VIDEO: Armisted Maupin in conversation with David Ulin

I know that I tend to go on and on about all the amazing literary events around San Francisco, but I can't help myself.  It's basically non-stop here.  And, as you've gathered, I tend to stay pretty well-informed about all this city has to offer.  Therefore, it was a bit of a shock that an amazing literary conference almost flew by completely under my radar this past weekend!  It was utterly random that I learned of it in time, but thank goodness I did!  I would have kicked myself if I'd missed it all.

The conference was held at the San Francisco Public Library on Friday and Saturday October 4-5, 2013.  It was free and open to the public.  It's a terrible shame they didn't publicize this wonderful event better because for the most part it was scarcely attended.  What was the conference?  It was called Tales from Two Cities: Writing from California.  San Francisco is obviously one of the "Two Cities," but the other is Los Angeles, and the second part of this conference will take place at the Los Angeles Public Library on February 21-22, 2014.  Angelenos, mark your calendars.  I freakin' hate LA, but gosh I'd love to attend the second half of this event!

Participants of the conference included Tobias Wolff, Robert Hass, Ellen Ullman, Phil Bronstein, Kim Stanley Robinson, and about two dozen more.  The unquestionable highlight was David Ulin's keynote interview with Armisted Maupin, filmed in its entirety above. 

I love Armisted Maupin!  I mean, I've been reading the Tales of the City for what?  A couple of decades now?  I sort of think I live in San Francisco because of these books.  At the very least, they're a factor.  In addition to a deep affection for his fiction, I've met and interacted with Armisted and his husband Christopher around town on any number of occasions now.  They are both just lovely.  It doesn't hurt--I suppose--that I tend to read his novels before they're published, and I always have effusive raves to share before anyone else has seen the work. 

With that in mind, I used a super secret source to acquire an advance galley of Armisted's January 2014 novel, The Days of Anna Madrigal, on short notice.  (Thank you, super secret source!!)  I grabbed it the night before the conference, and I basically power read the novel on Friday morning, before I would be seeing him that afternoon.  Oh, how wonderful it was to reenter Mr. Maupin's San Francisco!  My San Francisco is pretty awesome.  His is better.  And it's populated by such dear old friends.  I so enjoy visiting them. 

I read the novel in a bit over four hours without difficulty.  It's a wonderful addition to the canon.  The only thing is...  I didn't know until hearing Armisted speak that The Days of Anna Madrigal is the very last Tales novel.  If that's the case--and he assures me that it is--then it really is the perfect end to the series.  I just wish that I had known.  I would have savored it a little more.  I will surely have to read again.  Here's a thought...start over from the beginning and read all nine novels!  It sounds crazy, I know, but I've read these books a nearly unprecedented number of times.  They make me happy. 

I'm not reviewing this novel early, and you'll notice I haven't told you a thing beyond the title, however Armisted reveals some tantalizing tidbits in the video above.  (Plus, he's awesome and candid and very, very funny.  I so urge you to watch it in its entirety.)  I was so pleased that I'd managed to read the novel before hearing him speak.  And it was so nice to be able to share my enthusiasm and praise with him afterwards.  He was, as always, absolutely lovely.

Kudos, also, to the wonderful David Ulin, whose work as a reviewer/editor I've admired for years.  He conducts a delightful, spontaneous interview.  And he also gets bonus points as one of the organizers of this conference. 

As for the conference, I may share more of my own video here later, but for those who want more, faster, better, I have great news:  FORA.tv shot the entire event professionally.  You can view the whole shebang right here. 

I'm a Tale chaser...

So, my BFF Jon and I went to the theater last night to see what turned out to be a FANTASTIC production of Bruce Norris's play Clybourne Park at the American Conservatory Theater (ACT).  Little known fact:  I'm actually as passionate about theater as I am about books.  This post is an opportunity to indulge two of my loves at once.  What inspired today's post was a first sighting of the artwork above, the logo for the new Tales of the City musical on a poster outside the theater.  So exciting! 

It occurs to me that I never blogged about my encounters with Armisted Maupin and his husband Christopher Turner this past fall.  The first time I ran into them was at a concert of crooner Spencer Day, of whom I'm a huge fan.  Jon wasn't available that night, so, somewhat lethargically, I schlepped out to the Palace of Fine Arts Theater on my own.  After the concert, people were sort of milling around in the lobby, many of them waiting to see if Spencer would be coming out to sign discs, greet fans, etc.  I was about to leave when I spotted a man who looked just like Armisted Maupin.  I wanted to approach him, but I was embarrassed.  I mean, what if I was wrong?  However, observing the man, I noticed that he and I were the only two people carrying books at a concert.  That made up my mind.

I asked, "Are you Armisted?"  Of course, it was him, and he was as friendly as could be.  A few minutes into our conversation his husband Christopher walked up and Armisted introduced us.  Christopher was equally warm and friendly, and the three of us had an unhurried conversation.  The timing was perfect! I got to open with, "I just read Mary Ann in Autumn (his then forthcoming Tales of the City novel) and I loved it! In fact, I currently have the number one review on Amazon."  He had totally read the review, and was delighted with it. (Yay!) So we talked about his books, other books, and the weekend he'd just spent in New Mexico with about 40 other "storytellers" at the invitation of Jeff Bezos. A few other guests he mentioned were Neil Gaiman, Temple Grandin, and Gloria Steinem. He said it wasn't a business thing, Bezos just wanted to get all these people together and have them interact. I said, "It's like that game people play when they make guest lists for imaginary dinner parties. Bezos actually threw the party!"

The other reason the timing of this conversation was perfect was that there was currently a private workshop production of the Tales musical going on that month at ACT, and the casting of the fabulous Betty Buckley as Mrs. Madrigal had just been announced.  It's a toss-up whether Armisted or I was more excited by the news.  It's just one of those rare instances in life of absolutely perfect casting.  I think it was crystal clear to both Armisted and Christopher that I was as much a theater geek as a book geek, but well-informed on both counts.  So, I peppered them with behind the scenes questions about the musical.  Armisted was so pleased and excited with the work in progress.  He specifically commented on how much he loved the score, noting that it was very much character-driven more than plot driven.  He and Christopher were planning on attending the first run-through with Ms. Buckley the following night.

I didn't want to overstay my welcome, so I left them after about 15 minutes of friendly chat.  However, I saw both of them a week later at Amisted's book signing for Mary Ann in Autumn.  After only a week, they both remembered me well, and again I had the opportunity to chat with each of them.  In reference to the review I had written, Armisted signed my novel, "Keep pulling a Mary Ann."  I also had a chance to ask a Tales-related question that I hadn't gotten around to last time.  I told him that I hoped he'd continue writing the resumed Tales series for years to come and asked, "Now that you've written a Michael-centric novel and a Mary Ann-centric novel, do you think there's a Brian-centric story to look forward to?  I think he needs one."  Amisted responded, "It's interesting you said that. I've been thinking about it. We're the same age now." So, fingers crossed.

For now, Jon and I have been looking forward to seeing the musical for over a year, and it's finally beginning to feel imminent.  At $250 a pop for the cheapest seats and $1,250 for orchestra tickets, I can't afford a ticket to the black-tie Gala Opening Night events on June 1st.  We've settled for the next best thing:  We've got 5th row orchestra seats for the very first preview on May 19, 2011--the true world premiere performance.  I'll be looking for Armisted at the theater, and , yes, I'll be blogging about it the next day!

Timeless—or perhaps timely—Tales of my City

Michael Tolliver Lives
by Armisted Maupin

I won’t go as far as to claim that Armisted Maupin’s Tales of the City books are the reason I upended my life and moved to San Francisco eight years ago—but they were surely a factor. Maupin captures the spirit of San Francisco like no one else, and his books are truly dear to me. Several years ago, in a tremendous act of willpower, I tucked away Michael Tolliver Lives for a “rainy day.” That day, of course, has come, and it’s such a comfort to visit with these old friends.

Like myself, they are older. Michael “Mouse” Tolliver is in his mid-fifties and Anna Madrigal is eighty-five! In the pages of the book we get updates on all of our beloved former Barbary Lane denizens, but as the title suggests, this is really Michael’s show.

Like his creator, he is now married (legally) to a much younger man, and is living with HIV—an eventuality he’d never considered years ago when AIDS was a death sentence. As for further details of the plot, they’re essentially irrelevant. This book is all about character. And Maupin’s insight into these people is just as deep—and as deeply affectionate as it ever was.

Now, clearly I’m a hard-core fan, and reading this book gave me great joy at a time when I badly needed it. That said, this latest volume is not a favorite. Perhaps because Michael’s life so closely mirror’s Maupin’s, I felt like parts of this book smacked of self-justification. Also, and this isn’t exactly a complaint, but this book seemed a lot more gay than I remember the rest of the series being. Or rather, more graphically and explicitly gay. I don’t really care, but readers who aren’t fairly open-minded might not want to go there. I’m pretty open-minded, and I could have done with just a bit less detail.

Small complaints aside, I was thrilled to reconnect with these dear friends and discover I loved them as much as I ever had. Maupin is a magical writer with boundless heart. I will read absolutely anything he writes. Happily, I won’t have to wait quite so long for my next visit. Mary Ann in Autumn, a Tales of the City novel, will be published in November!