INSIDE LAYNE STALEY BOOK
“Put your feet into my damn shoes, you writer. Have you wondered how I feel ? I hate to feel”
(Layne Staley-February 3rd, 2002, at 3am Argentina time)
My current publisher received a letter from Layne’s mother, Nancy McCallum, in regards to this re-release. She is not happy about it and said that she had an agreement with me back in 2003 to see the manuscript before publication to make any necessary changes. The manuscript was supplied to her and according to what she stated, 27 mistakes were found in her first reading and all family names were misspelled. She hoped Layne would read it, enjoy the sweetest stories of their times together, and then be able to return them. She hoped the book would be a recovery tool. Layne’s mother ended the note saying:
“It is difficult to me to support this effort or endorse the book”
I want to make clear that not at any moment did ARTS Publications ask Layne’s mother to support or endorse the book. The original manuscript was supplied to her back in January 2003, and in a blink of an eye she put a statement on the internet asking fans to not buy the book. She misinterpreted it entirely or perhaps she saw herself reflected, as in a mirror, and didn’t like what it revealed. Layne’s story was told by his mother Nancy, his sister Liz, and Layne himself. It was hard for me to choose the most critical moments of Layne’s life. It was extremely difficult for me to close my eyes to the problem of drugs. I can assure you all that I never, ever asked any questions about it, as I never intended to base Layne’s story on this matter. But, Liz and Nancy mentioned it spontaneously in every conversation. In some occasions I had to turn my tape recorder off or keep some of their sayings “off the record”, respectfully. There are many things that weren’t revealed at their request. Then, a year later after the first publication, Nancy sent me an e-mail saying:
"You deserve a more personal note from me. I am happy for every copy of your book which sells. I wanted to see the project be successful for you. You were in an awkward situation once Layne died. Your publisher hurried you to the final product. Many stories have brought people great joy. For that I am grateful”. Nancy Layne McCallum, May 29th, 2004, 2:47 pm.
ARTS Publications asked Nancy McCallum to supply us with the right spelling of her family members names for this re-release and explained to her that the original manuscript of the first publication was not edited properly. The original manuscript, once translated into English, went to the printer without my express consent. My publisher told her that ARTS Publications listened to all the interview tapes, so they know exactly how the interviews were conducted, what the questions were and the related answers. Layne’s mother response was:
“Just, who do you think you are?”
There’s another thing I found interesting to comment about and it is related to this book as a “recovery tool” for Layne Staley. His mother thought a book would work as a tool for recovery. Layne needed medical and professional assistance, not a book to read and enjoy, according to his mother words, the “sweetest stories” of their time together, and which he never spoke about. His lyrics and poetry prove that the way he felt the path of his life was totally different.
