sites to visit:
sites to visit:
Is there any special method to your writing?
I write directly into a computer. I don’t use note cards or plot things out, specifically. I work sentence by sentence, and just see where it leads me.
How many hours a day do you spend reading/writing?
Oh, goodness—a lot. I’m the editor of One Story magazine, so any time I’m not spending on my own writing I’m reading and editing for the magazine. I would say I am reading or writing at least eight to ten hours a day, sometimes more.
What inspires you to continue being a writer?
When I have a good writing day, I feel like I’ve just won a marathon. There is a particular joy in writing a good sentence. I think it all comes down to communication. Writing is my way of connecting with the world.
If you could have been the author of any novel, which title would it be and why?
That’s a difficult question. I suppose I’m going to have to say Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, simply because that is probably my favorite book—the one I’ve re-read the most. It’s an incredibly satisfying book, and I’m always trying to be a bit more like Jane. She sticks by her principles, and never compromises, and also doesn’t let anyone push her around.
Do you think you will ever change audiences?
Do you mean write for Children? I’m not sure. Perhaps some day. Many young adults have been reading The Good Thief, and because there is little swearing or sex, some book stores and librarians have been recommending it for younger readers. Frankly, I’m just pleased that people are enjoying the book.
What advice would you give anyone who wants to become a published author?
Often it is not the most talented authors who succeed. It is the most determined. If you never give up, you will find an audience for your work. That said, I also think that writers sometimes share their work too early, without doing the proper editing first. Only send a manuscript out when you have set it aside many times and read it with fresh eyes. The last bit of advice I’d give is to read literary magazines and start by submitting your work to them. This is how most writers get their start.
And do you have a list of favorite books/authors?
I love the Bronte sisters, and Dickens and Robert Louis Stevenson. All of them inspired The Good Thief. But I also love more modern writers like Flannery O’Connor, Raymond Carver and Donald Barthelme and Italo Calvino and George Saunders. I also love Margaret Atwood and Alice Munro and Andrea Barrett and A.S. Byatt.
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Alabama by George Packer
Alaska by Paul Greenberg
Arizona by Lydia Millet
Arkansas by Kevin Brockmeier
California by William T. Vollmann
Colorado by Benjamin Kunkel
Connecticut by Rick Moody
Delaware by Craig Taylor
Florida by Joshua Ferris
Georgia by Ha Jin
Hawaii by Tara Bray Smith
Idaho by Anthony Doerr
Illinois by Dave Eggers
Indiana by Susan Choi
Iowa by Dagoberto Gilb
Kansas by Jim Lewis
Kentucky by John Jeremiah Sullivan
Louisiana by Joshua Clark
Maine by Heidi Julavits
Maryland by Myla Goldberg
Massachusetts by John Hodgman
Michigan by Mohammed Naseehu Ali
Minnesota by Philip Connors
Mississippi by Barry Hannah
Missouri by Jacki Lyden
Montana by Sarah Vowell
Nebraska by Alexander Payne
Nevada by Charles Bock
New Hampshire by Will Blythe
New Jersey by Anthony Bourdain
New Mexico by Ellery Washington
New York by Jonathan Franzen
North Carolina by Randall Kenan
North Dakota by Louise Erdrich
Ohio by Susan Orlean
Oklahoma by S.E. Hinton
Oregon by Joe Sacco
Pennsylvania by Andrea Lee
Rhode Island by Jhumpa Lahiri
South Carolina by Jack Hitt
South Dakota by Saïd Sayrafiezadeh
Tennessee by Ann Patchett
Texas by Cristina HenrÃquez
Utah by David Rakoff
Vermont by Alison Bechdel
Virginia by Tony Horwitz
Washington by Carrie Brownstein
West Virginia by Jayne Anne Phillips
Wisconsin by Daphne Beal
Wyoming by Alexandra Fuller
and an afterword on Washington, D.C.: A Conversation with Edward P. Jones
“A lucid, literate introduction to the poet's short but turbulent life. . . . The latest gem in the publisher's already glittering series.” –Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
“. . . a lean, incisive biographical-critical book by one of our outstanding literary commentators.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“One of the best products of the currently booming brief-biography genre.” –Booklist
“A solid, factual account. . . [a] superb, informative book.” –Library Journal
“An exquisite book in the form of a philosophical fable that has enchanted hundreds of thousands of readers.”
—Elle (Italy)
"Truman Capote I do not know well, but I like him. He is tart as a grand aunt, but in his way is a ballsy little guy, and he is the most perfect writer of my generation, he writes the best sentences word for word, rhythm upon rhythm. I would not have changed two words in Breakfast at Tiffany's which will become a small classic." |