Nether Land is a reflective true crime memoir about ambition, memory, and the friend you never stop trying to understand. You begin with Ed’s funeral and then move backward through time. Why did you choose to frame the story around memory instead of chronology?

The mind works in mysterious ways… Ed was never a friend, and only after his funeral did I discover his complicated life of overcharged ambition. Due to his need for monetary fortune and fame, he damaged so many. It seemed most appropriate to set the strange reality of what happened after his funeral with the grudge I’d held since 1972. 

This book lives between memoir, true crime, and investigation. How did you decide what kind of book it wanted to be?

After Ed’s death, I was simply interested in what this fellow student did. Like peeling an onion, every new layer of his exploits was surprising, fascinating, and too frequently disgusting. This book started as a nonfiction short story, but with the discoveries and interviews, it became more intense. It took ten years to thoroughly document his misguided adventures… and I did not disclose all I found and documented. I had a personal issue to settle…. and yet, as the title says, that “resolution” was stolen. 

The book openly acknowledges resentment, admiration, and confusion. How important was it to let your bias remain visible on the page?

It was essential.  

What do you think writing this book changed for you, personally?

We are all products of our parents, schooling, careers, loves… I was blessed with excellent parents, so many friends, a loving wife, and great opportunities. Ed chose to go down a strange, sad, and eventually dangerous path. His needs eventually caught up with him… He had an impact on me, one reminding me to be careful…but not cynical.. and of the importance of trust, honesty, and care for others. At 72, I can look back and smile with constant gratitude. 

 
 
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon