Former Times editor Starr writes novel on Etowah Co. experiences, 'journalism as it was'
A former executive editor of The Gadsden Times is releasing a new four-novel book series, with the last installment called "Etowah County."
Rusty Starr, who worked at The Times from 1986 to 1996, says he recalls "fondly" his days in Gadsden.
“It was great to lead a dedicated staff in the newsroom, and it was great to work alongside great community people who were committed to improving life in the Gadsden area,” he said.
His book inspired by Etowah County is described as "a fictionalized retelling of the showdown between county commissioners and a federal judge concerning the construction of the current jail."
Starr said, "We did some great reporting during that time, but I can assure you that a novel allows for successful completion of the journalistic process as well as plenty of bedlam."
While in Gadsden, Starr led the Times' newsroom to numerous awards, both statewide and nationally. One of the stories honored won first place in a state competition against an entry that went on to win the Pulitzer Prize for the Montgomery Advertiser.
Starr left Gadsden to become publisher of the Daily News in Palatka, Florida. He retired in 2013 and still resides in Palatka, which kickstarted his novel writing career.
“After I retired, I tried to write a novel about 10 college friends with a grizzly bet to make nine of them millionaires," he said. "I just wasn’t getting it where it needed to be. When I started writing about newsrooms, it was something I knew. The words just flowed.”
Starr said his work in four different newsrooms has been the main inspiration for his novels, with a focus on fictional retellings of his personal experiences in each of the places he's worked.
For example, his first novel, “Hoxie,” is based in 1976 and pits a reporter in Arkansas against corrupt, violent officials in a town of the same name. The reporter gets help from then Arkansas Attorney General Bill Clinton as well as a major drug lord.
“I guess all of my books would be classified as action-adventure fiction,” Starr said, adding that his novels try to capture journalism as it was and as it should have been and primarily focus on being about "the way journalism should still be."
“I had fun writing each book, but a lot has changed in our world. My first idea for a novel was dashed because of those changes. It would have questioned the wisdom of seven people working late at night to determine what the people of a town would read about their world in their morning newspaper. Actually, that model was far superior to the unbridled world of cyberspace,” he said.
A release date for "Etowah County" will be set once an official final edit has been made on Starr's part.
“I hope my friends in Gadsden will enjoy reading about my three career stops prior to taking charge of the newsroom of The Times,” Starr said.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Former executive of The Gadsden Times writes novel on experiences
