Every Love Story Is a Ghost Story: A Life of David Foster Wallace (54 page)
———. “The View from Mrs. Thompson’s,”
Rolling Stone
, October 25, 2001.
———. “Tense Present: Democracy, English and the Wars over Usage,”
Harper’s
, April 2002.
———. Everything and More: A Compact History of ∞ (New York: W. W. Norton/Atlas Books, 2003).
———. “Consider the Lobster” in
Consider the Lobster: Essays
(New York: Little, Brown, 2005).
A NOTE ON SOURCES
Much of what I know about David came from my interviews with his many friends, family, and professional associates thanked in the acknowledgments section. A second source are his books and the third avenue are his extraordinary letters, loaned to or copied for me by dozens of correspondents. David may have been the last great letter writer in American literature (with the advent of email his correspondence grows terser, less ambitious). Happily several of these collections are now or about to be available at the Ransom Center at the University of Texas in Austin, where Wallace’s papers are housed and where scholars and researchers can consult them. In addition, much of Wallace’s juvenilia and marginalia from which I quote are now at The Ransom.
ADDITIONAL SOURCES, BY CHAPTER
Chapter 1: “Call Me Dave”
3 “My father’s got,” from David Lipsky,
Although of Course You End Up Becoming Yourself
(New York: Broadway, 2010) at 49.6 “This schizogenic,” from an interview with Larry McCaffery for the
Review of Contemporary Fiction
, Summer 1993.7 “a really serious jock,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 52.8 “imposter syndrome,” from a letter to Rich C., September 19, 2000.
Chapter 2: “The Real ‘Waller’”
18 “a way to hide,” from Stacey Schmeidel, “Brief Interview with a 5-Draft Man,”
Amherst Magazine
, Spring 1999.23 “foppish aesthetes,” from the McCaffery interview.
24 “not trusting me with reality,” from a letter to Mary Karr, circa January 22, 1992.
25 “special sort of buzz,” from McCaffery interview.
25 “required thumbing-the-nose,” from an appearance on
The Charlie Rose Show
, March 27, 1997.26 “Any relationship” and “The Sabrina Brothers in the Case of the Hung Hamster,” from
Sabrina
, Fall 1982.28 “the smell of flowers” and “dealing with, yes,” from a letter to Corey Washington, June 30, 1983.
29 “practically rammed,” from a letter to Corey Washington, August 20, 1983.
30 “Pretty [as Updike’s prose was],” from the McCaffery interview.
30 “God damn Charlie,” from a letter to Corey Washington, July 1, 1983.
30 “Don’t do LSD,” from a letter to Corey Washington, August 5, 1983.
31 “It comes into your dreams,” from Thomas Pynchon,
The Crying of Lot 49
(New York: Harper Perennial, 1999) at 73.31 “so much so that,” from a letter to Steven Moore, March 7, 1988.
32 “a kind of midlife crisis,” from the McCaffery interview.
32 “The same obsessive studying,” from the Schmeidel interview.
32 “a teenyweeny bit,” from a letter to Corey Washington, August 20, 1983.
33 “I came very close,” from a letter to Corey Washington, November 1, 1983.
34 “You now see before you,” from a letter to Corey Washington, October 4, 1983.
35 “a weird kind of forger,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course,
at 258.37
Roses are Red
, from a letter to Corey Washington, December 4, 1983.38 “almost like having,” from an appearance on
The Charlie Rose Show
, March 27, 1997.39 “A mite better than,” from Alan Lelchuk,
Miriam in Her Forties
(New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1985), at 329.40 “It’s really ulcer-city,” from a letter to William Kennick, February 4, 1985.
41 “It seems sort of cheaty,” from a letter to Corey Washington, July 15, 1983.
43 “Blob-like” and “out of control,” from a letter to William Kennick, February 4, 1985.
44 “I got to wondering,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 21, 1986.
44 “the loss of the whole external world,” from the McCaffery interview.
44 “The world is everything,” from Ludwig Wittgenstein,
Tractatus Logico-Philosophus
(New York: Cosimo Classics, 2010) at § 1.44 “This book will perhaps,” from Wittgenstein’s
Tractatus
, at 27.45 “the sensitive tale,” from the McCaffery interview.
Chapter 3: “Westward”
50 “Instead of the ‘guru’ system,” from a letter by Mary Carter, February 12, 1985.
50 “I don’t have any money,” from a letter to John Leggett of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, April 9, 1985.
53 “a vast sprawl,” from Pynchon,
Crying of Lot 49,
at 14.53, “A real blast,” “I’m not ready or able,” “a kind of urine-yellow,” and “Perhaps only
54 half true,” from a letter to Corey Washington, August 25, 1985.
54 “replete with poisonous spiders,” from a letter to William Kennick, undated, circa November 6, 1985.
54 “You use a propane torch,” from a letter to Corey Washington, August 25, 1985.
55 “trapping little inspirations,” from “Westward the Course of Empire Takes Its Way.”
55 “I love it here, Corey,” from a letter to Corey Washington, September 14, 1985.
57 “I was a prick,” from Loren Stein, “David Foster Wallace: In the Company of Creeps,”
Publishers Weekly
, May 3, 1999.60 “rung his cherries,” from an interview with Laura Miller for
Salon.com
, March 9, 1996.65 “I’ve been advised,” from a letter to Frederick Hill Associates, September 28, 1985.
66 “I defy you,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, November 7, 1985.
66 “I would have called myself Seymour Butts,” from a letter to Don DeLillo, circa February 2, 2001.
67 “as a newly hatched chick,” from Leon Neyfakh, “Gerry Howard on Discovering, Editing, and Hatching David Foster Wallace,
New York Observer,
September 17, 2008.67 “not, of course, letting her know,” from a letter to Corey Washington, December 30, 1985.
68 “If this seems fast” and “neurotic and obsessive,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 21, 1986.
68 “This Carver/Apple joke” and “The more you condense,” from a letter by Gerry Howard, January 10, 1986.
69 “while potentially disgusting” and “a whole set of readers’ values,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 19-20 1986.
70 “You cheat yourself,” from a letter by Gerry Howard, January 10, 1986.
70 “made an enormous, haunting impression,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 19-20, 1986.
70 “I admit to a potentially irritating,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 16, 1986.
70 “geriatrics emerge,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 16, 1986.
70 “I am young and confused,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 19-20, 1986.
71 “It is a great joy,” from a letter by Gerry Howard, to Bonnie Nadell, January 13, 1986.
71 “Rick, Lenore, and the G.O.D.,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 16, 1986.
74 “two broken cars limping across the desert,” from Gale Walden, “Road Trip,” published in
Wisconsin Review,
2010.74 “the next three years at least,” from a letter to Corey Washington, September 14, 1985.
76 “Wallace does not,” from an essay in
Wigwag,
republished in Sven Birkerts,
American Energies
(New York: Random House, 1994).77 “It’s hot, here,” from a letter to Corey Washington, July 13, 1986.
77 “copy-edit the copy-editor,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 29, 1986.
77 “Hoping Very Much I’ll Never,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, July 2, 1986.
77 “No autobiography, no cocaine,” from a letter by Gerry Howard to Don DeLillo, July 16, 1986.
77 “As wild elk produce many elkins” and “You must not,” from a letter by Richard Elman, February 20, 1986.
77 “I would be hard put,” from a letter by Richard Elman to Gerry Howard, December 19, 1986.
79 “going through both a lawsuit,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, March 28, 1987.
79, 80 “I got darned little work done” and “I leave at dawn,” from a letter to Corey Washington, September 6, 1986.
81 “a puerile Pynchon,” from
Kirkus Reviews
, January 1, 1986.81 “The guy seemed downright angry,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 2, 1987.
81 “Maybe they never found out,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 30, 1987.
81 “a hot book…a terrific novel,” from Rudy Rucker, “From the Mixed-Up Files of Lenore Beadsman,”
Washington Post
, January 11, 1987.81 “an enormous surprise,” from Caryn James, “Wittgenstein is Dead and Living in Ohio,”
New York Times
, March 1, 1987.82 “rich reserves,” from Michiko Kakutani, “Life in Cleveland, 1990,”
New York Times,
December 27, 1986.82 “I didn’t think,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 2, 1987.
82 “kind of down,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, January 2, 1987.
82 “Bonnie, I’ve never had more difficulty,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, March 28, 1987.
82 “You would think,” from Helen Dudar, “A Whiz Kid and His Wacky First Novel,”
Wall Street Journal
, April 24, 1987.83 “Nice, in a condescending way,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 30, 1987.
83 “I’m so nervous about the reading,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, March 28, 1987.
83 “The reading went really well,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 6, 1987.
84 “I guess the engagement,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 14, 1987.
84 “Could you give,” from a letter to Dale Peterson, circa April 18, 1987.
84 “I’m not interested in fiction,” quoted in William R. Katovsky, “Hang ’Im High,”
Arrival
, April 1987.85 “It was my first hint,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 170.85 “w/r/t the fact,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, April 25, 1988.
87 “try…to fuck,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 6, 1987.
87 “I am working on a lot,” from a letter to Dale Peterson, February 15, 1986.
87 “I think they’re good,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, February 11, 1986.
87 “Not a nice noise, Bonnie,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, September 7, 1987.
87 “too smart for its own good,” from Alice Turner, quoted in a letter to Bonnie Nadell, April 30, 1987.
87 “Wallace clearly is,” from a letter by C. Michael Curtis to Bonnie Nadell, June 2, 1986.
88 “cruising…at a wildly” and “Maybe to Breadloaf,” from a letter to JT Jackson June 9, 1987.
Chapter 4: Into the Funhouse
89 “God I feel lucky,” from a letter to JT Jackson, June 9, 1987.
90 “It is…important to” from John Barth, “Lost in the Funhouse” in
Lost in the Funhouse
(Anchor, 1988) at 74.90 “The diving would make” from Barth, “Lost in the Funhouse,” at 82.
91 “this tiny, infinitely dense thing,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course,
at 229.95 “I’ve never been,” from a postcard to JT Jackson, August 6, 1987.
96 “Who’s Who in the Cosmos 1987,”
Esquire
, August 1987.98 “like, a week,” from Patrick Arden, “David Foster Wallace Warms Up,”
Book Magazine
, 1999.98 “I’m sure page for page,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, September 20, 1987.
98 “in my view far and away” and “If the story seems pretentious,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, August 13-14, 1989.
99 “I actually cried in front,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, September 20, 1987.
99 “like a real person,” from a letter by Dale Peterson, August 7, 1987.
100 “less seedstrewn accommodations,” from a letter by Dale Peterson, July 27, 1987.
100 “Her little ticker didn’t,” from a letter by Dale Peterson, August 7, 1987.
100 “a horror show,” from the McCaffery interview.
100 “I wanted something,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, August 13-14, 1989.
101 “a kind of suicide note,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 61.101 “picked up a bit,” from a letter to JT Jackson, September 20, 1987.
101 “not really all that nice,” from a letter to Corey Washington, September 25, 1987.
101 “I’m squatting amid boxes,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, September 2, 1987.
101 “Please
please
get me,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, September 20, 1987.103 “I’m basically on my own,” from a letter to Forrest Ashby, September 13, 1987.
103 “The view from my apartment,” from a letter to a freind, November 9, 1987.
104 “just so
unbelievably
bad,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 62.104 “I’ve hurt not just me,” from a letter to a friend, November 9, 1987.
105 “gorgeous new poetesses,” from a letter to JT Jackson, September 20, 1987.
105 “I think I’ve again,” from a letter to Forrest Ashby, February 8, 1988.
105 “too hung over,” from a letter to Corey Washington, February 8, 1988.
106 “Much fiction,” from a letter by Alice Turner, April 29, 1988.
107 “p. 148 David,” from a letter to Gerry Howard, April 25, 1988.
109 “They didn’t even think,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 225.109 “daunting…but that obviously,” from a letter to Steven Moore, October 26, 1987.
112 “I miss the heat,” from a letter to Corey Washington, May 17, 1988.
113 “I’m enclosing a small,” from a letter to Dale Peterson, September 5, 1988.
115 “I’m having a lot of trouble,” from a letter to Jonathan Galassi, June 21, 1988.
116 “remote,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, September 11, 1988.
116 “By now I expect maybe you’ve heard,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, October 23, 1988.
117 “They were unpleasant,” from a letter to Rich C., December 30, 1988.
117 “Isn’t it a marvelous feeling,” from a letter by Gerry Howard, December 21, 1988.
118 “far and away the worst,” from a letter to Rich C., December 30, 1988.
118 “I have only very recently,” from a letter to Steven Moore, January 18, 1989.
118 “Personally I love sending,” from a letter to Brad Morrow, February 9, 1989.
119 “I figure if I ever,” from a letter to Brad Morrow, March 7, 1989.
119 “95% Portuguese and Brazilian,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, May 2, 1989.
120 “It’s lovely and crowded” and “I may well be,” from a letter to Steven Moore, April 17, 1989.
121 “the exact part of my nose,” from a letter to Steven Moore, May 1, 1989.
123 “Boston is
fun
,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, May 26, 1989.123 “fuck strangers,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 63.123 “I’m bogged down,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, May 2, 1989.
124 “You’d be surprised,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, May 11, 1989.
125 “Alice has been marvelous,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, May 26, 1989.
125 “was not meant to carry,” from a letter to Steven Moore, August 18, 1989.
125 “Stay Fly, and Shit,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, July 5, 1989.
126 “The thing I like about,” from a letter to Steven Moore, May 12, 1989.
126 “carve out two days,” from a letter to Steven Moore, May 25, 1989.
126 “Fine prep. For the innumerable,” from a letter to Steven Moore, August 18, 1989.
127 “looking into celibatee,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, August 22, 1989.
127 “Thank God I don’t,” from a letter to Kathe Burkhart, August 1, 1989.
127 “You seem doomed,” from a letter to Kathe Burkhart, August 24, 1989.
127 “toddle off with my Get Smart,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, undated, circa summer 1989.
127 “intro german plus,” from a letter to Steven Moore, May 12, 1989.
128 “short journalistic version,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, August 22, 1989.
128 “horribly long,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, August 22, 1989.
128 “This magazine is way,” from a letter by Alice Turner, July 5, 1989.
128 “confusion, misunderstanding, deception,” from a letter to Alice Turner, July 11, 1989.
128 “I must say,” from a letter by Alice Turner, July 17, 1989.
128 “too much impressed,” from
Kirkus Reviews
, July 15, 1989.128 “a real brown helmet,” from a letter to Brad Morrow, July 3, 1989.
128 “a dynamic writer of extraordinary talent,” from Jenifer Levin, “Love Is a Federal Highway,”
New York Times
, November 5, 1989.129 “What is the fiction writer,” from an essay in
Wigwag,
republished in Sven Birkerts,
American Energies
(New York: Random House, 1994).129 “A lot of it is like being,” from a letter to Steven Moore, September 5, 1989.
130 “the best young writer going,” from a letter to Steven Moore, May 1, 1989.
130 “simply separates sock from pod,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, May 2, 1989.
130 “more than a bubble,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, May 25, 1989.
130 “By merely abstracting,” from a letter by Jonathan Franzen, July 22, 1989.
131 “This Jonathan Franzen guy,” from a letter to Steven Moore, August 25, 1989.
131 “sentimental pretentious pseudo-autobiographical,” and “extensively explained dislike,” from a letter to Jonathan Franzen, August 13/14, 1989.
132 “The book is not yet out,” from a letter to Bonnie Nadell, November 1, 1989.
132 “a kind of shrill,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 229.132 “This book is dying,” inscription in book for Rich C., October 17, 1989.
133 “as though the entire,” from Lipsky,
Although of Course
, at 68.134 “The lovely medical staff,” from a letter to Brad Morrow, October 30, 1989.