Jeremiah’s latest patron was an older man who looked to be somewhere in his forties, judging by the furrows at the corners of his mouth and the sallow circles under his eyes. His dirty blonde hair fell in disheveled spikes over his forehead, and to Buster’s great intrigue, a few shocks of bright blue and green dye accented the style. The worn-out leather jacket he wore was covered in patches, and his jeans were frayed at the knees and hems. The overall effect may have spoken of some kind of midlife crisis, if the man hadn’t weaseled his way up to the bar as if he belonged there, grabbed the bottle of Crown Royal from where it sat at Daniel’s elbow, and taken a swallow straight from it.
While I was filling out the Organization, I knew that I'd need someone who kept to the darker side of its balance, someone who did the deeds nobler people would balk at doing. A punk fit the bill nicely, but someone young wouldn't understand why it needed to be done: they'd only do trouble for trouble's sake. I live in the Lakes Region of New Hampshire, where we have an annual tradition called Motorcycle Week(end). Every June, the town next to mine is flooded with bikers who gather to participate in rides, races, and a myriad of other events, and a sea of vendor tents, entertainment pavillions, and leather and denim consumes us. As such, I've seen more than my share of aging dudes with 'tudes, people who have had their inner anarchy tempered by time. I knew that was exactly the sort of person the Organization needed, but I still lacked a face and a name ... until I picked up a Greatest Hits CD of a certain musician on a whim. Listening to it in the car, a particular line struck me like a bolt from the blue, and with it, came not only the face, but Crowley's singular name.
I've never done good things / I've never done bad things / I never did anything out of the blue
Clearly, there's a lot more to Crowley than just his attitude and his penchant for showing up to annoy the heroes of my tales. He has his own story to tell, and it will likely come out in small pieces over the course of everyone else's. As much as I'd love to give him his own novel, it doesn't really seem his style. The devil is in the details, and he's content to stay there. In the meantime, I take comfort and pleasure in knowing that he's out there, somewhere, no matter what I'm writing, making sure things don't go too well. I have to be able to give my heroes something to fix, after all. It's a good working relationship, and one I'm glad to have.
Want more Crowley? You can find him in everything on the Novels & Short Stories page, with the exception of Times of Trouble: try as I might, I couldn't find an easy spot for him there. Got a favorite Crowley scene? Or maybe you've got a question about him I didn't address? Hit up the comments section, let's talk! I love character chats.
Until next time, I remain your hostess,