David Sedaris Live

Last week, I saw David Sedaris live for the third time, and it was just as good as the first two. He is so touching, so humorous, so down to earth, while being so out there, that I couldn't stop laughing and marveling at his wit and thought processes.

Sedaris is an author I've loved for years, and his writing really inspires me. I've clipped articles about his diaries - why he keeps them, what they mean to him - and he inspired me to start doing something similar. He pushes me to think about my seemingly-ordinary days in different ways and mine story ideas from the happenings. He pushes me to edit and revise and see how my writing can be polished.

This time, I noticed him making notes when the audience laughed, or when we didn't laugh. I wonder what he wrote, and how he'll revise his pieces - if at all. Maybe he's just taking notes for the sake of keeping a record, like his diaries.

He said he kept records about all his shows - how many people were there, what pieces he read, what diary sections he read, what book he recommended. He looks over these notes before re-visiting the same city, which he'll do in Memphis in November, since this show sold out. It got me thinking about how much work his job actually is. I think the dream is that authors get to sit around and dream up stories, even though that can be tough with writer's block, revision, promotion, etc. But when Sedaris tours, he goes to a new city every other night, reads, makes notes, visits and signs books until everyone has left. That's a lot of work. Signing alone would make your hand ache, but can you imagine being onstage for an hour or two, then making small talk with people for another two or three hours? It's nice of him, generous of his time and spirit, but it makes me realize I could never be that type of author. It's hard for me to make more than awkward small talk with people I somewhat know, much less with strangers. I can't imagine what my voice would sound like after reading onstage for so long, then talking more. I guess you'd get used to it, but it would definitely feel more like "work" to me than just writing. And I know this is his personality, and he seems to genuinely enjoy meeting people and hearing tidbits about their lives.

But I also know that if I became a successful writer, I'm much more likely to be a Harper Lee than a David Sedaris. What about you?

N is for Noose

My mom has always loved to go see authors, and started taking me with her when I was really young. Sometimes the line was too long (like for Mary Higgins Clark), and my dad would have to come pick me up.

When I was 12 or 13, she took me on a road trip to That Little Bookstore in Blytheville. Sue Grafton was going to be signing her newest book, N is for Noose. My mom had read Grafton’s books since the very beginning, but I had never read an adult mystery before. I loved kids’ mysteries, like Encyclopedia Brown, the Boxcar Children, and From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. I also read adult books – mostly just novels that caught my eye at the library. But adult mysteries just didn’t seem to interest me.

After meeting Grafton, Mom encouraged me to start at the beginning of the alphabet. I did, and loved the series. Kinsey Millhone was what I wanted to be when I grew up. I loved the simple, straight-forward style of the writing. I loved that you could actually start anywhere in the alphabet and know what was going on; each book could stand alone.

I kept reading each book as it came out, including Kinsey and Me, which is actually one of my favorites. When news broke of Grafton’s death, I texted Mom immediately. We were both sad to hear it. Mom is especially sad that the series will never be finished; she’s invested a lot of years into it! I’ve read them all also, but don’t feel as personally invested. I kind of like that the alphabet ends at Y, that the series will never really end. Because even if Z was written and published, I would hate to read it and have to say goodbye to Kinsey Millhone.

Kevin Wilson

Kevin Wilson is the author of The Family Fang, Perfect Little World, and Tunneling to the Center of the Earth. He's quickly become one of my favorite authors, but I especially love his short stories. I had a chance to see him speak at a local university, and he was down to earth and very level-headed about being a writer. After being in an MFA program, I've started to hate stories with that typical MFA-touch of having no real resolution, and no real point. Kevin Wilson's short stories are the opposite of that. They bring up interesting, bizarre ideas and make you think, and leave you with your imagination in overdrive.

My two faves!

The Family Fang: The Fangs are a family of artists, creating pandemonium in public and filming the confusion. Kind of like a four person flash mob, before there were flash mobs. Annie and Buster participate with their parents as children, but as they grow up, they grow tired of a life of hoaxes. Both children move on, but when they’re down on their luck, they come home. Their parents ask them to participate in one final artwork, but can the kids give up all they’ve worked for towards getting away from this life? Very amusing, deep, and interesting. Wilson is a must-read.

Perfect Little World: Izzy gets pregnant by her high school art teacher, and isn’t sure what her small town can offer her after graduation. When a unique opportunity presents itself, Izzy has to take part. Even if it means promising ten years to a sociological experiment in which her child wouldn’t necessarily be hers, but raised equally by 18 other people. The story is just as multi-faceted as it sounds, and Wilson’s character development is amazing. I would love to get inside of Wilson’s mind. His stories are so vibrant and creative; beautifully written prose that borders on genre - usually sci-fi - but staying mainstream. I recommend this book to everyone, regardless of reading tastes or general interest.

Tunneling to the Center of the Earth: I'll be honest - the title and cover art grabbed my attention for this book, but I'm so glad it happened that way. These are some of the best, most innovative and interesting short stories I've ever read. The first story pulled me in and each of the following were just as fascinating. Wilson writes in a world where there is a company of stand-in grandmothers for families who aren't ready to tell their children that granny has passed on, where letters must be manually sorted in a Scrabble factory, where a museum of whatnot is a setting for love. Another book I'll be recommending to everyone.

Joshilyn Jackson

I read gods in Alabama in 2005 and it changed my life. Seriously. I have loved books and authors before, but the style of this writing and the story itself was so perfect… yet seemed like something I could write. Not in a way where I would scoff and say “Even I could write that!” But in a way that pushed me to write so I could love a book of my own as much as I loved that one.

I got to see Joshilyn Jackson speak at Square Books not long after her first book was published, and saw her a time or two after that as well. Her voice is amazing and her personality is so fun and charming. I used to read her blog obsessively, and her personality came out there too. This led me to feeling like I knew her, and that we were best friends… Which got super awkward when I saw her in 2017 at the American Library Association’s Midwinter conference in Atlanta. I greeted her like an old friend, but she is amazing and gracious and gave me the LAST ARC of her upcoming (at the time) book, which I dove into as soon as I got back to the hotel.

I have all of her books and love them and can’t wait to read more by her. As soon as I read her first book, she catapulted into my Top 5 Authors of all time, but as she writes more and more, she’s made it to that number one spot of Favorite Author by being consistently fantastic and innovative with her stories, while staying true to her writing self.