As a child growing up, my mother was always singing, and I was fascinated by songs she chose – traditional songs, hymns, hits from American musicals, pop songs in the ‘hit parade’ as we called it then. For some reason I thought that the lyrics of these songs would...
I read a lot of screenplays. Most of them are terrible. But when I find a diamond, the experience is intensely pleasurable—I’m swept along in the story, whipping through the pages, desperate to find out what happened to the characters I’ve fallen in love with....
Editor's note: Last month, John and I got to talking about our 2013 experiences and the things that stuck with us. With that in mind, John has taken the time to talk about five things that had an impact on him. Not all are new, just things that inspired him. Five...
It’s pretty hard to pick out books that have influenced us over the years, but I did come up with four in particular, and also a list of a certain type of book that made a strong impression on me. I recommend making a list like this yourself. You will most likely,...
I get to do a lot of reading on the job. (No, not the job that involves breaking and entering. I'm talking about my day job, selling pre-owned works of literature at Barnegat Books on East Eleventh Street in Greenwich Village.) Far too many of those diurnal hours...
1. Astral Weeks – Van Morrison: No one album has influenced my whole way of writing like this one has. Astral Weeks sets off the most startling images in my head and fuels My writing with a sense of loss that I am always trying to convey and if I want to describe a...
