Author finds new approaches to old stories
In 1999, after two books and a successful career in journalism, Erik Larson tackled history with “Isaac’s Storm,” about a hurricane that hit Texas in 1900.
The success of that book led to a string of best-selling historic nonfiction works, including “The Devil in the White City” (2002), “In the Garden of Beasts” (2011) and “Dead Wake,” a 2015 book about the sinking of the passenger ship Lusitania by a German submarine during World War I.
Larson will discuss that book and other topics Wednesday as part of the Westerville Public Libary’s Meet the Author series.
Larson, who with his wife and three daughters splits his time between Seattle and New York City, spoke recently with The Dispatch ahead of his visit.
What do you look for in a book subject? What
ingredients need to be there?
For the kind of history I write, the subject has to meet a variety of criteria. Anyone can write about a topic, but there has to be a story that’s organic to the topic — something that has a beginning, a middle and an end — and also an inherent drive, a good, strong narrative engine.
You found two good subjects in areas that have been welltraveled — World War I in “Dead Wake” and World War II for “In the Garden of Beasts.” Were you nervous about entering such well-covered territory?
For “In the Garden of Beasts,” there’s always a voice that says, “Oh, god, does the world really need another book about the Third Reich?” But there was a very specific question I wanted to answer: What would it have been like to have lived in the early years of the Third Reich?
As for “Dead Wake,” I’ve really loved maritime stories ever since I was a kid, with things like the Flying Dutchman (a legendary ghost ship), so I was predisposed to do a book about the Lusitania, but there seemed to be so much done on the subject.
But when I went to research it, I discovered such a rich reserve of material that hadn’t been leveraged that offered me an opportunity to write a maritime thriller.
Do you have any literary models, any favorite authors?
The grand master of the genre, narrative historic nonfiction, is probably David McCullough, so I definitely look up to him as a path breaker of telling history in interesting ways. In the history of literary nonfiction, there’s Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood,” although there’s some debate about how much of that is nonfiction. Coming up the rear, there’s Barbara Tuchman. Her “Guns of August” is a masterpiece.
What advice would you offer for someone
interested in writing historic nonfiction?
I think the most important thing is to invest the upfront time to determine how good a story it actually is and whether there’s enough material available to make it come together. ... The main thing is, there has to be a powerful narrative arc — but no matter how powerful, you have to find archival material to tell it in a good way. ... I’d love to write about Magellan, but there’s not enough material for me; or the Black Death, or Pompeii, but there’s not enough material there, either.
Have you abandoned any topics?
I did actually look into Magellan and the Black Death but couldn’t find the things I really wanted. ... In some cases, it wasn’t so much that there wasn’t enough material, but, in the end, there was something lacking in the fundamental stories. ...
I’ve gone through two full book proposals but realized at the end of each, there was just something missing. In both cases, the stories seemed to lack heart.
Two of your books — “In the Garden of Beasts” and “The Devil in the White City” — have been optioned as movies. Are you excited?
There was also an option on “Isaac’s Storm,” but it has expired. My attitude is Tom Wolfe’s attitude: When you’re working with Hollywood, bring the book to the fence, hand it over, take the money and run.
But the odds that these things will ever become movies are very slim. ...I marvel at the fact that anything gets made into a movie. (But) I’m delighted if they get made. I can’t wait to see the films and, especially hear the music. Why the music? Music to me is a real enhancement to a story. When I read my own work aloud, which I always do, I always try to play an imagined soundtrack. ... I listened to the “Bourne Identity” soundtrack as I was reading about the submarine closing in on the Lusitania in “Dead Wake.”
Given your background, what are your thoughts on the state of journalism today?
Journalism as an art form is alive and well, but I worry about the platform. I don’t mean sites like Breitbart, which are a curse on the planet — carbuncles on the face of journalism — but real journalism. The New Yorker is still at the top of its game, The (New York) Times is good and The Washington Post is just killing it, doing great work. ... I think the industry is going to figure it out — somebody will figure this whole thing out — and we’ll see which model emerges.
What will you talk about during your visit to Westerville?
What I like to do is talk about the process of researching and how I find stories. I try to keep it light and fun, even if it’s about the death of hundreds of people. They should not expect a dour, grim talk — not that I will make the Lusitania a sidesplitter.
Are you surprised by your success?
I’m surprised every single day. I never expected any of this, truly. But I love it and I’m glad I found a readership and I value that immensely. And I hope they won’t be disappointed in my next book.