I’m asked to answer 4 questions and keep the blog moving … it goes to authors Rick Ollerman and David Zeltserman from here … and then they will pick 2 more writers to answer the same 4 questions next week … and so on … I was one of two writers Dana King picked … the 4 questions follow:
What am I working on?
Dogfella, a non-fiction memoir about James Head Guiliani, a former mob enforcer turned animal rescuer. Tommy Red, a crime novel follow-up to Ode to the O’s (a short story in the Baltimore Noir collection many years ago). A collection of so-called literary fiction with (right now) as many titles as there are stories …
How does my work differ from others of its genre?
I’m not sure it does. I don’t spend much time describing furniture, wallpaper and/or landscapes. I don’t believe it’s always necessary to do so when providing the right atmosphere for a scene. Obviously, it’s dependent on what’s going on, but I believe that what people say, how they say it, etc., will most often get the job done. I just about finished reading Lie Down in Darkness by William Styron. Make no mistake, I love this book (the darkness especially), but I often gave myself a headache trying to follow the (as I saw it) totally unnecessary never-fucking-ending descriptive narrative (as well as some of the introspection). I’m sure Mr. Styron, a far better writer than I’ll ever be, felt he needed everything he included in the novel, but as a reader, it was more than frustrating getting through it all. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.
Then again, I can’t wait to finish his book (for good reasons—Peyton’s suicide will keep me reading into the wee hours of the morning tonight).
Why do I write what I do?
Well, I’m trying to branch out. At first, crime writing was just the easiest to pursue, but I’m coming back to my original roots as a playwright … at least as regards what interests me more and more as I get closer to croaking, which is drama; affairs of the heart and the mind, and politics at its barest essential—survival. There’s a drama this life that continues to haunt me like a motherfucker …
How does my writing process work?
Monday: my most productive writing day, because I’m off from my real job as a word processor (writing can't be a job when you enjoy it, right?). I’m at it a good 10-12 hours; new stuff, editing, back and forth. Tue-Fri: Up early to write new stuff, then break and begin editing. During the day, when times allows (downtime/lunchtime at work, after my half our walk/read around our parking lot), either more editing or spewing new stuff, nights (when time allows, polishing). Saturday mornings are reserved for editing. Sunday mornings the same and/or research (with Dogfella, it required Sunday mornings into the afternoon interviewing the subject and immediately returning home to transcribe).
That’s it. Nothing fancy or profound, that’s for sure. You wanna’ write? See above: Sit your ass down and do it.
Now, for why you really came here … to see what Knucks is picking, so yous can bet the other way.
The NFC Beast …
It’s a much more tame division than it once was, mostly because it’s in a constant state of rebuilding.
Philadelphia Eaglettes … no longer the dog killers because they managed to dump Michael Vick on the Moonachie Dog Killers Green Team from New Jersey, they’re going for another run at high speed flag football. With the new impossible defensive holding rules, they should set new records for yards gained … maybe even points scored, but the results will be pretty much the same. Foles won’t be the dream he was last year … this year he’ll be picked off just like all the other QBs who throw the ball too damn often much to make it interesting (to me) … but so long as they have LeSean McCoy, they’ll be a threat … until the playoffs when they’re dropped like the high speed bad habit they (and the NFL) have established as the new brand of football. Prediction: 10-6; one and done.
Moonachie Blue Team … sorry to say it, but Eli may have owned Giselle’s husband, but those days are over. He’s just another bad QB without the right talent around him … they have a good nucleus, but I don’t see them doing much better than last season. Maybe 2 games better. He and brother Payton need to stop making videos … please. Prediction: 8-8 ... and sorry to say, goodbye, Tom Coughlin.
Washington (fuck Daniel Snyder) Native Americans … we’ll finally see if RGIII is for real. Actually, I suspect he is very much for real … and if he manages to keep himself healthy, his team would be a genuine threat … but, alas, he won’t stay healthy. The NFL ain’t college. He’ll run out of the pocket one too many times and that’ll be the end of their season … again. Prediction: 7-9.
Dallas Cowgirls … Jason Garrett won’t make it to the end of the season as the girls get their asses handed to them once again. They’re a bust … again … or did they really think letting DeMarcus Ware take off was a smart move? Prediction: 7-9
Tune in again next week for another TK NFL divisional prediction … but please don’t add them up (the wins and losses across the board), because we sure aren’t …
—Knucks
