Author discusses Southern literature, 'Jim the Boy'

by Skip Anderson

Earley

Inside his fourth-floor office, Tony Earley has surrounded himself with souvenirs from his first 39 years. On his wall hangs a black-and-white photograph from a family whiffleball game, a publicity photograph of hockey great Mario Lemieux (unsigned), a publicity photo of the actress who played Alice on the Brady Bunch (signed) and a quilted wall hanging made by his wife. There are framed book covers, and portraits of relatives dating back four generations. On his desk -- which was handmade by his father-in-law -- are letters from people he has never met, and requests from publishers to write blurbs of praise of books he has not yet read. The scrolling message on his screensaver is "Read Jim the Boy," referring to his first novel. Earley, an assistant professor of English, recently discussed with the Register the state of so-called Southern literature, his inspirations for his first novel and how his life has been affected by the book's success.

Q: Earlier this year, 44 established writers came to campus for the "Millennial Gathering of Writers of the New South" to explore what constitutes Southern literature. How you would characterize contemporary Southern writing?

A: Actually, the "Millennial Gathering" was a culmination for me trying to think about that, and I'm just tired of thinking about it. For some reason, people try to herd all Southern writers into the same little corral simply because we are from the same part of the country. I have gotten kind of annoyed that critics try to make us part of the same thing.

Q: Why do you think critics do that?

A: I really couldn't tell you. It could go back to the Civil War and the boundaries of the Confederacy, that everybody inside that must be related somehow.

Q: When you began writing Jim the Boy, did you set out to write a "Southern novel?"

A: No, I set out to a write a novel about the place I know best, and that's North Carolina. If I was from Iowa, Jim the Boy would have been set in Iowa. But I wasn't, so I never considered that I was writing a "Southern novel." It wasn't a consideration in my composition.

Q: How has your life been affected since Jim the Boy was on the cover of the New York Times Book Review?

A: Well, it's still playing itself out. I'm still getting four or five letters a week from complete strangers. The only manifestation is that life has gotten busier. I have more than 100 letters and e-mails to answer, and I'm getting more invitations to do book readings.

Q: Is "busier" a good thing?

A: Yes, and no. I'm really touched that people like Jim the Boy enough to write to me about it, but at the same time, I'm overwhelmed at the idea of having to respond to letters from strangers. I am not as resentful of the attention as I am disappointed at myself for not being more dedicated to answering them quickly.

Q: Has the reader response surprised you?

A: Just in the intensity of the responses it caused in people. It's touching and scary to think that something I write could have an effect on other human beings. I, theoretically, want to affect others. But then suddenly you start getting letters telling you about it and it's kind of overwhelming, [but] that's not a real problem. A real problem would be if I wrote a book and nobody wrote, or if I wrote a book and it was universally panned or I couldn't even get my book published.

Q: Jim the Boy was your first novel published. Was it the first one you wrote?

A: I threw one away after about 150 pages.

Q: Did real-life personalities influence the characters?

A: The uncles were influenced by both of my grandfathers, who both talked a lot and displayed their affection indirectly.

Q: Are there parallels between Jim's childhood and that of your own?

A: There is a similarity in the family. There are very few of the events in the book that have a real-life antecedent with things I do with my family. Most of it is made up. Jim is emotionally autobiographical, but only ways I would know about. I feel really close to Jim.

Q: Baseball figured into the plot in a variety of ways. Did you play?

A: I played Little League and one year in high school. I am never happier than when I have a glove on my hand.

Q: Vanderbilt has a rich history in cultivating writers. In what ways has that changed since the days of the Fugitives and Agrarians?

A: There is not a way to say this and sound nice, but I'm tired of talking about those guys; that was a long time ago. I teach kids now and it makes no difference that Allen Tate was here 60 years ago. They still cast a real long shadow, and for someone who has come along 60 years later, it has taken a little bit to get out from under.

Tony Earley's next book, a collection of essays titled Somehow Form a Family will be published by Algonquin Press in April 2001.