Bryce Ternet is an author known for his novels set in the Basque Country and in various parts of the American West. His novels are full of fascinating characters and detailed explorations of exotic locations, often inspired by his many travels. By one of those serendipitous coincidences in life, his wanderings have taken him Los Alamos, New Mexico, where I also work. Bryce recently gifted me a collection of his novels and I just finished the first in the stack, The Basque Dilemma, which explores the possibility of a resurgence of ETA. I virtually “sat down” with Bryce to talk about his passion for the Basque culture, the inspiration for his novels, and his writing process.
Buber’s Basque Page: Bryce, first, thank you for doing this interview with me. Let me begin with one of the obvious questions: Where did your interest in the Basque Country and the Basque people come from?
Bryce Ternet: It’s funny as I often get asked that question. And I completely understand why. Despite boasting some amazing facts – the oldest distinct group in Europe; having a language that predates all living European languages; undoubtedly having ‘discovered’ the North American continent long before Columbus; having endured what is considered to be Europe’s ‘longest war’; playing a key role in America’s westward expansion, amongst so many other amazing historical and cultural points – Basque culture somehow remains largely unknown.
Born in the American Midwest, from an early age Bryce couldn’t wait to get out into the world. He finished high school early and spent his senior year as an exchange student in the majestic French Basque Country, finding himself, learning French, devouring a food and wine appreciation, and becoming entranced with Basque culture.
Bryce started writing in his twenties after wanting to his entire life and tries to continue finding a way to continue in between family, career, and getting into the outdoors. He has eleven published books: A Basque Story, Diplomatic Weekends in Africa, Strohm Alley, The Yellow House on Maloney Grove, The American Middle Class Revolution, Rock Creek, The Stevenson Plan, A Novel of the Monterey Peninsula, The Basque Dilemma, The Cibola Treasure Hunt, Sun Valley Serenade, and Jarbidge. (Bio from Amazon; you can find Bryce’s book on his author page.)
Although I have a French last name/French heritage, I’m about as blue-eyed, fair-skinned, common blood type and light brownish-haired as one can get – no DNA test required to prove I have no Basque in me.
And my exposure to Basque culture was completely by fortunate chance and luck. I was an exchange student my last year of high school in the French Basque Country. (I realize that referring to ‘Iparralde’ this way can be provocative, something I cover fully in some of my books, but for the sake of keeping things simple for now, I’ll refer to this area of the three Basque northern provinces located in southwest France this way.)
While I was there to learn French and absorb French culture, I had the opportunity of being exposed to Basque culture as well. And I loved and absorbed as much as I could. I even wanted to learn some Basque, but there were few opportunities. This was a time when the Basque language was really threatened with survival. Despite so many other languages being taught in the schools, Basque was not an option. Thankfully, there has been a revival in the last couple of decades and this is no longer the case.
And, as a note: I focus on the French Basque Country in both of my Basque-themed novels set in Europe, The Basque Dilemma and A Basque Story. If people are aware of anything Basque, normally they will associate with the southern Basque provinces located within Spain. And, in many ways, rightly so as this is considered to be the more dominant within the greater Basque Country. But the northern side deserves its own attention and has a distinct flavor and history which is even less known and written about.
I always knew I wanted to be a writer. The calling to get out into the world took me to Europe. The exposure to Basque culture inspired my first book. I continued to find Basque culture surrounding me over the next couple of decades. Graduate school took me to California. There I learned more on how Basques had been such a large part of the immigrant community as can still be seen reflected today in Basque restaurants and Basque clubs throughout the state. There was even a fantastic Basque restaurant less than an hour drive from where we lived on the Monterey Peninsula.
Another life and career adventure took us to Idaho’s Sun Valley. Just as Ernest Hemingway once did, I quickly became enamored with historical and existing Basque influence in Idaho. Boise has the highest population of Basques outside Europe! Closer to where we lived, there are still remnants of former Basque boarding houses where Basque sheepherders stayed. And I also developed a hobby of searching for sites of Basque arborglyphs where Basque herders carved into the bark of aspen trees leaving names, dates, salutations, proclamations, even amazing artwork. I began collaborating with Boise State Professor and Head of Basque Studies John Bieter (co-author of An Enduring Legacy) and assisting with his on-going efforts in identifying Basque arborglyph sites throughout the American West. All that tromping around in central Idaho’s mountains and aspen forests led to inspiration for another novel of mine with strong Basque themes, Sun Valley Serenade. Basque arborglyphs have a starring role, but I also included a historical segment reflecting an experience of a Basque sheepherder in the nineteenth-century American West.
BBP: You’ve now written more than a few books with a Basque theme. How did you settle on the general setting and plot of these novels?
Bryce Ternet: I base the settings of all my books on either places I’ve lived or traveled to. I hope the personal experience shines through as I try to incorporate setting as a character itself. Even though I write fictional stories, I strive to incorporate history and culture into my books. I love a great story as much as anyone; but I tend to prefer books where I walk away having learned some new things in addition to being engaged and entertained.
Plots are a different story. I’m sure any storyteller has their own development process. I normally get an idea, run with it, see how far I can get. Sometimes works. Sometimes doesn’t.
My latest novel, Jarbridge, is set in the Jarbidge area of northern Nevada. I was inspired to write this story after taking a solo camping trip to this crazy remote area of the continental United States. I was drawn to visit there as I had researched the historical presence of Basque sheepherders and all the arborglyphs they had left behind. And there are a lot!
While this one is a horror story, I was still able to incorporate Basque themes into the book. This time around I focused on how Basque immigrants came to this country and fully displayed their renowned dexterity to carve out lives for themselves, sustaining prejudices along the way.
BBP: Your stories take your characters, which span the ideological spectrum, all over the Basque Country and beyond. How do you give voice to such disparate characters? And what is your process for visiting these different places? Have you visited every place you write about?
Bryce Ternet: I’ll take the easy one first here: I try my best to only include places I’ve actually visited myself in my books. I think this adds something special to my writing. For example, my wife is Lithuanian so I’ve traveled to Lithuania quite a few times. Including a Lithuanian segment in The Basque Dilemma was something only my own personal experience could truly capture and resulted in a unique element in the story as the destination fit perfectly into a character arc. There are lot of stories set in the amazing city of Prague and lots of people have traveled there. But when was the last time you read a story set in the equally amazing yet under-the-radar eastern European city of Vilnius?
I focused my books A Basque Story and The Basque Dilemma primarily in the French Basque Country, as I know this side of the Basque Country better than the south. And because there’s simply also not as much out there written on the French Basque Country. I’ve read quite a few books, both nonfiction and fiction, related to the Basque Country. I promise: the overwhelming majority are focused on the south.
Ideological spectrum of character development is always a bit tricky. I think it’s probably something writers and actors share in common as far as our craft. As an artist, you’re trying your best to get into the head of a character and portray that character, even if you are morally opposed to the character.
BBP: In The Basque Dilemma, the plot revolves around a potential revival of Euskadi ta Askatasuna (ETA). What drew you to ETA and exploring that dynamic, that part of Basque history?
Bryce Ternet: More than a few times I have been accused of glamorizing ETA and the violent Basque independence/separatist/nationalist movement in my books. ‘Glamorizing’ seems pretty harsh judgement. My goal as a writer was to capture these historical periods and elements into a story to better highlight this movement which is not very well known outside of western Europe. I completely understand that some would say I include the ideologies of violent terrorists and do not present as much perspective from their victims. But you can only put so much in a book. And other authors, such as Fernando Aramburu, do an excellent job of thoroughly delving into the emotional toil that the Basque separatist movement had on people.
Furthermore, in my first novel, A Basque Story, I wanted to focus on the even lesser known elements of the Basque separatist movement which I had been directly exposed to. When I was living in the French Basque Country in the 90s, the Basque separatist movement was still very alive and well. In fact, ETA claimed responsibility for bombing a British bank in the town of Bayonne one morning when I was walking from a bus stop to school. For a seventeen-year-old from middle America, this was an eye-opening life event and one I’ve never forgotten. Even though no one was hurt in the blast as the attack had been called-in beforehand, the chaos of the explosion, smoke, and French security forces running around with machine guns was memorable.
About the same time, I had begun noticing how Basque youth groups were infiltrated into the high school setting. Some of these youth groups were later proven to being orchestrated by ETA and set up as sort of training grounds for future ETA units. Many of these groups pursued a low level street war tactic, such as de-facing storefronts of real estate offices known to cater to foreigners, igniting dumpster fires, and sketching separatist slogans and pictures on walls. In all the fiction and nonfiction books out there about the Basque separatist movement, there is little inclusion of these ETA-sponsored youth groups.
Additionally, I wanted to convey how much ETA activities spilled over the border into France, another little known element of the broader Basque separatist movement. I carried this over again in back stories within The Basque Dilemma to highlight the ‘Dirty War’ carried out by the group Spanish government supported group, GAL, which carried out harassment, kidnappings, torture, and assassinations of suspected ETA members and sympathizers who had crossed into the French Basque Country in exile.
An even lesser known element is that there was a violent separatist Basque group in the French Basque Country known as IK. This group’s activities never escalated to the level of violence or publicity as ETA, but the fact that they did exist and were involved in some remarkable exploits is fascinating and rarely mentioned.
As far as a resurgence of ETA or any other form of violent terrorist activities in the name of Basque nationalism, I do hope it never happens. But it could. Or it could have, as The Basque Dilemma explores. With any independence movement, there are going to be extreme elements within, perhaps on a fringe. And just as with the IRA’s ceasefire in Northern Ireland, not all factions of a movement are going to be in agreement with the actions of a group’s leadership.
So ‘glamourize’ seems a bit extreme to label my books as I see them in the same vein as Margaret Shedd’s A Silence in Bilbao. Not glamouring or idealizing, just capturing a period of history and sentiment. Outright glamorization of terrorism activities seems a bit more appropriate for books like Julen Agirre’s Operation Ogro.
BBP: I have to admit, I’m a bit jealous that, in addition to holding a regular full time job, you find the opportunity to write so prolifically. How does a typical writing day look for you? Do you write a little every day or do you seclude yourself and write intensely in dedicated sessions?
Bryce Ternet: And I have to equally admit that life has gotten in the way a bit in the last couple of years since I finished my most recent novel, Jarbidge. But normally, yes, to dedicate oneself to writing you do have to find some sort of discipline and stick to it. Early mornings before work and before kids are up when I can dedicate my thoughts to a book are the most opportune times. That said, the writing process for me normally involves a lot of initial research and notebooks filled with notes on characters, arcs, potential plot developments, historical facts, maps, etc. Actual writing is usually the easiest part.
BBP: If you were to continue the pattern of writing based on what you know and including Basque elements in many of your books, are you thinking of something regarding Basques in New Mexico?
Bryce Ternet: As a matter of fact, I wrote a fun little book (The Cibola Treasure Hunt) highlighting New Mexico before my wife and I moved down here from Idaho. We visited New Mexico years ago and I was fascinated with this place. Still am. New Mexico is unlike anywhere else I’ve lived in America. The history, culture, desert, mountains, canyons, geography, geology, landscape, sky, architecture, cuisine. All truly remarkable.
While I’ve continued learning more about New Mexico while living here, there was never a huge historical Basque presence in the state to base a story around. Certainly possible, but not one I see easily developing.
Where I really need to focus my efforts, and this interview is actually giving me jump start kick in the pants inspiration, is on my newest book effort which has been in some form of development for the last couple of years. The idea is for a story with elements of magical realism reflecting Basque mythology, a bit similar to how Dolores Redondo does in her marvelous Batzan Triology books. Also want to highlight elements of witchcraft, as there is quite the history associated with Basques. I’ve done the research and mapped out the journey, now just need to get the story out of my head and onto a page.
BBP: Finding new arborglyphs sounds like an amazing adventure. What is the most amazing or interesting arborglyph you have found so far?
Arborglyph hunting is a fun hobby for sure. But it’s even more important to me these days as it has a definite purpose beyond myself. I assist ‘The Arborglyph Collective,’ a group established through Basque affairs specialists at Boise State University and the University of Nevada, amongst others. This group has been pulled together to find and document as many historical Basque arborglyphs in the American West as possible while there is still time. And time is running out. The height of Basque herders in the west was from the 1930s to 1970s. Aspen trees don’t have the lifespan of some trees and are very susceptible to wildfire. So time is literally running out to locate and photo document.
I’ve conducted some research and received assistance from Professor Troy Lovata at the University of New Mexico. I’ve journeyed into quite a few areas on the search. Unfortunately, while there have been some possibilities, I’ve not found anything yet that immediately indicated a Basque angle to a carving. But I need to spend more time in the San Pedro Parks Wilderness, as Troy has previously recorded some arborglyphs through his own broader efforts which undoubtedly had a Basque touch. The challenge is that the San Pedro Park Wilderness is exactly that – wilderness. Not the most easily accessible, compounded with a microclimate that is surprisingly swampy most of the year. But I’m planning another trip as soon as late spring arrives. Also plan to head a little further north in southern central Colorado at Troy’s suggestion.
As for my favorite arborglyph finds, I’d say I have three. One is the area around Jarbidge, NV. I took a solo-camping trip up there some years ago with the explicit goal to search for arborglyphs after having read how Basque herders based out of Elko ranches would take their herds up into those Nevada remote highlands during summer months. I was not not disappointed. There are aspen groves outside of the ‘town’ of Jarbidge which are covered in amazing arborglyphs. Some of the best I’ve ever seen and clearly left by Basque herders.
The second would be a particular aspen tree I found on a mountainside just above a meadow on the edge of the Idaho’s Boulder Mountains near a Forest Service complex. The general area had a multitude of arborglyphs, clearly Basque. I found one tree off from the others which a herder had made all his own. He had carved his name, hometown in the Spanish Basque Country, and then three successive years that he had visited that very spot. I sat there a bit and reflected on how this herder had done the same decades earlier, gazing out at his herd in this beautiful mountain meadow.
Last, and probably my favorite, was a grove I found near the headwaters of the Salmon River at the edge of Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains. What was so special about this one is that, unlike arborglyph areas north of Ketchum, Idaho and outside Jarbidge, Nevada, which others have recorded, I could find no record at all of anyone having recorded finding this particular grove. So I proudly consider it my own find/recording.
BBP: I’m excited to hear about your new project on Basque magic realism, I look forward to it! Will this be your first foray into more fantastical elements in your stories?
A first foray into fantasy and mythology for sure. But I have delved into supernatural elements in a few of my non-Basque themed books. Fairly sure spending a couple of years living in Pacific Northwest winter gloom brought that side of out of me. Amazing region in summer, all those couple of months. But most of rest of the year…whew (at least it was that way over ten years ago). Made me appreciate why so may serial killers and suicides occur up there.
BBP: Continuing on your life as an author, was there a specific moment or trigger where you realized you wanted to be a writer? Was there a specific inspiration that led you to put pen to paper?
Bryce Ternet: Seventh Grade. Miss Watt’s class. We had been learning about India and the final assignment was to write an in-class essay on what we’d learned in any format. I wrote a few paragraphs trying to imagine what life must be like for a farmer living in rural India. Miss Watt’s was so impressed, she read my writing in front of the whole class and I received not only looks of awe from a teacher, but from a lot of bored teenagers.
BBP: In The Basque Dilemma, you have one character that is particularly central to the story who has her feet, so to say, in both sides of the Basque conflict. Was there a specific inspiration or inspirations for this character? Or did you create her out of whole cloth?
Bryce Ternet: Ah, yes, my Lady in Black. Such a fascinating character to explore. Fiction, even when based on historical facts, offers a lot of opportunities for a writer. This particular character was inspired by a couple of actual figures in ETA’s history. One was Maria Dolores Katarain – also known as Yoyes. She was a senior ETA member who later abandoned the group and was murdered as a traitor by her former comrades. I wanted to go deeper into what may motivate someone to turn to extremism in the name of a cause, delve into why they would do so, and how they would face the consequences, one way or another. And there actually was a black clothing-clad lethal female assassin operating at the height of the GAL’s activities in the French Basque Country. And then she vanished. Poof. Gone. She’s definitely part of character inspiration as well. Sometimes reality is so incredible that there’s no need for fiction to embellish. But what happened to her? Did she cross ETA? Was she caught by the French authorities and silently dealt with? Or did she decide to walk away from the cause and start a new clandestine life somewhere? Mysteries like this are fascinating and I love that we don’t know the answers.
BBP: I was aware of your work, but it wasn’t until I saw an article in the local paper highlighting how you now lived in Los Alamos that I thought to reach out.
Bryce Ternet: I’m so glad you did!
BBP: What brought you to New Mexico? And how did you first discover my website?
Bryce Ternet: Pretty crazy how we both ended up in northern New Mexico. My wife and I had always considered moving to this general area and a job opportunity brought us here.
And so funny as I found your website over twenty years ago when I was researching my first book. Your website is amazing and such a resource. Thanks for all the work you put into it to keep Basque culture and history alive!
BBP: Mil esker Bryce!
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