I can't be reading novels when I'm writing a novel, because somebody's voice creeps in. The hardest thing to do is keep the tone and your attitude over the course of a year or however long it takes.But when I'm writing short stories, which I will be doing shortly, I can read anything I like.
T.C. BoyleWhat I'm doing is exploring things. This is why I'm a fiction writer rather than an essayist or a politician or whatever. I just gather material and find a scenario, and see where it takes me. I don't have a plan.
T.C. BoyleFrom my point of view, why shouldn't I work in every possible mode, to see if it's viable? "Los Gigantes" would not have worked as a straightforward, naturalistic tale. Part of the fun of it is that it's so preposterous and yet at the same time, it could have happened. Think of eugenics. Hitler certainly would have been doing it if he could have.
T.C. BoyleI have an idea and a first line -- and that suggests the rest of it. I have little concept of what Iโm going to say, or where itโs going. I have some idea of how long itโs going to be -- but not what will happen or what the themes will be. Thatโs the intrigue of doing it -- itโs a process of discovery. You get to discover what youโre going to say and what itโs going to mean.
T.C. Boyle