Eric Schnall won the Barbara DiBernard Prize in Fiction for his debut novel I Make Envy on Your Disco, which Alan Cumming called, “A love letter to Berlin, to travel, and to saying yes to life.”
In the novel, main character Sam is riddled with anxiety and a looming midlife crisis and decides to flee to Berlin. There, he expects isolation but discovers connections like he hasn’t experienced in years.
We asked the author to answer our recurring A Life of Books questionnaire so readers could get to know him better.
Is there a book or series that, when you think back, helped define your childhood?
The ‘I Love Lucy’ Book by Bart Andrews. I remember staying up all night reading this exhaustive history of the creation of Lucy and Desi’s iconic TV show. I was always obsessed with the entertainment industry. My idea of a good time as a twelve-year-old was a bottle of Coke and the latest issues of Billboard and Variety. And the Lucy book hit me from all sides—it’s an examination of good writing, how to put on a show, and of course, as a kid I absolutely loved I Love Lucy. The book goes deep into Lucy and Desi’s craft, and their complicated, wonderful relationship. One of the show’s head writers was a woman, and I still remember her name—Madelyn Pugh. Lucy and Madelyn were trailblazers, as was Desi. I’ve always loved reading stories—fiction and non—about creativity and innovation.
Would you want any children in your life (yours or relatives’) to read those too? Or, what’s your philosophy on what children read?
If they were interested in Lucy and the craft of truly great entertainment, then YES!
I discovered some of my favorite writers in high school. What writers did you discover then? Either ones that were assigned for class or ones you found on your own.
I vividly remember sitting in my parents’ living room, curled up on my Dad’s chair, devouring: Long Day’s Journey Into Night by Eugene O’Neill, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Sigmund Freud’s Introductory Lectures on Psychoanalysis. Each was assigned to me in school, and they all blew me to smithereens.
Are there any books that you read while writing your debut that helped shape the direction you took your own book?
Bright Lights, Big City by Jay McInerney was an influence for its sense of place, its immersive vision of a city, its distinctive, propulsive voice, and its creative risk-taking. Nick Hornby’s High Fidelity got under my skin with its chattiness, its incredible characters, and its ability to have a kick-ass soundtrack even though it was bound to the page. Ben Lerner’s Leaving the Atocha Station, with its lost and lonely yet very funny protagonist wandering the streets of Madrid, really spoke to me as I was writing my own novel about a wayward soul drifting through Berlin.. And a number of books that take place in Berlin made quite an impression. The OG, of course, is Christopher Isherwood’s Goodbye to Berlin, and it’s one of the few books that I’ve read over and over again. Other more contemporary takes on Berlin that I loved: Chloe Aridjis’ Book of Clouds, Lauren Oyler’s Fake Accounts, and, most recently, Bea Setton’s very dark and very funny Berlin.
What is a book you’ve read that you thought, Damn, I wish that was mine?
All of the above. Plus: A Visit to the Goon Squad and The Candy House by Jennifer Egan because, well, how does she do that?
What have you been reading lately that you can recommend to Debutiful readers?
Jennifer Belle’s Swanna in Love is hilarious and one of the best books I’ve read about growing up in New York City (even though it takes place almost entirely in Vermont). And Thomas Grattan’s In Tongues is sexy and gritty and beautifully written. I love a good New York novel. I’m currently devouring Miranda July’s All Fours and enjoying the very unpredictable ride.
And, finally, I have to ask… I’m sorry. What’s next? But wait! Only use three words.
Hopefully some sleep.
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