The 40 But 10 Interview Series: J.D. Smith

 

I had decided to retire the literary Would You Rather series, but didn't want to stop interviews on the site all together. Instead, I've pulled together 40ish questions - some bookish, some silly - and have asked authors to limit themselves to answering only 10 of them. That way, it keeps the interviews fresh and connectable for all of us!

Joining us today is J.D. Smith. J.D. has published six collections of poetry, one humor collection and one collection of essays, as well as the children's picture book The Best Mariachi in the World. He has received a Fellowship from the National Endowment for the Arts, and his work in several genres has appeared in publications throughout the English-speaking world. In other areas of his life, Smith has held jobs including office temp, newspaper stringer, adjunct instructor, grocery bagger and market research analyst. He was the model for the cover art of the 34th edition of the Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide, and in 2004 he appeared on Jeopardy! Educated at American University, the University of Chicago, Carleton University and the University of Houston Creative Writing Program, Smith currently works as an editor in Washington, DC, where he lives with his wife Paula Van Lare and their rescue animals.  Transit is his first book of fiction.

Why do you write?

I can’t not write. It’s an existential imperative and all that. If I spend a significant amount of time away from writing, I feel like I am wasting my life. I also believe I have something unique to offer readers, and something that holds value, so it would be wonderful to reach more readers. I wouldn’t turn down big prizes, big sales or money, but those things can’t be counted on. 

 

What do you do when you’re not writing?

I have a day job as an editor, so that continues to take up my time for the next two to three years, when I’m scheduled to retire. Otherwise, I take a lot of long walks, read far too much news, and play/lounge a lot with our two cats (Pantera and Mr. Clean) and our dog (Charley). I haven’t developed my thinking on this point, but I believe time spent with animals is never wasted.

 

What’s the most useless skill you possess?

The ability to remember lots of obscure and useless facts. That got me on Jeopardy! in 2004, where I unsurprisingly lost to Ken Jennings, but otherwise I understand why they call it trivia. My biggest strength is probably popular music, since I’ve been listening to the radio since about kindergarten, more than 50 years ago. If I didn’t know so much about 1970s death songs and one-hit wonders (there’s considerable overlap), I might have filled the mental parking spaces with Sanskrit or something.

 

If you could have a superpower, what would it be?

This will come as no surprise after a previous answer, but I would want to talk to the animals—the whole Dr. Dolittle, Sheena, Beastmaster thing. Living apart from rather than with our fellow travelers on the planet deprives us of both knowledge and wisdom, and I would gladly reduce my deficit.

 

Describe your book in three words.

Actions with consequences.

 

If you could spend the day with another author, who would you choose and why?

Although he is more of a filmmaker than an author, I have to go with Werner Herzog. This wouldn’t involve conversation so much as following him around and writing down what he says.

 

What genres won’t you read?

Horror. I am sensitive, arguably to the point of being porous, and it doesn’t take much for me to imagine all sorts of horrors on my own. This clearly has nothing to do with the great achievements of authors in that genre and everything to do with my own weakness.

 

Do you read the reviews of your books or do you stay far far away from them, and why?

I’m still reading review of my books. There haven’t been that many so far, so the novelty has not worn off. Nor has the sting of negative comments.

 

Do you think you’d live long in a zombie apocalypse?

My survival could be measured with an egg timer, and it wouldn’t have to be set for hard-boiled. Then again, zombies don’t climb or swim. Mostly, though, I would not bet on myself.

 

What is under your bed?

Dust and cat hair, and whatever the cats have nudged under there. Then again, there isn’t that much space, since our bedframe has drawers under the mattress. The drawers on my side contain, among other things, miscellaneous possessions that belonged to my father. I don’t know exactly what’s in the drawers on my wife’s side, but I have no doubt the contents are neater and better organized.

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[Transit, J.D. Smith’s debut fiction collection, ranges from Central Mexico to the Asian side of Istanbul, with stops in Houston, Chicago and Washington, DC. Working in flash fiction, the traditional short story and a series of linked stories, Smith takes on race, ethnic identity, class and disability, along with the power dynamics of how they play out in everyday life. He also skewers the pretensions of those who think they are—somehow—above the fray.

Heartbreak leads to a drunken foray into vigilante justice, and the stresses that underlie achievement in high school come to light. A brick from a nineteenth-century city hall in Illinois finds a new place in twenty-first century Texas. Commerce shapes character, but not without resistance. Smith's fictional world has more than a little in common with other parts of the world—what some continue to call the “real world,” with all its sham and venality. Decisions made in a moment, with incomplete information and uncertain judgment, have permanent consequences. The sins of the fathers are indeed visited upon both sons and daughters.


With intelligence and compassion, as well as illuminating flashes of wit, Smith shows us how character, faith and sheer guesswork collide with circumstance. If Flannery O'Connor and Mickey Spillane had spawned a love child—whose godparents included Franz Kafka and Jorge Luis Borges—it would look a lot like Transit.]

Buy a copy here: 

 https://www.unsolicitedpress.com/store/p403/transit.html