Interview with Lawrence Block
by Jon Jordan
Lawrence Block's Web Site

Jon:  Do you remember what your first published work was?

FIRST THAT I GOT PAID FOR WAS "WE FOUND GOD ON THE BOWERY" IN THE WAY CRY, MAGAZINE OF THE SALVATION ARMY.

Jon:  If I remember correctly, you used to write under various pen names. Why did you do this?

IN SOME INSTANCES, IT WAS BECAUSE I RECOGNIZED THE WORK AS INFERIOR AND DIDN'T WANT IT UNDER MY OWN NAME. IN OTHER INSTANCES, I DUNNO; MAYBE I WAS TRYING TO AVOID BUILDING A FOLLOWING.

Jon:  And can you tell us what some of them were?

THE ONES I'LL MENTION ARE THE ONES ON BOOKS I'VE SUBSEQUENTLY PUBLISHED UNDER MY OWN NAME---CHIP HARRISON AND PAUL KAVANAGH

Jon:  In addition to all the novels you have written, you’ve also written quite a large amount of short stories. What is the attraction to short stories as a writer?

THEY'RE FUN. THEY DON'T TAKE FOREVER, AND YOU CAN HAVE THE WHOLE THING IN MIND WHEN YOU SIT DOWN.

Jon:  Among all your work, my personal favorite is the Matt Scudder series. How did Matt first come to you?

AN AGENT SUGGESTED I DEVELOP A SERIES ABOUT A TOUGH NEW YORK COP. BY THE TIME I WAS DONE THINKING ABOUT IT, MATT WAS THE GUY I SETTLED ON.

Jon:  Do you put any of yourself or your characteristics into your books and the people in them?

PROBABLY

Jon:  How has the publishing business changed since you first started writing?

IT'S GOTTEN MORE CORPORATE, LIKE EVERY OTHER BUSINESS IN THE COUNTRY. THERE
ARE FEWER PUBLISHING HOUSES AND THEY'RE MORE FOCUSED ON THE BOTTOM LINE.

Jon:  You also have written books on writing, including Telling Lies For Fun And Profit and Spider, Spin Me A Web. You are also considered to be one of the real masters of the mystery genre. Do get a lot of requests from aspiring authors to read their work or give them advice?

YES, AND I NEVER READ ANYBODY'S UNPUBLISHED WORK. MY LAWYER WOULD HAVE A FIT.

Jon:  When you switch from one series to another series to another, do you have trouble getting into the voice?

NONE---IT'S IMMEDIATE AND EFFORTLESS

Jon:  The city of New York is actually like a character in a lot of your work. Would you ever live anywhere else?

NO. WE'RE RELENTLESS TRAVELERS, EAGER TO GO EVERYWHERE, BUT NEW YORK IS HOME

Jon:  I would imagine that people often request things of your work. Such as “ Can we see more of Mick?” Do you let this influence your work?

I TRY NOT TO GIVE A RAT'S ASS WHAT ANYBODY WANTS. THIS IS HARD, AND I MAY INDEED BE INFLUENCED BY THE PERCEIVED EXPECTATIONS OF MY READERS, BUT I TRY HARD NOT TO BE---AND MAY INDEED BEND OVER BACKWARDS SOMETIMES.

Jon:  The variety of your writing suggests a wide variety of interests. What kind of things do you like to do with your free time?

IT'S BEEN SO LONG SINCE I HAD ANY THAT IT'S TOUGH TO REMEMBER.

Jon:  Could you possibly pick a favorite piece of work of yours?

NO.

Jon:  Have you ever had writers block?

I'VE HAD TIMES WHEN I DIDN'T FEEL LIKE WRITING, AND TIMES WHEN I COULDN'T THINK OF ANYTHING TO WRITE, AND TIMES WHEN I COULDN'T SEEM TO GET THE HANDLE ON THE PIECE I WAS STRUGGLING WITH. BUT I HAVEN'T HAD THE LONG SIEGES OF INACTIVITY SOME WRITERS DESCRIBE, NO.

Jon:  Do you enjoy going to the conventions and going to signings?

I DON'T LIKE CONVENTIONS MUCH ANYMORE. I LIKE BOOK TOURS. THEY'RE WORK, HARD WORK, BUT IT'S WORK I ENJOY DOING.

Jon:  Any memorable meetings with fans that stick out in your memory?

MANY.

Jon:  Do you think the internet has had an impact on writing? Does it make it easier to reach readers?

PROBABLY

Jon:  Bernie Rhodenbarr is an lovable rouge. Why do you think people are attracted to characters like this?

I DUNNO, BUT I'M GLAD THEY ARE

Jon:  Do you pick the titles to your books?

YES

Jon:  If you were able to go back and talk to a teenage Larry Block, what would you say to him?

"OVER THE NEXT TWENTY YEARS, KID, YOU'D BE WELL ADVISED TO SCREW MORE AND DRINK LESS."

Jon:  With Hope To Die just out, can you tell us what’s coming next?

I OUGHT TO BE ABLE TO, BUT I'M NOT SURE.

Jon:  Do you get asked to read and blurb books for a lot of other authors?

YES, AND THE ANSWER IS NO.

Jon:  What’s the one thing that is always in your refrigerator?

THE LITTLE LIGHT, AND THE DAMN THING'S ALWAYS ON.