"...you change how you would be in real life...”
—John Waters
So yes, John Waters is pretty much exactly the fellow I'd hoped him to be. As we sit down to talk about 'Carsick,' he seems fresh, engaged and ready to go. I'm guessing that I'm about the 3,000th person to speak with him about the book, but he's so charming and such a great speaker that I forget any of that and find myself very much in the here-and-now of KUSP's giant conference room, where we are settled down to chat.
Much of this is down to Waters' immense but light-hearted presence. He is a life-of-the-party guy, but sort of low-key as well. He's happy to be where he is at the moment and in his life. And as we settle down to talk about his book, he's happy to indulge himself in his own very funny and interesting opinions.
We talked about his happiest and most dire versions of trip, and how he crafted the fiction. Waters writes ion longhand, all of his drafts, and there are many. Yes, the writing feels polished, but it also has a sort of rough-and-ready feel. This segues into my take on the book as a quintessential work of Americana. Whether he's indulging his imagination or trying to beat the tedium of hitchhiking, John Waters' book feels like a perfect version of America. Only here could such a book come to life. This is clearly time-capsule material.
05-23-15 UPDATE:Podcast Update: Time to Read Episode 205: John Waters, 'Carsick'
Click image for audio link.
Here's the two hundred and fifth episode of my series of podcasts, which I'm calling Time to Read.
I've been working for more of a live format lately, and to this end in this Time to Read "lightning round," I've included some of the banter beforehand, to give a feel for the atmosphere when we run these little mini-interviews. The bottom line: They're a fun way to finish off the gig.
My hope is that in under four (or maybe twice as many!) minutes I can offer readers a concise review and an opportunity to hear the author read from or speak about the work. I'm hoping to offer a new one every week.
The two hundred and fifth episode is a look at John Waters and 'Carsick.' It's a long one, eight minutes; with material not in the long-form interview!
08-21-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Senator Claire McCaskill is 'Plenty Ladylike' : Internalizing Determination to Overcome Sexism [Incudes Time to Read EP 211: Claire McCaskill, Plenty Ladylike, plus A 2015 Interview with Senator Claire McCaskill]
Agony Column Podcast News Report : Emily Schultz Unleashes 'The Blondes' : A Cure by Color [Incudes Time to Read EP 210: Emily Schultz, The Blondes, plus A 2015 Interview with Emily Schultz]
07-05-15: Commentary : Dr. Michael Gazzaniga Tells Tales from Both Sides of the Brain : A Life in Neuroscience Reveals the Life of Science
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Michael Gazzaniga : "We made the first observation and BAM there was the disconnection effect..."
04-21-15: Commentary : Kazuo Ishiguro Unearths 'The Buried Giant' : The Mist of Myth and Memory
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Kazuo Ishiguro : ".... by the time I was writing this novel, the lines between what was fantasy and what was real had blurred for me..."
Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Marc Goodman : "...every physical object around us is being transformed, one way or another, into an information technology..."
Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 199: Marc Goodman : Future Crimes: Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It
