Friday, March 02, 2007

A Friday treatise on all that is good about James O. Born.

It's come to my attention that certain members of our community (Karen) think we've been too tough on Jim Born, author of books and nemesis of hombres malo in the Sunshine State.

That's Jim up there, putting a hammerlock on the septugenarian Dutch Leonard so that it looks like Dutch is actually endorsing Jim's book.

I heard that Jim once wrestled Laura Lippman to the ground demanding a blurb, but that could just be a rumor. I don't know. I wasn't there.

But I was in South Carolina this past weekend, thanks to Jim. He wrangled an invitation for me and I am not one to be ungrateful.

Which brings me to a larger topic.

Last Saturday a group of us adjourned to a local bar making the regular patrons wonder if a senior citizens' tour bus had broken down outside.

While in the bar,
Ad Hudler joined us and decided to kill someone. Jeff Shelby suggested he start with Jim Born, but Ad meant to kill someone in fiction, not real life, and after our initial disappointment we asked why. Ad said it was because crime writers had more fun than literary novelists. That surprised me, and it got me thinking. In the next day or so, I'll air my theories as to why that might be.

But for today, I want to publicly thank Jim. He takes a lot of grief, and gives his share, and I'm happy to be his friend and colleague.

Now, can someone take these cuffs off?



Update - Seems Jim's having a good week. I received this note this morning:

Just found out that I, that's right, a Florida redneck, am the recipient of the inaugural prize for best novel (Escape Clause) in popular fiction for the Florida Book awards. Not bad, huh. Nice end to the week.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

None of you seem to remember that Jim carries the Big Black Bag O' Death. I've seen that bag o' death. Shelby can probably still feel the sting of the asp.

We should be nicer to Jim. To anyone who carries weapons. It just seems like the prudent thing to do.

David Terrenoire said...

Karen,

You have an excellent point.

Black Bag O' Death earns fealty and respect.

I stand corrected.

Anonymous said...

David Terrenoire you say you served in the Army. I served like my father before me. As I suspected, however, you are just the Idiot I thought you were.

"Couth? You don't know couth, son."

Not your son -- I pitty the offspring you may have -- but, by your web site, you look gay to me -- son

David Terrenoire said...

Brimo,

So glad to see you here, buddy. Yeah, I've devoted this site to serious enquiry, as you can tell.

Welcome. And if you show your ass, well, we're all pretty forgiving here at the Planet.

But don't talk politics, but I guarantee you're in way over your head with some of my readers.

Son.