That adage about 'Write what you know' is basically the opposite of the way I function. I write about what I'm curious to find out. Jennifer Egan adagebasicallycurious Change image and share on social
I think, for one thing, all of us remember those teenage years and those songs that we fell in love with and the music scene that we were part of. So, in a certain way, music cuts through time like almost nothing else. You know, it makes us feel like we're back in an earlier moment. Jennifer Egan backcutearly share on social
I did go on safari in Kenya when I was 17, with my mother, stepfather and little brother, and I kept a careful journal of the experience that was very helpful in terms of my sensory impressions of Africa. I have traveled quite a bit at distinct times in my life, though now that I have kids I've settled down. Jennifer Egan africabitebrother share on social
The way that Dickens structured his books has a form that we most readily recognize now from, say, the great T.V. series, like 'The Wire' or 'The Sopranos.' There's one central plot line, but then from that spin off all kinds of subplots. Jennifer Egan bookcentraldicken share on social
I listened to classic rock and roll, and punk rock. 'Goon Squad' provides a pretty accurate playlist of my teenage years, though it leaves out 'The Who,' which was my absolute favorite band. Jennifer Egan absoluteaccurateband Change image and share on social
I'm just interested in serialization in fiction. I'm fascinated by it. I love the 19th-century novels. I'm interested in ways to bring that back to fiction. Jennifer Egan 19thbackbring Change image and share on social
'Goon Squad' took about three years to write and that's the short end. My second novel, 'Look at Me,' took six years. Jennifer Egan endgoonshort Change image and share on social
Americans are less selfish than some of our politicians believe and will respond with reason and resilience to passionate clarity. Jennifer Egan americanclaritypassionate Change image and share on social
I'm not a wildly gifted person; I don't play an instrument or speak another language or have great accomplishments in another field, as many writers do. But writing feels natural to me; the act of it seems to free up my unconscious, so that sometimes I feel that I have access to more ideas and information than my conscious mind could think up. Jennifer Egan accessaccomplishmentact share on social
When I was little, I wanted to be a doctor. I was really interested in gore. My grandfather was an orthopedic surgeon and he had a lot of books in his library that I would just pore over. A lot of them had really horrible pictures of deformities. Jennifer Egan bookdeformitydoctor share on social