5 Questions with Frank McCourt

Frank McCourt is the author of Teacher Man, 'Tis, and Angela's Ashes, for which he won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997.

Q: What is your preferred environment for writing?

A: The sky. A ceiling. The subway. Any old place.

Q: What punctuation mark are you fondest of?

A: I like the question mark. It makes me sit up and pay attention.

Q: What punctuation, spelling, grammar, style, or usage error annoys you the most?

A: I don't like dashes. They should be abolished.

Q: If you weren't in your current line of work, what would you be doing instead?

A: I'd be a punctuation traffic cop in a William Faulkner paragraph.

Q: What drove you to become a writer?

A: I write because it's painful not to.

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Comments

[Katharine]

Frank McCourt?! Editrix, I am so impressed with your ability to get great authors for this interview series!

[Jen]

Wow. In so few words and he is so inspiring and makes me want to write.

>>I write because it's painful not to.<<

That brings tears to my eyes.

Thanks for sharing this.

[Ed.]

Hi, Jen,

Thanks for your kind comment. I'm glad you enjoyed Frank McCourt's answers. Goodness knows I did. (I, for one, liked the bit about being a punctuation traffic cop best.) He's fab!

Sincerely,
-Ed.