Reading Behind the Screen
Cathy Belben
From The Chuckanut Reader

Hollywood accountants have figured out a way to turn virtually any expense into a tax write-off if you’re in The Industry, so as a television writer for UPN’s Veronica Mars, I’m able to deduct purchases such as television sets, DVD players, movie tickets, and food, as long as the consumption of said items lends itself to the development of one’s creative genius. Heaven knows I feel smarter every time I eat at In-n-Out Burger. 

Besides food, the majority of my tax-deductible purchases are, unsurprisingly, books. When I’m not breaking story with the writing team, churning out synopses for the Veronica Mars website, or banging my head against my keyboard, trying to write a script, I’m reading. Much of that reading is “behind the screen” research for the show—primarily books about crimes, criminals, scams, cons, deceptions, kidnapping, drug running, money laundering, gambling, investigating, and teenage trends.

Because Veronica Mars is a detective show, I look for ideas and information in stories about bad people, crazy people, wicked people, and smart people. We also aim for edgy humor, original wordplay, and up-to-the second pop culture savvy, so I try to find books that inspire and motivate me as a writer and humorist. The following are some of the best books that have informed my writing and influenced my work on Veronica Mars:

True Story: Murder, Memoir, Mea Culpa by Michael Finkel (Non-Fiction)
Finkel, a former NY Times reporter (he was fired after falsifying an article), covers the true story of Christian Longo, an Oregon man who murdered his wife and three young children and then fled to Mexico, where he took on Finkel’s identity until authorities tracked him down and brought him back to the U.S.  Longo and the real Finkel began a bizarre, years-long correspondence in which Longo told Finkel his life story and (more or less) confessed to the murders. A weird, fascinating book about truth, lies, violence, and redemption.

Finders Keepers by Mark Bowden (Non-Fiction)
Joey Coyle, a meth-head loser in Philadelphia, discovered $1 million that had fallen from an armored truck. Instead of turning the money in, he spent it, gave it to friends, and told everyone he knew about his good fortune. In Bowden’s account of the case, we follow the police as they track down the money and watch, cringing, as Coyle makes one stupid mistake after another. A quick, quirky read about a (sort of) lovable dork. A primer on what not to do if you find a million bucks in cash. The story was made into a movie, Money for Nothing, staring John Cusack.

Under and Alone:  The True Story of the Undercover Agent Who Infiltrated America’s Most Violent Outlaw Motorcycle Gang by William Queen (NF)
Queen infiltrated the Mongols Motorcycle Club, the third largest, and arguably most violent, motorcycle gang in the United States (which, coincidentally and scarily, is headquartered in the San Fernando Valley where we write Veronica Mars). Donning a scraggly beard and leathers, Queen rode a Harley with the Mongols, attended their runs and gatherings, rose to club leadership, and ultimately collected substantial intelligence that eventually led to the capture and prosecution of numerous violent bikers. Queen’s account of the group’s machinations, as well as the dangers he faced as an undercover cop amidst hardened criminals, is riveting and spooky and will inevitably be made into a movie that cold be either really cool or really lame, depending on who plays Queen. 

The Men Who Stare at Goats by Jon Ronson (Non-Fiction)
Author Jon Ronson examines a number of bizarre allegations about unusual activities and research conducted by the U.S. government. He investigates “scientific” experiments in which attempts were made to kill goats by staring at them (so soldiers could learn to kill enemies with Death Stares), the use of music to drive prisoners of war into submission (most notably, the use of the Barney “I Love You” song), and assorted other psychic and pseudoscientific follies. There’s no shortage of weirdness to be tapped for television, and Ronson’s book alerted me to more of it.

The Power of Three by Laura Lippman (Fiction)
Three teenage girls, friends since elementary school, are involved in a school shooting—one of them dies, one is injured, and the third is comatose as the result of what appears to be a self-inflicted wound. But as detectives discover, the case is hardly what it seems, and the only survivor who can talk isn’t telling a straightforward story. As with Lippman’s previous books, this is a gripping psychological thriller that offers some insight into the motives behind violence and the often complicated relationships between teens.

Blue Blood by Edward Conlon (Non-Fiction)
Although Veronica Mars isn’t a police officer, she does have to deal with The Law occasionally, and she uses some of their tactics to solve her cases (although she mostly uses hidden cameras, cell phones, and brains). Conlon, a veteran of the NYPD, has written an incredible memoir about his experiences on the force—fascinating, extremely well-written, and full of great inside information on life in the police force.

Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans: The Best of McSweeney's Humor Category by Dave Eggers (Editor)
In the cramped quarters and insular community of a television show staff, we can forget the myriad ways words and ideas can be funny. We get locked into our own jokes or stuck on plot problems. Created in Darkness by Troubled Americans, a collection of articles, lists, stories, essays, faux interviews, and assorted ephemera, is a terrific reminder that humor takes all forms. It freed me to release the constraints I sometimes place on my writing. My favorite pieces include contributions from Seattle NPR commentator John Moe, and a satirical article about how Supreme Court decisions are really decided by basketball games between the justices.

New and Selected Poems, Volume Two by Mary Oliver
Living in the Big City, I’m far from the greenery and peaceful comfort of the trails and parks that make the Pacific Northwest such an incredible place to live. In her poems, Mary Oliver reminds me again and again how to seek beauty and comfort from the outdoors, drawing me away from the labyrinth of freeways and stress of deadlines and competition at work to savor the small miracles around me—the dove nesting in my parking garage, the pigeons bathing each other in fountains, the dozens of different kinds of palm trees, the cycles of the moon.

Artists’ Journals and Sketchbooks: Exploring and Creating Person Pages by Lynne Perrella
When I’m not reading, writing, or watching—ahem researching—TV, I’m often working on art projects, and Perrella’s book is the latest in a collection of visual art books I turn to for inspiration. Although many of the projects look complex, her instructions offer excellent guidelines for creating journals, sketchbooks, and beautiful artifacts. Her work and her encouragement are powerful reminders that there is more to creativity than the blank page and the keyboard—there is, more importantly, the open mind and the happy hand.