Many scholars of English pen works on the poetic genius of Milton or the early feminist exploration of Chopin. John Larison chose to write his book on fly fishing.
"I chose fly fishing for steelhead as my topic because it was the only thing I knew," says Larison, Instructor of English at Oregon State University and Northwest Field Editor for Fly Fisherman. "I had been a fishing guide before I came to Oregon State, and I knew there was a general lack of books on the subject of steelheading - the most recent ones had been written in the early 90s, which seemed like outdated coverage. I fancied myself capable of saying something new on the topic."
Larison's book, The Complete Steelheader, Successful Fly-Fishing Tactics, is a wise and good-natured volume of river savvy and modern steelheading idiosyncrasy. The book is chock full of suggestions for fly patterns that will attract the most fish and carefully outlines tried-and-true techniques commonly used by fly fishing guides.
Larison cites two main sources of inspiration for his book - the die-hard fishing culture of the Willamette Valley and several mentors at Oregon State who embraced and nurtured his desire to write about the sport.
"Living close to the confluence of the Willamette and McKenzie Rivers, I was consistently fishing with people who structured their life around the sport," recalls Larison. "Hanging out and fishing with these people was the core inspiration for the book."
"Secondly, when I came to Oregon State, I immediately found mentors in both Ted Leeson and Marjorie Sandor, two members of the English Department faculty," says Larison. "Both of these writers had published works which used fly fishing as a springboard to address larger human issues. No other university, as far as I could tell, had two faculty members who had published this kind of unique literature. I had been reading Leeson's works for ten years - he's an especially well-known name in fly fishing circles - and his influence ended up being instrumental in the writing of my book."
Although he remains an aficionado of fly fishing, Larison has retired from his career as a river guide to indulge his other passions: teaching and writing. As an instructor of multiple writing disciplines - from business writing to technical composition - he inspires and guides students to write about their own passions.
"I love creative writing and I think teaching in many ways is a similar pursuit," says Larison. "As a teacher, you are trying to craft a class that will affect your audience. As a novelist, you are trying to craft story that will affect your readership. Both provide a chance for higher level creativity which I feel I need a lot of in order to stay sane. I loved my job as a fishing guide, but I felt like it didn't allow for the sustained intellectual activity that I really love. When I would come home after a long day on the water, I was usually too tired to do anything else. Now I have that energy. I plan on teaching and writing forever."