You are free to write about anything—whatever you find necessary to tell your story. You are free to pick material that you are drawn to, remembering that you may be drawn to what is strange or frankly appalling. Do not resist that appeal, no matter how disgraceful or unreasonable it may look. In a talk a few weeks ago Italo Calvino said that all his books began with problems that he knew he could never solve. Plainly he is attracted to insoluble problems. Why? They allow him to make discovers. Choose your subjects so that you can discover what you didn’t know you knew.
Harry Mathews, “For Prizewinners” (via mttbll)
Worn out Spines 