Creating Barker

Rough sketch of Barker.
In today's world, many take a second look at the man slumped next to a dumpster and think how close they are to being just like him. That man, or woman, is sometimes dressed in tattered, stained clothes that look as though they've never had the opportunity for a luxurious soak in a washing machine. Usually that man or woman has something at their feet, like a duffel bag that looks as though it's been drug through bullet-riddled Afghanistan, or a pet that looks as though it would do anything to bring a smile to its master's face. And so many of us are only a paycheck away from slumping next to that dumpster, those with no recourses, no family and savings that have bled to nothing over the years.Defaulted loans, bill collectors, garnished wages; all combine to steal a person of what little they have regardless of circumstance. Collectors care not whether you keep your home, and subsequently your job - only that you pay right now.These thoughts led me to consider the character of Barker, a homeless man who lives with a handful of dogs under Old Fisherman's Wharf in Monterey. As many consider how close they are to living with no roof overhead, I began to think about who already dwells each night under a cluster of dried trees, behind concrete businesses in a cardboard box, on a beach or in a shelter - while so many of us stress over how to keep our comfortable homes and rental situations. The homeless are not scary people. So many are not stupid. There are assholes to be sure, just as there are in the work force, or in your neighborhoods, but they aren't all a bunch of cantankerous bastards. Their reasons for being there are legion. And many probably held it off for years, by that one meager paycheck, until that too went away.With Barker I sought to create a character unencumbered by a paycheck, who doesn't fear living on the streets and, in fact, embraces it. He's a heroic character, fallible as well, but an example of bravery to all. Like others in literary fiction, detectives and saviors alike, his past is complicated and his future uncertain, but where so many have comfortable living situations, such as Sherlock's famed sitting rooms on Baker Street or even Christian Grey's larger than life apartments in the Pacific Northwest, Barker makes his home in a clapboard structure beneath the wharf.His adventures, to be found in my upcoming Barker Mysteries are thrilling, sometimes sensual, and reminiscent of a time when literature took risks and entertained more than it sought awards and critical acclaim.