*James Patterson, an older white author with a net worth of about $800 million, has claimed it is difficult for white men like him to find work in publishing and Hollywood.
According to Patterson, white male writers go through “another form of racism.”
The thriller novelist spoke in an interview with The Times, decrying the plight of older white males. The interview was published last Sunday.
“What’s that all about?” Patterson lamented. “Can you get a job? Yes. Is it harder? Yes. It is even harder for older writers. You don’t meet many 52-year-old white males.”
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He lamented thus after being reminded that his early breakthrough as an author came about partly because of the character of a Black detective fictitiously named Alex Cross. Alex Cross is in his crime series. In 1997 and 2001, Morgan Freeman played the detective in film adaptations “Kiss the Girls” and “Along Came a Spider” respectively.
“I just wanted to create a character who happened to be Black,” Patterson explained. “I would not have tried to write a serious saga about a Black family. It’s different in a detective story because plot is so important.”
He then added that the author is “almost always on the side of free speech,” noting that he was shocked when staff at his publisher, Little, Brown and Company, staged a walkout in 2020 to protest the publication of Woody Allen’s memoir.
Dylan Farrow, Allen’s adoptive daughter, accused Allen of child sexual abuse. Allen denied the allegations.
“I hated that,” Patterson said, referring to the Little, Brown protest. He then added that Allen has the right to tell his own story.
Patterson’s racism comments might be embraced by racist white male fans also known for their love of Fox News, but as an author having them on his side, it might not help him much, because they are not known to be dedicated readers.
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