You’re probably wondering how I came up with these three writers, but I’ll get to that in a minute. Please bear with me while I give some background.
I love to read, and one of my favorite books is Lord of the Flies by William Golding. It is a story about a group of young British military school kids whose plane crashes on a deserted island. The only adult, dies shortly after the crash, leaving the island to the kids. As the story unfolds, two sides spring up and become enemies: the hunters led by Jack, and the “others” led- reluctantly, by Ralph.
There are no written laws governing the boys, though Piggy tries to declare some. However he is killed when one boy pushes him off a cliff. It becomes a story of survival: the boys as a collective group, but specifically, Ralph as he hides and dodges the hunters.
Lord of the Flies is a story of society without norms and without an established leader. At its base, it is a story of good vs evil, and the ending doesn’t declare either a winner, though Ralph survives. Sorry for the spoiler, though you probably read this back in your freshman or sophomore year of high school. You might want to pick it up again, especially with what is taking place in our country at the moment.
More recently, Stephen King wrote a book, The Stand. Like Lord of the Flies, it is a contemporary story of good vs evil, a land of no laws, and two sides battling it out until good overtakes evil. It really is much more than that, and should be viewed through the lens of what took place Jan. 6th, and what is taking place in our country currently, especially ignoring laws, precedent, and the supreme court, along with the entire court system.
The Stand is one helluva ride as only King can write, and I probably did it injustice with my short synopsis. If you’ve not read it, like Lord of the Flies, you’re missing something. Both books make you think- long after you finish the book.
Now, what do these two fine books written by two literary titans have to do with Bruce Springsteen?
There is a short series of sorts that features singer/songwriters aired on some obscure channel at odd times of the evening. As I scrolled through the channel guide searching for something to watch, I stumbled on it, and because it was Springsteen, who is one of my favorite writers, I watched it, and then taped it so I could view it again (and again, and again).
It was just him, without his band, sitting on a stool with an acoustic guitar. Directly in front of him was a notebook on a music stand. To his left was a small table with a bottle of water. The audience was small and intimate, not the large venue he and his band are accustomed to. There wasn’t a moderator that I noticed, although there could have been. I was focused solely on him and his music.
Springsteen would play a verse or two and a chorus, and then stop. The audience politely applauded, and like me, probably wished he’d do the whole some. But there was an important point he wanted to make with each song.
After he’d stop, he’d read from his notebook and it would sound something like this. “The anguish of love from a teenager’s perspective; loss, hurt, jealously. Parents who didn’t understand. The confused kid who didn’t understand what he wanted or why he wanted it.”
Then he’d smile, look up at the audience and say, “Did I think of all of that when I wrote it?” He’d laugh, shake his head and say, “Absolutely not.” He would laugh again and the audience with him. Then, he’d hold up a finger and say, “Did I feel all of that when I wrote it?” He’d smile, nod and say, “Absolutely.”
To paraphrase him- badly and probably not doing him justice- I will say all or most writers, including me, don’t think of the weighty issues, the themes of our writing, when we write it. We just write.
Our writing should come from our heart, our experience, our circumstance. The words on our pages or in songs we hear come from our hurts, our joys, our sorrows, our failures, our victories, and our losses.
If we wrote about all of that intentionally, unless it is nonfiction, the story would bog down and the reader would be lost as if he or she slogged through a swamp. But …
But … the feelings are there in the words on the page. The themes emerge only after it is written and then interpreted by the reader. Remember what I said in several posts: once the book or story is written, it ceases to be the author’s book or story. The book or story becomes the reader’s, subject to his or her point of view, his or her situation and circumstances with all of his or her experiences- from a lifetime as well as from the moment.
Cam Torrens, award-winning author of the Tyler Zahn thriller series, was kind enough to write a review for my book, Black Yéʼii. He wrote: “On one side, unconditional familial love supported by the camaraderie of law enforcement. On the other? Guns, drugs, and hatred. Black Yé’ii stages an epic battle between good and evil.”
Sublime Book Reviews wrote, “Black Yé’ii explores both the darker side of human nature and the positive theme of family and friendship.”
Brian Kaufman, award-winning author of Persistent Echo, wrote in his review, “The novel features two kinds of family – the supportive kind that rests on unconditional love, and the toxic kind that binds gangs, which is a stark contrast and befits a battle between good and evil.”
Did Torrens, Kaufman and Sublime get it right? Yes, absolutely. But just as Springsteen asked his intimate audience, “Was I thinking of all those things as I wrote it?” I have to shake my head and say, “No.” But like Springsteen, I ask, “Was I feeling those things when I wrote Black Yé’ii, yes, absolutely.”
Themes emerge AFTER the book (or song) is written, and are based on the reader’s view, experience, situation and circumstance. I don’t enjoy slogging through a swamp- in life, in writing, or in reading. And more importantly, I don’t think the reader or listener does, either.
The author, either in a book or a song, tells a story. It is up to the reader or listener to interpret it. The book or the song is theirs, not the author’s.
When I wrote Black Yé’ii, I had an idea, and the idea came from the ending of my 2018 book, Caught in a Web. At the end of that book, law enforcement fabricated a story about the night four members of MS-13 died in a tiny home on a quiet city street. George Tokay and his friends were not supposed to share the secret about what really happened that night. No one was to know the truth. But someone talked, and now MS-13, ruthless and wanting revenge, is back in town, and people are dying.
The title, Black Yé’ii, didn’t come to me until I did research and I watched a podcast by Shane Brown and his father, Wally Brown, a Navajo elder. Wally talked about how the “Evil One” became Black Yé’ii. It is fascinating, and you can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qsh_QPTWDXY It is only 6 minutes long, but it is worth it. And after watching it, I knew my new book’s title and subtitle.
Here is a short snippet. George talks with his adoptive brother, Brian at a lake in Northern Wisconsin, an idyllic setting far from the death and evil in their home city of Waukesha, Wisconsin. George explains to Brian what might be taking place from his Navajo point of view:
“Last night, before we went to bed, Brett said he thinks our family is doomed. He said he feels there will always be someone after us. Do you think he’s right?”
George pursed his lips and thought. It was going to be a complicated answer, but if anyone were to understand, it would be Brian.
“When I was younger, my grandfather only brought this up once or twice because he felt he was inviting it into our lives. But he felt people … mostly me, I guess, needed to know.”
Brian nodded.
“The more traditional Navajo, like my grandfather,” he shrugged and said, “and like me, believe in yéʼii. They are spirit deities, much like the Greek or Roman gods we learned about in history and English. He warned me about one in particular, the Black Yéʼii, or The Evil One. In your religion, he is like Satan or the devil. He tries to trick and convince people that,” he shrugged again and said, “drugs, or alcohol, or sex isn’t harmful but would bring pleasure. My grandfather believed Black Yéʼii is the reason people seek those things and become lost. My grandfather included getting even and hurting someone. By doing all of that, people will be happy.”
“Sounds a lot like Satan.”
“Yes. Like anywhere, there were Dine’ who followed him. So to answer your question, I believe there is evil in this world, and evil is led by Satan, or Black Yéʼii, just as there is good in this world, led by Jesus.”
“What you’re saying is that there is something in this world, Satan or Black Yéʼii that is after us. Everyone, actually.”
“Yes.”
—
You can find Black Yé’ii (The Evil One) here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1685135374 https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DH8P5TNV
And you can find all my books, their descriptions and a buy link on my website at https://www.jrlewisauthor.com
I would love to hear your thoughts on this post, and any of my posts, so please use the comment section below. As always, I thank you for following along on my writing journey. Until next time …
jrlewis85's Blog 