“I spent thirty-two years in a paper mill in southern Ohio, and before that I worked in a meatpacking plant and a shoe factory.” YearsTwoPaperPlantShoesThirtyTwo YearsSouthernFactoriesOhioMills Author:Donald Ray Pollock
“When I turned fifty, I decided to quit the mill and go to graduate school.” SchoolDecidedQuittingFiftyGraduatesMillsGraduate School Author:Donald Ray Pollock
“I worked in a paper mill all my adult life and there were a lot of funny guys there. So you pick up on that. Even though something really bad might have happened to somebody you can still make a joke out of it.” StillsMightGuyHappenedPaperJokesPicksAdultsMillsFunny Guy Author:Donald Ray Pollock
“I think the biggest influence on the book, as far as the humor goes, comes, at least indirectly, from the men I worked with in the paper mill. Some of them could make a dog laugh.” ThinkingMenBookLaughingInfluenceDogHe ManPaperMills Author:Donald Ray Pollock
“The biggest influence on my writing, besides snagging some ideas about black humor, was that the paper mill had a program where they paid 75 percent of the tuition and book [costs] for employees who wanted to go to college part-time.” WritingBookIdeasWantedBlackInfluenceCollegeCostPaperPercentProgramPaidEmployeeMillsPart TimeTuitionBlack Humor Author:Donald Ray Pollock
