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The Student News Site of Saint Louis University

The University News

The Student News Site of Saint Louis University

The University News

Mosley Entertains, Explains Latest Book

Waiting for Walter Mosley to take the stage, many of the over 300 audience members flipped through one of his books. Some people brought their own copies from home, including his newest book, Walk the Dog, and some purchased them at the back of the room from representatives of Afrocentric Books & Cafe.

Following a short series of introductions by Kathy Humphrey, Vice President of Student Development, Eddie Holman, President of the Black Student Alliance and Antoine Coffer of Afrocentric Books & Cafe, Mosley took the stage. Mosley removed his straw hat and set it down as he strode to the podium a few minutes after seven o’clock.

“I used to write down what I wanted to say, and then I stopped doing that,” said Mosley. “So I am not sure what I am going to talk about tonight, which becomes less important to me over time.”

Although Mosley may have said that he doesn’t know what he plans on talking about when he steps up in front of an audience, he showed no trouble in finding something to say. Immediately he launched into a funny talk about the creation of the characters in his stories. In this case, he focused on Socrates Fortlow, the protagonist of his two most recent books, which led into the focus of the talk, his new book Walk the Dog.

“Socrates Fortlow is a character I created,” said Mosley. “Some characters come out of me automatically. But Socrates came from something that happened.”

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Mosley went on to explain that, believing his mother was white, white people would often ask him where the whiteness was in his writing. In reply, he would explain that she was actually Jewish.

“‘Right, white, Jewish, same thing’, they would say,” said Mosley. “Not hardly. White Jewish, two different things. Just ask your Pope.”

Often, Mosley said, white people would single out the character who was reading a book and say, ‘There’s the white part.”

“But black people think too,” Mosley would point out.

Mosley decided after these experiences to try and change people’s perceptions of the black characters in his novels.

“I have to do something about this,” said Mosley. “I have to create a black philosopher.”

He wanted not only to create a black philosopher, but a black philosopher in the black community, one who had gotten a fellowship and had studied at a university. He also pointed out, however, that many people study philosophy and graduate and become professors. They are not known as philosophers.

He wanted to create the real deal, and so, Socrates Fortlow was created.

Mosley went on to read a long section from his new book. Afterwards he took questions from the crowd.

Most of the questions concerned the characters in his stories.

Why did this person act this way?

Why did he write Blue Light (Mosley’s science fiction novel)?

One person asked Mosley how the word “blue” figured into his writing, pointing out a number of instances. Mosley’s response was interesting.

Mosley believes that tragedy is the most important written topic in history.

“The blues is the most articulate expression of tragedy in the 20th century,” said Mosley. “I just wanted to write a novel, as a black man in America, about the blues. The blues life.”

One audience member asked when and why Mosley began to write, as well as what keeps him going.

Mosley began writing 13 years ago when he was 34 years old. Before he began to write, he worked as a computer programmer. He loved to write and he decided to focus on it.

He relayed some advice his father had given him when he was younger.

“First thing you have to do is pay the rent; the second thing you have to do is what you love,” said Mosley, “but not necessarily in that order.”

As for what keeps Mosley writing, he said, “I love telling stories and I can always see were I am going.”

Mosley pointed out that he hates being called a mystery writer. He considers himself a novelist or a fiction writer.

He made a point to illustrate this. He had the audience imagine him and Toni Morrison being introduced at the same event.

“Here is Toni Morrison, the fantastic novelist, and Walter Mosley the science fiction writer,” said Mosley.

Mosley was brought to Saint Louis University by the Student Development Multicultural Committee, and Afrocentric Books & Cafe.

The Student Development Multicultural Committee was created to bring together the resources of a broad number of student and university groups, from the Black Student Alliance to Residence Life.

The purpose is to combine their efforts to bring more activities to campus.

Afrocentric Books & Cafe has worked with SLU in the past to bring in speakers, and will continue to in the future.

Mosley has written 10 books. There are six in the Easy Rawlins series, which all feature detective Easy Rawlins as the main character in the series.

The two newest books, including Walk the Dog, feature Socrates Fortlow as the main character. He has also written one science fiction novel.

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