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Underground > Creation >

Ideas Needed For A Sleazy Western

15:54 / 18.01.02

Seeing as I've got all kinds of time on my hands, I thought I'd take a crack at being a writer. Only problem is, I've never wrote a book before. Having a theater background, I don't think I'd have a problem with fleshing out dialogue or characterization. The problem lies in the bones--the plot & story. Here's the basics as I come up with so far:

The protagonist is the gravedigger in a backwater Texas town after the Civil War. Work is good. Between the rustlers, ranchers, pistoleros, railroad workers & Indians killing each other, there's plenty of bloodshed to go around. In fact, that's the problem, because someone else moves to town & sets up shop as a mortician. So the gravedigger trys to play the different tribes against each other--and the new competition while the newbie mortician does the same. I'm sure there's going to be a love interest feud in there somewhere, but I don't know quite where yet.

In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm looking for a really dark comedy. Like if Elmore Leonard wrote a Western that crossed "Miller's Crossing" with "Man Bites Dog". C'mon, let's get sleazy, y'all!

16:26 / 18.01.02

When you say "sleezey western", I can't stop thinking "John Wayne was a faggot". Was that Reservoir Dogs that's from?

Actually, I kind of like that idea. When things get rough, the Man With No Name comes into town, dusts off the 50 cals he keeps under the bed, mutters about how he thought he would never have to use them again, and proceeds to kick a bunch of ass. Staple Genre feature. Now, what if he was gay and did it because he was in love with the grave digger, who clearly cannot return his affections? Definitely adds a black comedy aspect to it I'd think. Gives a chance to make sexual metaphores with pistols to, which is always a fun ploy. And its not like The Man With No Name can't handle a little more angst, is it?

As for playing factions off each other, go watch Yojimbo, A Fist Full of Dollars, or Last Man Standing for that story, depending on if you prefer Kurasara, Eastwood, or Willis for that sort of thing.

16:40 / 18.01.02

I like it.

The fact that you take the spotlight away from the typical gunfighter and put it on the non-violent, yet manipulative, gravedigger is interesting. I wouldn't worry about messing around with different genre conventions. It looks like it could be a good way to view how the genre conventions come about. Could the High Noon shootout occur because it's easier on the Mortician, and it turns out he's the one who arranged it in the first place?

Between this, rewatching Unforgiven and reading too much Jonah Hex, I'm all primed to get back to my Western comic story.

12:27 / 29.01.02

Well, one thing your hapless gravedigger needs to do is hop on the telegraph or send out the pony express to start spreading a rumor that people in this town have been bad mouthing the biggest meanest gunfighter in state.

"They said Big Dan was sickly, flower-picking dog-fucker! A big stinking--"

"Who said that?"

"Everybody. Everyone in town. The town of Clintlock. You know, it's 15 miles south of Paddock, about eight miles east of the bend in the Langley River."

Of course, who knows what happens when Big Dan actually does show up. But he probably brings plenty of ammunition....