Author Walter visits campus with Visiting Writers Series
Walter's books have been New York Times, Washington Post and NPR best books of the year
Craig Bidiman
Issue date: 11/23/09 Section: News
By Craig Bidiman
The Daily Barometer
All writers see the world much differently than others. However, few see it as Jess Walter does.
The 2006 National Book Award finalist paid a visit to the Valley Library on Friday night to a packed Valley Library rotunda. Walter is currently supporting his most recent novel, "The Financial Lives of the Poets," released in late September through HarperCollins Press.
"The process of the novel was unlike anything I had ever written," Walter said. "I just let myself write and didn't rewrite as much as I normally do."
"The Financial Lives of the Poets" follows protagonist Matthew Prior through the loss of his job, crumbling marriage and a series of events that lead to acquainting himself with drug dealers, while trying to support his family.
"I am usually a chronic rewriter, but I just started writing and let this guy's voice develop over four and a half months and it was incredibly freeing."
"It was very fun to just riff and to open this man up like a tap and see what came out of him," Walter said. "I was stunned to see that 300 pages came out of it."
Walter discussed how he oftentimes writes his next book in reaction to the previous thing he published. In this instance, "The Zero," a tour de force through the World Trade Center attacks, was his previous work. This work landed him the nomination for the National Book Award. This work, Walters says, also took a lot out of him.
"'The Zero' killed me," he said. "So this novel was almost a reaction to that book. I wanted a book that was very voice-driven so I could just riff."
Walter, most known for his novels heavily induced with satire and explorations of the human condition, expressed his frustration throughout the near five-month writing romp he went on with the character Prior as his vent.
"I was very angry while writing this book," he said. "Angry at where my country had wound up, angry at this gap between the wealthy and the poor. The economic inequities and injustices were making me angry like a standup comic gets angry, so I wanted to write something mad, funny and over the top."
The Daily Barometer
All writers see the world much differently than others. However, few see it as Jess Walter does.
The 2006 National Book Award finalist paid a visit to the Valley Library on Friday night to a packed Valley Library rotunda. Walter is currently supporting his most recent novel, "The Financial Lives of the Poets," released in late September through HarperCollins Press.
"The process of the novel was unlike anything I had ever written," Walter said. "I just let myself write and didn't rewrite as much as I normally do."
"The Financial Lives of the Poets" follows protagonist Matthew Prior through the loss of his job, crumbling marriage and a series of events that lead to acquainting himself with drug dealers, while trying to support his family.
"I am usually a chronic rewriter, but I just started writing and let this guy's voice develop over four and a half months and it was incredibly freeing."
"It was very fun to just riff and to open this man up like a tap and see what came out of him," Walter said. "I was stunned to see that 300 pages came out of it."
Walter discussed how he oftentimes writes his next book in reaction to the previous thing he published. In this instance, "The Zero," a tour de force through the World Trade Center attacks, was his previous work. This work landed him the nomination for the National Book Award. This work, Walters says, also took a lot out of him.
"'The Zero' killed me," he said. "So this novel was almost a reaction to that book. I wanted a book that was very voice-driven so I could just riff."
Walter, most known for his novels heavily induced with satire and explorations of the human condition, expressed his frustration throughout the near five-month writing romp he went on with the character Prior as his vent.
"I was very angry while writing this book," he said. "Angry at where my country had wound up, angry at this gap between the wealthy and the poor. The economic inequities and injustices were making me angry like a standup comic gets angry, so I wanted to write something mad, funny and over the top."
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