Ever since I finished On the Lips of Children, I've been aching to go back to San Diego and recreate the dark trail run I took one morning at 4:30 am. My thoughts on this run are what gave birth to the novel. I certainly would have gone back there by now, but it's a bit far away to make happen.
Well, I don't have to go so far to hang out at the scene of MILK-BLOOD. MILK-BLOOD takes place on the east side of Detroit. A place where stray dogs recently mauled a man. The dogs were owned by a squatter who had made his home in a vacant house. Those squatters. They can be dangerous. Check out this youtube video for a glimpse of the neighborhood.
So much of the feedback I have received on the novel is how extreme it is. I like to think this is due to the writing which evokes the tone and feel of the place, and not for the actual content, for, if anything, much of it is understated. The poverty, blight, and despair is actually much worse. The nature of addiction that runs through the veins of the street is more rampant. I do have empathy for every single soul born in the area, and I hope it shows in the book.
Disclaimer: Detroit is a wonderful city, pockets of incredible art, the best theater district outside of Broadway (don't believe me? check here) Wayne State University and Center for Creative Arts are fantastic places (I started a Phd program at Wayne State, but, alas, I'm a PhD school drop out). On a Friday or Saturday night, with the baseball game letting out, bars spilling out into the street, positive vibes in the air, it feels like Chicago. Real estate is hard to find downtown, and it's only going to get better.
The place is a tale of two cities, for some neighborhoods are indeed as bad as you've heard. War zones, bombed out, boarded up, and with every drug you can think of for sale if you risk getting your ass beat. I've work with people everyday who are beaten, robbed, who have been taken hostage in crack houses and forced to give up their atm pin numbers (there's more to that, but... that's all I will say )
With all that misery, there's bound to be some powerful, ghostly spirits who still walk about the place.
So, who's in? Let's go trick or treating down MILK-BLOOD street. October 31st at dusk. See you there.
