About a week ago, when I decided to feature Dennis Lehane's MYSTIC RIVER in an upcoming column, I got in touch with his people. I asked if I could puleeeze email the author a few questions. Lehane's people didn't give me much hope, because Lehane is busy on his next book (Yay!), but being a writer myself, I know how tempting it is to procastinate using any little distraction as an excuse. So...I was Lehane's distraction for a few minutes.
Below is the brief Q&A. I've got to tell you, I love Lehane. I don't just read his books, I live in them.
QUESTION: I've read MYSTIC RIVER twice and haven't found any loose threads. It's as if the story was created in one big piece and plopped on my nightstand. Did the story first enter your mind in complete form?
ANSWER: The opposite. I had a loose idea of who was killed and who did it and that someone was wrongly accused for it would pay for the sins of the community, but that's really about all I had. The failed starts, sentences and whole chapters that were tossed from that book probably add up to another 250 pages. Start to finish, the writing of Mystic River was entirely unpleasant.
Q: There is much blogging and bickering in the writing community about when a person can legitimately call himself a writer. When did you begin introducing yourself as a writer?
A: When people couldn't respond, "Oh, really, what restaurant?"
I *felt* like a writer from the age of 20. I *was* a writer at 26, once I'd written a novel that didn't suck and was being represented by an agent and going out to publishers. I didn't tell people I was a writer, though, until I quit my day job. As far as I'm concerned, if you write and you take it very seriously and you've fashioned a cogent aesthetic--or, put another way, you know what you're doing and why--then you're a writer. John Kennedy Toole was certainly a writer but he died long before the world found out. Same with Seth Morgan and Breece DJ Pancake.
Q: Please list some of your favorite books and/or authors--any genre, any year published.
A: Richard Price--THE WANDERERS, CLOCKERS, LUSH LIFE
William Kennedy--LEGS, BILLY PHELAN'S GREATEST GAME, IRONWEED, VERY OLD BONES
Graham Greene--THE END OF THE AFFAIR, THE QUIET AMERICAN, THE POWER AND THE GLORY
Elmore Leonard--UNKNOWN MAN #89, CITY PRIMEVAL, STICK, SWAG
Richard Stark--BUTCHER'S MOON, THE HUNTER
Edith Wharton--THE AGE OF INNOCENCE
Susan Minot--LUST
Gabriel Garcia Marquez--ONE HUNDRED YEARS OF SOLITUDE
George Pelecanos--KING SUCKERMAN, THE BIG BLOWDOWN
Toni Morrison--SULA, SONG OF SOLOMON
Steward O'Nan--A PRAYER FOR THE DYING, LAST NIGHT AT THE LOBSTER
Joseph Conrad--UNDER WESTERN EYES, THE SECRET AGENT
Robert Parker--LOOKING FOR RACHEL WALLACE
James Crumley--THE LAST GOOD KISS
James Ellroy--THE BLACK DAHLIA, THE BIG NOWHERE, LA CONFIDENTIAL
Andre Dubus--SELECTED STORIES
Denis Johnson--JESUS'S SON
Friday, May 22, 2009
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7 comments:
Thanks for tracking him down for the interview. The answer to the first question is very encouraging for me as I chop sections away during my revisions...
Seems like a pretty cool guy. I did NOT recognize any of those books, though -- apparently I spend too much time in YA land.
Great interview-and I love getting reading lists from writers I admire!
Fantastic that you got him to answer your questions. I love his description about when he began calling himself a writer. Great job tracking him down!
Great interview Anita! Interesting that the most successful books are often those the authors found really difficult to write. And DL also made a good point when to call oneself a writer; that many great authors are only discovered after their death. Emily Dickenson is another who springs to mind.
RICK: I think I need to do more chopping.
BIG PLAIN V: I'd only read a couple, but the ones I have read from the list are excellent.
REBBIE: I want to write a book of recommendations from people I admire...I'm working on it now.
ALEXANDER: I was THRILLED knowing he spent time answering my questions!
ANN: Thanks for putting your smile on my blog!!!
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