Know Your (Grown Up) Mighty Writers: Duane Swierczynski
Grew up: “In Frankford, right under the El, and lived most of my life in cities. Whenever my imagination goes to play, it’s on the streets and alleys and trains and buses of Philadelphia. I do wonder what I’d be writing about if I’d grown up in, say, Malibu.”
Books I read as a kid: “I never read many ‘kid’ books, oddly enough. People will say, ‘Hey, remember ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ and I’ll get this glazed look on my face. I was busy reading my father’s paperbacks about UFOs and spontaneous combustion, encyclopedias and whatever I could borrow from the Frankford library. The first adult novel I read was Stephen King’s ‘It’—which, at 1,200 pages or so, is like jumping into the deep end of the pool. But I loved it.”
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“Read your eyeballs out.”
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Inspired me to write: “In grade school, two in particular—Ms. Dougherty and Sister Marianne—really encouraged me to write stories. In high school, I found many supportive teachers, especially James Roach, my freshman English teacher who gave me the right kind of feedback at the right time. I dedicated my most recent novel to him, by way of belated thanks.”
Now I read: “A lot of mystery and crime novels. Horror novels. Some science-fiction. Author biographies. History, especially about the 20th century. Comic books and graphic novels. But honestly, I’ll never pass up a book that tries its best to entertain me.”
All-time favorite writer: “It’s so hard to pick one—I change my answer every few years. These days it’s James M. Cain, a journalist who became a novelist with the smash hit ‘The Postman Always Rings Twice.’ It was written in 1934, but the language and story are fresh as ever.”
Hardest thing about writing: “Keeping all the plates spinning. I have any number of writing projects going at once, and sometimes I wonder if I’d be better focusing on one thing. But then, maybe I’d get bored.”
What I like best about writing: “When I’m so lost in a story, I forget I’m writing it. There’s no other feeling like it.”
Advice for young writers: “Read your eyeballs out. Seriously. I’m always suspicious when someone tells me they want to be a writer, but don’t like to read. That’s like wanting to be an Olympic swimmer, but hating to get wet.”
Duane Swierczynski is the author of “Severance Package” (out in paperback from St. Martin’s Minotaur) and the writer for Marvel Comics’ monthly series “Cable” and “The Immortal Iron Fist.” Previously, he was the editor of the City Paper.
