Which writers have influenced you the most?I think it’s more a case of which writers haven’t influenced me. I believe that everything I read – even the downright bad stuff – influences me in that sometimes it’s just as helpful to see the things I don’t want to do with my own work. As for individual authors who inspire me, a few automatically come to mind. I’m a huge fan of nuance and I think no one captures that element better than Mona Simpson. I also can’t get enough of anything written by Michael Cunningham, Susan Minot and Rand Richards Cooper. I also love Hemingway and Raymond Carver – their prose is so crisp and clean. Every word is so precise and never interferes with their storytelling.
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--Marshal Zeringue