Outside influences

Has an outside influence ever crept into your writing?

by Dietrich

I remember influences from my past. Growing up, there were many books that stayed with me long after I read them: Catcher in the Rye, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Outsiders, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, and so many more. And there was the music I grew up with. Those were some big influences. I suppose everything going on around us now can be an influence one way or another, good or bad. And with that, I think it’s a good idea to stick to the positive, and avoid the rest. 

A good book can still be a positive influence. To me, my local bookshop’s a gold mine and a writer’s temple. A library’s like that too. The shelves are just packed with inspiration, and there’s always more than one volume that’s wanting me to take it home.

Right now, I’m looking forward to a couple of ARCs topping my reading stack. The new one by Dana King is called The Spread, and I’m looking forward to seeing what Dana’s cooked up this time for his police department and the town of Penns River. It’s just a great series, one I can’t recommend enough — and I can’t stop wondering why HBO or Netflix hasn’t gone knocking at Dana’s door. The other ARC is from Andrew Nette, a hard-boiled thriller called Orphan Road, part of his Chance series, another fine book that shows a lot of promise. And I just found out that my friend John Lansing has a fifth installment in his excellent John Bertolino series coming out in September; it’s called 25 to Life. There you go — three books for summer reading that are sure to influence and inspire. 

Other forms of art also influence and inspire me to create in my own lane. I enjoy listening to music while I’m writing — and when it’s the right fit I’m tapping my fingers on the keyboard and a foot on the floor — getting into the groove.

Great song lyrics are always a strong influence too. I’m partial to Dylan and Waits. And occasionally a song lyric has crept into my writing. The songs themselves can inspire an entire story. Just look at the many anthologies that have been published over the past few years, ones inspired by the songs of Lou Reed, Warren Zevon, Bruce Springsteen, Johnny Cash, Pink Floyd, Paul Simon, Jimmy Buffett, Waylon Jennings, southern rock and the blues, and so on.

A great painting can be an influence too, one that can call on the imagination. I love taking in a painting that’s caught my eye, getting it’s meaning, and the story, and what it’s all about. A picture’s worth a thousand words, right? 

And stepping away from the desk and getting out into a park or walking some quiet trail can be inspiring, and it’s a great way clear some dead wood, a chance to recharge my batteries and shake the noise from my head, allowing for some new inspiration to drift in.