Richard Fulco's Would You Rather

Bored with the same old fashioned author interviews you see all around the blogosphere? Well, this series is a fun, new, literary spin on the ole Would You Rather game. Get to know the authors we love to read in ways no other interviewer has. I've asked them to pick sides against the same 20ish odd bookish scenarios...

Would You Rather

Richard Fulco

Would you rather write an entire book with your feet or with your tongue?

Tongue. I hate the sight of my feet. Writing with my tongue would be more tactile. Tongue.

 

Would you rather have one giant bestseller or a long string of moderate sellers?

ONE GIANT BLOCKBUSTER. I have interviewed several songwriters who have had one blockbuster song: Steve Forbert and Freedy Johnston (to name a couple). They told me that their hit song afforded them a career. Sure, they have to play “Romeo’s Tune” and “Bad Reputation” at every show, but the success of their one hit song has opened several doors. 

 

Would you rather be a well known author now or be considered a literary genius after you’re dead?

I’d like to experience success as a living writer. I’m no genius, just somebody who can write, has something to say and hopefully others will relate to my stories.

 

Would you rather write a book without using conjunctions or have every sentence of your book begin with one?

“Conjunction junction, what’s your function?”

 

Would you rather have every word of your favorite novel tattooed on your skin or always playing as an audio in the background for the rest of your life? 

I don’t do tattoos, so I guess it would be the latter.

 

Would you rather write a book you truly believe in and have no one read it or write a crappy book that comprises everything you believe in and have it become an overnight success?

What’s the point of writing if you don’t remain true to yourself?

 

Would you rather write a plot twist you hated or write a character you hated?

Character. I’m all about characters. Good. Bad. Ugly. Flawed. Disgraceful. Undignified.

 

Would you rather use your skin as paper or your blood as ink?

I don’t do tattoos, so bloody red ink. I guess. Weird question.

 

Would you rather become a character in your novel or have your characters escape the page and reenact the novel in real life?

As a playwright, I’d love to meet my characters for a beer.

 

Would you rather write without using punctuation and capitalization or without using words that contained the letter E?

I think I’d prefer no punctuation or capitalization kind of a stream of consciousness where words blend with thoughts and dialogue and the narrative just keeps moving forward challenging the reader to remain aboard the moving train and not leap off while the words kind of wash over them

 

Would you rather have schools teach your book or ban your book?

Teach your children well. Teach my books.

 

Would you rather be forced to listen to Ayn Rand bloviate for an hour or be hit on by an angry Dylan Thomas?

I admire some of Dylan Thomas’ poetry. I cannot fathom being in the same room as Ayn Rand, but I can see myself sitting at the bar in the White Horse Tavern.

 

Would you rather be reduced to speaking only in haiku or be capable of only writing in haiku?

I would not mind speak-

ing only in haiku. I

dig the five seven five.

 

Would you rather be stuck on an island with only the 50 Shades Series or a series in a language you couldn’t read?

Definitely the latter.

 

Would you rather critics rip your book apart publicly or never talk about it at all?

If my books aren’t adored, then I want them to be hated, banned and burned.

 

Would you rather have everything you think automatically appear on your Twitter feed or have a voice in your head narrate your every move?

Tweet. Tweet. Tweet.

 

Would you rather give up your computer or pens and paper?

Computer. No brainer.

 

Would you rather write an entire novel standing on your tippy-toes or laying down flat on your back? 

I don’t think I could stand on my tippy-toes for more than a minute, but I know that I can lie flat on my back for several hours at a time.

 

Would you rather read naked in front of a packed room or have no one show up to your reading?

In my baby suit. 

 

Would you rather read a book that is written poorly but has an excellent story, or read one with weak content but is written well? 

I’m drawn to the craft of good writing. Give me good writing any day.

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Richard Fulco received an MFA in playwriting from Brooklyn College where he was the recipient of a MacArthur Scholarship. His plays have either been presented or developed at The New York International Fringe Festival, The Playwrights’ Center, The Flea, Here Arts Center, Chicago Dramatists and The Dramatists Guild. Richard’s one-act play Swedish Fish was published by Heuer Publishing and his stories, poetry, interviews, essays, and reviews have appeared in The Brooklyn Rail, Failbetter, Across the Margin, Fiction Writers Review, Gargoyle, The Daily Vault, and American Songwriter (among others). For six years, Richard wrote about music on his blog, Riffraf. He teaches creative writing and English at an independent high school in New Jersey and interviews writers for his “5 Questions” series at www.richardfulco.com. Richard’s debut novel, There Is No End to This Slope was published by Wampus Multimedia in 2014. We Are All Together (Wampus Multimedia) is his second novel.