quarterly conversations
braxton younts
...a conversation about speaking out, participating in the storytelling tradition, and the mentoring effect of the Ramones...
Joyce Carol Oates has said that "ideas have come from the strangest of places." Where do your own ideas for stories comes from?
My ideas for stories simply come from life experience. If I observe an interesting situation, I remember it and write down when I have a chance. Sometimes I’ll meet an interesting person, and then I’ll take from what I know about her or him and cook up a story, filling in the blanks with fiction.
At the bar I hang out at down the street, I brainstorm over a beer, but if I have more than that, then I can forget about writing. It goes to pot. Also at the bar, I’ve tried to employ a dictaphone to record the evening’s shenanigans, but the sound quality has never been clear enough to transcribe any of the bar recordings. I suspect I need a better microphone.
If you were to give advice to a beginning writer, what advice would that be?
Being a boyish twenty-nine years of age, I still consider myself a budding writer. Got any advice for me?
Live life; never deny an opportunity to learn or experience something new. Practice writing as much as possible. Read and submit zealously. Read to improve your personal lexicon, and submit to increase your chance of recognition. Don’t shy away from independent publishers; they are your friends. Sure, small presses cannot offer windfalls of money, but they need you as much as you need them. For support, try to surround yourself with other writers; they sympathize with your struggle.
Why do you write? What motivates you to keep the words flowing?
I hope to publish widely, gaining the recognition of my peers. I aim to accomplish this goal via coherent, graceful writing. Writing has been practiced forever, and I want to participate in the storytelling tradition. What I compose is an addendum to all the hard work of those great authors before me. As a contributor to historical record, I write.
Why write? I’ve heard some say they write because it's the only thing they can do, or they feel compelled to write. Hogwash. Writing, like other arts, is a craft to be learned. I write because I feel a need to speak out, to communicate. I want to blow life into old subjects. Occasionally writing helps me define an idea or philosophy in a tangible, written form. And for the love of language, what better reason can there be? Or the on-going dialogue in my head needs quelling, and writing thoughts down helps propel the creative process.
Here's another quote: "To be at peace with ourselves, we need to know ourselves" (Caitlin Matthews). Does your writing help you in the on-going process of knowing yourself? If so, how?
What is it with you and quotes? Knowing one’s self. . . you’ll never know anyone better than yourself. No matter how you’ve intimately known someone, you’ll never truly know that person. Ramble, ramble.Writing helps me remember who I am. It connects me to memories, good and bad.
What do you hope to accomplish with your writing?
I hope to publish widely, gaining the recognition of my peers. I aim to accomplish this goal via coherent, graceful writing. Writing has been practiced forever, and I want to participate in the storytelling tradition. What I compose is an addendum to all the hard work of those great authors before me. As a contributor to historical record, I write.
What does your writing hope to accomplish with you?
Catharsis. I’ve binged on life for years, and now it’s time to purge. Since you fancy quotes, I’d like to insert a notable quote now. "I'm a teenage schizoid. I'm a teenage dope fiend. / I'm a kid in the nuthouse. I'm a kid in the psycho zone. / Psycho Therapy. I'm gonna burglarize your home. / Psycho Therapy, Psycho Therapy!" (The Ramones)
One last quote: "The world is made up of stories, not atoms" (Muriel Rukeyser). What stories make up your world?
Just as there are innumerable atoms in the world, so too are the stories of my world. I’ve tried to incorporate the poignant moments from life in my stories. Take my short story "Poisoning" for example. (It’s my favorite.) Freshman year in college was confusing. The onslaught of new information metamorphosed who I was, and sometimes I was depressed and disillusioned by the experience. But, at that same time, I discovered the satisfaction of writing. Maybe, if you wanted to be cheesy or spiritual, you could say writing saved me; it helped to positively redirect me.
Before seriously attempting to write, I rambled around the countryside, west, east, and in between. I traveled by train, air, boat and, my favorite mode, the automobile. Vivid journals I kept to document my adventures are coming in handy for story material. Some good came from blowing off college. I didn’t spend all of my time on drinking and girls.
Actually, the other day I was telling a writing teacher of mine that I despised English class in high school and nearly failed, because senior year I refused to write the required term paper. The teacher passed me anyhow. She would be surprised that I have been trying to learn to write, and even considering writing full-time.
My adult life has been molded by these experiences. Also I had the privilege of growing up in the rural South. Rural life afforded me the childhood innocence every child deserves. Idyllic cow pastures and deep woods were places where my imagination ran wild. I have fond memories of my dad and mom reading stories to me nightly. My grandfather told stories. My neighbors told stories. I tell stories.
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BRAXTON YOUNTS was born in North Carolina. Attending Appalachian State University, nestled in western North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, fueled his lust for writing. After years of rambling, Braxton settled in Seattle, WA, where he writes prose and poetry. His story, "Last Supper," was showcased in the November 2002 issue of insolent rudder. Braxton can also be found at: http//braxtonyounts50megscom.
