15 Authors Who Have Influenced Me

(yes, Autumn is here at last).

My friend J on Facebook, tagged me in a meme. Usually memes like “15 notable music albums” stump me. The last 5 albums in my list were “Greatest Hits” just to get to 15. This is not to say that I despise music–I very much love music and find it a central part of my life. I just don’t buy albums. Albums are not a part of my psyche.

But writers? Oh yes. They are a part of my psyche. So when J tagged me to do this theme, I eagerly participated, using the excuse, “This will get me started with my writing.” Thought I’d share with you my list, and perhaps encourage you to do your own (I’m always looking for new books to read).

The Rules: Don’t take too long to think about it. Fifteen authors (poets included) who’ve influenced you and that will always stick with you. List the first 15 you can recall in no more than 15 minutes. Tag at least 15 friends, including me, because I’m interested in seeing what authors my friends choose.

My list, in order that authors sprung to mind:

1) C.S. Lewis
2) Haruki Murakami
3) Yasunari Kawabata
4) Junot Díaz
5) Yiyun Li
6) Victor LaValle
7) Chris Abani
8) F. Scott Fitzgerald
9) Ernest Hemingway
10) Sylvia Plath
11) Roald Dahl
12) John Irving
13) William Faulkner
14) E.M. Forster
15) Jeffrey Eugenides

and because I couldn’t stop, and because I numbered after I stopped…

16) Albert Camus
17) Fyodor Dostoevsky
18) e.e. cummings
19) Kurt Vonnegut

Who are the 15 authors who have influenced you?

*Now, I hope to get back to writing. All indicators suggest that I’ll have less time to write in the near future, so I’m feeling a greater urgency to make some progress with novel revision.*