I think that there is, in writing, a certain blend of absolute naked sincerity and manipulation, and a certain way of trying always to gauge what the particular effect of something is gonna be. That’s a very precious asset that really needs to be turned off sometimes. And one of the reasons why I think I’ve had such a hard time with females is that I think I’m sort of in that head that makes it where I can be both spontaneous and very very very very self-conscious.
Later he said something in passing that is probably the best characterization of a writer I’ve heard:
Writers have a queer blend of shyness and exhibitionism.
He suspects, though, that writers’ queer traits make them good partners, depending on your perspective:
My guess as a private citizen is that writers probably make really fun, skilled, satisfactory, and seemingly considerate partners for other people. But that the experience for them is often rather lonely.
Why fuss with females when it’s so much easier having dogs?
It’s just much easier having dogs. You don’t get laid, but you also don’t get the feeling you’re hurting their feelings all the time.
Here’s why:
I really have wished I was married the last couple of weeks, because it’d be nice to have somebody to um—you know, because nobody quite gets it. Your friends who aren’t in the writing biz are just all awed by your picture in Time, and your agent and editor are good people, but they also have their own agendas. And there’s something about, there would be something different about having somebody who kinda shared your life and, uh, that you could allow yourself just to be happy and confused with.
It was fascinating to hear him describe his crush on Alanis Morissette, whom he had posters of inside his Bloomington house:
She’s pretty, but she’s pretty in a sloppy, very human way. A lot of women in magazines are pretty in a way that isn’t erotic because they don’t look like anybody you know. You can’t imagine them putting a quarter in a parking meter or eating a bologna sandwich. And her—even though I’m smart enough to know part of that image is crafted—there’s a kind of sexiness in spite of it, that’s very, I don’t know. I just find her absolutely riveting.
If by some paradox, this whole fuss [over his book Infinite Jest] could get me some kind of even just like a five-minute cup of tea with her, that would be reward enough.
I Googled to try to find out if he ever got to meet her. No hits, so I’m guessing not.
###
I finished the book tonight and I was surprised to find that after I rated it in my nerdy spreadsheet it became the top-rated book in the whole damn list. (Not the same as saying it’s my favorite; it’s not.) I’ve had the book collecting dust in my living room for months because I was afraid it was going to be some gooey look-at-how-awesome-DFW-was wincefest. One night in boredom I decided to at least give it a chance, and was even more skeptical when I realized the book is actually just a 300+ page transcript from a five-day promotional road trip.
But then, more than any book I can remember, I had a really hard time putting it down. Most books I read for 10-20 pages to ease me into my slumber, but this was the rare type of book that kept me wide awake.
