Originally published in Verbicide issue #5

It has often been said that writers are never fully appreciated until they are dead. Even in today’s world of Nobel laureates, Oprah’s Book Choice, and the New York Times Bestseller List, we rarely get the chance to witness a writer’s introduction, growth, and accomplishment. Writers are generally considered introverts, preferring to hide behind subtleties, shadows, mist, and dreams. Hawthorne perfected this technique, and later, Edgar Allen Poe would dispense with the classical concerns of reality, and explore the frontier of the human mind.

The canon of American literature grew to include the transcendentalists, and the early modernists. The 20th century of American writing is epitomized by the literary generation; Hemingway and Fitzgerald’s Lost Generation, Kerouac and Ginsberg’s Beat Generation, Kesey and Wolfe’s Merry Pranksters. As generations of scholars have grown up with these works, their literary value increases, but not quickly enough for the audiences that they touched.

Charles Romalotti made his debut with a book that has become a standard of its own. Salad Days sits on the shelf next to the film Sid and Nancy, and cassettes of Minor Threat. This was an autobiographical work, fittingly self-published, and it flew under the radar of all but the most astute social barometers. Nevertheless, Mr. Romalotti has achieved a notable status in this most modern of times, and his latest novel, Rash, looks more closely at the nature of popular culture.

With the turmoil of the world, and the organic metamorphosis of modern culture, the independent writer is as important as ever. Douglas Novielli had the opportunity to interview Mr. Romalotti, and he revealed himself to be what Joyce considered the perfect artist: a conscientious observer.

You were born in Lawrence, Kansas, grew up with punk rock; what sort of lasting impressions do you have of childhood, and adolescence in the Midwest?
I spent seven years writing all those out and calling it Salad Days! The fall season, and winter. The things I don’t get down here in Austin, TX.

Can you compare the experiences in Salad Days with your experiences in Austin?
Austin has been a place of growth for me. I don’t get out much, I know very few people, and I kind of like that. Rash is definitely an Austin tale, one I schemed while working on the Drag.

What do you mean, “working on the Drag?” Did you see anything there which sparked the story in Rash?
The Drag is the street where the entire story of Rash takes place here in Austin. It’s where all the Crusties call home. Didn’t see anything there, just gathered the idea in that atmosphere, it seemed like a fun idea to work with.

When I think of Lawrence, Kansas, I think William S. Burroughs, who lived there for many years, and eventually died there; did you ever meet him? Interact in anyway?
Never interacted, but he lived a few blocks down 15th street from me. He didn’t get out much, not even to go to the grocery store.

Ever read anything by him? I’m a huge fan of that guy, and to be honest, I would’ve guessed that his writing was an influence on your own, particularly your style in descriptive passages; comment?
No, I’ve never read anything by him, to be honest.

What sort of reading did you do growing up? And now?
Very little. I’ve read very few books in my life, actually. Maybe two- to three-dozen entirely. Too busy writing.

Do you have a favorite book? Maybe one that had an effect on you?
Favorite books are The Wasp Factory, Geek Love, and The Fountainhead.

The irony in Katherine Dunn’s Geek Love is amazing, and she’s gained quite a bit of notoriety. What about that book makes it one of your favorites? Do you like to think of the characters of Rash as somehow mutations of society?
You ask the best questions I’ve ever been asked in an interview. Yeah, I would say that the characters of Rash would be that, in a way. What I liked about those books is that there is a message, some of them dark, and definitely not your typical fare, and yet very effective. Those books, to me, stand on their own. What category would they be? Their own, in my opinion, and that’s cool to me.

Can you pinpoint any influences in your writing? The critics will…
Good luck to the critics! When they decide, they’ll have to let me know, too. I write how I think things should go. I would need to read more to be influenced, and I can’t even recall the last book I read. I know that my influences would come more from film than books. I know it’s not the “literary” response to say that, but it’s true. Probably Rod Serling of “The Twilight Zone.” I grew up on those shows and all my ideas seem to me to be very gritty, modernized “The Twilight Zone” episodes. Which is great to me!

What’s your favorite “Twilight Zone” episode? I love the one that has the astronauts on a planet of microscopic natives.
Wow, so many. “Eye of the Beholder” is good. And that one where the guy only wants to read, so he locks himself in the bank vault, and while he’s in there, the bomb goes off and everyone is dead. And he finds the library, with all the time in the world to read the books, and then he breaks his glasses in his excitement!

You self-published your first book, Salad Days; what was that like? How was it this time around?
It was much more difficult doing Salad Days, breaking through to people without spending a penny on advertising. But it happened, it’s been of the best selling in its genre since it came out. I very easily could sell more copies in a day on Amazon.com than some stores probably sell of their entire stock. Salad Days has been a hit far beyond what I had hoped. Rash also has sold incredibly well, due in part to the reputation of Salad Days and to all the amazing reviews its gotten, like the one in the December issue of MRR. I’ve only gotten one fairly unfavorable review, but we probably shouldn’t go into who gave that!

In defense of that critic, the final analysis was that Rash is a book by a writer who obviously has talent, and from whom we will expect great things; do you expect great things from yourself and your work? What sort of intangible, vague goals to you have for yourself as a writer?
I like what I write, the tone, atmosphere, the characters, and I really like the reputation that myself and the books have gotten. That, to me, is priceless. I feel I’ve actually saved my best ideas, which are coming up, and I would like to see a larger audience opened up to what I write. I don’t dream of writing classics or bestsellers, I simply want to move people and in turn be proud of what I have produced. So far so good!

Can you give me an example of an experience with that reputation which was especially memorable?
Like the reviews that I’ve gotten, mostly like the ones on Amazon.com. It’s not that they thought Salad Days was cool, it really truly moved them. Some have read it over and over, and some have tattooed the cover on them. Now how cool is that?

Salad Days was your first major breakthrough — was Rash anymore rewarding to see in the final form?
Yeah, as I have said before, Rash turned Salad Days into fiction. It was such a different story, I think Rash made Salad Days less of a novelty.

Was there something about writing an autobiographical novel that was uncomfortable?
No, I wanted to write fiction. There were some liberties taken, and no one cares to hear the story of a perfect nobody. Writing it dramatically with all the emphasized highs and lows to me was more effective.

If you someone asked you which to read, Salad Days or Rash, which would pick? Not so much which is better, but which is more indicative of your work?
Depends on their interest. If they like dark and creepy stuff, Rash. If they’re into drama, Salad Days.

Your books deal a lot with music; is this something that you look to infuse in your writing, or is it something that happens? A personality trait, special interest of yours…?
I write what I know, and I knew those subjects well. Well enough to write them at least. I felt that the stories exist on their own without it. Rash is almost devoid of musical reference, it’s more a lifestyle thing. In the narrow scope, it’s about punk kids, punk culture. I think it’ll represent something far larger in time when punk culture has secured its ranks among other countercultures in history.

The punk rock has certainly changed since the days of Minor Threat.
Yeah, it’s changed considerably! But in other ways, it still attracts the same type of people for the most part. Again, I don’t get out much, but when I do go to see a punk band, I have a good time.

Are you still into the punk rock scene? What bands do you especially like nowadays?
Not at all, really. I do like Flogging Molly, though.

Flogging Molly is great! Irish punks like them and the Pogues are terrific. Any particular reason that you’re a bit removed from the punk scene?
Yeah, I wouldn’t want to be part of any group that’d have me as a member, as Groucho says. Not much into groups. Much more into individualism. Punk scenes are extensions of playgrounds, for the most part. Stifles creativity. I can take in all the good on the outside, and never lose myself to an image in the process. That’s where I stay.

I’m closing in on 22 years old, and I never notice my age more than when I go to a show; is punk rock better left to teenagers of the world?
I kind of think so, but when someone decides that they’re getting too old is purely subjective to their life and interest. I think punk is the most pure for teenagers, but for those who get something out of it for years after, good for them. To each his own.

Salad Days is described as punk/hardcore; Rash deals with the Goth scene, so to speak. Why the switch?
Broadens my audience. Everything has a plan…

What sort of experience do you have with Goth? Are you a fan of the music? How close are you to the lifestyle?
Not very close really. I’ve been around both scenes for years, but I was much more into punk. Goth tends to be a bit too straight faced for me.

So what does the punk-rock writer want for Christmas this year?
For my niece and nephew to enjoy what I got them (my niece is getting her first books!). And to spend time with my girlfriend Becky and my dog Ed-grrr and just chilling out at my parent’s house in Kansas.

Maybe you could share a little view of your writing life. Can you describe your work space?
A metal desk where the dinner table is supposed to be! A frazzled mess of papers that I have organized in some strange fashion. Notes, tons of notes. I have sticky pads at work, in the car, wherever, and any ideas that come to me end up on sticky notes and they cover my desk.

How much time do you spend on writing on any given day?
On the average, two. Sometimes much more, sometimes not at all. For the most part, two hours a day.

Is it easy to tell a good idea from a bad one?
I feel the good ideas stick with me longer. Like how musicians say, if I don’t remember the riff the next day, it wasn’t worth it? If after a year or four I am still eager to write a story idea, it’s worth writing, to me.

Do new stories feel like an epiphany?
Oh yeah! As though my life has purpose once again!

What comes first, the beginning or the end? At times, Rash feels like a very long beginning, almost as if you’re searching for a direction; is that intentional?
No, actually I think a lot of writers start writing until they finish. I make detailed maps, I set up the story by giving a brief summary of every scene that is to transpire. I write scenes, not stories. The story is laid out and timed before I start writing, based on the outline. So there is no searching at all, in fact, it’d be easy to criticize my writing as too calculated. Because it very much is.

Rash does feel cinematic in structure; do you find any particular advantages in writing that way? Would you consider it a unique type of style?
It seemed very visual to me, but most of the analogies in that were visual ones. I would think people would claim it’d be less unique in style for that reason. I know certain critics look down upon a “cinematic” approach.

Rumor has it that Rash will be a movie? What are the details on that? Are you happy with the experience?
Flax Glor out of San Diego, California. He does a TV show there called Radiation Nation. He’s doing everything, in fact, I’m so far removed, I can’t even tell you what is going on. I’d like to say that I’m concerned, but I really don’t think much about it. Much at all. I hope that he does well with it, but who knows. I know it’s as hard getting a film deal as it is selling books, so I wish him the best of luck!

I think that a cinematic approach is a fair approach. This leads to an interesting topic: you’re a writer who writes about social issues, with cinematic stories that come with a soundtrack of sorts; do you consider yourself an eclectic artist?
I think I’m an eclectic person on the whole. I have varied interests, I have no interests or knowledge of what’s hip. I know what I like, and if I come up with an idea of a story I think I can deliver, or feel challenged by it, I will tackle it. Regardless of what style it would be.

Some might argue that the written word is good for conveying certain ideas, music better for others, and so on with the visual arts; do you agree with that assessment? Do you think it’s possible for writing to transcend those boundaries?
I definitely think art does that. I’m personally more moved by music, but it’s a means to the same end. I always had this idea, even 15 years ago, that eventually punk will be a written form as well as a musical or fashion expression.

We’ve experienced classical lit, romantic lit, Victorian lit, realism, transcendentalism, modernism, and post-modernism; can you take a stab at what’s next?
No idea. I would think it’d be similar to underground music, stuff like Fight Club, and anything hard and gritty along those lines. Those books have a voice that is very indicative of the culture these days. I would say whatever they’ll call it, it’s writers along the lines of Chuck Palahniuk that will be what they’re describing.

Do you interact with any other working writers? Is there any current writers whose work you find particularly impressive? Particularly repulsive?
Not really. There is an author of a vegan cookbook that I am pals with, but that’s it. I always see writers as not quite so friendly as musicians are to one another. Don’t know why. I had some emails back and forth with Don DeGrazia, author of American Skin, and I think his book is great, but that would sum it up. Yeah, I have encountered books from writers in the punk fiction genre that were perfectly talentless, but I’ll not mention any names.

Stylistically speaking, Rash uses a rather conventional omniscient third person narrative to deal with what are uncommon situations in the canon of literature. What’s your plan of attack when you’re passed the idea stage, and into the drafting stage? Do you play around with narrators? Voice?
Not really. I felt that Rash needed to be that way because of all the different angles and events that had to be shown. Seemed most appropriate. The one I’m finishing now is also in third person.

I rummaged around the Internet and found a review of Salad Days, which among other things says that, “It’s written in the first person but stilted by the formalities of the third person perspective.” Were you more conscious of technique this time around?
Not really. I really don’t concern myself with a whole lot when I do it. I don’t think of who will read it, who will like it, who will be offended, who will it reach. As long as it reaches me, I just do what I do. I never went to college, I never studied writing. I couldn’t tell you what a pronoun is, and I’m being serious! I just do what I do and what comes out is how I think it should be done. Stilted or not!

What are you currently spending your time on?
Fulfilling the orders for the books I have out, working a full-time job, and finishing up my third novel.

You’ve passed 30 now, your characters are all rather young; what keeps you writing about kids?
I am a kid! And I think that’s perfectly fine, it’s obviously pulp fiction, but that’s what I am most comfortable writing. I write it because I enjoy it. Most people who have come to my age don’t live that interesting of lives. Writing as I do, the characters are very spontaneous and free-spirited. They are briskly alive, and I love that. People my age tend to be too busy chasing the American dream of 2.2 children and stability — I’ll leave that for the Oprah writers. Didn’t Dickens favor that downtrodden street-wise type?

That’s true, but so did Wordsworth, and he was accused of romanticizing them right into more oppression; do you think your characters are realistic? Do they reflect the lives and experiences of homeless youth in Austin? Do they reflect youth in a more universal, metaphorical way?
I know Salad Days does because I lived it and almost all of it, from the conversations to the experience, was pretty close to real. As Rash goes, I’ve had some homeless people assume I lived it. That’s happened three times. In actuality I drive a new Honda, work as a GIS Coordinator for a marketing research firm that focuses on transportation analysis and come from a good middle class family. Never really roughed it out as the kids in Rash do.

Do you think that image of the Sid Vicious-like punk rock fan or the Hunter S. Thompson-like writer is still applicable? Where do the drugs fit in? Rash deals pretty intensely with drug use; why?
That’s so dated! It’s funny, Rash is, in my opinion, very much an anti-drug book. There are a few lines in there that really give it away, but overall, that’s her downfall. Personally, I’ve never done drugs in my life. Haven’t drank in 16 years, either! Just isn’t my thing. I’ve had people refer to what I’ve written as kind of Beat-ish, but I think it’s more along the lines of Objectivism, especially Salad Days. To me it’s about not being a victim and taking control of your life and striving to become something better.

Excuse me if I read into this too much, but is being a self-published writer a way for you to take control of your life?
I feel that way, but am I biased because my stuff sells without advertising? I mean, I could easily think way different if I didn’t sell any copies. I’m in a very good position. I am very lucky to have what I have. It’s not my career, but I have the freedom and the control, and I have people who seem to actually give a shit about what I write. Is that not a dream in its most pure form? If you seek to express and reach out to people, this is what it’s all about. Forget bestsellers, as I said in Salad Days, this is why I was drawn to expressive art in the first place.

What are the advantages to self-publishing, or working with an independent press; what are the drawbacks?
The freedom of creativity with self-publishing, having a hands on and knowing where copies are going and to whom. Being involved in such a way, as well as not having to share any of the profits or compromise any ideas. The drawbacks would be working with distributors that don’t pay, or not getting all that great of distribution due to lack of funds for advertising or promotion.

How does the independent publishing world compare with the independent music world? There are as many people fed up with underground music industry as there are who are fed up with the mainstream music industry; any comments?
Very similar. And I really see their point, too. While the underground waves a fist in the air, determined to take down the man and corruption in business, their records are handled by companies who are at least as crooked and shady. As I’ve said before, at least Amazon.com and Baker & Taylor pay me! Would I go with a major publisher if offered a good deal? I wouldn’t think twice about it. See, my opinion on that whole “sell-out” thing is very different from others. I was chastised at a reading in Portland for this, too. If Green Day never changed their sound, if they never changed anything, how were they sell-outs? They didn’t change, the world changed. Green Day did punk a valuable favor, they brought new minds in by the truckload. Everyone claims all this history, but there was that one band that keyed you into the underground. For many people nowadays, that was Green Day. So how is that a bad thing? To me, if an artist is true to themselves, let them do as they do. If they reach more people, then great!

What’s your audience with these books? Can they be a sort of guide book for someone outside of these subcultures? Are they more suited to a reader who identifies with music, and the fashion, and all of those things that a newspaper might use to define a scene? Are they both? Are they neither?
When I was deciding to go the self-published route, I had read several books on how to go about doing it. All of them said the same thing: For fiction, find your niche and focus only on that niche. That’s what I have done. I don’t even consider looking for buyers outside the underground, I have no interest in doing that. The “target audience” for these books may make up a small portion of the population, but they are very loyal and very easy to reach. And very receptive. So to answer your question, I know exactly what types of people read these books. I’ve gone out of my way to try to find them based entirely on their interests. Had I written a general work of fiction, I would never have been able to sell into the thousands as I have.

The adult characters of Rash feel like a parallel of the kids; what sort of insights into the “adult world” did you have when writing Rash which may have been absent from Salad Days?
I intentionally avoided having too many adults in Salad Days, it already had plenty of characters. Yeah, you’re right, it is satire so there are quite a few parallels in that story.

Your books are listed under “Punk Fiction” and “Alienation” in Amazon.com; do you consider the characters of your books alienated? How about your readers?
Actually, Amazon.com has the publisher (which was me) decide how to categorize them, and I was the one who put them in those categories. Yeah, I feel that’s the basic essence. Not to mention they have “featured artists” in those categories, so if you sell well in them, your book will show up as a suggestion on almost any other book pertaining to punk. So it serves itself well. And did you by chance look up the bestsellers of Alienation Fiction? Usually Salad Days is the bestseller on that list with Naked Lunch in second. They change out from time to time, but that’s the usual placement of the two.

I think that all writers consider themselves in a process of growth; can you tell me about your growth as a writer between Salad Days and Rash? After Rash?
Yeah, there was tremendous growth in there. Actually, with Rash I was really shooting for something entirely different, but yet still able to appeal to the same readers of Salad Days. I think I achieved that in Rash.

Were there any aspects of storytelling and novel writing which you focused on, aspects which you were interested in nurturing?
I would like to grow in two ways. I want my dialog to be as real as it can be, and I would like for the stories to really have meaning and take a stand on issues without once spelling it out entirely. Rash is that way, but more so.

What sort of subject matter appeals to you for future works?
My future ideas won’t be too far from Rash. In tone, atmosphere, and right-angled plots. I love those “Twilight Zone”-styled endings!

Are you exclusively a novelist? Edgar Allen Poe thought that a novel was simply related short stories stuck together by babble; what do you think about that?
Yeah, I’ve never written anything other than novels. I don’t think I would do very well writing anything else. I would say Poe is very right, actually!

There’s a terrific statistic which is starting to bubble up: Apparently, the MTV generation is starting to read again. What’s your experience with young readers? Is it a large audience? Is it receptive?
I have very little experience with adult readers, so I really couldn’t comment on the difference! I would have to say based on the reception I’ve gotten, those stats are right.

As you say, your books are about not being a victim, and if I may suggest that your books deal with the individual’s struggle in society, what social issues are particularly relevant to the individual? Are you politically active?
I’m not all that politically active, not like I’d like to be. I have sent quite a few letters to Congressmen in my life regarding various issues (the latest being the attempt to control medication, even vitamins and minerals), but I could do a lot more than that. I tend to always write the “underdog”. I think most people feel that way in the world.

How does war affect the nature of the individual in society? I personally think that no creative person will be able to escape the historical significance of the worldwide conflict going on now; beyond political or religious views, I think that simply the chaos of the world will have an affect on creative individual and the work. How does living in a time of war affect the writer?
Yeah, I agree. In fact, in this second Rash book, I’ve kind of written my “war opinion” in there, using Jobie’s Manifesto as the voice. I like dating things, as long as it’s not a benchmark of some ridiculous trend. But I’d love to read these books decades down the line, or eventually show my grandchildren these books and give them a piece of the late 20th century. Imagine that, these books will outlive me. When I am long gone, my ancestors could read these books a century away and know me intimately. How incredible is that?