By Lindsey Johnson

Joe R. Lansdale, a writer from Nacogdoches, Texas, wanted to write for as long as he could remember.

“When I first discovered pencils I realized I wanted to be a writer,” Lansdale said.

Lansdale, who writes novels, screenplays and short stories in multiple genres such as western, horror, science fiction, mystery, and suspense, made his dream come true. According to www.wikipedia.org, he is currently a recipient of the Grand Master Award from the World Horror Convention for his contributions to the field of horror fiction.

Looking casual in a black button down shirt, jeans, and black shoes, he recalled the experiences that led him to be the writer he is today. He looked intently at his audience as he answered the questions being asked and discussed how he came to be.

Lansdale was born in Gladewater, Texas, on October 28, 1951. He recalled that television was just on the rise.

“Television was a new media at the time,” he said.

Lansdale remembered that he read comic books from Classics Illustrated. These comic books were adapted from famous pieces of literature. Lansdale said that these comic books were “brilliant.”

Although his father couldn’t read or write, Lansdale still wanted to be a writer. When he was nine years old, he picked up a pencil and began to write.

Lansdale admitted that he had no real practice on writing.

“When I started I had no idea how to present the story,” he said.

Lansdale said that when he was in school he had to take three courses to learn how to write properly: a typewriting course, a journalism course, and an English course.

He entered his first article to “Farm Journal” under his mother’s name. He won a prize for his contribution to the journal.

While he still continued to write, he tried maintaining other jobs such as a bouncer and a carpenter’s assistant. However, Lansdale remembered that carpentry was not his calling.
“I could kill you with a hammer just by accident,” he said.

He continued his education by attending Tyler Junior College for one year and the University of Texas for one year. After that, his wife encouraged him to continue his writing, so he dropped out of school and quit his job to further pursue his dream. He has been writing ever since.

“I didn’t want to look up a mule’s rear end for the rest of my life,” he said in a serious tone.

Lansdale still remembered his experience writing his first screenplay.

He said his son was sitting on his lap and “beating me in the testicles with a plastic hammer and that was how I finished.”

Since writing full-time in 1981, Lansdale has written 30 novels and 16 short story collections. He admitted that he has used his family in some of his stories.

Some of his novels include “Cold in July,” “The Big Blow,” “Blood Dance,” and the “Drive-In” series. He also wrote short story collections such as “By Bizarre Hands,” “Writers of the Purple Rage,” and “High Cotton.”

From his earliest work with 1980’s “Act of Love” to 2007’s “Lost Echoes,” Lansdale has turned out many books and has gotten several awards to account for them, including seven Bram Stoker Awards, a British Fantasy Award, the Critic’s Choice Award and a New York Times Notable Book award.

“There’s more parallels to my father and mother,” Lansdale said.

Lansdale also admitted that the social consciousness he lived through during the 1960s helped shape his love of writing.

“Hap and Leonard,” one of his well-known book series, deals with many of the social elements of the ‘60s that influenced him. According to www.wikipedia.org, although Lansdale wrote about dark issues such as racism, pedophiles and anti gay violence, he accompanied them with “sharp humor and ‘wisecracking’ dialogue.”

Lansdale also contributed many screenplays and writing contributions to television.

Lansdale, a self-proclaimed “huge Batman fan,” wrote some episodes for “Batman: the Animated Series,” as well as for other comic book shows such as “Superman” and “Tarzan.”

Some of Lansdale’s writing credits have even made it to the big screen. In 2002, Lansdale and Don Coscarelli adapted “Bubba Ho-Tep,” a story about Elvis Presley and John F. Kennedy fighting an Ancient Egyptian mummy invading a nursing home. The movie starred Bruce Campbell.

While he and his family travelled to places such as Germany and Italy, Lansdale said he worked mostly from his home and sent his screenplays by Fed Ex to Los Angeles.
Not only does Lansdale write but he also owns a martial arts studio. He’s been studied martial arts since he was 11 years old and is now a tenth degree black belt. He is also a four-time inductee of the Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He often spends his time at Shen Chuan, Martial Science, the studio he founded.

Lansdale said he found comfort in martial arts and that it serves as a “focus” and an “economy of motion.”

“Martial arts has helped me as a writer,” he said.

He spends six hours a day writing and three hours at his studio.

Lansdale is now a professor at Stephen F. Austin State University where he teaches courses in screenwriting and creative writing and a comic book course during the summer.
Lansdale resides in Nacogdoches with his wife and two children. His son Keith is a reporter for a newspaper and his daughter Kasey works as a songwriter.

Lansdale said he would keep writing for a very long time.

“Writing is not just a profession,” he said. “It is life. It’s a lifestyle.”