I loved every sentence of this. Your dad seems like he was quite the character and I can see where he made his impacts in your stories. Thanks for sharing this, personal as it was.
Antiheroes are so fascinating to me, but in real life and in fiction. My own father straddled that line (though definitely not to the degree your dad did) so that's probably part of it as well. Reading this I actually wondered briefly if they ever crossed paths because my dad had a couple friends in a local MC in the 70s.
He told me a story once about making port in Thunder Bay (he was a sailor on the great lakes at the time) and he got a call from an old friend who heard he was in town to come meet up with some people at a local biker bar (I couldn't tell you which). He got there first, picks a table with a bunch of chairs. As he's waiting, big biker dudes keep coming up and taking chairs from his table until he's down to just a few so he says to the next guy who comes to get one "No, sorry man. I need these ones." The guy gets in his face and tells my dad something like get up because he's taking his fucking seat now. Some minor tiff happens and my dad ends up on a quip the likes of "if you're trying to get me to come sit in your lap, it's not gonna happen."
It's at this point there's a cackle from across the bar and his friend appears wearing his MC colours with a big grin. He'd been sending his boys over to mess with my dad and just wanted to see if he was still the same shit he'd always been lol.
I know of the club of which you speak, and do not speak for any club. If it wasn't Rock Machine, it was - well, the other club. The one that subsidized all the CA mom and pop MC's. The Para-Dice Riders were one of these, if memory serves.
The Canadian crews were goddamn lunatics in those days. They took out an entire clubhouse of their own MC because they felt cheated. NYC came up to do damage control and just...left. Thanks for this. It's always nice to hear of a person on the fringes of it all. MLLH&R.
I know! I mean, the Quebec Biker War was the equivalent of Beruit on Ice, but you guys are so very polite about everything. And you speak the nicest French. A Parisian accent can be like the South Bronx vernacular being taught in language schools here in the States. [NYC currently, been all over]
Loved your story, agreed re: your opine vis-a-vis the writing of violence, had to subscribe, look forward to checking out your books as well when I have a chance.
Rules are everything. The most basic of them all is: Those who want respect, give respect.
Fuuuuck that was a good read. Reminded me of my dad. Gone too soon, but absolutely cranked the most out of life. He hit hard and took hits and was a wise ass the whole time, with a soft spot for his only kid.
Thanks for sharing. Dipping into Substack. And fiction. Glad I found you and some your crew
Some people wonder why a woman stays with violent or criminal men. The key part with many of them is even if they die to a fellow crook or drugs or death from a lunatic bike ride without helmet or suit...
So often, they are men.
Men and women both actually like real men. Thus, Heracles and all the countless fictional and real highwaymen are loved.
Indeed, boring is one trait a writer should avoid.
Its consequencely quite hard to write a bore or annoying character.
You have to do the thing without actually doing it, because to entertain even the quisling must be fascinating.
You were fortunate indeed to have your father's love, thank you for sharing the memory of him.
“There are rules”. I love pirate history, etc and the code/honor among …. is maybe what fascinates me the most in any outsider cultures whether it be pirates, bikers, cowboys, carnies. I mean it was Michael Mann’s obsession his entire adult life.
Michael Mann really did the prison and Chicago crew thing down to an art form. The script for Heat is a masterclass on what tough truly is, and the life that comes with it. +1
That book about Chris Sherlis in Ciudad Del Este was not bad at all, considering. Try the Marc Maron podcast interviewing Michael Mann. His grip on the philosophical and academic will knock you on your ass. Such a smart conversation. Must have heard that one twelve times.
"Al Capone ran a soup kitchen." And several other legitimate businesses as well- he camoflaged the bootlegging operation where he made most of his (illicit) money into them so the police couldn't put any charges against him that really stuck. They ultimately nailed him because he wasn't paying his taxes...
Certainly. And Black jazz bandleader Walter Barnes, whose music Capone was a fan of, likely appreciated the fact that Capone strong-armed the racist management of a radio station into allowing Barnes to perform on it.
He balanced his fearful image with little acts of kindness like that.
Ieally enjoyed reading this. Thank you for posting it!
Having possibly hypothetically also (not really, I'm making this hypothetical history up for the sole purpose of trying to get you to take my opinion seriously), for about a year, long ago and far away, in a different jurisdiction and well past any relevant statutes of limitation, have run with some interesting people not exactly like but not totally different from your dad and his buddies, i thought not movies, but series, Black Sails, The Wire & Snowfall do the best job of getting the ambience right. The movies I thought did it best are mostly smaller, not so famous stuff.
Will try to get a book order in later this weekend.
About inconsistency—I agree. But in real life, people are often inconsistent. If the inconsistency can be explained, does it make it more satisfying for the reader? I can’t think of any good examples rn, but I’d love to hear your thoughts.
When I say "inconsistent" in fiction, I mean that the character isn't built with enough of a foundation that their actions "make sense" even if they do things that are unexpected. A thin character that just does random stuff is more likely to bewilder the reader—but if the character is built well then their reasoning is less "confusing." We have a lot to work with in a novel as an art form, in real life we only have our own POV. Does that make sense?
I was on an Irvine Walsh kick like 20 years ago, and I remember one thing he did well. His book Filth is about this incredibly corrupt and evil Scottish detective, and he does many terrible things. He does, however, witness a man having a heart attack, and he attempts CPR. His widow contacts him later and thanks him. It’s a really interesting component, almost like it messed him up, in that, maybe it provided a contrast to the rest of his life. I’m not sure how to describe it, and it wasn’t ostensibly a huge part of the story, but it was one of those well done details that means so much. No one is ever just one thing.
When my dad went to prison in the 90s for some accounting chicanery, I’d always make stuff up in elementary school. I knew his best friend had gone away for smuggling shit from Mexico so it didn’t feel like too much of a stretch to pass that off as his. After that he got on the straight and narrow excepting when he was a little too close to the Enron debacle. I was torn between being glad he wasn’t too much of a fuckup (like me) but always wanting him to be more of a badass. Go figure.
I loved every sentence of this. Your dad seems like he was quite the character and I can see where he made his impacts in your stories. Thanks for sharing this, personal as it was.
Antiheroes are so fascinating to me, but in real life and in fiction. My own father straddled that line (though definitely not to the degree your dad did) so that's probably part of it as well. Reading this I actually wondered briefly if they ever crossed paths because my dad had a couple friends in a local MC in the 70s.
He told me a story once about making port in Thunder Bay (he was a sailor on the great lakes at the time) and he got a call from an old friend who heard he was in town to come meet up with some people at a local biker bar (I couldn't tell you which). He got there first, picks a table with a bunch of chairs. As he's waiting, big biker dudes keep coming up and taking chairs from his table until he's down to just a few so he says to the next guy who comes to get one "No, sorry man. I need these ones." The guy gets in his face and tells my dad something like get up because he's taking his fucking seat now. Some minor tiff happens and my dad ends up on a quip the likes of "if you're trying to get me to come sit in your lap, it's not gonna happen."
It's at this point there's a cackle from across the bar and his friend appears wearing his MC colours with a big grin. He'd been sending his boys over to mess with my dad and just wanted to see if he was still the same shit he'd always been lol.
My dad was friends with lots of guys who worked the boats, so this interaction checks out. He might have even been the one cackling.
Very possible. He had a fair few colourful friends.
One day I'll tell you about his childhood buddy from Red Rock who robbed a bank and then vanished, never to be heard from again.
One of my dad's buddies stole a tow truck and ripped an ATM out of a wall LMAO
Lisa, which is the most profitable way for you for me to order your book?
Whichever you prefer! It's all about the same, percentage-wise
Thanks
I know of the club of which you speak, and do not speak for any club. If it wasn't Rock Machine, it was - well, the other club. The one that subsidized all the CA mom and pop MC's. The Para-Dice Riders were one of these, if memory serves.
The Canadian crews were goddamn lunatics in those days. They took out an entire clubhouse of their own MC because they felt cheated. NYC came up to do damage control and just...left. Thanks for this. It's always nice to hear of a person on the fringes of it all. MLLH&R.
Canada is full of stories like this. But we're just so nice people don't believe it!
I know! I mean, the Quebec Biker War was the equivalent of Beruit on Ice, but you guys are so very polite about everything. And you speak the nicest French. A Parisian accent can be like the South Bronx vernacular being taught in language schools here in the States. [NYC currently, been all over]
Loved your story, agreed re: your opine vis-a-vis the writing of violence, had to subscribe, look forward to checking out your books as well when I have a chance.
Rules are everything. The most basic of them all is: Those who want respect, give respect.
"A man got to have a code."
-Omar Little
All good things,
LC.
Thanks a bunch!
Love this Lisa, reminds me of my Dad. This explains much about why your work resonates with me. Thank you. 💗
So glad to hear it resonates! And thanks for reading
Fuuuuck that was a good read. Reminded me of my dad. Gone too soon, but absolutely cranked the most out of life. He hit hard and took hits and was a wise ass the whole time, with a soft spot for his only kid.
Thanks for sharing. Dipping into Substack. And fiction. Glad I found you and some your crew
So glad it connected with you!
Some people wonder why a woman stays with violent or criminal men. The key part with many of them is even if they die to a fellow crook or drugs or death from a lunatic bike ride without helmet or suit...
So often, they are men.
Men and women both actually like real men. Thus, Heracles and all the countless fictional and real highwaymen are loved.
Indeed, boring is one trait a writer should avoid.
Its consequencely quite hard to write a bore or annoying character.
You have to do the thing without actually doing it, because to entertain even the quisling must be fascinating.
You were fortunate indeed to have your father's love, thank you for sharing the memory of him.
Sat down to write - got sucked into this. Damn, what a wild childhood! Thanks for sharing it. I'm certainly picking up a copy of The Highwayman now.
Thank you! Now get writing!
Not all heroes wear capes, some of them wear leather jackets and have skull tattoos.
It's true!
It’s definitely enriching in terms of getting to know you and when I finally get my teeth into your books it will be all the more meaningful.
Thank you!
Thanks for sharing this.
“There are rules”. I love pirate history, etc and the code/honor among …. is maybe what fascinates me the most in any outsider cultures whether it be pirates, bikers, cowboys, carnies. I mean it was Michael Mann’s obsession his entire adult life.
Michael Mann really did the prison and Chicago crew thing down to an art form. The script for Heat is a masterclass on what tough truly is, and the life that comes with it. +1
I’m on the fence about the eventual Heat 2.
That book about Chris Sherlis in Ciudad Del Este was not bad at all, considering. Try the Marc Maron podcast interviewing Michael Mann. His grip on the philosophical and academic will knock you on your ass. Such a smart conversation. Must have heard that one twelve times.
Oh shit, I didn’t know he did Maron’s show. Adding to my work drive list this week. Thanks!
Have you ever listened to Maron’s William Friedkin interview from years ago? Another great one.
I have and you are correct, sir! Happy to help.
100, man. Thief and Heat alone. So good.
"Al Capone ran a soup kitchen." And several other legitimate businesses as well- he camoflaged the bootlegging operation where he made most of his (illicit) money into them so the police couldn't put any charges against him that really stuck. They ultimately nailed him because he wasn't paying his taxes...
Yep! But the people who got their soup from his kitchen probably didn't care how he ran it, if it prevented them from going hungry.
Certainly. And Black jazz bandleader Walter Barnes, whose music Capone was a fan of, likely appreciated the fact that Capone strong-armed the racist management of a radio station into allowing Barnes to perform on it.
He balanced his fearful image with little acts of kindness like that.
It's almost like humans are complicated and kinda funny creatures
Ieally enjoyed reading this. Thank you for posting it!
Having possibly hypothetically also (not really, I'm making this hypothetical history up for the sole purpose of trying to get you to take my opinion seriously), for about a year, long ago and far away, in a different jurisdiction and well past any relevant statutes of limitation, have run with some interesting people not exactly like but not totally different from your dad and his buddies, i thought not movies, but series, Black Sails, The Wire & Snowfall do the best job of getting the ambience right. The movies I thought did it best are mostly smaller, not so famous stuff.
Will try to get a book order in later this weekend.
ALLEGEDLY lmao
He’s also the only actual person in the Tintin books…
This brings me back. I lived in Quebec in the 90's. I remember the HA and RM feud. Our area also had the 'upstart' Jokers rivaling them.
Wild times!
Great shit here.
About inconsistency—I agree. But in real life, people are often inconsistent. If the inconsistency can be explained, does it make it more satisfying for the reader? I can’t think of any good examples rn, but I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Great article! Excited to read Highwayman
When I say "inconsistent" in fiction, I mean that the character isn't built with enough of a foundation that their actions "make sense" even if they do things that are unexpected. A thin character that just does random stuff is more likely to bewilder the reader—but if the character is built well then their reasoning is less "confusing." We have a lot to work with in a novel as an art form, in real life we only have our own POV. Does that make sense?
It does, thank you for responding!
No prob, and thanks for giving the Highwayman a go!
I was on an Irvine Walsh kick like 20 years ago, and I remember one thing he did well. His book Filth is about this incredibly corrupt and evil Scottish detective, and he does many terrible things. He does, however, witness a man having a heart attack, and he attempts CPR. His widow contacts him later and thanks him. It’s a really interesting component, almost like it messed him up, in that, maybe it provided a contrast to the rest of his life. I’m not sure how to describe it, and it wasn’t ostensibly a huge part of the story, but it was one of those well done details that means so much. No one is ever just one thing.
When my dad went to prison in the 90s for some accounting chicanery, I’d always make stuff up in elementary school. I knew his best friend had gone away for smuggling shit from Mexico so it didn’t feel like too much of a stretch to pass that off as his. After that he got on the straight and narrow excepting when he was a little too close to the Enron debacle. I was torn between being glad he wasn’t too much of a fuckup (like me) but always wanting him to be more of a badass. Go figure.