Today, Bookpleasures is pleased to welcome W. Kenneth Tyler, Jr., a seasoned CPA and entrepreneur with nearly four decades of experience leading his own firm, who has now ventured into the world of fiction with his debut novel, Hunting the Red Fox.

Though still an active CPA, Kenny’s background is far from conventional—holding a bachelor’s degree and an MBA focused on marketing, he began his career writing radio commercials and executive speeches before successfully crafting persuasive tax-related prose for government authorities.

Good day Kenny. We are excited to explore the inspiration behind your novel Hunting the Red Fox.

Norm:  What inspired you to create the character of Perry Barnes? 

Kenny:  I decided early on that I wanted the story to revolve around a fictional character during the 1950’s who was first and foremost a gentleman in the traditional, grandest manner in which that term used to exist. 

I also wanted him at his core to be one of the “strong, silent types,” as they used to be called. 

I wanted a guy who was recognized by others as a “man’s man” and “ladies’ man,” in a non-piggish sort of way, without a hint of ego or self-promotion.  Above all, Perry had to be likeable.

Also, I wanted in the character of Perry someone who was very good or above average at virtually everything he did without being the best at anything. 

At the same time, I didn’t want everything he did to necessarily be good.  I wanted him fundamentally to be principled and seek to do good and right even if that was not technically the legal course of action. 

In other words, I wanted the internal struggle between the right thing to do and the legal thing to do. 

The last thing I wanted Perry to be was someone who was flawless.  Quite the contrary as it turns out.

Lastly, I wanted a character who seemed by circumstances mostly out of his control to plausibly meet the most bewildering array of real folks or pop up in the oddest of places throughout the 1940’s and 1950’s.

Norm:  Were there any real-life individuals who served as a partial inspiration for Perry.

Kenny:  Let me start out by saying that no character in the book is a take-off of anyone in real life.  They are all figments of my imagination.  I’m sure most of them are cobbled together pieces of real folks from my own life experiences but I didn’t take any one person in my life, change the name and insert them into the fray.  

I did, however, use the name of a few deceased family members sort of in tribute to them.  For example, my mother’s maiden name was Mace. 

Hence, Roger Mace, the aspiring writer.  My father’s father was named, believe it or not, Solomon Goldsborough Tyler.  Hence the jeweler in Savannah named Solomon Goldsborough.

Having said that, to a limited extent my father served as a partial inspiration for Perry Barnes but only as it relates to the time in which he lived.  My father was born in 1925 which coincided almost exactly with Perry’s age because that was the time frame I wanted to cover in the book.  Using my father as a reference for timing made it easier in affixing dates to the happenings in the book.  My father was a great man in my mind.  However, Perry is not at all based on my father.

There were no other real-life figures who inspired Perry unless you consider where I got his first name to be “real life.”  I have always been a tremendous fan of the old Perry Mason series.  I suppose I borrowed the main character’s first name from this fictional television character.  The rest of the traits or characteristics of Perry Barnes are an amalgam and/or composite of qualities and features contrived in my mind.

Norm:  How did you develop the intricate balance between fact and fiction? Can you share a specific moment where you deliberately blurred the lines between truth and storytelling?

Kenny:  The first time I “deliberately blurred the lines between truth and storytelling” I was six and had just whacked my sister with a stick and was suffering an inquest at the hands of my parents.  Oh, I suppose your question was more related to Hunting the Red Fox, wasn’t it?

Sorry about that one.  I am persistently told that I have a very subtle, clever, dry, even witty sense of humor that I have a hard time reigning in.  

The book is packed with examples of this but often require a second reading to recognize and appreciate the humor as it relates to the individual characters, events and analogies.  

I just finished listening to the audiobook a few days ago for the twelfth time or so in preparation for some upcoming book signings and still laugh at some passages probably more than I should at this point.

Back to your fine question.  The direction of the narrative from the beginning, before a word was committed to paper, was always going to be as a work of historical fiction.  

As such, by definition, the totality of the story was going to involve mistily melding fictional characters, times and places with real people, times, events and localities in a plausible way so the reader can’t immediately discern fact from fiction.  

On some level the book was successful at this because I have had more that one person tell me they spent more than a little time researching while reading to figure what was real and what was made up.

However, to be more specific to your question, every interaction in the book between Perry Barnes and Jackie Gleason, for example, (my favorite parts to write by the way) is a blurring of fact and fiction.  

Obviously, these conversations and actions between the two never happened.  Or did they?  If the reader can plausibly believe it happened as written my mission was accomplished.  

The same could be said for the interactions between Perry and Winston Churchill, Dean Martin, John Wayne, Bill Clinton, etc.   

Frankly, before you asked me this question I never thought about deliberately blurring “the lines between truth and storytelling” because I don’t know how you write acceptable historical fiction unless you intentionally blur the lines throughout.

Norm:  Can you elaborate on the golf world in the 1950s as a backdrop? What research did you do to ensure the historical authenticity of the golf scenes?

Kenny:  First, let me make something clear up front.  This is not a book about golf, per se.  Golf, touring professional golf in this case, is the vehicle which makes most of the events and chance meetings between Perry and all the other characters, real and/or fictional, plausible.  

Most of the people Perry meets and exotic parties and places he goes happen because he is a touring professional.  There is only a smattering of detail with respect to the actual golf played by Perry.

I wrote an article recently for some magazine entitled Golf Takes A Back Seat that explains this in greater detail.  . 

All that blather aside, I did extensive research into the professional golf world of the 1950’s and in one case 1945.  Almost all of the references to courses, players, winners and tournaments are substantially true.  

For example, when I talk about there being two Durham Opens in 1945 and their respective winners this really happened.  When I discuss the Los Angeles Open of 1952 at Riviera Country Club won by Tommy Bolt, that happened as written.  

If I said that Herman Keiser, Ben Hogan, Jimmy Demaret or Stan Leonard won a particular tournament in a certain year it really happened.  

At one point I referenced one golf course (Fox Hills) that hosted the LA Open in 1954 and is now a shopping mall.  It really happened.  I’m sure there were a few stray references to tournaments in terms of timing during the year but not many.

 Norm:  How did you integrate real-life celebrities into Perry’s story? Were you concerned about potential legal or historical accuracy issues?

Kenny:  I chose to integrate various non-golf related celebrities in the book (actors, politicians, entertainers, etc.) to add to, emphasize or remind the reader of the era in which the book moves down its path.  

Most of these folks are only casually mentioned and none of them or their activities are divulged in significant detail.  None of them were maligned in the process either.  

Virtually all of the references are positive to neutral at worst and none of them out of their known public persona.

For example, there are references to Elvis and Bill Clinton in separate parts of the book.  The references to Elvis are so benign and only make reference to the fact he was in the Memphis area at the same time as Perry.  

A similar thing was discussed as it related to Bill Clinton with the added comment that he was a bit of a hound dog with respect to some women.  Not an unfamiliar criticism for Mr. Clinton.

As to whether I had concerns about potential legal or historical accuracy issues in bringing these people into the book, I do not.  I did research most of these people to make sure I wasn’t unfairly maligning them in some manner.  

As I said, virtually all of the comments made were agreeable, good-humored and aimable.  I don’t think from my research that even references to Jackie Gleason’s drinking was over the top.  I loved the Gleason character more than all others except for Perry.

In the end, the celebrities popping in and out only provided color to the narrative.  They didn’t really do anything of consequence.  All of the bad or distasteful deeds in the book were performed by fictional characters.

Norm:  What challenges did you face in keeping readers guessing about the narrative’s truthfulness? Did you have beta readers who helped you maintain this narrative tension?

Kenny:  It was my feeling that if I brought enough real people, places, things and events into the book I could meld in the fictional characters and make the story more believable.  So, I did a ton of internet research.  

Plus, I went to Williamsburg.  I traveled to Savannah and walked the town for three days.  I went to the Georgia Historical Society and spent hours reading microfilm from June of 1942 to gather facts about what was going on in that town the weeks before and immediately after Perry stole jewelry from Mr. Goldsborough.  

I wrote a lovely chapter about what was going on in Savannah and the country as a whole during the month when it was likely Perry was either going to jail or war.  In the end I left that chapter out of the book because the story was getting a little lengthy.

Similarly, I went to Sir Winston Churchill’s Chartwell home in southern England and the Highlands in Scotland where Aldercraig is located.  I read numerous books on the SOE in England and their clandestine sabotage activities. 

I even read a few books written by first-class jewel thieves.  In short, I did the work about what was real such that I could write about it as it related to my fictional characters.

As to your question about beta readers helping me maintain the narrative tension the answer is sort of.  I didn’t hire any formal such beta readers as I understand that term, but I allowed two friends who were known to me to be voracious readers and whose opinions I respected to peruse the completed manuscript and offer whatever comments and/or advice as they saw fit.  

They told me they thought I was on the right track and in one case let me know I had a factual inaccuracy related to a firearm in the text, which I immediately corrected.  

Having written the entire novel in a vacuum of only my own thoughts I found their encouragement helpful to move forward.  These two gentlemen are mentioned in the acknowledgments page.

Norm:  Can you discuss the significance of the title Hunting the Red Fox? How many alternative titles did you consider before settling on this one?

Kenny:  The very first time I sat down to start this book I slapped a title on the computer file and page one of the manuscript as a place holder.  

I had to call it something in order to save the file but never considered this first title to be sacrosanct by any means.  That first title was “When Men Were Gentlemen.”  

When the time came to sit down with the publisher, she asked me something to the effect of, “Are you married to this title?  Is it important to you.”  I told her I was not, paused briefly and said, “How about Hunting the Red Fox?”  

And in no more time than that the title was changed.  The fact that it came out of my mouth so casually and without any forethought shouldn’t diminish the title in the least in my mind.  I have come to like the title very much and think it enhances the overall product.

Norm:  What storytelling techniques did you use to maintain tension? Which authors or books influenced your narrative approach?

Kenny:  Storytelling techniques?  I’m not sure I could pinpoint or even name a storytelling technique if you gave me a week and an unlimited budget.  I don’t know about others but that’s not how I write. 

It’s not really a conscious thing with me.  I can’t sketch out a story line in advance then try to write to that plan.  I sit down at a computer and simply write, type and attempt to describe the movie that is playing in my mind.  

My fingers often have a difficult time keeping up with what I see in my brain in picture form.  

When I start typing at the top of a page, I literally have no plan or idea as to what may fall out of my head by the end of the page.  This often results in characters, events or places that had not previous come to mind on any prior level.  I can’t explain it more simply than that.

Oddly enough, the thing I was most concerned about in the beginning was my ability to write dialogue between characters.  Once I started typing the motion picture scenes playing in my head the conversations were simply there and seemed to write themselves.  

I just tried to write how people speak in real life.  I think my second book benefits from this “technique” even more because it is more dialogue driven.  I’m only a third of the way through book number three and I think that may be true for that one as well.

I have read lots of books over the last 30+ years.  Some of my favorite authors include Nelson DeMille, Roy Jenkins, Scott Turow, Ben Macintyre, Daniel James Brown, Erik Larson, Walter Isaacson and many others.  

They are all magnificent in their own way.  Roy Jenkins is a master at the use of the English language.   

However, I can honestly say I don’t feel I was consciously influenced by any of them.  Oh, I’m sure there is some phrasing or dialogue technique from some or all these authors that has snuck their way into this text, but I would be hard pressed to pick it out myself.

Norm:  Can you explain the importance of the jewellery theft subplot? Were there any scenes related to the theft that didn’t make the final draft?

Kenny:  I like the way your mind works Norm in formulating these questions.  You are forcing me to think about things relating to the plot that I may or may not have been thinking when I simply typed what I saw in the motion picture in my mind.  

The very initial day I sat down to start this book I stared at the first line of the first page and without any other preconceived plan in place typed out “The last jewel heist of my career was the biggest and best by far – the Mecklenburg Diamond.  

Ever hear of it?”  To this day I don’t know where that came from.

I liked it.  That one line led me to create a conversational narrative between Perry and Roger Mace whereby the story was going to be revealed more or less in a confessional style.  

It was also going to involve at least one jewel theft from which I thought I could build some action and tension in the story.

This sentence also gave the impression that Perry was something he really was not in the end: a bad guy, desperado, rogue, habitual criminal, etc.  

The eventual story would set the record straight on that score and Perry was later revealed to be more of a Robin Hood type thief, not that it makes things any better I suppose but I think the readers think otherwise.

There were no jewelry theft scenes omitted from the book.  The only significant material that got axed from the final manuscript was the aforementioned lovely chapter about Savanah in June 1942, a chapter on golf humor and a couple of pages with an irreverent look at drinking and the resultant hangovers.

Norm:  What inspired Perry’s complex moral landscape?  Do you believe people can fundamentally change, as Perry does?

Kenny:  Human nature.  Reality.  Believability.  Perry Barnes is a man that is very accomplished and capable at virtually everything he tries.  

The short list includes being a successful World War II saboteur, managed to stay on the professional golf circuit for six years, created and ran a highly effective detective agency, co-wrote some chart-topping country songs and with one exception a jewel thief. 

But he’s not great at any one of them because like all of us he has flaws.  I know lots of people who seemingly have it all together or have what others perceive to be an ideal life, and they are all flawed.  I saw it firsthand owning a CPA firm for 40 years.  

On top of that Perry lost his probable moral compass, his father at a very young age.  By the time he was approaching 20 he had lost his mother and grandmother too.  He had no more family to serve as role models and was on his own to figure it out.

So, Perry struggles throughout the book to be successful at whatever he does and ultimately wants what many want: a loving wife and children.

As I sit here answering your question I have to laugh a little.  What I just wrote makes perfect sense to me in retrospect and is very plausible after the fact.  

The truth is as I said before I don’t consciously feel inspired, happy, melancholy or any host of other emotions while I write page after page.  

My head fills with ideas while my fingers struggle to get it all down on paper before the thoughts and pictures vanish, which they eventually do. I do go back numerous times to edit the text naturally but it’s less about content than grammar, word choice or phrasing.

With respect to your question, “Do you believe people can fundamentally change, as Perry does?” the answer is certainly yes for the vast majority of people.  Most all of us change and morph over time.  First, we mature.  

That takes care of lots of change.  Over our lives we marry (whatever that means in today’s society), have children, cherish old friends and family, develop new friends, get educated, encounter health issues of various degrees, suffer loss for failed relationships or devastating deaths to ones we adore and so on.  

I realize the previous sentence left out all of the other types of relationships and social gathering possibilities that exist nowadays but the same holds true for these folks and I have no desire to go into that level of detail and distinction.  Change is constant and most people experience it without realizing it.

Norm:  Where can our readers find out more about you and Hunting the Red Fox?

Kenny: 

Facebook: Hunting the Red Fox

WEBSITE: 

Email: editor@huntingtheredfox.com

Norm:  As we wrap up our interview, is there a message about human nature you were hoping to convey? How do you hope readers will feel after finishing the book?

Kenny:  I read your questions and wonder why I don’t think about hidden messages or lessons to be learned.  My style is pretty laid back and not very preachy by nature.  

All I wanted people to feel after reading this book was a sense that this was an enjoyable read, a liking of Perry Barnes, a sense that they got their money’s worth and finally, a desire to read whatever the next book brings. 

I have been more than a little gratified by the number of people who have expressed an ardent interest in reading a sequel.  A few were somewhat miffed that one was not yet available.

Follow Here To Read Norm's Review of Hunting the Red Fox