Liz
asked
Dave Cullen:
Hi Dave! -I am unsure when Soldiers First is set to come out. Some places say 2022 and some say 2020. -What did you think of Sue Klebold's book? I am halfway through it now, really enjoying it, but curious of your opinion. -Why, in your opinion, do you think the Harris family has never spoken publicly? They are of course welcome to their privacy but wanted your researched opinion.
Dave Cullen
Hi, thanks for asking about Soldiers First. I'm still working on it, so it will probably be a year after I finish writing. I'm shooting to finish by summer of 2021, but lots of things at play. The Parkland situation and unexpected book interrupted my work, along with a few other things I can't talk about quite yet.
I started Sue's book, but had PTSD issues pop up (for various reasons--a bad time), and had to stop. I plan to go back to it. I helped her fact-check the short section on the murders, and really admired her approach.
Some people are private, and the Harris family clearly so. All reports I get are they are both introverts (along with Tom Klebold, who did not want to be part of Sue's book. Sue is actually the outlier--the only 1 of the 4 who did speak--and after well over a decade. And she is actually a rarity among parents of mass killers. So the question is more why she did. And as she makes clear in the book and interviews, she wanted to help other parents in that situation, and warn them.)
I started Sue's book, but had PTSD issues pop up (for various reasons--a bad time), and had to stop. I plan to go back to it. I helped her fact-check the short section on the murders, and really admired her approach.
Some people are private, and the Harris family clearly so. All reports I get are they are both introverts (along with Tom Klebold, who did not want to be part of Sue's book. Sue is actually the outlier--the only 1 of the 4 who did speak--and after well over a decade. And she is actually a rarity among parents of mass killers. So the question is more why she did. And as she makes clear in the book and interviews, she wanted to help other parents in that situation, and warn them.)
More Answered Questions
Jeff Keehr
asked
Dave Cullen:
This is off-topic but I wonder if you have any insight into the motive behind Stephen Paddock's mass murder? Having read your Columbine book, I am thinking this guy was a psychopath who kept himself out of trouble for most of his life but his disdain for human beings finally surfaced in this rampage. His father was nuts; I believe he was too.
Ty Miller
asked
Dave Cullen:
Dave - as a huge fan of your writing, and as a writer myself, I have to ask: how do you maintain a tether to a project for such long periods of time without questioning (maybe you do lol) whether the work is headed in the right direction or not? Do you lose motivation or interest in the project and return? Or is it a steadfast operation of sorts?
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