How would you characterize the influence of your YWW experience in your life?
It had a huge influence on my life. It made me realize for the first time how many interesting, talented people there were in the world, and how hard you had to work to feel like you’d earned your place in their company. My suitemates introduced me to all the cool music that I listened to for the next decade of my life; I met the girl I ended up dating for most of college. It was all pretty formative.
What’s the best advice you can give a Young Writer (in general or in your specific genre)?
Stick with it, even if it’s not the primary thing you do. Every time I meet someone who “used to” read and write seriously I get bummed out. Make it a priority to keep up with interesting books and give at least a little bit of time to poetry/fiction/essays/playwriting. We need good people on this.
What do you find yourself most often reading or listening to lately and why?
I’ve gotten very into the novels of Penelope Fitzgerald. They’re short and elegant, but thick with characters and ideas. My favorite so far is The Beginning of Spring, about Russia a few years before the revolution. Pairs well with Reds. I’ve been listening to the new D’Angelo album Black Messiah. So far it seems almost as good as Voodoo, which is pretty major.