Barry Hannah
Barry Hannah
Barry Hannahwas an American novelist and short story writer from Mississippi. Hannah was born in Meridian, Mississippi, on April 23, 1942, and grew up in Clinton, Mississippi. He wrote eight novels and five short story collections...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth23 April 1942
CountryUnited States of America
art hurt people
I grew up when people seemed actually to be hurting themselves for their art. Of course, some of it was phony.
love drinking writing
I lost my second marriage because of drinking, and I loved the woman very much. But I thought I needed booze to write. I'm glad I was disabused.
inspiration wife my-wife
I wake my wife up at 3 a.m. and say, "Listen to this!"
might howl wretched
The Deep South might be wretched, but it can howl.
thinking agony people
When you're not involved, other people's unhappiness seems to be about the funniest damn thing on earth because you think you can solve it, that you are God, that you are above this, and that their unhappiness is just such useless toil and agony. If it's you, it ceases to be a comedy.
lying halfway
You've got to lie to stay halfway interested in yourself.
thoughtful men narcissistic
I found out about reviews early on. They're mostly written by sad men on bad afternoons. That's probably why I'm less angry than some writers, who are so narcissistic they consider every line of every review, even a thoughtful one, as major treason.
pain joy narrative
Randomness I love. And I still love just a holler right in the middle of an ongoing narrative. Pain or joy, ecstasy.
teacher school students
There was no one, when I was in school, who talked about going in and blowing up students. The teachers were very stern and hateable, but nobody ever mentioned murder.
long clubs glee
Most novels I come across have all the excitement of a long trip on a bus with a sensitive glee club. Yammer and chat.
hands despair hand-in-hand
Love and despair go hand in hand.
boys practice miles
I wanted very much to be Miles Davis when I was a boy, but without the practice. It just looked like an endless road.
gun pistols stuff
I never pulled a loaded pistol on anybody, but it got around that I did. It got turned into lore. It's a myth. There's so much bad gun stuff.
voice littles away-from-you
Voice comes to you through a spell, a trance. The best voices are not you... they're a little away from you.