11.20.2016  Middle-grades author Isaiah Campbell on  POWs, history, rattlesnakes, and growing up as a big reader in a small town

It’s a long way from Sweetwater to Simon and Schuster, but growing up with the big open sky of West Texas made Isaiah Campbell see a world of possibilities, and he has pursued them with his writing. He took time from promoting his latest middle grade book, his third in as many years, to chat with us via email about writing, his hometown, and the annual Rattlesnake Roundup.

LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE: Your three middle-grade books are fascinating looks at some of the more riveting moments of the twentieth century. What made you choose to write for tweens, and why recent events?

ISAIAH CAMPBELL: Looking over my own life, there hasn’t been any period more volatile than when I was in middle school. My emotions were constantly in motion, my body was changing overnight, and my awareness of the world around me was expanding at a rate that can only be compared to the Big Bang. And if the ever-present sound in middle-school halls of students fighting and crying and laughing with complete abandon is any indication, I’m pretty sure my experience was fairly universal. Writing for this audience means I get to experience that energy and that passion through my safety goggles of being twenty years removed from the consequences. It’s like riding the craziest roller coaster at Six Flags without throwing up.

I write historical fiction as a means to learn from our past, and the twentieth century is full of unexplored lessons that I think directly impact our world today. Plus, the twentieth century isn’t so far removed from our current culture that it feels completely foreign (as opposed to the Roman Empire, for instance, or the Revolutionary War). We’re looking at a world that we somewhat recognize, and because of that, the lessons are easier to discern. And it’s easier, as a writer, if I don’t have to explain why people wear powdered wigs or togas. So, I guess what I’m saying is, I’m lazy.

How about your own coming of age? You grew up in Sweetwater (about half an hour west of Abilene). How did that influence your writing?

Growing up in West Texas influenced my worldview in so many ways. The big sky and wide-open spaces created in me an expectation of a world that was big and full of possibilities. My ability to see a thunderstorm brewing miles and miles away made me have a sense that I should be prepared and have foresight for upcoming events. The West Texas culture, with its dry wit and undercurrent of toughness, really made me develop a grit and positive outlook as I’ve faced opposition and hardship.

But beyond those more abstract dynamics, growing up in Sweetwater, Texas, propelled me to be a big reader, in large part because there just weren’t a whole lot of other things to do there when I was a kid. The librarians at the Sweetwater Public Library knew me by name, thanks both to it being a small town and also to my voracious reading habits. And once I’d read just about every book in the kids’ section of that library (and more than a few in the adult section), I started going with my mom to the Abilene Public Library, which blew my mind and made me realize that the literary world was bigger even than a west Texas countryside.

When did you know that you wanted to be a writer, and how did you pursue that goal?

When I was ten years old, I had the weirdest dream. It was one of those dreams you get after too much pizza. It was so strange and fascinating, I didn’t want to forget it, so I started to write it down. With so many novels and comic books in my brain from all the reading I had been doing, I went from simply recording my dream to really telling the story, and it was so much fun I wanted to do it some more. I wrote a lot of short stories, but didn’t honestly think they would amount to anything. It wasn’t until after I got married and my wife found my writing and encouraged me to try getting published that I finally began to believe I could actually be one of the writers I used to see on the shelves in the library.

Describe getting your first big break to us.

I got my first real book idea while I was visiting the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza in Dallas. They had an exhibit about the JFK administration’s relationship with Cuba and how much he struggled with Castro until the day he died, from the Bay of Pigs Invasion through the Cuban Missile Crisis, and even Lee Harvey Oswald, who was a Castro sympathizer. This started the gears in my head turning and I began to research the Bay of Pigs Invasion some more, since I’d never really heard a lot about it. Through my research, I learned about the Alabama Air National Guard and how they helped train the Cuban exiles before the invasion. It took about ten years, but I finally got all my ideas straightened out and wrote The Troubles of Johnny Cannon.

Of course, writing a book isn’t a guarantee of getting published. I sent out a lot of query letters to agents, all of whom rejected the idea. It wasn’t until I posted my first few pages to an online forum, part of the WriteOnCon online writing convention, that I finally got hope. Marietta Zacker, of the Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency, saw my pages and contacted me to read more. She eventually offered me representation and, after about a million rewrites, we were super blessed to have David Gale of Simon & Schuster make an offer to publish the book.

Tell us about the Johnny Cannon books.

Johnny Cannon is an almost-thirteen-year-old from Cullman, Alabama, in 1961, and his big brother, Tommy, is a pilot with the Alabama Air National Guard. In the first book, The Troubles of Johnny Cannon, Johnny watches his brother go off on a top-secret mission to help train the Cuban exiles, a mission that has special meaning for their family since they used to live at Guantanamo and Johnny’s mom died on the streets of Havana in a car accident that also sent Johnny into the hospital when he was little. Now, with Tommy gone and his dad a nearly completely disabled veteran, Johnny has to try and take care of the family on his own. His only option is to get help from Willie Parkins, the African-American preacher’s kid who lives next door. They become best friends (which doesn’t go over very well in the deep and dirty South), and together they try to handle Johnny’s money problems while getting sucked into a major CIA investigation. Everything escalates until finally Johnny has to face the Klan, dodge the CIA, and escape from Cuba to prove that his dad didn’t sabotage the Bay of Pigs Invasion.

The second book, The Struggles of Johnny Cannon, picks up where the first left off, only this time Johnny is dealing with how Castro’s rise to power affected America stateside, namely the Mafia that fled from Havana to Florida. Johnny learns that Santo Trafficante, the Tampa Mafia don, has placed a price tag on his head. Meanwhile, someone arrives in town claiming to be bearing Tommy’s baby, which means Johnny’s level of responsibility just got much bigger. Meanwhile, racist political and physical attacks may be making the Parkinses move away from town. And, to top it all off, Johnny is also trying to get out of the friend zone with Martha Macker, the girl of his dreams. Needless to say, for Johnny, the struggle is very real.

Tell us about AbrakaPOW.

When I was researching the backstory of one character in the Johnny Cannon books (Captain Morris, if anyone is interested), I came across a fact about Camp Barkeley, the Army camp that was eleven miles southwest of Abilene, close to where Dyess Air Force Base is now. There was a POW camp there and, in 1944, eleven Nazi POWs escaped from the camp. They were all recaptured within a few days and, amazingly enough, not a single shot was fired. This piqued my curiosity and I had to dig in with the research. It just seemed too amazing! That was when I decided that there must have been a magician involved.

In AbrakaPOW, Max LaRousse is the eleven-year-old magician involved. Her dad is in charge of the prisoners at the POW camp. Max, a Brooklyn transplant to Abilene, desperately wants to become the queen of magic, but the only place she can put on a magic show is the last place a Jewish girl should be: out in front of all the Nazi POWs. To make matters worse, during her big finale, the Nazis escape. She has to use her skills and her newfound friends in Abilene to navigate the Texas countryside and help her dad recapture all the escapees. On top of that, there are several diagrams of magic tricks throughout to help the reader learn how to do some of Max’s best tricks. Because, back when I was a kid reading every single book on the shelf in Sweetwater, that’s exactly the kind of book I would have wanted to find.

You’re a husband and father of three children. Do you bounce plot ideas off your family?

Probably more than they like! I definitely talk through my initial ideas to see if they are as interesting outside of my head as they are on the inside. And my family is a pretty good barometer, they’re incredibly honest and let m know if any idea seems boring or strange. But, once I start writing, I stop talking about the idea completely. It may be superstition or it may just be the way my brain works, but I’m always afraid that I’ll kill the momentum and find myself stuck. I think talking about it uses up creative energy I could put on paper instead. So my family gets a nice reprieve, which I’m sure they appreciate. Plus they aren’t worn out from the story when it actually comes out. Which is good, because if I don’t see them reading the book during release week, they all get shipped off to Siberia. True story.

You live in Philadelphia now. What brought you to Philly?

I moved to Philadelphia so I could be closer to the publishing industry in New York. There were a lot of times I would be talking to my agent or editor and wish I could just sit down with them in person. Living so close has made that a possibility. Plus, I like Philly because it’s full of history and full of hoagies! Also, I’m close enough to Washington, D.C. that I can visit the Smithsonian any time I want. Overall, it’s been a very rewarding experience as a writer of historical fiction. The only problem is, there isn’t a decent Mexican food place anywhere to be found.

Since AbrakaPOW is set in Abilene, and you’re from Texas, will you be touring the book in Texas?

I would definitely love to visit God’s country, even though there aren’t any events scheduled right now. I go just about anywhere I’m invited, so if anyone wants me, all they’ve got to do is ask! I love visiting schools, and with AbrakaPOW, I’m especially excited that I get to use magic tricks to teach writing and history, plus talk about the science of illusions. It’s been a lot of fun thus far! So, there you have it teachers, librarians, and booksellers of Texas. The only thing keeping me from visiting your town is you. And a couple thousand miles. But who’s counting?

Last question. Did you ever go to the world-famous Rattlesnake Round-up in Sweetwater — and if so, how would you describe it?

For Sweetwater residents, there were two events we were obligated by law to attend: Mustangs football games and the Rattlesnake Round-up, both of which were the highlights of my childhood. I have tried to explain the Round-up to non-Texans many times and I’m always struck by how odd they find it, considering how normal it feels to my West Texan mind. I mean, people from all over the world come together and go out into the desert to catch as many deadly poisonous rattlesnakes as they can. Then they bring them all to a massive snake pit/arena, where they get to watch the snakes be “milked,” beheaded, skinned, and deep-fried. There are snakeskin boots, wallets, belts, hats, and I’m pretty sure lingerie for sale everywhere you turn. Plus there’s a “Miss Snake Charmer” beauty pageant, and the winner gets to join a snake-handler in the snake pit/arena and handle a snake on her own. What’s so strange about that?

SIGH. I sure do miss Texas.

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