A TV veteran and author, Jordan Harper is the author of the gritty crime novels “She Rides Shotgun,” “Last King of California” and the set-in-Hollywood, “Everybody Knows.” His new book, “A Violent Masterpiece,” takes place in the same dark, L.A. landscape. We spoke to him in 2023 about “Everybody Knows,” his work and the setback that led him on the path to writing his books about Hollywood. This week, he answered the Book Pages Q&A via email about the new book.
Q. You told us you bought a police scanner to go nightcrawling for your new book, “A Violent Masterpiece.” How did nightcrawling affect your writing life?
It’s good to remember what a wild, electric city this is. I’m by nature an early-to-bed, early-to-rise type, but my characters all live by night. So it was good for me to get out into the streets after dark and see how neon and alive this city is.
Q. You’ve said that fiction is a better avenue for exploring the topics you’re interested in than reporting. Did the fiction in this novel feel especially close to what’s in the news?
In some ways, the news caught up with me. But the idea of “objectivity” is preventing journalism from accurately describing the world right now. We need stories to help us make sense of the world. We need lies that tell the truth.
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Q. Is there a book or books you always recommend to other readers?
The two books I shout out the most often are “Tapping the Source” by Kem Nunn and “Winter’s Bone” by (the recently deceased) Daniel Woodrell. And I’m always pushing S.A. Cosby and Megan Abbott on people.
Q. What are you reading now?
I’m reading “Acts of Desperation” by Megan Nolan, and re-reading David Peace’s “1977” (the second of his “Red Riding Quartet”). I’m also reading a nonfiction book about Che Guevara’s death.
Q. How do you decide what to read next?
I have stacks and stacks of things all over the place, so I sort of dig through the drifts and wait for something to catch my eye. For fiction, I’m often looking for a mood that will reinforce the mood or tone of my current writing project. My next book is a first-person novel from the perspective of a woman, which is how I came to pick up “Acts of Desperation.”
Q. Do you remember the first book that made an impact on you?
“Harriet the Spy” looms large in my personal mythos. It’s a great kids’ novel about wanting to be a writer, and it’s a kids’ book that deals with themes so big that you don’t quite get them when you first read it. But even as a kid, I could sense that there were big things swimming under the surface of that book.
Q. Is there a book or type of book you’re reluctant to read?
It is very difficult for me to read novels that don’t have good prose. I don’t engage with them. So I tend to pass on a lot of novels if the writing itself is pro forma or bland.
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Q. Can you recall a book that felt like it was written with you in mind?
James Ellroy is obviously a favorite of mine, and his “American Tabloid” is an ideal novel to me. The big, ambitious story, the mixture of fact and fiction, and the radioactive pulse of the words are all what I aspire to do.
Q. Do you have any favorite book covers?
The original hardback cover for “No Country for Old Men” is one of my all-time favorites. I love the bright red and the simplicity of the image. It’s exactly what I think a book cover should be. (And I also love the cover for “A Violent Masterpiece” with its neon gravitas).
Q. Is there a genre or type of book you read the most — and what would you like to read more of?
I would like to read more spy novels. I have read some le Carré, but I’d like to read more.
Q. Do you read books in translation – or another language? If so, which ones might you recommend?
One of the great novels of the world is “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” the classic Chinese novel. Translated, it’s 600,000 words long, but it is a great story. But don’t read the abridged version. That’s no good.
Q. Which books are you planning to read next?
I want to read at least one “big” book a year, and I have a stack of them to choose from. “Moby-Dick,” “The Brothers Karamazov,” “2666,” and the “Iliad” are all up for consideration.
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Q. Is there a topic you’ll always read about?
I like biographies or memoirs of creative people. Kim Gordon’s recent memoir, David Lynch’s memoir, and a biography of poet Frank Stanford are all ones I’ve read recently.
Q. Is there a person who made an impact on your reading life — a teacher, a parent, a librarian, or someone else?
My parents bought a lot of books for my brother and I when we were young, and then they wrote the difficulty level of each book on the cover. Which was a sneaky way of challenging us to try and read the difficult stuff (maybe they didn’t even mean to do it, but that’s what it did to me). And I was off to the races.
Q. What do you find the most appealing in a book: the plot, the language, the cover, a recommendation? Do you have any examples?
I think that tone is the most important thing for a book (or any work of art). How everything works together to invoke a mood. That’s what I think about when I read and what I think about when I write.
Q. Are you someone who must finish every book you start — or is it OK to put down the ones you don’t connect with?
Life is short; drop the book.
Q. What’s a memorable book experience — good or bad — you’re willing to share?
I remember as an elementary school student getting into trouble for reading Stephen King in class. It only made the thrill of the books better.
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Q. Is there a book that tapped into an emotion you didn’t expect?
“Moses and Monotheism,” by Sigmund Freud, his last book, is a strangely affecting book that wrestles with the burden of history and myth. But I didn’t expect to laugh out loud as many times as I did. Freud is pretty funny — at least, funnier than you would expect.
Q. What’s your comfort read?
Frank Herbert’s Dune novels.
Q. What do you look for in a book?
I want to fall face forward into a book. Straight through the pages.
Q. Do you have a favorite bookstore or bookstore experience?
Vroman’s in Pasadena is my home base and a terrific bookstore. I will always love Powell’s in Portland, America’s biggest bookstore. But I also love used bookstores with their smells and old, forgotten books.
Q. What’s something about your book that no one knows?
How much of it is true.
Q. If you could ask your readers something, what would it be?
Do you know that “A Violent Masterpiece” makes a terrific gift?