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!
Today we are joined by Matthew Zanoni Müller. This is Matthew's first collection of stories. He has also published a memoir co-written with his father, called Drops on the Water (2014). Essays, stories, and excerpts of longer works that have appeared in various magazines, such as Denver Quarterly, The Southeast Review, The Boiler Journal, Lost Balloon Mag, and others. Originally from Germany, Matthew now lives in Western Massachusetts and works at his local Community College.
What made you start writing?
I was so excited after I wrote my first story in college
that I just never stopped. I figured if I got that excited about something, I
better keep doing it. So far, that’s really been true.
What do you do when you’re not writing?
I’m an administrator at my local community college.
Describe your book in three words.
Impossible. I can’t.
Describe your book poorly.
I do this anyway even when I try to describe it well! My
mind just goes blank every time anyone asks me what my book is about. I just
have little flashes of scenes from the book come to mind and I just mumble,
“Well, there’s one story at a lake and a guy’s grilling cause he can’t swim,
and another, there’s like a mountain . . .” And so on. It’s bad.
What are you currently reading?
The Haunting of Hill House, by Shirley Jackson, a book about
the German Romantic poet Friedrich Holderlin called, Holderlin’s Madness, by
Giorgio Agamben, and I’m slowly wading my way through The Silmarillion.
What genres won’t you read?
I’ll read anything, though I admit that if the language
isn’t good, I have a really hard time getting into a book. It’s really about
the language for me.
Do you read the reviews of your books or do you stay far far
away from them, and why?
When my first book came out I read all the reviews with one
eye closed and the other squinting. It’s tough reading those first few lines
and wondering what the damage will be. All it takes is one little sentence to
through you off for a good long time. With First Aid for Choking Victims, I’m
not sure I’ll read the reviews, though I’ll be greatly tempted.
Do you think you’d live long in a zombie apocalypse?
Definitely not. I think I’d just let it all go.
Are you a toilet paper over or under kind of person?
Over, obviously.
Are you a book hoarder or a book unhauler?
Definitely a hoarder. My girlfriend jokes that one day all
my books are going to crush her when they inevitably tumble to the floor. I
happen to think a house is greatly improved by having books stacked on every
possible surface.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"An extraordinary story collection, First
Aid for Choking Victims is both fierce and unsparing in its precision, and
deeply tender in its care and watchfulness. Matthew Zanoni Müller renders the
most private truths of human longing with electric prose that echoes the oldest
of myths."
-Karen Tucker, author of
Bewilderness
In his debut solo short story collection, First Aid
for Choking Victims, author Matthew Zanoni Müller exposes the ugliest parts
of ourselves by reflecting them back to us through his complex and emotionally
nuanced characters. Forging into the deep intricacies of their inner lives,
Müller excavates his characters’ worldviews in bracing detail. A hidden
camcorder in a kid’s jacket, the secret dance of a jellyfish, a terrifying ball
of static light. Rich in detail and sumptuous atmosphere, Müller evokes the
small moments – the changes of light and shadow in a character’s mind, the
tectonic shifts and rumblings that break apart an inner world. Taught, bracing,
these stories follow characters in regret, grief, religious turbulence, and
inner questioning.
"This is a fascinating collection of
compelling and complicated characters struggling to make sense of the world
around them. Matthew Müller's keen insight guides us through their ruminations
as they navigate loss, fear, hopes, and self doubt. The lush writing is
immersive and moves us to care for these troubled individuals."
-Melanie H. Hatter, author of Malawi’s
Sisters
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