Thursday, November 1, 2012

Ned Vizzini -The Proust Questionnaire

Ned Vizzini is the author of four booksHis writing career, which is very reminiscent of film director Cameron Crowe's, began at the age of fifteen with the New York Press. From that auspiscious start, Ned has gone on to write for the New York Times, The L Magazine, and The Daily Beast. His second novel  It's Kind of a Funny Story  was adapted into a film in 2010 that starred Zack Galifianakis. His latest novel,The Other Normals, concerns fifteen-year-old Peregrine "Perry" Eckert who's shipped off to summer camp by his parents because of an obsession with the "epic role playing game" Creatures & Caverns. (keep an eye out for upcoming review at this blog) In addition to writing novels and non-fiction, he's also written for the television shows Teen Wolf (season 2) and currently for the ABC drama Last Resort. For everything Ned Vizzini, check out his home page HERE

Below, are his answers to the Proust Questionnaire. 

1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?

Doing great writing and seeing it materially benefit my family
2. What is your greatest fear?

Doing bad writing and falling into isolated self-hate
 

3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

Procrastination

4. What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Thinking that they can insult me casually and I'll find it cute 
5. Which living person do you most admire?

Dennis Tito, the world's first space tourist

6. What is your greatest extravagance?

My addiction to the book-sharing website
Bookmooch, where I spend about $100 a year (and lots of time) sending free books to people in Australia and Iran
7. What is your current state of mind?

I'm in a decent state of mind, or I wouldn't be doing this interview
8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Patience 
9. On what occasion do you lie?

When I need to protect my interests
10. What do you most dislike about your appearance?

My double chin
11. Which living person do you most despise?

Myself, in occassional bursts.
12. What is the quality you most like in a man?

Self-deprecation
 
13. What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Problem-solving
 
14. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

"it's kind of"
 
15. What or who is the greatest love of your life?

My wife, of course
16. When and where were you happiest?

I achieved pure happiness when I drank a Coke in the snow when I was nine in Park Slope, Brooklyn
17. Which talent would you most like to have?

Spur-of-the-moment wit
18. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

Stop reflexively putting my hand in my pants like Al Bundy
19. What do you consider your greatest achievement?

My books
 
20. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

I would come back as an armadillo, because they sleep for 20 hours a day, and catch up on sleep
 
21. Where would you most like to live?

Vizzini, Sicily
 
22. What is your most treasured possession?

My Sony Vaio laptop
23. What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Vomiting up a salad leaf and trying to eat it

24. What is your favorite occupation?

Honestly? Cleaning the house, with my 17-month-old son helping out
25. What is your most marked characteristic?

"teen angst"
26. What do you most value in your friends?

Understanding
 
27. Who are your favorite writers?

Michael Crichton, George Orwell, Brian Jacques

28. Who is your hero of fiction?

Vladimir Grishkin inThe Russian Debutante's Handbook
29. Which historical figure do you most identify with?

The Ramones
30. Who are your heroes in real life?

Michael Crichton, George Orwell, Brian Jacques
 
31. What are your favorite names?

Perry, Saul, Dean, Timber, Lionel, Warwick, Craig
32. What is it that you most dislike?

Failure of effort

33. What is your greatest regret?

This UK television interview I missed in 2009
34. How would you like to die?
35. What is your motto?

"Always be aware of the consequences of negative behavior" -- inspired by H.H. The Dalai Lama and his book The Art of Happiness

4 comments:

  1. This is really cool. Thanks for posting it.

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  2. Forgot to mention I'm stealing it..

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  3. Thanks I'm glad you liked it so much that you're stealing it. I stole it from Vanity Fair that stole it from Proust. How was Paris? I couldn't go. Figured Elsa told you. The price for the ticket went up... :/

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  4. I haven't been on Goodreads a while. I'll send you a message soon.

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