Alissa Nutting: You want to do all of these preventative things to mak...

exercise will never be my lover. Or even my friend. For me, a workout is more like an annoying coworker I have to see a few times a week.

Alissa Nutting

workout exercise fitness

For many years I wrote nothing but "I will not sleep with Steve Almond" over and over again, page after page à la Jack Torrance in The Shining. Finally, hundreds of psychotherapy sessions and an intense shaman-guided DMT sweat lodge experience led to a breakthrough, and I was able to write about other people I would not sleep with, and also about people I would.

Alissa Nutting

sleep writing years

I think that in our culture there is this message to males that any time you can have sex with an attractive female, you should do it. But for females you always have to guard yourself against it, sort of keep sex at bay. You don't want to get a reputation, especially when you are under age.

Alissa Nutting

age sex thinking

Luckily I'm on prescription drugs that prevent me from worrying about anything too much.

Alissa Nutting

drug too-much worry

I think humor is like a shield that lets you get as close to the sad sad flame as possible - far closer, oftentimes, than drama.

Alissa Nutting

flames drama thinking

I really want readers to put themselves into the shoes of each character. So the opening lines are an orienting technique: this is where you are, this is who you are. Go.

Alissa Nutting

shoes technique character

I've seen men in $5,000 suits urinate in public fountains here. Las Vegas is the best place on earth.

Alissa Nutting

vegas earth men

My poor family. I try to protect them from my work. My parents are very religious, and my brother and sister are very normal. We have an understanding, I think, that what I do isn't quite down their alley.

Alissa Nutting

brother religious thinking

My writing circle isn't too full of people who fall into the "Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought Tuesdays With Morrie" category.

Alissa Nutting

tuesdays-with-morrie writing fall

During my MFA, I was lucky to be surrounded by a really supportive group of peers. And now I get feedback pretty exclusively from freaks only.

Alissa Nutting

supportive groups lucky

Las Vegas is incredible. Either you love it or you're a classy person with morals. I fall into the former category. It's definitely bled into my writing.

Alissa Nutting

vegas writing fall

I'm a big people pleaser; I had a very awkward adolescence. Part of me is still that person who wants everyone to like me.

Alissa Nutting

awkward want people

It's a challenge of to write a narrator who is doing something that is really unlikeable and morally questionable. A lot of times, you read a book because you like the character, you are cheering for the character; you want the best for the character.

Alissa Nutting

cheer writing book

It was just such a complete shock to turn on the news one day and see someone that you know, someone you have passed in the halls of your high school. It got me thinking, 'Well, what are some novels that are about female sexual psychopaths? I really didn't have many references for that, and I felt like that was a void in transgressive literature that I wanted to fill.'

Alissa Nutting

one-day school thinking

If you're a beautiful Caucasian woman, and you commit a heinous crime, it's like people don't want to acknowledge the reality of your actions.

Alissa Nutting

beautiful reality people

I don't consider myself attractive. I'm an academic, and in academia, people will write you off if you look younger.

Alissa Nutting

academia writing people

I've worked hard on my doctorate, and I want to be acknowledged for that. But I also wanted to comment on this message that women get that the most important thing they can do is police their appearance.

Alissa Nutting

police important want

With surgical insight, Inside Madeline delves into the most complex female territory imaginable and dissects until every honest bone is revealed. Bomer's prose doesn't flinch, doesn't filter-the bravery of these stories left me breathless.

Alissa Nutting

territory female bravery

You know how some people are unlucky in love? I was always unlucky in exercise. I'd get into a relationship with a workout program or guru, we'd go steady for a few intense months, and then we'd have a really ugly breakup.

Alissa Nutting

workout breakup fitness

Keeping a diary is advanced-level living. I spend way too much time trying not to curl up in the corner like a giant fetus & weep to keep a diary.

Alissa Nutting

curls giants trying

You want to do all of these preventative things to make sure you always look as young as possible, you don't want to look your age. Looking young and attractive matters, even more than the type of person you are, even more than the actions you commit.