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Biography/Interview:CharlesFrazier

CharlesFrazier,Americannovelist,wasbornin 1950inRaleigh,NorthCarolina,graduatedfromtheUniversityofNorthCarolina in1973,andreceivedhisPh.D.inEnglishfromtheUniversityofSouthCarolina in1986. Hisfirstnovel,ColdMountian(AtlanticMonthlyPress.1997.ISBN0871136791) tracesthejourneyofInman,adeserterfromtheConfederatearmyneartheend oftheAmericanCivilWar.Theworkisrichinthecultureandsensibilitiesofthe NorthCarolinamountainsandwasbasedonlocalhistoryandstorieshanded downfromFrazier'sgreatgreatuncle. Thenovelwonthe1997NationalBookAwardandwasadaptedtofilmby AnthonyMinghellainthe2003productionColdMountain.

Interview
AnInterviewwithCharlesFrazer ItseemsalmostincrediblethatColdMountainisyourfirstnovel.Haveyou evertriedwritingfictionbeforeshortstories,orincompleteunpublished novels? Likealotofpeople,ItriedtowritesomefictionwhenIwasinmytwenties collegeage,justafterthat.Itdidn'tworkoutsowell.Iwasn'thappywithwhatI diditwassortofpretentiousandtechnicallyprettyweak.SoIputthatideaaway anddecidedthatIwasgoingtobeanacademicandthatIwouldstudyother people'swritingratherthanwritemyself.ButwhenIgottobeforty,Istarted wantingtowriteagainforsomereason,andfoundwhenIbegandoingitthat whatIwasdoingwasverydifferentfromwhatIhaddonewhenIwastwentyfive. Ilikeditbetterandwashappierdoingit,anditseemedtometobeworthdoing,

2 suddenly.Ithinkasyougetolderyougetasenseofwhatisimportantinlifeand whatissignificantenoughtowriteabout. TurningtoColdMountain:WhowastheoriginalInman? Hewasmygreatgreatuncle.Andpartofthecharacterwasbasedonmygreat grandfather.BothofthemwenttotheCivilWarvolunteeredinthefirstfew monthsofthatwarfeverandwentofftobattle.ThisInmanwasinsomeofthe worstfightingofthewar.HewasinVirginiaandwasinmanybattlesinkey positions.ButIknewsolittleabouthim.Therewerenophotographsofhimhe wrotenolettershome.It'sjustalittlefragmentofafamilystoryaboutthisguy ofhiswarexperience,hiscominghome,andwhathappenedtohimwhenhegot there. Wastheresomethingparticularabouthisstory,thatstruckyouas especiallydramatic? ThethingthatinterestedmemostandIthinkthatcaughtmyimaginationwhen myfathertoldmethisstorywashiswalkhome,awayfromthewar,toward homeandthemountainsofNorthCarolina.Ithoughtaboutwhathewasgetting awayfromandwhathewaswalkingtoward.Andthatshapedthecharacterand thewholedirectionofthenovel. HowlongdidyouthinkaboutInman'sstorybeforedecidingtoturnitintoa novel? I'dbeenwantingtowriteabookthathadthesouthernAppalachianMountainsas aprimaryforce,almostlikeamaincharacter,forquitesometime,butIdidn't knowwhetherIwantedtowriteaworkoffiction,nonfiction,orwhat.Ihadbeen keepingnotebooksanddoingalotofbackgroundresearch:history,natural history,thatkindofthing.ButIdidn'thaveastory.Ididn'thaveafocusforthe bookIjusthadmaterial.Sowhenmyfathertoldmethisstory,Iimmediately thought,"Well,there'smystory,that'smyfocus,"andIprobablybeganworking withintwoorthreedays. Sowhichelementsofhisstoryinthebookwerereal,andwhichdidyou invent? Well,weknewsolittle.Thestorymyfathertoldwasashortparagraph,atmosta fewsentences,offactsakindofanoutlineofafairlyshortlife.Itriedtofillthat inwithresearchfromhiswarrecordsandthestatearchivesandcameupwith maybethatmuchmore.SowhatIhadtobeginwithwastwoparagraphsabout thisfella.WhatIknewwaswhatkindoffamilyhewasfrom,whenhewenttothe war,thebattleshewasin,whenhewaswounded,whenheleftthewarandwent home,andwhathappenedtohimwhenhegotthere.Itriedtokeepthatbare outlineastruetothefactsofhislifeasIcouldmakeit.Butwhattheabsenceof informationallowedmetodowastomakeupacharacterandmakeastory,and that'swhatnovelistsneedtodo.SoinsomesenseI'mhappythatIdidn'thave moreinformation,thatInmandidn'tkeepajournalformetodrawfrom,thatIhad tomakeitup.

3 WhatmadeyoudecidetobaseInman'sstoryonTheOdyssey? Whenmyfathertoldmethestoryofthisancestor,thatwasoneofthefirstthings IthoughtofthattherewerecertainparallelstoTheOdysseythatmightbe usefulintryingtothinkofawaytotellthisstory.Awarrior,wearyofwar,tryingto gethomeandfacingallkindsofimpedimentsalongtheway,awomanathome besetbyallkindsofproblemsofherownthatareascompellingashis.SoI rereadTheOdysseythatwasoneofthefirstthingsIdidwhenIreallybegan workingonthebook.Therewasacertaintemptationtowriteparallelscenesto trytohaveaCyclopsscene,orwhatever.ButreallyquicklyIdecidedthatthat wouldbeprettylimitingandkindofartificial.SoIjustletTheOdysseystayinthe backofmymindasamodelofawarriorwantingtoputthatwarbehindhimand gethome.

Didyouseeanyparallelsbetweenthe actualAmericanCivilWarandtheTrojanWar? Notinparticular.IwasprettysuspiciousofwritingaCivilWarnovel.Ididn'twant towriteanovelofthebattlesandthegeneralsandthosefamouspersonalities. Therehavebeenalotofbookswrittenaboutthatgoodonesandbadones andIdidn'twanttoaddtothebulkofthatliterature.ButIrealizedthatthereare twokindsofbooksaboutawar:there'sanIliad,aboutfightingthewar,andabout thebattlesandgenerals,andthere'sanOdyssey,aboutawarriorwhohas decidedthathomeandpeacearethethingshewants.OnceIdecidedthatIwas writinganOdysseykindofbookinsteadofanIliadkindofbook,Icouldmove forwardwithitwithsomesenseofhappiness. WhatcharacteristicsdidyougiveInmantomakehimresembleOdysseus? Well,thatdesireforhomeiscertainlythecoreofit.Therearewonderful passagesinTheOdysseywhereOdysseusjustsortofdriftsintoprayerthese monologuesthatexpresshisdeepestdesires.AndIlookedatthosepretty carefullytodiscoverwhatthischaracterwants,whatitishe'safraidofand runningfrom,andwhatitishe'srunningtoward.Thosethingshelpedme considerably. ThestyleofColdMountainisratherunconventional,notquitelikethatof anyotherbook.Whydidyoudecidetousethisunusualrhythmand timbre? Iwasinterestedinseveralthingsinthelanguageofthebook.Onewas:Iwas

4 creatingthishistorical,fictionalworld,andIwantedthelanguageofthebookto createasenseofotherness,ofanotherworld,onethatthereaderdoesn't entirelyknow.Itoccupiesmanyofthesamegeographicalpointsasourcurrent world,butisinalotofwaysverydifferent.Iwantedthelanguagetosignalthat. SoonethingIusedtohelpwiththatwaswordsfortoolsandprocessesand kitchenimplementsthatarealmostlostwords.Ugly,oldwordslike"piggin"and "spurtle"and"keeler,"whichareallkitchenimplements.Thosekindsofwords wouldsignaltoareaderthatit'sadifferentmaterialworld,adifferentphysical worldfromours.TheotherthingIwasinterestedin,sinceIwaswritingalot aboutthesouthernAppalachians,wasgettingasenseoftheparticularuseof languageinthatregion,therhythmofit.Ididn'twanttoresorttospellingliquor"l ikker"orsomethinglikethat.Iwantedthemusicofthatlanguagemorethan justodditiesofspellingandpronunciation.SoIthoughtaboutthewayoldpeople talkedwhenIwasakid,whohadthatauthenticAppalachianaccent,andrealized thatitwasmoreamusic,arhythm,thananythingelseinmyear,andtherewere daysthatIcouldhearthatavoice,apatternofvoice,somewhatlike,say,Bill Monroe'swhenhewastalkingratherthansinging,thathasaverymusicalquality toit.WhenIcouldhearthatinmyear,IwassureIwasgoingtohaveagoodday ofwriting. ThedialogueinColdMountainismemorablyidiosyncratic.Dopeoplestill talkinthatregionthatwaythecharactersinthenoveldo? Youcanfindpeoplewhostilltalkthatway,whousesomeofthoseold expressions,andhavethatoldrhythm,butit'sgoingquickly.Everybodylistensto televisionandeverybodybeginstotalkthesame.Thereisakindoflossof regionalidentityinthat.Butyoustillgetthatkindofverylaconicresponse sometimeswithrealnativemountaineers. Youmusthavedoneextensiveresearchintothehabitsandroutinesof agricultureandfarmlifeduringthenineteenthcentury.Howdidyou researchthis? Thereareacoupleofways:thefirstthingwasjustmemory.WhenIwasgrowing upinthefiftiesandearlysixties,therewerestillfarmsinthesouthernmountains thatraninthatoldnineteenthcenturyway.Theymaybehadelectricity,butallthe processesoffarmingwereprettymuchpretwentiethcentury.Thatis,theydidn't havetractors,theyplowedwithmuleseverythingwasdonewithanimalpower, lotsofarms,withnopoweredequipmentwhatsoever.Soitwasanexercisein memorytotrytorecoverthelookofafarmlikethat,therhythmofadayatafarm likethat,thequietofaplacelikethatwithouttheroarofanenginegoingonall thetime.ThepartsthatIcouldn'trememberfrommychildhoodexperiencethe detailsIfilledinwithlibraryresearch.Alotofoldjournalsandlettersandthings likethatwherepeoplewouldbetalkingaboutwhattheirplansforthefarmwere wereveryhelpful,andthenmoreacademickindsofresearchon19thcentury agriculturalpractices.

5 Somemightseelibraryresearchastheleastinterestingpart.Howdidyou findit? Inmanywaysit'smyfavoritepartofworkingonabook.Ilovetospendthedayin thelibrarywithahandfulofquestionsthatIneedanswered.Tobeabletofillout thisfictionalworldI'mtryingtocreate.Ialwaysgoinwithfiveorsixquestions, butthethingsIactuallyfindendupbeingmuchmoreinterestingthanthethings thatIwenttofind.ThekindsofthingsIenjoythemostandthatwerethemost helpfulinwritingthebookwerethingslikelettersandjournalsofwomenofthe nineteenthcentury.AndIthinktheyhelpedmeagreatdealindevelopingfemale charactersthatmaybearealittledifferentfrommostpeople'sstereotypicalviews ofwhatwomenwerelikethen.Ifoundjournalsandlettersofwomenwhowere veryintelligent,headstrong,opinionated,strongwomen.OneofthethingsI rememberisagroupofwealthyyoungwomenwhohadgonetoaprepschoolin Charleston.Theyagreedwhentheygraduatedthattheywouldhaveareunion tenyearslater,buttheydecidedthatonlytheunmarriedwomencouldcometo thereunion,becausethemarriedoneswouldbydefinitionbeboring.AndI'mnot surethatthatisourviewofnineteenthcenturysouthernwomanhood.Iwasvery interestedinreadingletterstotheirhusbandsfromwomenwho'dbeenleftat hometohandlethefamilyfarm.Tofollowthoselettersoverthecourseofthe war,tofeelthosewomengettingstronger,moreconfidenttheyhadbegunthe waraskingtheirhusbands'permissionforeverydecisionthatneededtobe made.Byabouthalfwaythroughthewar,thosesamewomenwereinforming theirhusbandsthatdecisionshadbeenmade.Soitwasakindofprocessofself masterythatIthinkisalwaysaveryhelpfulthingtoobserve. Musicplaysaverylargeroleinthebook.Whyisthat? Oneofthethingsthatmusicdoesissumupacultureinsomeveryconcreteway. Thatoldtimefiddlemusic/stringbandmusicofthesouthernAppalachiansthat's kindofanextensionofScottishandIrishandBritishfolkmusicgaveme accessintothatoldcultureandintothatothertimethatseemedverydirect.I begancollectingthismusicwhenIfirststartedworkingonthebook,andwhenI couldfindsomethingthatwouldbe,say,anoldmanin1920recordinganold balladorbanjotuneorwhatever,IfeltlikeIwasgettingaboutasdirectaccessto apieceofthatoldsouthernAppalachiancultureofthenineteenthcenturyasI wasgoingtoget. Wereyouabletofindoldrecordingsthatactuallygaveyouasenseofthe musicoftheCivilWarera? Yeah,thatkindofmusicismoreandmoreaccessible.Therearesomewonderful reissues.Smallrecordingcompanieshavedoneawonderfuljobofkeepingthat musicalive.Andinmanycasesthisstuffmayexistonlyononeortwoscratchy oldrecords.TohavethosethingspreservedonCDiswonderful. Thereareveryfewpeoplethatwriteaboutnatureasmasterfullyasyoudo. Arethereanyyouparticularlyadmire? Well,therearelots.WilliamBartramwasoneofthegreatnaturewritersofthe

6 earlyyearsofthiscountry.HedidalotoftravelingintheSoutheast,through Florida,Georgia,SouthCarolina,NorthCarolina,andwrotethesebeautiful, ecstaticdescriptionsoftheveryuntouchedworldinthelate1700s.Andhefound hiswayintothebookInmanreads,takeswithhimonhisjourney,acopyof Bartram'stravelsandreadsthemasakindoftonicwhenhe'sfeelingdepressed orcan'tsleeporwhatever.SomeofthebestnaturewritingIknowofisinfiction. Melville,forexample,wrotewonderfuldescriptionsoftheseaandsealifeand thatkindofthing.TolstoyandTurgenevwrotewonderfuldescriptionsofnature andhadverycloseobservationaleyes.Hemingwayinthiscenturyastorylike "BigTwoHeartedRiver"hasinitsomeofthebestnaturewritingIknowof anywhere.Andofwriterswhoareworkingnow,awriterlikeBarryLopezis probablythebestgoinginthisregard.OrafictionwriterlikeJimHarrison,who hasaverykeeneyeforthenaturalworld.ThoseareallgreatwritersthatIread frequentlyandwithgreatpleasure. Whatviewsofthewarandofpoliticsdoyoufeelthenovelputsacross? ItriednottothinkaboutthattoomuchwhenIwasworkingonthebook.Iwas interestedinwhyamanlikeInmanwenttothiswarwhyhevolunteered."It wasn'thisfight,"wasmyfirstthoughtonithedidn'townslavesandveryfew peoplehewouldhaveknowndid.Onlyaboutsevenoreightpercentofpeoplein thesouthernmountainsownedslaves.Ithinkthathe,andpeoplelikehim,were fightingbecausetheythoughttheywerepellinganinvasionoftheirhomeland. ButwhatIbegantothinkaboutthepoliticsofthatwarwasthatiswastwo economicsystemsyouhadthisslave/agriculturalsystemintheSouthanda growingindustrialcapitalistsystemintheNorth,andthenyouhadpeoplelike Inmanwholivedinanoldereconomicsystem,kindoflikesubsistencefarming. YouhadpeoplelikethatintheNorthandSouth,andoneofthetragediesofthe wartomewasthatthosepeoplegotcaughtup,caughtinthecrossfireofthis war.Manyofthemdiedfightingsomebodyelse'sbattle. DidyourresearchontheCivilWarperiodchangeyourideasonthese subjects? Itdidinsomesenses.Irememberearlyoninwritingthebook,goingforawalkin themountainsandcominguponagraveitwasactuallytwograves,sideby sideinthislonesomehillside,fivemilesfromthenearestroad.Ifoundoutlater thatitwasanoldmanandaboywhohadbeenkilledbyfederalraiderswhohad comeoverthemountainsfromTennesseelookingforfood.Theykilledthesetwo guysthatwerejustgoingabouttheirbusiness.Nearthereisanotherdouble gravewithafiddlerandaboyinitwhowerekilledbySouthernHomeGuardin muchthesameway.Lookingatthosetwograves,andseeingthesepeoplewho wereessentiallyfarmers,caughtinthatcrossfireandkilledinthisutterly pointlesswayIthinkdidshapesomeofmyfeelingtowardthewar. DoyoufeelthatthinkingabouttheCivilWarandReconstructioncanshed lightonwhatgoesonintheworldtoday? Well,Ithinkthatthinkingaboutthepastisalwaysuseful.Tolookatwherewe've

7 beenandwhereweareandtothinkaboutwhatwe'vegainedandwhatwe've losttogethere,tothinkaboutwhetherthat'sbeenagooddealornot,Ithinkis alwaysuseful. HowlongdidittakeyoutowriteColdMountain? IthinkIworkedonitforsixorsevenyears.It'shardtosaysinceIworkedonitfor quiteawhilewithoutknowingthat'swhatIwasdoing.Iwasjustgoinguptothe mountains,knowingIwantedtowriteabooksetthere,butIdidn'thaveastory.I spenttwoorthreeyearsjusttryingtolearnthekindofplantlore,forexample, thatwouldhavebeenapieceofeverydayknowledgeinthenineteenthcentury andthatwetendnottohavethesedays.Learningthatkindofthing,learningthe detailsoflocalhistory,oflocalhappenings,thosekindsofthingstookalongtime anddidn'tseemtohaveanypurposeforquitealongtime. Onceyouhadwrittenthebook,howdidyougoaboutfindingapublisher? Well,thenovelistKayeGibbonsisafriendofmineandshereadthebookwhenit wasmaybehalfwaydoneandsentitofftoherliteraryagency.Ayoungagent theredecidedtotakeaninterestinthebookandIguesswhenitwasthree quartersdone,myagentsaid,"Ithinkwe'rereadytosenditout."Shedid,and haditsoldwithinacouple,threeweeks. Whatwerethereactionsofpeopleinthepublishingindustrywhenthey readyourwork? Idon'tknow....Theyboughtit,soIguesssomeofthemlikedit. Didanyoneeverthinkthatitwouldbeevenclosetothesuccessthatithas become? No,asafirstnovelistwritingabookabookthatforyearsandyearswasnot undercontract,IwasjustworkingonitandhopingtoendupwithabookthatI likedandthatIwashappythatIhaddone,whateverhappenedwithit.You'dbe crazytothinkofitbecomingabestseller,ofwinningliteraryawards,thatkindof thing.SoIthinkwewereallkindofhopingformodestsuccesswithintherealmof normalpossibility.Thishasbeenanamazingexperience. Howhastheenormoussuccessofthenovelaffectedyourdaytodaylife, eitherpositivelyornegatively? Well,IhaveawholelotlesstimetowritethanIusedto.I'vebeendoingalotof booktourrelatedthingsforthepastyear,butotherthanthat,thephoneringsa lotmoreoftenthanitusedto,andItravelalotmore,butit'sprettysimilar. WhatwasyourreactionuponwinningtheNationalBookAward? Well,Icertainlydidn'tthinkIwould,andIjustwentuptotheeventthinkingit wouldbeafuneveningandthatIwouldmaybegettoseesomewritersthatIhad alwaysadmired,andhaveachancetomeetafewpeople.Butwhenmyname wasannounced,Iwasprettysurprisedandhadahardtimebelievingitfora second,Ithink.

8 Probablythemostvividaspectofthenovelisyourpowerfulfeelingforthe landscapeoftheBlueRidge.Haveyoulivedthereallyourlife? No,IgrewupthereandIspentalotoftimethereasanadult,butIwentoffto collegeandlivedinColoradoforacertainamountoftime.Butthereare landscapes,Ithink,thatpeoplejustidentifyashome,whereverhomeis.Andfor me,that'shome.WheneverI'mbackinthosemountains,Ifeellikethat'shome, nomatterhowlongI'vebeenaway.That'stheplaceIknowthebest,andthe placethatinmyimaginationsumsupallthosethingsaboutbeingrootedand knowingaplaceandhavingaplace. Doyouthinkyoucouldbehappylivinginabigcity? No,Idon'tthinkso.Citiesarenicetovisit,butthat'saboutit. Areyouatworkonanyotherfiction? I'mjustintheveryearlystagesofthinkingaboutandtakingnotesaboutanother book.Idon'tknowwhetherthisisactuallywhatI'lldoornotthat'spartofwhat I'mdoing,istryingtodecide.ButI'minterestedintheoldmountainresortsinthe southernAppalachiansthathadtheirhighpointintheearlypartofthetwentieth century.AndI'minterestedintherelationshipofthoseresorts,wherebeforeair conditioningrichpeoplewouldcomeandspendanentiresummertogetaway fromtheheat,andlivethesewonderful,elegantlivesinbeautifulsurroundings. I'malsointerestedinwherethatmoneycamefrom,whichwasoftenfromcotton millsdowninthelowlandSouth,wherepeoplewereworkingfourteenhourdays in100degreetemperatures.SoI'mdoingsomereadingaboutthosetwokindsof culturesandseeingifIfindastorythere. Doyouplanonitturningintoafulllengthnovel? Well,that'stheidea.Ithinkthere'sastorythere,andI'mtryingtoturnitup. Doyounowconsideryourselftobeafulltimewriter? Yeah,Ithinkso.FormuchofthetimeIwasworkingonColdMountainIwasa fulltimewriter.Ihaven'ttaughtinfiveorsixyearsatleast,andprobablywilljust writeforthenextfewyears,anyhow.