I have to have music as a soundtrack to writing fiction. I listen to it at other times, too, but it helps me write. Jeff VanderMeer More Quotes by Jeff VanderMeer More Quotes From Jeff VanderMeer If I wasn't a writer, I don't know what I'd be. Probably a marine biologist or something. Jeff VanderMeer biologistmarineknows I like to go through the zine sections of local bookstores when on the road and have found a lot of really great kind of underground stuff that way. It all feeds into everything else. Jeff VanderMeer zinesbookstoresstuff The world is a mysterious place and the very limitation of our senses in exploring it means we are sometimes aware of there being something beyond our ken. Jeff VanderMeer mysteriousmeanworld I've always wrestled with the difference between plot and structure, and after re-reading a lot of writing books I realized I wasn't alone. Jeff VanderMeer readingwritingbook Cross-pollination and "contamination" is really important to the health of fiction, and sometimes it's a literal conversation, too, in that writers who might never otherwise meet and talk do so because of our anthologies. Jeff VanderMeer importantmightfiction Angela Carter, Leonora Carrington, even nonsurrealists like Kafka and Nabokov - writers like these, who create paths between the firmly grounded and flights of fantasy, are my personal North Star. Jeff VanderMeer fantasystarspath I also am not particularly risk-averse - I don't mind jumping off a cliff if I trust the people who've told me they'll catch me at the bottom. Jeff VanderMeer riskjumpingpeople What I envy about musicians is, they have this more direct relationship with the audience. They don't have to go through words. Sure, the lyrics count, but they go more immediately into your brain. There's so much more work you have to put in as a writer - not just with the actual book, but how it's packaged and everything. Jeff VanderMeer envybrainbook My singing ability is zilch. Jeff VanderMeer abilitysinging
