Review and Comments From Paula Zanger - Orange Howell
Here is a review and comments from Paula Zanger. She is a New York City-based artist and business owner (Orange Howell). She is a good friend and grew up in La Crosse.
Congratulations on writing and completing "Driftless". I felt the essence of the place, the multifaceted meaning of what it meant for you to write, and then for me in, obviously, my own way as I read along inside your story.
From one creative to another, I truly admire knowing the blast factory artwork's connection to the story about detonations. In present commercial "branding" terms, it is well done and "authentic" without feeling commercial—an aspect of who artists are.
I have immense gratitude for growing up in the Driftless—the ancient terrain, the golden limestone—which I have tried to explain to non-drifters many many times, certainly in New York, aiming to compare to the Hudson Valley or post-Rome in Val di Noto...referencing the goldstone. Nope, never adds up to the richness I thought about in visual terms, pictures in my mind, while reading your Driftless.
The HUM...is for real. My sisters and I talk about the Bluff hum when we drive down from Minneapolis to La Crosse. HWY 61 via Red Wing, Lake City to Winona along the Mississippi River. Special place, "The Driftless" where we last all lived together. Indeed the hum of the power of the sequential golden bluffs—three sisters along the river—trance of calmness.
The Ho-Chunk references really resonated given my father's work with and about the Driftless tribes, especially during my childhood in La Crosse. I remember your father, Doc, on many occasions—whether with you, your mother, "Betty," or possibly Butch—talking about thinking and thus learning about values through Robert Frost's poetry. It was powerful to experience Frost's influence and its impact in your writing's concise rhythm. I heard that era of Wisconsin in your clarity of words.
So much dry wry humor..."Geek"!!! I laughed a lot.My favorite lines are, "the universe has appetites" and "quiet menace". Yep all roads lead to ROMA via Viroquoa.
Please consider converting the content into a screenplay. AI to Amish... the Driftless is such a special place, its socialist underpinnings and the ancient geography give meaning to "God's Country"... which seeing how Montana and the Southwest have had their due... in between the righteous Minneapples and radical Madisonians in the time of Trumponia... you're sittin' on cinematic gold.
“Driftless has an excellent voice and distinct dialogue!”
“The setting of the unglaciated Driftless region is a standout.”
”Clear and cinematic with great pace and action.”
”The ending is emotionally satisfying!”
”A nice balance of humor and serious.”
”The dog, Buck, is a star!”
Overview
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Stick Vega was born and raised in the heart of Wisconsin’s Driftless Region in Viroqua, where the land’s history, folklore, and contradictions continue to shape his work. He is the author of the novel Less Killing and has written numerous award-winning screenplays, including A Shot Away and King’s Murder Still, along with hundreds of short works across film and fiction.
In addition to writing, Vega is a nationally recognized visual artist known for his explosive paintings created using gunpowder and fuse. His work has been collected throughout the United States and reflects the same tension, risk, and controlled chaos that define his storytelling.
He lives in Monona, Wisconsin, with his wife Renee and their Shetland Sheepdog, Archie “Buck” Vig.