Joseph Wambaugh turns 87 and is still writing.
Here’s a testament to longevity, the power of writing, and the unfortunate lure of crossing the line. Joseph Wambaugh writes crime–both fiction and true crime. His early novels from the 1970’s include THE BLUE KNIGHT, THE CHOIR BOYS, and THE BLACK MARBLE. The first book of his I read was THE ONION FIELDS, which is a 1973 novel version of true crime. I found it to be one of the most powerful and memorable books I’ve ever read.
He wrote new series in the 1990’s. He continues writing in this century. His novels and books have been adapted for film. He’s still living and writing!
But it turned out that he crossed the line when it came to writing about a 1979 murder. His novel, ECHOES IN THE DARKNESS, came out in 1984. Eventually, the alleged and convicted murderer was released and his conviction overturned because of police misconduct. One of the things that came out–where Wambaugh himself crossed the line–he paid $50,000 to one of the investigators to leak information to him for his writing, and payment dependent on the arrest of the suspect. This is so shameful, and Wambaugh had to know it was wrong as his father was a police officer, and he was, too, for 14 years. Wow, just so sad.
Wambaugh came back and wrote more. He can write well. But there are lessons here for all writers. Stay ethical. Don’t let your success go to your head, or put pressure on to come up with something even bigger and better.