Who are your heroes?
Saturday, November 26, 2011 I stumbled upon a truism today that I can’t get out of my mind. It’s that you can learn a lot about someone by knowing who their heroes are.
The more I thought about it, the more these names kept popping up. Sure, I’m a fan of Shakespeare, and Stan Lee & Jack Kirby, or Amy Winehouse and Erykah Badu, or just my older brother, Kirk, or my grandfather.
There are everyday heroes, in life, sports, or pop culture. But as a writer, for me, there’s these three. I guess they’re my literary heroes:
Harlan Ellison
To avoid the stress of my job and the struggles of my unhappy first marriage, I’d escape to a local bookstore that stayed open until midnight. While some guys drown their sorrows at the corner pub, I’d hit the bookstore and drank hot chocolate with mint, reading Harlan Ellison until they kicked me out. I’d discovered his seminal short fiction years earlier, but in my late 20s, I stumbled upon what I would argue is his best work, his non-fiction, his collections of essays (rantings, ramblings, spleen self-extractions—choose your own descriptor) that ran in the LA Free Press.
His voice, his rage, his humor, his…utter vulnerability, was unlike anything I’d ever read. These stories were unprocessed. Unvarnished. And as a young man I had struggled with my own inability to keep quiet—to fit in. Because of this, I found fellowship in Harlan’s writing.
Sure, when I finally spent time with Harlan, I told him it was his writing that made me want to become a writer, but truth-be-told, it was his honesty that made me take the blinders off my own life.
Sherman Alexie
The one comment that follows a lot of my book gigs is, “You were so funny!”
I guess this is a surprise to many people because my writing (admittedly) is rather melancholic and also because most authors are expected to be as dry as a stale slice of unbuttered wheat toast—like an uninflected NPR announcer, droning on and on and on and on and on. Sadly, many are like that.
And I had the same reaction the first time I heard Sherman Alexie give a talk. He was so irreverent, and charming, and hysterically funny, it gave a whole new layer of authenticity to his writing—because I’m a firm believer that humor comes from emotional pain. Suddenly I saw the non-fiction roots of his made-up tales.
I’m funny. But Sherman is hilarious.
Pat Conroy
Conroy once said, “The greatest gift a writer can ever be given is an unhappy childhood.” If you’ve ever read The Great Santini, or My Losing Season, or The Prince of Tides, you’ll know that Pat was indeed a gifted child.
In my own case, I lost both of my parents in my early 30s—that alone was painful. But long before they passed, whether by sins of commission, or omission, they managed to leave cracks in my foundation that I still struggle with to this day. That Pat turned so many perceived weaknesses into strengths is a wonder to behold.
Okay, that’s me. Who are your heroes?
Reader Comments (10)
I don't know who my literary heroes are... I have favorite authors, but I don't think that's quite the same. And I'm not the type of reader who goes through one writer's books voraciously, so I don't know if I'm familiar enough with any one author (except maybe Amy Tan?) to connect with them the way you did with these guys.
I will say, though, that I too admire Alexie and find him hilarious.
I'll give this some thought, though, because I think it's a good question.
Yours is certainly a list of superb writers that I admire greatly. Here's mine:
-- Ivan Doig, who does extensive research to get the facts right and then spins great stories.
-- Barbara Kingsolver, who I think is America's greatest living writer. Her prodigious range and moral compass elevate us all.
-- Wallace Stegner, a master teacher whose students have dominated American literature for decades, and whose own work--fiction and non-fiction--elucidates the human condition.
My boss - He knows what he wants and he won't stop until he gets it. I still wish I have the energy that he has.
My parents - They always think of us, their children, first before anything else. They work hard and they don't want stop us from doing what we want that's why I was so inspired to really work hard not just for myself and my future but for them as well.
I hope that gave you an idea about me.
- Dylan
I'm afraid that I haven't read much about the lives of the writers I favor, I guess you are the one I know most about and I am eagerly awaiting your next book.
Sherman Alexi, Adrian Lewis, and James Welch are high on my favorites list for their insight into Native Americans. I am also a big fan of Barbara Kingsolver for the way she reminds us of a past that our highschool history classes and politicians failed to tell. I have also become an avid fan of Elizabeth Kostolva and her books, The Historian and The Swan Thieves.
Mark
I will likely be back again to go through extra, thank you for the info.
One particular matter I just desire to say is your Blog site is so perfect valuable for us.
I hope you might continue to keep in posting new content & many thanks for sharing your great experience among us.