The Member Of The Month For Dec. Is
Congrats!
1. Where did you grow up? WASHINGTON HEIGHTS, NYC, N.Y. U.S.A.2. What is the first thing you remember that perked your interest in writing? WRITING AN ESSAY IN EARLYGRADE SCHOOL.
3. Did you go to college/university? YES...AND GRADUATE SCHOOL
4. If so, what was your major? MAJORED IN JOURNALISM AND PSYCHOLOGY.
5. Outside of college, how have you educated yourself beyond secondary school? ALL OF LIFE IS AN EDUCATION...I WORKED AT MORE THAN A DOZEN RADIO STATIONS...WROTE AND READ NEWS IN MAJOR MARKETS. TAUGHT COLLEGE. IT'S ALL GRIST FOR THE OLD MILL. YOU CAN'T DO THAT AND NOT GET EDUCATED!
6. How's the weather? BEG PARDON? AS LONG AS I CAN FEEL THE WEATHER...IT'S FINE, THANKS.
7. What's your favorite color? PAISLEY. (ACTUALLY GREEN. EXCEPT WHEN I'M LOOKING FOR A TAXI IN THE RAIN OR SNOW. THEN IT'S YELLOW.)
8. Food? I CAN TELL YOU WHAT I DON'T LIKE! I CAN'T ABIDE GARLIC. I'M NOT INTO SAUCES. I PREFER JUNK FOOD. PIZZA...HOT DOGS, BURGERS AND FRIES! AND I RESENT PEOPLE WHO CHANGED THE REFERENCE TO WHAT USED TO BE KNOW AS "VEGETABLES" TO "VEGGIES!"
9. Pastime? I PLAY THE PIANO. JAZZ. I READ.
10. Music? WHAT ABOUT IT? I TRY TO PLAY IT. I PLAY FOR GOD AND MYSELF...GOD IS NOT TOO THRILLED.
11. Writer? THOMAS WOLFE, DOSTOYEVSKY, LAWRENCE DURRELL. TODAY ALAN FURST IS REMARKABLE AS A NOVELIST. JD SALANGER IS A GREAT INFLUENCE SO FAR AS SHORT STORIES.
12. TV show? I DON'T WATCH IT. A WASTE OF TIME.
13. Movie? THEY HAVE BECOME ABOMINABLE. BUT ONE OF THE GREAT FILMS OF YESTERDAY WAS CINEMA PARADISO. WINGS OF DESIRE, THE GERMAN FILM WAS WONDERFUL. AMERICAN COMEDY: MAD, MAD WORLD...AND DR. STRANGELOVE. SHINE WAS NOTEWORTHY AS WAS THE MUCH LAMBASTED HEAVEN'S GATE.
14. Book? YOU CAN'T GO HOME AGAIN (Wolfe)...CRIME & PUNISHMENT (DOSTOYEVSKY) JEAN PAUL SARTRE'S ROADS TO FREEDOM TRILOGY, AND DURRELL'S ALEXANDRIA QUARTET.
15. Poem? WORDSWORTH'S RUINED COTTAGE (FROM THE EXCURSION)
Info about your writing :
1. When did you first begin to write? VERY EARLY...WHEN I FIRST LEARNED TO PUT PENCIL TO PAPER
2. What kind of stories do you perfer to write? SHORT STORIES...WITH THEMES OF PASSING TIME...CHANGE...PURPOSE OF IT ALL
3. Fiction or non-fiction? I CAN'T MAKE THE STUFF UP.
4. Have you published anything? TWO BOOKS. "NOSEBLEEDS FROM WASHINGTON HEIGHTS" (A COLLECTION OF SHORT STORIES ABOUT THE 40'S AND 50'S) AND MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY IN THE U.S. MARINES AND SUBSEQUENT CAREER IN RADIO.
5. When are you most likely to have a great writing idea? I'M CLOSE! (LOL!)
6. What is your reaction when the muse visits? Drop everything and write it down or tuck it away in memory and write it later? THE MUSE IS ALWAYS THERE. YOU MERELY HAVE TO SIT DOWN AND CONFRONT THE BLANK PAPER OR SCREEN TO FIND HER. AND I DO PLENTY OF "WRITING" IN MY HEAD...TO BE SET DOWN AS TIME PERMITS.
7. Do you consider yourself a spontaneous writer or do you tend to plan things out in advance? ALWAYS KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING.
8. How does reading other authors affect your writing skills? IN EVERY WAY...IF THEY ARE ANY GOOD. THEIR SOUND...THEIR ECONOMY...THEIR SUBJECT MATTER...THEIR STYLE....THEIR CREDIBILITY...THEIR INTENSITY.
9. When you sit down to write something is it fun or work? IF IT IS NOT FUN...DON'T DO IT. IT MUST BE LOVE.
10. How do you get past writers block? I AM NOT TROUBLED BY IT. IF I HAVE NOTHING TO SAY...I DON'T SAY IT. WHEN I DO SIT DOWN TO WRITE I AM THERE FOR A REASON....SO I WRITE!
11. What feeds your desire to continue writing? MY LIFE
12. Who are your influences? JUST ABOUT EVERYONE I KNOW.
13. How do you know when your story is finished? WHEN I PUT THE PEN DOWN. SERIOUSLY...A SHORT STORY IS OVER WHEN THE EPIPHANY, THE REALIZATION...THAT MOMENT OF "TRUTH" FOR THE MAJOR CHARACTER THAT RESOLVES HIS OR HER CONFLICT...OCCURS. wHEN THAT "TRUTH" IS TOLD...THE STORY IS.......OVER! CURTAIN!
General things about you : I THINK I ALREADY ANSWERED THESE ABOVE.
1. Hobbies? See above2. Pets? None
3. Talents? See above
4. Jobs? See above
5. What advice would you give to growing writers? READ...OBSERVE...WRITE
6. Anything else you can think of : LUNCH!
Read One Of His Stories :
If you would like to suggest someone for member of the month please IM me with the link to their bio and a reason why they should be nominated.
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