The Storyteller's Art (according to Jack London)
American writers, Americana, literary freedom, literature, popular culture, Writing, Writing Advice
Fleeing Hobo by Norman Rockwell……In past eras an image like this would not have been too far from the reality of life on the bum
To Build a Fire
In case you don't know who Jack London was, just go backtrack a few years to your American Lit class in any basic English course. Chances are you will come across a story about the Alaskan frontier titled, To Build a Fire. That story was written by Jack London, based on his adventures and prospecting up on the Klondike trail way back at the end of the 19th century.
To Build a Fire was first published in 1902.
More London
But there was a lot more to Jack than that one short story, for the man from the West Coast was a well-rounded traveler, hobo and adventurer. Unfortunately, he was also a very accomplished drinker, for like too many great writers, alcohol consumption killed him at age 40. Still, in his short time on the planet, the author from Oakland, California left numerous novels and short story collections for readers to consume, long after he passed away in 1916. Some of Jack's best know novels include Call of the Wild, White Fang and The Sea Wolf.
One of my my favorite Jack London books is his hobo memoir, called The Road. Here, he recollects his rough and tumble days of the early 1890s before he went north on the Klondike Trail in search of wealth and gold. In The Road, Jack recounts the hard times brought on by the financial crisis of 1893 and how he survived the difficult times by riding trains, begging for a meal and trying to stay clear of the police, who were always throwing bums in jail. (Jack actually landed himself in jail and fortunately he recounts his jail time in The Road.)
The Storyteller's Art
From The Road comes this little gem of a quote. "I have often thought that to this training of my tramp days is due much of my success as a story-writer. In order to get food whereby I lived, I was compelled to tell tall tales that rang true. At the back door, out of inexorable necessity, is developed the convincingness and sincerity laid down by all authorities on the art of the short story." In order words Jack often had to lie his butt off in order to keep from starving to death. Times must have been quite difficult in those days, before it became commonplace for charitable groups to provide food and shelter for those without a place to live or food to eat.
More Words of Wisdom
Incidentally, Mark Twain, who had his own share of mis-adventures and times on the street, said the same basic thing quite succinctly. "Never let the truth get in the way of a good story." So does this mean that to be a successful story-writer, you need to drop out of school and devoid yourself of all worldly goods. Of course not, though the life of asceticism could give you some memorable life experiences to write about. Then again you don't want to end up like Christopher McCandless, where you end up as the subject of a book (Into The Wild) rather than an author. But even in these early decades of the 21st century, there is a lot to say for taking risks both in lifestyles and written content.
Miners climbing Chilkoot Pass in 1898 on the way to the Klondike Gold Rush, from wikipedia
April 5, 2015 April 5, 2015 yeyerightAmerican writers, bums, hobo literature, hobos, Jack London, Panic of 1893, storytelling, the Klondike Gold Rush, The Road, To Build a Fire, vagabonds, writers and alcohol
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