with L&D, I think my editor really wanted to work with me to make the book work the way I wanted it to work.I think maybe my preference boils down to the different perspectives that I and my readers bring to the books. I can't ever read them the way a reader does. I'll always be inside the writing and editing and publishing process, and that will influence my attitude.
IC:
One passage from Death by the Riverside that I particularly liked was:Deceit and lies must have crossed and re-crossed until truth was a blackened smudge.
Comment?
Jean:
I think the layers of truth, my truth, her truth, the unique way we each see the world lies at the heart of mystery. Sometimes we find something that is true, and sometimes we have to settle only for the few rag tags we know. I think that's one of the purposes of the fictional detective, to be that truth seeker.
IC:
There are so many layers of truth to Micky Knight's life. Truths that you slowly reveal through the three books. Did you have all these aspects in mind when you wrote the first of the series, Death by the Riverside?
Jean:
Of course. Well . . . not really. Death by the Riverside really started out as a short story, but I realized that this character demanded more than just a story. So I gave her a novel, and somewhere during writing that novel, I knew she could continue for several novels. I like to use the books to uncover not only the "whodunit" but also the mysteries of Micky's life. I like that double layering of mystery.
IC:
Ah. So that's what attracted you to the mystery genre, then?
Jean:
I've always enjoyed mysteries. But I can't say I had a well thought out plan to write a mystery series with this character. It really just kind of grew. The short story turned into a novel, into three (four written) novels and here I am, a mystery writer.
IC:
Oooh! Are you telling us that the fourth Micky Knight novel lives? To be seen about when?
Jean:
It's at the mercy of my editor. The book is written, but not yet edited, so no date for publication has been set. I would guess in about a year. But the good news is that even if I get hit by a bus (or a wayward freighter, a possibility in New Orleans) there will be a fourth book.
IC:
Glad to hear that (not the freighter near-miss, that is.) What prompted that first short story that became a novel?
Jean:
Ennui. No, it was more than just boredom. I was fooling around with a number of short stories, using genres, but with a lesbian twist. Now, it seems like lesbian detectives are everywhere, but back then, they were few and far between. I think this was about the third story I did, and I became interested in the character Micky Knight and forgot about the other stories (they were forgettable). And . . . here I am.
IC:
Sounds like the lesbian aspect was the theme looking for a home.
Jean:
I am a lesbian so it made sense for me to write about a lesbian detective. Also, when I was starting to write this series, back in the late 80's, there was no Ellen on TV, Melissa [Etheridge] and k.d.[Lang] hadn't announced themselves, Elton was still just bisexual, so it was also a very real struggle against being invisible. Or having the only version of who we were, a distorted, stereotyped version.
IC:
And considering the times, was it then more difficult to find a publisher or agent?
Jean:
Yes, I didn't even bother trying the "big" publishers for the first book. It just wasn't being done back then. The small feminist presses (and there are a number of them) came into being because if they didn't publish this kind of material, no one would.
IC:
And your first book was/is most definitely "in-your-face" up front with the issue right at the beginning. I seem to recall reading somewhere that you once said there was some debate among your friends about the degree of sexual content. Comment?
Jean:
It was not my intent to be "in-your-face" or to have a chip on my shoulder about the sexual orientation. My attitude is just that this is who my character is and how she lives her life. And yes, there are explicit sex scenes in the books. But I never put in a sex scene just for purposes of titilation (sex scenes are the hardest to write, so I avoid them when I can). When you're gay, the transgression isn't the sex per se, but the sexuality. It's "Don't ask, Don't tell," not "Don't ask, don't do." And the controversy over Ellen coming out was her saying that she was a lesbian, not that she did anything explicitly sexual on that episode. So when I came out as a writer of lesbians books, putting sex into them was the minor 'sin'. And I believe, given some of the plot lines in the books that I had to deal with my character's sexuality, how to show how she dealt with sexual situations. I thought it was an integral part of her character and that I couldn't get away from writing about sex without pulling punches.
IC:
By "in-your-face" I meant, should have said, "explicit". In the beginning, she reminded me a bit, in actions and character, of a Mickey Spillane character. She takes no nonsense from anyone and yet there is always a touch of humor to lighten whatever is going on. As you said earlier, Micky is a complex character.Each of your novels deals with a specific issue, drugs, child porn, ... What comes first, the issue or the plot? What is the impetus for you to put your fingers to the keyboard?
Jean:
That advance check. No, just kidding. The first two books, published by a small press certainly weren't a money making proposition. Even the third book, picked by a 'mainstream' publisher hasn't been bringing bank trucks to my house.I don't know that anything comes first, more that everything all comes together. How does this character with her history, deal with this issue? It's the intersection of plot and character that interests me.
IC:
Hah! Intersection of plot and character...is that a plug for The Intersection of Law and Desire? Yes, I see that, now that you mention it. Each situation seems to change Micky or make her more aware of her own being (needs, fears.)She is a philosophical being. Is philosophy one of your interests?
Jean:
I have to tell the story of how I came across the title for The Intersection of Law and Desire. There was an article in the paper, one of those short little blurbs about a 'common' shooting in which the murderer, not the brightest bulb on the X-mas tree, shot someone in front of an off duty cop. He was promptly arrested. The article ended with, "... and the incident took place at the intersection of Law and Desire." The minute I read that, I knew I had the title for the book. New Orleans does really have a Law Street and a Desire Street and they really do intersect.As to philosophy, it's not really an interest of mine, my bookshelves aren't groaning under the weight of Nietzsche, Spinoza and Kierkegaard, but I do believe that it is a human obligation, often honored in the breach, to think. To think about who we are, where we are and where we are going.
IC:
Maybe the shelves aren't groaning but you know who these guys are! That says quite a bit.Your novels are well spiced with the essence of New Orleans and environs. You present more than a tourist's view: we get the mundane along with the uncommon; we experience what it is to live there. Bravo.
And now to SinC. Were you already a member of SinC when you wrote Death by the Riverside, or did you join later?
Jean:
First I wrote, then I joined. I didn't know I was a mystery writer until I wrote the book. So I didn't know I needed Sisters in Crime until then. And it's been not only useful, but fun.
IC:
I know you are one of the first online members and now also a member of the Internet Chapter's Steering Committee. What direction would you like to see SinC go in if other than status quo?
Jean:
Sisters in Crime should rule the world. Actually, I don't think the direction we're going in at the moment is so bad, given a few course corrections along the way. Since there in no SinC chapter here in New Orleans, the internet is a great way for me to connect with people. I can now say I know a number of people I've never met. Except for their pictures, I have no dea what either JD or Quenda look like (and even though I'm a lesbian, I have to say that JD is cute). I think it's a great way to open up the world.
IC:
JD, isn't he, though!Is the benefit to you of being a SinC member, then, that of being in communication with other writers and mystery readers?
Jean:
I think that's one of the best benefits of SinC. Connect, only connect, as E.M. Forster said. It's great to be able to tap into a community of like minded readers and writers. Also, I think SinC has had an effect on the perceptions about women writing mysteries. The purpose behind the founding of the organization was to address the unequal treatment given women. It's not a perfect world, but to a large extent, that has changed and I believe that SinC gets the credit for that. That's quite an accomplishment. It's useful to belong to an organization with clout.
IC:
Micky Knight has a cat, Hepplewhite. Do you?
Jean:
I had a cat. Nicky Cat has gone on to that big catnip field in the sky. She started out as a street cat in Brooklyn, so the pampered and well fed seventeen years she spent with me, were a vast improvement on the life she might have led.
IC:
If you found yourself in the middle of a strange city, with no people in sight, what are the first three things you would do?
Jean:
First three things I would do? Hmmm. Probably hunt for a phone, because that's a sign of civilization (such as there is) and connection. Then I might see if the phone had a phone book attached and if so, (not likely I know) I'd flip through it and find the new visitors section. Usually there is a map in those pages, so I'd try to locate what part of the city I was in. Once I'd figured out what part of the city I was in, I'd figure out what part of the city I wanted to be in. Where are the museums? The bohemian neighborhoods, the funky coffee shops? Then I'd either walk there, or use the phone book and call a cab.If I couldn't find a phone (or found one that didn't work or have a yellow pages) I'd probably just wander around, looking for lights or a busy street. I'd tell myself that I was lost in a strange city (which is a very different thing from being lost in the Amazon jungle--in a city you eventually run into places to eat whereas in the jungle you eventually run into something that will eat you) and that I might as well enjoy the adventure and see what sights there were to be seen.
IC:
Okay, the moment you've been waiting for has arrived (aren't you thankful?).This is your chance to say whatever you wish to the fortunate visitors to the Spotlight Profile. You're on.
Jean:
Welcome, fortunate visitors. Since you're here, you're probably a reader. And that means you're one of my favorite kinds of people. There are so many worlds in books and they are open to those of us who read. I hope your reading stack exceeds your grasp (as mine does--I may never move again until they invent a transporter for all those books) and that every page turned brings a new adventure. Happy reading trails to you.
Novels by J.M. Redmann:Death by the RiversideDeaths of Jocasta
The Intersection of Law and Desire
Jean Redmann Louise Guardino