Stephen King
King is one of the writers who has always been there for me. I’m on this literary path because of this man. And he taught me the value of entertainment, no matter what your subject matter is.
Saul Williams
At a speaking event, Williams told all of us to follow our hearts and our lives would figure out the rest. That’s the moment I threw myself completely into writing and have only occasionally looked back. He showed me the music and rhythm of poetry and how accessible another person’s journey can be in this medium.
Sharma Shields
Weird, hilarious, and goddamn heartfelt. I never thought one of my favorite books would be a love story centering around Sasquatch, but here we are. Shields continually writes things that I don’t think will work, and then absolutely knocks them out of the park.
Hunter S. Thompson
Break the rules and do it boldly. Thompson showed me that you can do whatever the hell you want as long as you do it well and honestly.
Alex Garland
I used to be more drawn to movies than books, but then I inhaled everything Alex Garland wrote. He demonstrated how cinematic the written word can be. I gave up dreams of running the camera, content with my place with paper and pencil.
Joseph Edwin Haeger is the author of On My Brother (Optography Press, 2018), When I Am a Famous Person (Optography Press, 2017), and Learn to Swim (University of Hell Press, 2015). He write books reviews for The Big Smoke America and The Poetry Question. He tells people his favorite movie is Face/Off as a litmus test, but is afraid to admit it actually is his favorite.