San Francisco Ca Music Magazine Zine

How Criminal: A Conversation with Keith and Kent Zimmerman

. The publication searches for gritty, hard luck tales from all walks of life. For their second issue of 2011, Whiteley's idea was simple: get some guest editors, throw in work by local artists and writers, showcase it all at a local reading series, and call it a day.

What ups the ante for this issue is the fact that guest editors the Zimmerman Brothers, identical twins Kent and Keith Zimmerman who reside in Oakland, California, definitely aren't without merit in their own right. Keith describes their career as "living exclusively off the blank page." Since the 1980s the two have worked writing for music-based magazines, penning books and articles alongside such noted music icons as John Lydon (aka Johnny Rotten) singer of the Sex Pistols, rock legend Alice Cooper, and country musician Trace Atkins. They've released 17 books, with topics ranging from the Hell's Angels to the Black Panthers. "We're associated with edgy topics and characters because that's where the great stories and the game-changer personalities spring from. Our latest book, Operation Family Secrets , takes place in modern day Chicago." says Keith. "We must proclaim that we love Chicago VERY MUCH," continues Keith. "We love its people, food, media writers and journalists, literary and cultural scene, hipsters, characters, and most of all the inspiring and incredible human dramas that emanate out of Chicago." Kent chimes in, "Right now we're working on another project set in Chicago. For some reason, we can't escape Chicago."

Their work with Criminal Class focuses on a different side of their background. The brothers also work with inmates at California's San Quentin state prison, where their job as editors allowed them to include material from prisoners -- Criminal Class Review and my neighborhoods! We've chosen to stay in H-Unit ever since because we prefer the transient nature of the inmates. That way we have long time "repeat offenders" who keep taking the class along with a constant churn of new faces who come and go and sometimes come back.

Keith : We talk about writing and the publishing world as a vocation. In addition, we assign a topic and the men write strictly inside the classroom in 45-minute spurts. The next week we hand out typed up documents of their writing and read it back to them as they follow along. The writing is so over-the-top funny, sad, poignant, crazy and true that the guys can't believe them and their classmates have actually written this stuff. We edit very little. We teach students to write like they talk and show and don't tell. We dramatically read their prose back with extra mustard for the full effect. The writing that appears in Criminal Class Press is based on writings assigned over the past eight months, and we are very thankful to the San Quentin powers-that-be for giving us permission to share the writings with the outside world. The guys at Q are jumping up and down for the opportunity to appear in Criminal Class Press.