“I was worried that, as a college teacher, if I wrote too much about intergenerational sex my students would be creeped out.” IfsWould BeSexToo MuchTeacherStudentsCollegeWorried Author:Dan Chaon
“When I was younger I was attracted to people who had that kind of artifice - people who were incredibly polished and had a complex persona that always seemed to be turned on. I was really interested in these kinds of people because I felt so unformed.” PeopleKindFeltComplexesPersonaPolishedArtifice Author:Dan Chaon
“Writing about women's sexuality is very scary for me because I'm always afraid I'll get it wrong.” WritingScarySexuality Author:Dan Chaon
“The kind of person I find myself interested in is a cross between being very emotionally complex and very immature. That's what I felt I was like when I was younger.” KindPersonsFeltCrossesComplexesImmature Author:Dan Chaon
“I'd read an enormous amount but had spent so much time in my own head that I didn't have extensive social skills. Suddenly I was in this world where I was surrounded by these incredibly polished and wealthy kids who had gone to prep schools, and I felt daunted by them. I don't think people were aware of how full of anxiety I was... For a long time I felt like I was living in a place where I shouldn't have been.” PeopleThinkingWorldLongHas BeensKidsSchoolSocialFeltMy OwnGoneThis WorldAmountSkillsAnxietyLong TimeEnormousWealthyPolishedPrepsSocial Skills Author:Dan Chaon
“Plot and scene are still the hardest things for me, though I think they're the building blocks of what makes a story work.” ThinkingStillsStoriesBuildingSceneHardestBlockPlotHardest ThingBuilding Blocks Author:Dan Chaon
“You can recognize in your own reading habits what writers are doing that works and what doesn't. I'm becoming much more aware of that after reading a decade of student stories.” StoriesReadingStudentsBecomingHabitDecadesReading Habits Author:Dan Chaon
“I started out as a poet who primarily wanted to write about image and moment. Over the years I've been trying to teach myself how to do plot and scene. My first story collection had the most issues with the plotlessness, and when I was writing my second collection I was teaching myself how to make things happen.” WritingTryingYearsFirstsMomentsStoriesHappensWantedTeachIssuesTeachingPoetSceneThings HappenCollectionsPlotMake Things Happen Author:Dan Chaon
“I know a lot of people don't listen to music when they're writing because it distracts them, but for me it's almost a way to get into the self-hypnotic state that I need to be in to write.” PeopleKnowsWayNeedsWritingSelfStatesListening To MusicHypnotic Author:Dan Chaon
“I think in this day and age it's very important.” ThinkingImportantAgeThis Day Author:Lizzy Plapinger
