Gonzo Girl
Page 24
I also wanted to be able to say certain things about this experience. I wanted to talk about the double-edged sword of the substance abuse. I wanted to explore these ideas of mentorship and the see-sawing power dynamics. And the only way I could think of to do it was to fictionalize it to give myself that freedom.
Also, the reality was a very visceral experience as opposed to a linear one. I’m not sure this story would have worked as a traditional memoir.
It’s been more than twenty years since you were Hunter S. Thompson’s assistant. Why write this book now?
I always knew this was a good story, but I don’t think I was a good enough writer until now to do it justice. I have an unpublished novel on my shelf that I call my “test pancake.” You could eat it, but I knew the next one would be better. And I learned from writing that book about how to structure a novel, how to maximize dialogue, decent writing habits—everything.
I also feel like the whole of the experience—what was going on at the time, what it meant—didn’t come into focus until I was at least forty. I was so naive when I was out there that I didn’t really grasp what I was witnessing.
What’s the biggest difference between you and Alley?
I would never rewrite someone’s work. Never. This is where fiction and the truth depart. But it’s very consistent with Alley’s naiveté and her hero worship of Walker. She is naively trying to save him from himself, even though she’s ill-equipped to do that.
Like Alley did for Walker, did you also edit Hunter’s writing while you were his assistant? What ever became of the book that he was working on?
The book he was working on was a work of fiction called Polo Is My Life. It was never published, and I don’t know what became of it. Thompson was an admittedly frustrated novelist. My sense is that it was like Madonna trying to act. His real life was way bigger, way more dynamic than any fiction he could write. And I didn’t “edit” his writing in any traditional sense of the word. My job was to get him to write. He was a tough enough editor of his own work.
Is it fair to say that Walker and Alley’s relationship can best be described as a twisted mentorship? How would you categorize their relationship?
“Twisted mentorship” is about right! I think their power dynamics flip-flop throughout the book, even from page to page. There is boss-worker. Friend-foe. Then there are the sexual dynamics. But the mentorship aspect is there. She is learning from him day by day, even if it’s not in a traditional way. Even if it’s just a lesson in what road to avoid. But Walker has the heft of his success behind him. And what he does with her manuscript at the end shows that he believes in her.
When talking to Alley about writing, Walker says, “There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.” Do you think, to some extent, that this is true? Do writers need to pour their entire being into their work in order to produce something they are proud of?
Well, he’s quoting Hemingway when he says that. And certainly I think this is true for some writers. But I’m personally not of this mind. Oliver Stone says that the secret to writing is nothing but “ass plus chair,” and I put myself firmly in this camp. You can’t wait for some ethereal muse to “inspire” you. To me, it’s not that dramatic. Writing is more like digging a ditch or escaping from Shawshank. You just have to keep chipping away at the wall.
What was your biggest challenge while writing this book? What did you enjoy the most?
The biggest challenge was striking the right tone (I still don’t know if I succeeded at this). I was afraid that people might find this book irreverent when my intention was to write a love letter to a person and an experience that basically changed my life. But I didn’t want to sugarcoat the experience either. No one, least of all Hunter, would have wanted me to do that. So I hope the fondness for the experience comes through.
What I enjoyed the most while writing this was going back to that place. It was complicated, to be sure. But it was fun, and being with Hunter was never boring. And it obviously left a lasting impression.
What advice would you give to Alley or to your younger self?
Calm down. It’s all going to work out. There is an intensity to Alley—she’s trying so hard to make something of herself. She’s ambitious. But it all doesn’t have to happen in a day.
The last chapter of the book reads like an epilogue. Why did you feel like ending the book this way?
I didn’t want to be obtuse about what happened to either Alley or Walker. As a reader I would want to know. The backdrop of 9/11 also made sense to me. Thompson wrote an amazing column for ESPN.com on September 12 that basically predicted all that ensued politically over the coming years. The world had its collective jaw on the ground and he was already off to the races, ten steps ahead of everyone else about what was going to happen. But that is just illustrative of the many ways in which his political incisiveness was unrivaled.
What would you like your readers who are interested in Hunter S. Thompson’s writings to take away from Gonzo Girl?
Read his books! Of course, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas is iconic and a must-read, but if that’s all you know of Hunter S. Thompson, you are missing out. I am particularly fond of Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail ’72, which I consider his masterpiece. And I love The Great Shark Hunt, as I have a magazine background and it includes many of his famous magazine pieces. The two books of his letters edited by Douglas Brinkley are also outstanding for showing the evolution of both his voice and ideology.
Can you share with us any news of upcoming writing projects? What can we expect from you next?
I have been a freelance copyeditor for Us Weekly on and off since 2001, so I’m hard at work on a novel set in the realm of celebrity culture. I also might defrost the test pancake to see if I can make it edible.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Cheryl Della Pietra is a longtime New York City magazine editor, writer, and copy editor. She has published numerous stories in such magazines as Marie Claire, Redbook, and POV Magazine. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania, she lived with Hunter S. Thompson in Woody Creek, Colorado, for several months in 1992, where she worked as his assistant. She currently lives in Branford, Connecticut, with her husband and son.
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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2015 by Cheryl Della Pietra
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First Touchstone hardcover edition July 2015
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Interior design by Akasha Archer
Jacket design by Faceout Studios
Jacket photograph © Paul Tarasenko/Shutterstock
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014032642
ISBN 978-1-5011-0014-7
ISBN 978-1-5011-0015-4 (ebook)
Contents
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Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Acknowledgments
Reading Group Guide
About the Author