David Foster Wallace, My Idol, is Dead
I just heard the news that David Foster Wallace, my favorite writer of all time, was found dead in his home in an apparent suicide. His wife found him and it looks as if he hung himself to death. I’m horrified.
I’ve written about DFW’s influence before. How a book he wrote made me want to become a writer and about his essay on John McCain that has become popular now that he’s running for office.
This is awful.
September 14th, 2008 at 7:42 pm
I saw David many times. In and out of a favorite hangout called The Coffeehouse in Normal, Illinois where he taught. I’d see him in Barnes and Noble and just could never get the courage up to go up to him and say,”you are a frigging genius”. There was something that stopped me and I wish it hadn’t. I did sense a very private person in him and being a private person myself, I understood. Leave him alone.
You owe him that, he needs it.
Our paths crossed so often, one would think it was kismet. Yet, I just couldn’t bring myself to interrupt his world. I wish I had.
I was, however, privileged enough to hear him read parts of Infinite Jest to a small, local crowd. The immensity of it, both in thought and sheer size, struck me hard. He had captured my thoughts. He had captured his own thoughts, at least for a time.
He was shy to do a formal reading and yet, his reading of the excerpts put so much life into words already sprouting a new generation of more words.
I felt I’d lost a kindred spirit on Friday. Forget the genius stuff and all that. He was an artist who “got it” and we mortals can only tread lightly where he walked.
My supreme condolences to his wife and family.
September 15th, 2008 at 12:25 pm
I heard this on NPR and immediately thought of you. Thankful that through reading your site I was introduced to DFW, but saddened by the very real loss to the writer’s community. We will miss you DFW, but through your writing, you have left your mark on us.
September 15th, 2008 at 6:03 pm
Thanks for the comments and it’s nice to hear that you got to him through me. I’m still just really shocked at the whole thing.
September 18th, 2008 at 5:16 am
[...] know I already mentioned the passing of DFW and how big of a deal itis to me, but I still have this running through my head. [...]
September 22nd, 2008 at 10:49 am
This was sad news, for sure. I felt this way when Randy Pausch died, as I had followed his story since he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and so enjoyed his motivational speeches and writing.
December 17th, 2008 at 1:36 pm
[...] A Supposedly Fun Thing I’ll Never do Again, by David Foster Wallace: This is the book that turned me into a writer wannabe. This man can make anything under the sun interesting. May he rest in peace. [...]
December 31st, 2008 at 6:29 am
[...] quotes system to find new articles by some of my favorite writers. For example, I’m a huge David Foster Wallace fan (still), and I was always on the lookout for new articles from him and other authors like [...]