Know Your (Grown Up) Mighty Writers: George Miller
Name: George Miller (byline: G.W. Miller III)
Grew up: Wilmington, DE.
Where I work now: “I teach journalism at Temple University and I freelance as a writer and photojournalist for a bunch of publications.”
Different things I do: “Starting this fall, I’ll be a student again. So I’ll be writing academic papers. Ick.”
Here’s why I like what I do: “I like telling stories. I started as a photojournalist—visually documenting things for people to see. I segued into newspaper reporting, then magazine-style writing.”
The kinds of books I liked to read as a kid: “Anything that explored far off places or people doing crazy things.”
This is the book that had a big effect on me when I was a kid: “‘The Great Brain’ by John D. Fitzgerald. It was about this bright kid who lived on the western frontier in the 1890s and he outsmarted all the adults.”
What gives me the hardest time when I write: “Thinking about the holes the reader will find: time jumps, missing links, changes in voice, tone, etc.”
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“Write what interests you.”
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The kind of books I like to read now: “Anything that explores far off places or people doing crazy things. This summer, I read ‘A Fraction of the Whole’ by Steve Toltz. It’s an amazing, epic novel about a family and their outrageous adventures in Australia.”
My favorite author of all-time: “Haruki Murakami. He writes post-modern fiction, usually set in Japan, with undercurrents of history, American pop culture and political satire.”
My writing makes me happiest when: “People react to it.”
Best advice I can give about becoming a good writer: “Write all the time, and write what interests you. If you aren’t interested, no one else will be either.”
George Miller was a staff photographer for the Philadelphia Daily News before becoming a writer and a journalism professor. He’ll be teaching a workshop titled “Write Like A Ninja” for Mighty Writers this fall.
