Happy Old Year

I know, I'm egomaniacal and need to take a break. But but but. I knew I had a review of my short story collection, American Cool coming out in the new Romantic Times magazine. Online, you can see the rating, but not the text. It got 4 and a half stars, which is really good. But I went out yesterday and picked up the magazine to read the text. Here it is:

DiPlacido's characters are risk-takers and rebels. While not all of these stories fit the erotica genre, they are well written, unique and fascinating. Realistic jargon paints the settings, and the use of unusual points of view is refreshing. A bit like a literary Pulp Fiction, this book offers a glimpse into the exciting, sometimes dangerous lives of people living on the edge. Reviewed by Jennifer R. Wells-Marani

I've conveniently bolded the part that makes me ooze. I can't stand it. I've had friends say a few Tarantinoish things about my stuff before, which I greatly appreciate. But I also sort of brush it off, because, let's face it, I have great friends I figured they'd say things I'd like to hear. But I don't know this person at all! She doesn't know me at all, so she'd have no idea that I'd wanna hear that. She just sort of plucked out that reference all on her own. Once, another unknown reviewer said a different book of mine had a When Harry Met Sally flavor, which was written by Nora Ephron. I loved that, too.

I love those comparisons to films because that's what I try for. I don't try to replicate movies, but I try to write so that it feels like you're watching a movie, not reading a book. Which is to also say, if I'm to be bluntly honest, that I love reading and have certain writers who are very influential upon me. But none are as influential to me as movies and screenwriters are when it comes to my own writing.

To be honest, I don't think I have that Tarantino vibe in my own stuff, because let's face it, Pulp Fiction was a seminal piece of filmmaking and storytelling. I simply don't have the chops that QT has when it comes to character and plotting. Nor does my stuff really have the bang-per-page (or reel) that his does in action. I mean, he's Quentin Tarantino.

But, when it comes to influence and education, maybe I did pick up on and learn a few of his tricks and was able to incorporate them. And that's not a bad thing. I mean, there wouldn't be a Tarantino without Scorsese before him. (and so on, and so on.) And maybe I do sometimes capture the "movie" feel that I'm going for. I can't say I ever set out to write something specifically Tarantinoish or Nora Ephronish. I try to write my own stuff, which someday I hope will be DiPlacidoish. But it's both gratifying and really quite a charge to have something like that said, because that's a piece of art that I so admire.

Now I'll stfu about myself. Thank you.