DIANE WILLIAMS INTERVIEW
September 7th, 2007
JOB: Is that still the working principle–to write about what you want to say no to?
DW: The underlying principle is the same in the sense of wanting to get to what would be personally dangerous material, but in order to succeed over and over again I’ve had to learn how to trick myself into it–some of the time, going backwards toward it to keep myself intrigued. And there are many times in the fiction when I believe I’m writing about someone else, but thinking, oh my God, what if that were me? It’s assuming a dangerous or perplexing stance whether or not I think it’s from my own experience.
And here’s one of her stories:
THE BURR MYRTLE SIDEBOARD
I had brought my drink to life so marginally, toward a dark chestnut tint, when I poured milk into it, and here Howard’s hair is dyed blond and so is mine.
In a photograph, featuring me, on the sideboard, I wear my camel-hair coat in an atmosphere of extraordinary good luck.
For now, I had slipped down and hurt my head.
“Get up,” Howard said.
Hardly had I stood when I realized I had soared. I had a headache and found a remedy and then I found a sorrow and some ingenuity.
I had brought my drink to life so marginally, toward a dark chestnut tint, when I poured milk into it, and here Howard’s hair is dyed blond and so is mine.
In a photograph, featuring me, on the sideboard, I wear my camel-hair coat in an atmosphere of extraordinary good luck.
For now, I had slipped down and hurt my head.
“Get up,” Howard said.
Hardly had I stood when I realized I had soared. I had a headache and found a remedy and then I found a sorrow and some ingenuity.
September 14th, 2007 at 6:19 am
i interviewed deb olin unferth for bookslut and she talks about diane williams a lot, it’ll be in the next issue
bookslut.com