After 'The Sisters Brothers,' I tried to write a contemporary story dealing with an investment adviser in New York City who moves to Paris. I did all this research, but after about a year and any number of pages written, I was bored stiff. Patrick deWitt adviserborebrother share on social
My interest in words and literature is always changing. And every day of work is different, and it doesn't feel laborious in the way that, say, washing dishes did. I'm quite happy to be doing what I'm doing, and I feel very lucky. Patrick deWitt changedaydish share on social
I heard somewhere that whenever you write a book, people will ask you One Question about it over and over. And while I'm no expert in these matters, this is proving to be true. My first book dealt with a not-that-pleasant degenerate type, and the One Question was, 'Is this an autobiographical story?' Patrick deWitt autobiographicalbookdeal share on social
I come by writing dialogue fairly naturally, I've got a chatty family; I'm a bit of a voyeur, and if I'm ever in a public place, I automatically find myself listening. Patrick deWitt automaticallybitechatty Change image and share on social
Looking around, I saw so many unhappy adults, people who loathed their jobs, and I didn't want to be one of them. Patrick deWitt adultjobloathe Change image and share on social
When you're 8 years old, and you've become subconsciously familiar with the layout and design of Black Sparrow books, and you know the difference between Miles Davis and John Coltrane, something is bound to stick. Patrick deWitt bindblackbook share on social
As a reader I want to be present and entertained. I don't want to be taught lessons, and I don't want to be spoken down to. I want to be treated as a peer and to be made to feel welcome. Patrick deWitt entertainfeellesson Change image and share on social
Bernie Madoff is probably more nuanced then I'm giving him credit for, but I just couldn't get under his skin. Patrick deWitt berniecreditgive Change image and share on social
A lot of my favourite books - I should say, not much happens in the books! It's much more about the points of view of the author more than anything else. Patrick deWitt authorbookfavourite Change image and share on social
Whenever we changed schools, we had to make a new set of friends. At the time, of course, I hated it. But looking back now, I'm really glad I did, because it forces independence on you. Patrick deWitt backchangeforce Change image and share on social