Utter Trash--Fred Wright

Wright Said Fred

An interview with writer/musician Fred Wright

By Eddie Fleisher

Cleveland's literary scene is strong, due in large part to people like Fred Wright. Fred, who goes as Wred Fright, has written several novel zines, gone on tour with the Perpetual Motion Roadshow, and is involved in the music scene, playing in his band, Team Fright.

UT: Why do you swap the F and W in Fred Wright, and call yourself Wred Fright?
FW: "I changed the letters for my penname because it makes me laugh. Plus there's a number of "Fred Wright"s in the world including quite a few who have written books so it lessens confusion as to who's who. The silly name originally emerged courtesy of The Dead Milkmen who used to send copies of their newsletter in the 1980s/1990s to "Red Fright" presumably because it either amused them to switch the letters around too or they liked that it was similar to the phrase "Red Scare" from the old communist witch hunt days."

UT: What's your day job?
Interviewers Note: Due to his work in the CIA, Fred was unable to answer that question. He did mention that he was once a "lipstick tester".

UT: You were on The Perpetual Motion Roadshow. What is that all about and who puts it all together?
FW: The Perpetual Motion Roadshow is a really cool underground literary circuit that loops monthly with three different performers every month. For 6 months of the year it rolls through Cleveland and other cities on the East Coast and in the Midwest, and for the other six months it rolls up and down the West Coast. It's coordinated by Canadian novelist Jim Munroe and a number of volunteers in the different cities the tour goes through. The tour was lots of fun.

UT: Is there a strong literary scene here in Cleveland?
FW: I lived in Kent for a number of years but I'm still learning my way around Cleveland and its literary scene. From what I've seen of local writers, I'd say yes. And there's some people and institutions here that are very supportive of local writers, Suzanne of Mac's Backs obviously being one of those.

UT: Mac's Backs is sweet. Who are some of the writers you like around here?
FW: Well, I'm more concentrated in the indie/underground/zine lit area, so I know that better than the MFA lit crowd, but I like work from both camps. And like I said, I'm new to the scene so I'm afraid I'm not a very good guide, but I'll do what I can. I like Michael DeCapite's and Mark Winegardner's fiction (though both have left Cleveland). Bree and Matthew Wascovich do some interesting experimental poetry work. Peter Relic's stuff is enjoyably wacky. The slam poets like Michael Salinger rock. And not far away in Stow is Cheryl Townsend, whose poetry is always great. John R. Xerxes makes interesting zines. I like the zines ‘Don't Blame Cleveland’, ‘Ella Guru’, and ‘Utter Trash’ (but of course), and of course there's always a new zine popping up somewhere offering something interesting to read. I like the cartoonists Derf, Jake Kelly, and the Fightin' Fun Comics guys too. Actually, for a large, metropolitan area, Cleveland really doesn't have that many zines. I went to a zine fair a year or so ago at SPACES art gallery and, aside from the minicomics, it was basically me and Christa Donner, who does Ladyfriend. And she moved to Chicago later that year. It's all the fault of Portland, though. Too many zinesters have moved to Portland and have left a void everywhere else.

UT: In terms of writing, what are you working on?
FW: Fiction-wise, aside from the odd spurt of creativity, I'm lying fallow like a field at the moment. So I'm working on nothing actively. Something's stirring down there deep in the ground, though. It'll eventually sprout. It has to. People always like stories, and if we don't give them any good ones, someone else, usually a large corporation, will be more than happy to supply that need with some crappy ones instead. In the meantime, I've been busy writing songs and playing in my rock and roll band, Team Fright, and co-editing a literary blog with Pat King from Alabama for the Underground Literary Alliance (www.undergroundliteraryalliance.blogspot.com) where we feature a work from a different indie/underground/zine writer every week. The ULA also named me recently the Ohio Bureau Chief, whatever the hell that is.

UT: Sounds like you're busy. You've done 'zines, what do you think of them?
FW: I love zines! I enjoy trading work with writers from around the world. Unfortunately, once you start publishing on a regular basis and over a hundred copies in a print run, it can start to feel like a job, and as we all know one full-time job is more than enough. My last zine was a seven issue serialized novel about a silly garage rock band called "The Pornographic Flabbergasted Emus", and by the last issue, I was tuckered out. So I haven't published a zine in about a year (though I've contributed the odd piece to one and read quite a few since then). When the zine itch strikes again and I have the time and money, I'll scratch it. I think next, though, that I'd like to publish a book. Some people have asked if I'm going to put out the Emus in book form, but having published it as a zine and online (download it in a print-friendly form for free from (www.wredfright.com/pfe.html), I think I'll leave that to someone else down the road.

UT: You've been in the music scene for some time now, what's your musical history?
FW: I've played in bands for years, though in Cleveland only The Joslyns and now Team Fright. In the past, I played in bands in Ohio and Western Pennsylvania. Some of them were The Escaped Fetal Pigs, Satan Tortilla, The Lenin Spoonful, DeNiro Youth, Yeast?, and The GoGoBots. I also played solo for awhile as Wred Fright. It's always been melodic, noisy, somewhat weird rock and roll because that's what I like. So obviously that fits in with Cleveland's tastes fairly well. I've always liked the weird rock that comes from Ohio such as Guided By Voices, Devo, Pere Ubu, and The Dead Boys.

UT: Any advice for upcoming writers?
FW: Hmm . . . trust your God and your gut and not much else. Don't believe your own bullshit, nor that of others, but believe in something. Learn to hack stuff out, then never do that on the stuff that matters.