“Noir is the sinkhole where people find themselves caught in that void.” – Interview with Christopher G. Moore, the editor of ‘Bangkok Noir’

Christopher G. Moore, a Bangkok-based Canadian writer, is by now a well-established brand name both locally (in Thailand) and internationally. His Vincent Calvino novels have been translated into 12 languages and have won important literary awards in America, Germany and Spain plus, a Hollywood movie Spirit House, based on the first book in the series, is in development and scheduled for production to start in 2012. C.G. Moore is also the editor of Bangkok Noir (Heaven Lake Press, 2011), a collection of twelve short stories by both Thai and Western authors. In this interview C.G. Moore talks about the anthology, the editing process, Thai writers, charities, and future projects.

Voicu Mihnea Simandan: It’s been already six months since Bangkok Noir’s book launch at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club in Bangkok. How has the book been received?

Christopher G. Moore: The Bangkok Post review sums up nicely the praise we’ve been receiving: “The stories, about crooks, cops, gangsters, hit-men, bar girls, shaman and street vendors, show the underbelly of Bangkok. It isn’t pretty, but as the first of its kind, Bangkok Noir is a good read.”

The readers’ comments on Amazon have also been great: “A real treat for fans of hard boiled fiction kicked up a notch. Assassins and bad asses, mistresses and misfits; sleuths and kooks; bar girls and bar guys; ghosts and those who wish they were dead are just some of the characters you will meet along with something different and something blue.”

The reception has been overwhelmingly positive. Bangkok Noir has struck a chord in readers. Six months after the initial printing, the book was sold out and has been reprinted. Noir as a movement cuts across the creative arts, including photographers (Ralf Tooten), painters (Chris Coles), and musicians (Christopher Minko). Noir as a movement is just beginning and our book is part of this larger transformation of voice, image and perception. Readers have responded that we’ve tapped into this Zeitgeist.

VMS: What did your job as the editor of the anthology entail?

CGM: Of course this editorial business is highly confidential. No editor is able to reveal his secret codebook, handshakes or list of contacts. While most of the job is highly classified, I can tell you that generally the main task is to gather under one tent the very best authors for a book. Authors who are internationally known, have established a reputation for their keen interest in the subject of the book, and can devote the time require to contribute a story. In this case, no blackmail was required. They also wanted to give something back to Thailand, generously agreeing to contribute half of their royalties to help children who live in Thailand. That makes them quite a special bunch of writers. Not one hedge fund manager among them.

Having enlisted 12 top professional authors made my job all too easy. No doubt I’ve been spoiled by working with them and will look back as I edit future noir volumes and wish that my life as an editor could always be programmed to run so smoothly.

VMS: How does Bangkok Noir align with the local and the international noir movement?

CGM: Noir has been tapping into the realization by many readers that the world is a darker, more dangerous, angry, and shabby place than the posters and advertisements want us to believe. Consumerism leaves a gapping void.  Noir is the sinkhole where people find themselves caught in that void.

Occupy Wall Street is the latest awakening that there are hidden, dark forces shape our lives and we have very little control over most outcomes. From one country to the next, the light is going on that spiral of discontent is rising as more people discover how the game is rigged and who are responsible for doing the rigging. The defining element of traditional noir is the realization that once someone starts down a certain path there is no way out. They are doomed.

VMS: I feel that the inclusion of two Thai writers, Tew Bunnag and Vasit Dejkunjorn, gave the collection a ‘special flavour.’  Please comment.

CGM: Tew Bunnag and Vasit Dejkunjorn are major fiction writers in Thailand. They are well-known throughout the country. There have been many TV series on Thai TV based on General Vasit’s novels. Tew is also one of the most creative people I’ve met. Each of these authors has a unique voice and perspective that they bring to their fiction. Bangkok Noir is a far richer book as result of their unique insights into the dark forces. My hope as editor is that their contribution will spark interest in English language readers to search out other Thai authors.

VMS: What were the main reasons for choosing Ralph Tooten’s photograph for the cover of the book?

CGM: Ralph is one of the finest photographers anywhere. He happens to live in Bangkok, and has taken a keen interest in the noir movement. Indeed he has done the photographs for a German language book also titled Bangkok Noir. I chose his photograph of the Bangkok taxi on a rainy night as it captured a sense of mystery and danger and is easily identified as Bangkok. I wanted mood and place to be established at a glance. And Ralph’s photograph accomplished that difficult task.

VMS: Your short story, ‘Dolphin Inc.,’ set in a virtual reality world, is quite a departure from your ‘usual’ writing topics. Please comment.

CGM: It is easy to fall into a pattern, a routine that satisfies expectations of readers. I like to break the pattern. Try something different. Give my readers an alternative way to experience a story. Wedding Noir to a science fiction story is a break with the usual convention. A surprise way to experience noir. Read any of the popular science blogs and you’ll sense that we no longer live, in a certain fashion, in the present. We live in a step ahead in the future that is unfolding with growing speed and complexity. The ‘now’ is in constant transformation.

‘Dolphin, Inc.’ is also a parable: that no matter how far into the future we can extend ourselves, it is unlikely (so long as we remain human) that we will shed the conditions that fuel noir: selfishness, greed, arrogance, dominance. These human conditions trail after us like wild dogs tracking a wounded animal waiting for that decisive moment to make the kill.

VMS: It is very commendable that the writers have agreed to donate half of their royalties to needy children in Thailand. What organizations are you working with?

CGM: Our idea was to support charities that look after children. In particular, stateless children who have traditionally had the most difficult time in Thailand, with the laws and regulations stacked against them, they have a real problem getting into schools, staying in school, and finding work afterwards. The authors agreed that we wanted to help. So half our money goes to among other charities, Father Joe’s Mercy Centre (which has always been a leader in helping poor kids in the Klong Toey Community), and Labour Rights Promotion Network in Samut Sakorn. The latter is active in assisting Burmese immigrants and their children. I’d encourage readers to go their websites find out the good work these two organizations do, and send a cheque!

VMS: Tell us about the foreign translation rights for Bangkok Noir. What language will it be translated into?

CGM: We have sold French rights to Bangkok Noir so far.  We are also active in seeking translation rights sales in Germany, Spain and Italy. A number of the authors in Bangkok Noir are also published in these countries and that helps.

VMS: At the FCT book launch you mentioned the possibility of continuing the Noir short story anthology series with Saigon Noir and Phnom Phen Noir. What’s next?

CGM: Yes, noir should and will come to other places in Southeast Asia. We are working a couple of new noir projects but it is premature to start talking about them until we have the authors lined up and a tentative publication date set.

VMS: Thank you for your time. I’m looking forward to reading your next noire anthology.

CGM: Thanks for the chance to talk about Bangkok Noir. We have a website at www.bangkoknoir.info where we keep our readers up to date on the latest developments concerning the anthology. We hope that your readers will stop in and have a look, and of course, buy Bangkok Noir. It gives readers a chance to read stories by the authors most closely associated with fiction in Southeast Asia.

Voicu Mihnea Simandan
Bangkok, Thailand
October 10, 2011