PROBE
Harry Harrison
(continued)
Interview by Alyce Wilson
I guess the use of humor is probably one way of...
Humor is a great communicator. I mean, some of my translators despair at my puns and things, but they'll keep your readers happy. There are a lot of readers who say, "Oh, Harry, ha, ha, ha." And they turn the page, and I have them very, very happy.
I was going to ask you about adaptations of science fiction into movies,
like Soylent Green. Why do you think, especially with someone who
is so visual, as you are, why do you think it goes wrong, so to speak?
Well, there's nobody intelligent in Hollywood. And some of the directors are wonderful and actors are good, at that level. It's the morons who control the money.
They never hire anyone who knows anything about writing. I mean, they have a multimillion dollar picture, and they never let the author get involved in his own work. The studio doesn't.
What advice would you have for those who do want to be the next Harry
Harrison?
I try to dissuade writers who write. I say, "You're not very good."
Because if you want to be a writer, you will ignore dissuasion. You'll
work very hard. And you'll never know where the next generation of writers
comes from. So I say, keep doing it, sending it out. Keep writing. Do
your best.
Send the stuff out to the editors. If you don't make it, well, you don't make it. But if you have had a little light, a little spark of communication... speaking of editors, there's not a lot of good stuff around. Many times I published stories that were just adequate, to fill the magazine. I edited a lot of magazines, too. So I know where I speak.
So there is hope, then? For the writer?
Yes, there's hope. Don't give up and despair quite yet. Try first. Try first and despair second. That's my key word.
Who are you reading now?
I read everything. Non-fiction, historical, thrillers. I keep a thriller by my bed to read every night. Ten pages and I fall asleep with my headphones on, you know. I like to go to sleep to a little bit of murder, you know. They're very good for relaxing by.
Any all-time favorites? Books?
No. Only the obvious ones. I mean, all the early people in science fiction, of course, Heinlein and those and all the major writers of science fiction. I know a lot of good authors.
You know, normally, good writers are good people. You find that out. If the books are warm and funny, the guy is sort of warm and funny.
You said there's a sense of community, not just among fans but among
writers.
Yes. The people working in the same thing, they have a sense of identity together. I mean, different writers write different kind of things, but you know, the whole act of creativity is a pretty original thing to do. And you're the same kind of people.
