Bloody Halls by Carl Brookins

Why did you pick the setting you used in your story? I'm not
looking for -- "becauseI live there". I want you to dig deep
and tell us...

The college I write about in this new series is
an urban institution. It was conceived to serve a
specific audience--working adults with some
college; individuals who frequently have a family.
A student profile--at the time I'm writing about,
(the early 70's) would be a single female parent
working  half to full time, often divorced.  This
woman would be between 27 and 31 years of age and
had dropped out of college because of marriage or
pregnancy, or because the program didn't fit her
needs at the time. But many were successful in
careers, still, they were seeing promotional
opportunities missed because they didn't a
bachelor's degree.

This was a real, setting in a large Midwestern city.

Why you chose that particular setting?
Because I lived it and because at the time it was a
unique and highly individual institution that lent
itself to a wide variety of situations and circumstances.

What does the setting add to the story?
The unique richness of a modern urban city.

Could you write the same story in a different setting?
Sure, but it would be a different story. The rhythms, textures
and colors of every city are different in broad and subtle ways. 
Had the city been in Oklahoma or Idaho the stories and the feeling
would have been different.

Why or why couldn't you use a different setting?
I wanted to use a place I was very familiar with and one in
which some of the action really took place.  This book/series is
rooted in reality, real places, real weather, reality.  On the other
hand I have never hesitated to move buildings, create alleys where
there aren't any, or insert a park.  After all, cities aren't static. 
Planners change streets from two-way to one way, add developments. 
So the dynamic city I write about, and the interesting characters
who populate the pages of my books are ever changing. So why shouldn't
I anticipate that if it serves to make the novel a more enjoyable
experience for the reader?

Did you use a real place as a basis for your setting?
As I said above.

Or, did you create the setting from scratch?
All my books use real places, sometimes altered slightly to
serve the stories

Is there anything else about your setting that we need to know?

This is not New York, Philadelphia, Washington or Los Angeles. 
Yet the Twin Cities share some similar characteristics with those
other places, They have some of their own unique characteristics
that you won't find anywhere else. Our mean streets can be as
mean as anyplace.  Or as gentle.

Please provide your website link.
www.carlbrookins.com

What is the link to buy your book?
Independent book stores in the Midwest, Amazon, B&N, Borders

Tell us some specific details about your setting. What would
we see? What sort of people are there? If we were traveling
to your setting, what should we bring with us? For visitors,
what do they need to know to visit your setting?

What you will find is two cities, quite different but side by
side with a big river running through the center, a river that
connects Minnesota  with the major ports of the world through 
New Orleans.  It is a commercial and recreational center with
interesting scenery, commerce, some of the finest medical
facilities in the nation; we have an outstanding theatre and
music community as well.

What should you bring?  Ah, bring warm clothes! Winter weather
can be both nasty and exhilarating.  Oh and in the summer,
bring sun screen.  Lots of it. The Twin Cities are places of
extremes, both in weather and occasionally, behavior!


Carl Brookins
www.carlbrookins.com
Old Silver, The Case of the Greedy Lawyers
Bloody Halls