I punched to line. "Yes? What?" "Norville. It's Cormac. If you don't change the subject right now, I'm going to have to go over there and have a word with you.
There are certain writers I can't read when I'm trying to write because their voices are so distinct. Cormac McCarthy, he's the most different writer from anything I've ever written, but there's something about those really spare sentences that is just tough - it would be too much of an influence. Grace Paley is my favorite writer. Her stuff is so voice-driven, when I read her a lot I want to make my writing more voice-y and dialogue-heavy. I love a lot of stuff in translation.
One thing I love about Cormac McCarthy is the types of pressure he puts onto people. You see the best and the worst in people, you really see what humanity is made of, and I think that resonates in some way.
One more recent novelist to come along is Cormac McCarthy. Him, I like.
Cormac McCarthy is my favorite author in the world. I love him so much. There's one book that informs me more than The Road - it's called Suttree. That book is a huge influence on me. I'm not smart enough to emulate him, but he inspires me. He never infiltrates my writing directly. He writes incredibly intelligently about people that are marginalized.
Cormac interrupted. 'Maybe I oughta shoot you both, put you both out of your misery.
Hey, Cormac. You ever have to deal with a PMSing werewolf?
