Well, I think everything I've ever read contributes to the background from which I write.
I'd never been published when I was young.
Happiness is fugitive; dissatisfaction and boredom are real.
I become drunk as circumstances dictate.
I do read books. I suppose it's more or less the same thing, but at least I'm alone and I'm an individual. I can stop anytime I want, which I frequently do.
I never worked in an office in my life.