Respectfully Submitted
JEFF ABBOTT·SATURDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2017
I didn’t know what to expect. I had never set foot in a mystery bookstore, much less one hosting an author signing. But I had decided I really wanted to write mysteries, and so I was curious to see what an actual mystery author had to say about the process. The author was named Sue Grafton, the bookstore was Houston’s Murder by the Book, it was 1986, and she was promoting a book called C IS FOR CORPSE. The Kinsey Millhone novels were just starting to build an audience, and she had a good turnout of people to hear her talk. I hadn’t read any of Sue’s three books yet. I had very little money to spend and I couldn’t afford the new hardcover, but I waited in line and bought B IS FOR BURGLAR in paperback. When I got up to her, I asked an inane question about any advice she had for an aspiring writer and as she signed my paperback she told me that writers should be dedicated readers, and there was no better place for an aspiring mystery writer to get a good overview of the field than a store like Murder by the Book.
I was so nervous meeting a real author I think I said, “yes ma’am, thank you for coming and talking to us” instead of then asking which authors she liked to read and stepped out of the line. But I stayed and watched how she interacted with her readers. She stood for the whole signing (this was unusual, with a little platform she brought so she could sign the book), so she’d be at eye level with the readers, and every reader got a smile and a bit of a chat, and I thought: if I ever am an author, that’s how I’d want to be, just like Sue Grafton.
I went home and I read B IS FOR BURGLAR in one sitting. Before this I had read a lot of Agatha Christie and Ngaio Marsh. I loved those books, but Kinsey was a different kind of character. She was modern. She had problems like mine (like living between paychecks and sometimes spending too much time alone), a rich inner life. A lot of the story was about her life, in addition to the case she was trying to solve, and it was all fascinating and I was totally swept up in the story. I called my dad and asked if he would give me the money to get her new hardcover. He, a devoted reader, said yes. I went back to Murder by the Book and bought A and C and I devoured both books. Eventually I had a whole shelf of Sue’s books, with her simple and brilliant title scheme, all signed to me, and all lost in the fire my family suffered this year.
I got to talk with her a few years later when she had become much more famous and she signed at Jan and Elmer Grape’s indie store in Austin. I had by this time sold my first novel, but it wasn’t out yet. I helped Jan and Elmer at the signing, bringing fresh stacks of books to Sue, keeping the line in order. The signing went on for six hours. The crowd was massive. People brought her homemade peanut butter and pickle sandwiches. I was near the table much of the time and I could hear how people talked to her about Kinsey, as if Kinsey was real . . . because when you’re reading the books, she is. Sue was indefatigable. Afterwards we all went to El Mercado for Tex-Mex food and I asked a still smiling but exhausted Sue what I could get her from the bar while we waited for our table. She asked for a frozen margarita, while rubbing her sore signing hand. I got her two margaritas, one to drink and one to soothe her hand, and she laughed at my foresight. At dinner, when Jan told her I had my first novel coming out in a few months, Sue shared her thoughts and insights about what she wished she’d known when her first book came out. She was thoughtful and generous and funny: she made me promise that I would call her if Hollywood came knocking, so she could talk me out of selling a book to them.
Much has rightly been said about the influence Sue had on female writers. But I believe she had a vast influence on male writers of my age as well. She certainly had an influence on me. She showed us all that the life of the detective could be a rich one, that a detective narrator could have a distinct voice, that a series did not have to get stale, that an author could continue to take chances with an established character. She never phoned her books in–always, the writing was strong, the plots engaging, and I think the books got emotionally deeper as the series progressed. She was open about her process, how hard it could be, that writing did not necessarily get easier as one gained more experience. She wrote about keeping a journal for each of her novels, writing down what the problems were, which seemed to prompt solutions. Sue’s excellent advice helped me more than once when I got stuck in a book.
I’m not a bookseller, but I’m certain she also brought many new readers into mystery. Her books were a gateway drug. Sue’s steady presence on the bestseller lists and the appeal of Kinsey made many readers want to read more mysteries. She made our world bigger.
We weren’t close, we didn’t talk regularly. I always said hello when I saw her at a conference and she was unfailingly friendly and gracious. A few years ago an editorial assistant accidentally mailed something meant for her to me, and for me to her, and we talked on the phone so we could sort it out. She was, as always, wonderful to talk with (and a little salty about the headache the assistant had caused, but in a funny way). That was the last time we talked. I’m glad that assistant made that mistake. I wish I’d talked with her again, just to tell her how much she and her books had meant to me.
The books end with Kinsey writing “respectfully submitted”. She had great respect for her readers and she earned a deep and abiding respect and affection from her fellow writers. Thank you, Sue, for the gift of your books and your kindness.
