Victor Lodato
“There’s a studio recording of Nina Simone singing ‘My Father’ that always knocks me out.
Writers Recommend
In this online exclusive we ask authors to share books, art, music, writing prompts, films—anything and everything—that has inspired them in their writing. We see this as a place for writers to turn to for ideas that will help feed their creative process.
Kazim Ali
“The Lure of the Detour: five things that feed me plus the sixth that haunts them.
“(1) Silence: the body and the breath that haunts that house.
“(2) Sound: Alice Coltrane, Yoko Ono, David Lang, John Cage, Krishna Das.
Carol Muske-Dukes
“I believe, as many writers do, that there are touchstone moments in literature—poetry, fiction, and plays—that spark the imagination. So here are a couple of personal inspirations:
Nicola Keegan
“Running takes me out of the city and into nature, which does something to me that most man-made stuff can’t. I pass the Brazilian transsexuals, wave, pass the mean forest cops on their big horses, salute, pass that one old guy with the terry-cloth headband, wave.
Jericho Brown
“One of the seventeen times The Supremes appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show, they sang ‘You Can’t Hurry Love’ wearing earrings that weighed close to what Diana Ross weighed at the time.
Frank Giampietro
“Lately I’ve been writing poems on my iPhone. But I also like to write poems on Post-it notes and in my trusty sketchbook, too.
Joanna Smith Rakoff
“I’m the least athletic person in the world—the proverbial kid picked last for teams—so what I’m about to suggest is a bit strange
Kristin Palm
“I am very interested in cities and places, and in having conversations with them. Research and lists are big for me. Often, lists I make become poems unto themselves.
Dan Albergotti
“I loved that moment at the 2008 Oscars when Glen Hansard closed his acceptance speech with this exhortation to the world: ‘Make art.
Ru Freeman
“I need to feel invested in life to write. So I dance to music that compels life into my body: any from the old hippie Broadway musicals