Interviewing myself here as if my local bookstore was profiling me and asking about my favorite authors and books. It’s good to practice things like this, for when I’m a published author, right? And it reminded of Steven King’s advice to writers about being readers. And it was fun to think about favorites. So here goes!
Sell Readers On The Current Book You’re Writing in 50 Words or Less:
Cowboy leaves behind his turbulent childhood to become a hobo, hopping freight trains across the country, seeking freedom and adventure, and finding instead addiction, depression, and prison. A novel of one man’s decades long quest for sobriety, redemption, and someone to love, especially himself.
P.S. Perfect for fans of Sleepwalk by Dan Chaon, Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh, and Cherry (the novel by Nico Walker as well as the memoir by Mary Karr.) Also, Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer and Dirtbag, Massachusetts by Isaac Fitzgerald.
On Your Nightstand Now:
- The Candy House by Jennifer Egan
- Outlawed by Anna North
- Dirtbag, Massachusetts: A Confessional by Isaac Fitzgerald
- Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine
- The Devil Himself by Peter Farris
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
- The Wettest County in the World by Matt Bondurant
Favorite Books When You Were a Child:
- A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
- The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
Favorite Authors:
- Jane Austen
- Geraldine Brooks
- Emma Donoghue
- Dan Chaon
- Alice Hoffman
- Maggie O’Farrell
- Wallace Stegner
- Amor Towles
Book You’re an Evangelist For:
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
Book You Bought for the Cover:
The Binding by Bridget Collins: I think this novel started the trend in moody, artsy covers that look like paintings, with plants and animals and feathers. The story itself was a favorite, too. Creative with some magical realism aspects around the origin of novels. Can’t wait to see what Collins writes next.
Book You Hid From Your Parents:
Forever by Judy Blume to learn about sex, and Go Ask Alice by Beatrice Sparks, to learn what my brother might be experiencing as a drug addict and alcoholic.
Book That Changed Your Life:
Thinking Out Loud by Anna Quindlen: This book made me want to write essays and also taught me about adulthood.
Favorite Line from a Book:
I see now the place I’ve been yearning for is my own imagination.
The Candy House by Jennifer Egan
Six Books You’ll Never Part With:
- Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner
- Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell
- Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
- Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese
- The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
- A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles
Most Recent Favorite Author:
I recently found myself on a long flight with no wifi and discovered A Gentleman in Moscow in my Audible account. I hadn’t read it in years and loved it all over again. The narrator really brings the Count to life. I am also a huge fan of Rules of Civility and The Lincoln Highway. Excited to read whatever Amor Towles writes next.
Book You Can’t Wait to Come Out:
Into the Soul of the World: My Journey to Healings by Brad Wetzler: “This powerful memoir shares an adventure journalist’s story of a decade-long, round-the-world quest to overcome his drug addiction and to understand and heal from past traumas. Suffering from PTSD and severe depression from past trauma, battling an addiction to overprescribed psychiatric medication, and at the rock bottom of his career, journalist Brad Wetzler had nowhere to go. So he set out on a journey to wander and hopefully find himself—and the world—again.” I met Brad through our shared connection to Lighthouse Writers Workshop and discovered we both grew up in Kansas and lived next door to each other in Boulder, though at different times in our lives, and we have writing and yoga and travel in common. I’m eager to read about his journey to healing and hope you will, too.
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