Christopher Moore is most recently the author of You Suck: A Love Story.
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 1:03:27 — 58.1MB)
Condition of Mr. Segundo: Contemplating his vampiristic sensibilities.
Author: Christopher Moore
Subjects Discussed: WordStar word processors, using the nouns “monkey love” and “guy,” Midwestern vernacular, trying to figure out the ten year interval between Bloodsucking Fiends and You Suck, San Francisco topography, George Romero, Bullitt, the 42-Downtown bus loop, invented references vs. real references, Abby Normal’s perspective, Lautréamont’s Maldoror, Goth kids, Near Dark, vampire violence, dialogue vs. description, deadlines, narrative pace, the “book a year” demands of publishers, writing big books vs. little books, research, living up to Lamb, the burdens of having a mass audience, Basket Case vs. Citizen Kane, ambitious narratives, marketing vs. writing, answering email, living up the goals of being a commercial writer, Andrew Weil, “drive-bys,” on achieving balance, oscillation, Moore’s “mistress,” the last time Moore took a vacation, writer’s block, on being clueless, William Gibson, Jack Womack, on being a “piece of crap” vs. being a “master of the universe,” John Steinbeck, avoiding reviews, and boob flashing.
EXCERPT FROM SHOW:
Correspondent: Since you’re a funnyman, that would probably keep the pace going because someone’s pausing to laugh. I don’t know. I’m just wondering why you avoided metaphor — aside from pace.
Moore: Don’t even think about it.
Correspondent: Yeah?
Moore: Yeah. You’re applying way too much analytical — the kind of thing that happens in deconstructive analysis of literature that doesn’t happen when you write a book. I don’t think, “Oh, I’m going to put much less metaphor in this book.” It’s just: you write what occurs to you at the time. I would say probably that if I were to tell you what was the reason? The reason: the first book I didn’t have a deadline; this one, I did.
Listen: Play in new window | Download (Running Time: 1:03:27 — 58.1MB)
I do declare, ’tis strange. I just stumbled upon this show via some random wikipedia link. I handed in my Master thesis on David Mitchell last year, and finally – here! – i can listen to an interview. I didn’t know that Bat Segundo actually was an authentic show, I only knew it as an episode – night train – in Ghostwritten by Mr Mitchell, so this is kind of surreal. Stranger than fiction. Well, maybe not quite so. But a very nice surprise. And a fine site it seems to be as well.
A rainy good evening from Bergen, Norway,
Runar