The Appeal of Biography

I think biography was one of the first genres I was ever exposed to as a young adult.

Non-fiction was my first great literary love but it was almost exclusively composed of biological field guides--fish mostly. The Peterson Field Guide to Altantic Fishes was a constant companion of mine as a boy. The book called Sharks & Whales was always close to me.

Sometime during my teenage years, I began to explore government. And biography, to me, was closely intertwined was a genre. My paternal grandmother often had a biography sitting on one of her tables when I would visit as a boy. And my grandfather loved to rehash stories of grand personalities--FDR, Colin Powell, former Virginia U.S. John Warner. 

In high school, when I first read the John Dos Passos trilogy U.S.A., I first began to wonder about what it took to compose biography. I began to marvel at the method.

Big personalities--Big Bill Haywood, Eugene V. Debs, Woodrow Wilson, Thorstein Veblen--leaped off the page in U.S.A. 

I'll never forget the memories of that first read of U.S.A.,  or the painted image of Big Bill in my mind--looming as large as a real-life Paul Bunyan.

Biography Like Film

One of the stylistic goals in Walkin' Lawton was to skillfully--and extensively--use dialogue. I genuinely wanted to create the feeling of a screenplay.

Years ago, I first read All Too Human: A Political Education, by George Stephanopoulos. I was struck by the fluid quality of the story--it read like a novel, not non-fiction. The dialogue was thick and dramatic. One had the feeling of being "in the room" when great decisions were being made. I think there is an episode of The West Wing that is actually called "In the Room," because that physical proximity to power is closely guarded on Capitol Hill and in the White House. On the show, staff people at the White House measure their power sometimes by counting the inches between their desk and the Oval Office.

With Walkin' Lawton, I tried to make each chapter like an episode in a series. They would be connected. Each chapter represented one dimension of a single person. But each episode, in my vision, should be a separate, distinct entity.

I think if Walkin' Lawton were set to music, the soundtrack would play Johnny Cash, Creedence Clearwater Revival, and Willie Nelson. 

Annapolis

I'm very proud to have hometown support for Walkin' Lawton. I was born and raised in Annapolis, MD, close to the Chesapeake Bay and Maryland's maritime culture.

I'm interested in all American politics, but I follow Maryland, Virginia, and Florida the most.

The Capital, the newspaper of record for Annapolis, has published a short piece on Walkin' Lawton. So soon after Election Day, it's a great time to reflect on political history.

The Florida Chiles Loved

An intrepid group of biologists and photographers recently trekked one thousand miles across the state of Florida to document the state's "Wildlife Corridor." Inspired by Chiles' example, they sought to chronicle the full breadth of diversity in the state.

The photos that exhibit their journey are now on display at the Marie Selby Botanical Gardens in Sarasota.

An article discussing the venture in more detail is HERE.

Hometown Support for Walkin' Lawton

My hometown newspaper, The Capital, plans publish an article on Walkin' Lawton this Friday. I'll post a link once it's available.

The Capital is the paper of record for Annapolis, MD--home of the Naval Academy and sailing capital of the East Coast.

Rhea Chiles Wins Health Advocacy Award

Rhea Chiles, the widow of Florida politician Lawton Chiles, has won the Edgar H. Price Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the Manatee County Rural Health Services Foundation.

Rhea founded Florida House in Washington, DC--the state's embassy in the nation's capital. She operates a wonderful art studio on Anna Maria Island. And during her husband's long career in public service, she was a strong and consistent voice for children's welfare.

Congratulations to Mrs. Chiles!

Article in Tallahassee Magazine

The next issue of Tallahassee magazine, the Nov.-Dec. issue, includes an article on Walkin' Lawton and the Lawton Chiles legacy. It includes a book excerpt--I hope it will whet readers' appetites for more.

You can read the article HERE.