An interview with
Kenton Adler
Tell us one of your first experiences where you realised that language had power.
In the U.S. we used to have these standardized tests, either the Iowa Basics or the California basics, in elementary school to assess where we were in the learning process. When I was in sixth grade, about 1967, I scored in the 99th percentile nationally in the Reading and Comprehension section. I was reading books on my own that might have been found in a college Lit class at the time. Everybody bent over backward to see that I got to read whatever I wanted, and I would have one-on-one discussions with my teacher about what I was reading, and he helped me along with some things I occasionally didn't understand. They also let me write plays, and essays, and made me the editor of the new school newspaper. For about a semester I was GOLDEN. I didn't have to go outside for recess if I wanted to stay inside and read. It was great. It also came to an end when I went into junior high in 7th grade, and I just disappeared back into the student body. But, I realized the value of the written word, and have never forgotten.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would you say?
Always write down an idea or a turn of phrase that might come to you. You might not have time to expand on things when they occur to you, and by the time you can sit down and work on it you may have forgotten all or part of it. Also, write about things you know about, or can do adequate research on. And have fun with it. If it ain't fun, it ain't worth it.
Have you ever written under a pseudonym?
Yes. I have occasionally written poetry under an assumed name so that a judge in a contest wouldn't be influenced one way or another by knowing me. Or so that an audience at a reading wouldn't think one of my pieces had been selected because of who I am.
What kind of research do you do for whatever it is you’re writing?
I majored in Art and Psychology in college, and studied History in graduate school, and I do research for my job. I know how to find sources, and how to use them. If I'm writing about a place I've never been I will read as much as I can find out about the area, its history and geography, and whatever else I need to know to make it believable for my reader.
What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters of a different gender to you?
Misconceptions. I try to inhabit characters when I write dialogue. I do my best to become the character and speak to the reader as if I were that character. I do the same when the character is of a different gender, but I have to base my interpretation on what I know from my experiences interacting with others of that gender. Sometimes my experience may not be an accurate representation. But I do try.
Do you believe in the dreaded Writer’s Block?
In a way. Life sometimes gets hectic and there is just too much to do, and it prevents my focusing on whatever project I might be working on. I can't just sit down and start cranking out a story or poem. I have to get into the right frame of mind. I don't know that I am blocked so much as temporarily detoured. Even when I don't have the time or inspiration to write, I am generally still thinking about the project, even if not sitting at my desk and putting pencil to paper (yes, I do often write drafts in pencil on yellow legal pads) or fingers to keys.
In the U.S. we used to have these standardized tests, either the Iowa Basics or the California basics, in elementary school to assess where we were in the learning process. When I was in sixth grade, about 1967, I scored in the 99th percentile nationally in the Reading and Comprehension section. I was reading books on my own that might have been found in a college Lit class at the time. Everybody bent over backward to see that I got to read whatever I wanted, and I would have one-on-one discussions with my teacher about what I was reading, and he helped me along with some things I occasionally didn't understand. They also let me write plays, and essays, and made me the editor of the new school newspaper. For about a semester I was GOLDEN. I didn't have to go outside for recess if I wanted to stay inside and read. It was great. It also came to an end when I went into junior high in 7th grade, and I just disappeared back into the student body. But, I realized the value of the written word, and have never forgotten.
If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would you say?
Always write down an idea or a turn of phrase that might come to you. You might not have time to expand on things when they occur to you, and by the time you can sit down and work on it you may have forgotten all or part of it. Also, write about things you know about, or can do adequate research on. And have fun with it. If it ain't fun, it ain't worth it.
Have you ever written under a pseudonym?
Yes. I have occasionally written poetry under an assumed name so that a judge in a contest wouldn't be influenced one way or another by knowing me. Or so that an audience at a reading wouldn't think one of my pieces had been selected because of who I am.
What kind of research do you do for whatever it is you’re writing?
I majored in Art and Psychology in college, and studied History in graduate school, and I do research for my job. I know how to find sources, and how to use them. If I'm writing about a place I've never been I will read as much as I can find out about the area, its history and geography, and whatever else I need to know to make it believable for my reader.
What’s the most difficult thing about writing characters of a different gender to you?
Misconceptions. I try to inhabit characters when I write dialogue. I do my best to become the character and speak to the reader as if I were that character. I do the same when the character is of a different gender, but I have to base my interpretation on what I know from my experiences interacting with others of that gender. Sometimes my experience may not be an accurate representation. But I do try.
Do you believe in the dreaded Writer’s Block?
In a way. Life sometimes gets hectic and there is just too much to do, and it prevents my focusing on whatever project I might be working on. I can't just sit down and start cranking out a story or poem. I have to get into the right frame of mind. I don't know that I am blocked so much as temporarily detoured. Even when I don't have the time or inspiration to write, I am generally still thinking about the project, even if not sitting at my desk and putting pencil to paper (yes, I do often write drafts in pencil on yellow legal pads) or fingers to keys.