"ASK ME, UH-HO-HO, ASK ME"

Hey gang, ready for more? I thought you might be. Well, you are in luck because today we have a very special guest here on Guthmantics, Antoine Wilson, author of The Interloper, a book I have just, just, just begun reading and am already enjoying quite a bit.

Antoine Wilson, is the author of the novel The Interloper, just out from Handsel Books/Other Press. (Check out what the LA Times Book Review had to say about the book, eh?) His work has appeared in The Paris Review and Best New American Voices, and he is a contributing editor of A Public Space. He lives, writes and surfs in Los Angeles.

Guth: Tell us what you write, what you have written and how you do it?

Wilson: I just published my first novel, The Interloper, which means I've been cruising around reading and promoting. It's kind of astounding, really, to talk to people about something I finished thinking about, in a deep way, about a year before publication. I mean, there was copy-editing, of course, but the Promethean stuff was all done. So I'm in this sort of strange place right now where people are dying to talk to me about the book and I'm up to my neck in another project.


I'm getting better at that sort of thing, sure, but wouldn't it be rad to have a book come out the day after you finish writing it instead of the year after? (Yes it would!) As far as writing rituals, I try to keep a daily schedule. I typed it up recently and posted it on my office door, as a touchstone. I believe in the power of routine. Probably because routine doesn't come easily to me.

My typical writing day consists of drinking too much coffee, re-reading (and tweaking) what I've been working on, and circling the computer like a dog circles his bed. After that I type until something minor distracts me, which usually leads to a chain-reaction of distraction and self-abnegation. Followed by circling the computer, and the whole cycle repeats. Three or four cycles like that and I'm done for the day. (I can relate, my friend)

Guthieroo: What grand things are next for you? What would you, we're talking dream gigs and adventures here, love to be next for you?

Wilson: My wife and I are expecting our first child August 30. So that's pretty grand. And I've got my dream gig right now, working on the next novel. As far as adventures go, I wouldn't kick a good surf trip out of bed.

Guthie: What Smiths or Morrissey song or lyric sums it up for you right now?

Wilson: Hang the blessed DJ/because the music that they constantly play/it says nothing to me about my life.

(Isn't that the truth?)

Well, many, many thanks to our special guest, Antoine Wilson, for stopping by. Dear Antoine, please come back anytime and keep us all posted on what you're up to.

Now, dear readers, you know what to do! Run, do not walk, out into the world (actual or online) and get a copy of The Interloper. Then, head over to Good Reads, then to Shelfari and then over to LibraryThing and claim and rate The Interloper. Also, swing by Antoine Wilson's website, look at all of the wonderfulness over there, and check back often to see his latest. And, for crying out loud, if you hear that he is reading in a place near you, get yourself to that reading.

Want to be a featured author/writer type for Guthmantics? Well, just send an email to me at amy@guthagogo.com and I'll tell you everything you need to know.