@arisjanigian
arisjanigian.com
The scene:
We are sitting in the sun on a chilly Spring day just outside Aris’ living space, which is attached to his private library of 1 billion books (actually 5,000 ish). Aris begins the interview a bit withdrawn, perhaps shy, perhaps melancholic - like any truly great writer is expected to be - but warms up throughout and by the end is truly lively. It has taken me a moment to return to editing and releasing interviews. I saw Aris in yoga the other day and we shared that we had such fond memories of what a great interview it was, it is. Join us as we explore the human condition and how it is captured with words.
Highlights:
- Bestselling author of “Waiting for Lipchitz at Chateau Marmont”
- Moved to Fresno from LA eight years ago
- Began writing in the 5th grade. First book: “The Adventures of Hallelujah Harry”
- What makes a “gifted” writer?
- Two novels by the age of 25
- Writing because you have to write...you have something to say
- Began writing regularly his junior year of college, as a medicine
- Using writing to harness a self-destructive energy
- Why publish? > ego, being noticed, being seen, vanity, loving people
- Wanting others to feel the richness of their internal life
- Helping others find themselves
- Connection is the root of many creative endeavors
- Suffering is a character trait that serves writers well
- Patience/a long view is important when writing one book over many years
- Maturing out of immediate gratification
- Tragic humor and satire
- Embracing one’s own madness, coupled with self-compassion
- “Essentially we’re scripting our own lives continuously”
- No one can define great art, it has a transcendent quality
- Relying on the judgement of others to measure you
- Trusting informed readers for feedback
- We would be nothing without the love of other people
- Community makes you feel at home in the world
- Observing others as they journey through the world
- Conflict > Friction > Fire > Life, warmth, light…
- Writing “aggressive”, “racist”, “sexist” books
- Uncomfortability creates an opportunity to elevate consciousness
- The world is not static, we must constantly revise our approach
- “One should be happy to be confronted with a genuinely authentic new perspective”
- Yearning to be confronted by someone with your own flaw or bias
- We identify too much with our own thoughts and opinions
- Trained as a scientist - PhD in Research Psychology, specifically Social Cognition
- Taught college psych for 23 years
- Research him on Google scholar for his papers on human studies
- Advice to younger self: “Get help sooner.” (meds, therapy, yoga/meditation)
- 19 year yogi
- Play more
- Grieving when you can’t write
- Longest writing “slump”: current, 1 1/2 years…
- Novel writing comes from a different place, it’s like a puzzle
A taste:
- “We view our selves as western expansion does, an American cultural egotism that creates dynamism.”
- “Most of our rhetoric, our language, is oriented towards youth.”
- “The novelist mind requires that you see everything when you write one sentence.”
Favorite saying:
(He can’t remember. Ask his friends for the notes they take of the funny things he says.)
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Love, Sagewolf xoxo
