Local Author Feature // Joe Totten

For years, Joe Totten, utilized his writing skills during his advertising career and most recently, to create his debut novel, The Law of Capture.

Joe and his family moved to Park City in 1996. He eventually joined a writer’s group and got more serious about his personal writing projects. In 2016, while the book was still in process, he won the State of Utah's Writing Contest for his short story “The Starling Killers”.

"I was approaching the end of my advertising career,” explained Joe, “but still had a passion for writing so I decided to see if I could write something longer than a headline. This novel was a test to see if I had the discipline to write an entire book. It took me almost five years, but I'm very happy with the final product.”

Originally from Texas, Joe has always been interested in the West and stories about the West. “I think Westerns, in both books and movies have done a disservice to the people and the events that made up the founding of the West. There's been too much mythologizing about the West, good guys vs bad guys, and a lot of the incredible stories from this part of the country get lost in that simplistic narrative. I wanted to write the truth about the origins of the West, not the myths.”

The story is told from the point of view of several remarkable characters whom the author enjoyed bringing to life. “I guess I love the attitude of Stares at The Sky,” says Joe. “He is shocked by the white man's intrusion on his land but somehow manages to keep going without destroying himself. I also like the Preacher. The man is insane but his insanity is disguised by his religious zealotry. His voice gives me a chance to rant about religion.”

But the main character is Edward Valentine. From outlaw to lawman, readers may find him hard to love. “Valentine’s flaws are many,” explains Joe. “He's greedy, selfish, violent, racist, unable to create close relationships, vain. But on the positive side, he's good with a gun and uses that skill to stay alive and make a good living.” 

Quoting Edward from the book: 

“There were no guiding principles in my life. I advanced through my years on the strength of my own reckless manhood. Things happened, good, bad or neither, and I reacted to them accordingly. I have managed to stay alive as long as I have because I changed my opinions to fit the prevailing wisdom. Only an idiot would think he was certain about everything.” 

The Law of Capture can be purchased on Amazon or locally at Dolly’s Bookstore.