A couple of years ago, I was asked in an interview to talk about a few authors that I look up to. It wasn't too hard to name a handful, but since then I've spent some time thinking about all the wonderful authors I've read, and why I'm drawn to certain ones over others. I finally narrowed my list to the top 25 who influence my writing every time I put fingers to keyboard along with the reasons why.
My list:
• William Shakespeare because the play’s the thing
• Marion Zimmer Bradley for her version of the 'once and future king'
• Clive Cussler for creating Dirk Pitt, the Alpha hero of my dreams
• Louis L’Amour for the love of a good old fashioned western, and defining, for me, what it means to be a 'real' man and woman
• Homer for the epic stories of Greek heroes and the ultimate journey back home
• Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, John Jay, and Thomas Paine for their dedication to the fight for independence
• Sir Arthur Conan Doyle for the brilliant mind of Sherlock Holmes
• Charles Dickens for the best of times and the worst of times
• Don Coldsmith for showing me the ways of the Elk Dog People
• James Michener for an epic story of my home state and for the love between McKeag and Clay Basket
• E.A. Poe because I understand what he meant: "I became insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity."
• Jane Austen for the dark and brooding Mr. Darcy
• Robert Heinlein for sending my imagination soaring into the future
• Oscar Wilde for being earnest
• Mario Puzo for an offer I can’t refuse
• J.R.R. Tolkien for Samwise Gamgee
• Thomas Keneally, lest I forget that one person can, indeed, make a difference
• Alexandre Dumas for the vengeance of Edmund Dantes
• Victor Hugo because I railed against injustice and wept at the sacrifice of redemption
• Gaston Leroux for showing me what it means to be lonely
• Boris Pasternak for the pain and angst of hopeless, impossible love
• Bram Stoker for the iconic vampire
• Thomas Harris for making me root for Hannibal Lecter
• John Steinbeck for ultimate sacrifice of friendship
• But most of all, William Goldman, for the perfect story of fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, and miracles
Who's on your list?
Until next time,
Kaye
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1 comment:
A lot of those authors are on my list, too, like Tolkien, Goldman, Hugo, Dumas, Dickens, Austen, Doyle, Shakespeare, Hamilton et. al., and L'Amour.
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