Richard Price could not have looked any more like the humble, urban characters that are so typically featured in his works even if he had tried. Everything from the author’s tousled graying hair to his yellow-checkered shirt and jeans suggested mundaneness, but his words revealed otherwise.
“I saw things you wouldn’t see anywhere else,” said Price about the time he spent with police officers as research for the novel Lush Life. “I hung out with everybody.”
A novelist, screenwriter, and the Fall 2010 Harman Writer-in-Residence, Price gave a reading and discussion at Baruch College. The event, co-sponsored by the Weissman School of Arts and Sciences, was held in the conference room of the library building and received a large turnout. Students, adults, professors, and faculty filled the room until it became standing room only.
As the reception began, Professors Jeff Peck, Roslyn Bernstein, and Tim Aubry each went up to the podium to deliver greetings and opening remarks. After Professor Aubry’s introduction of Price, the author took to the stage himself, where he began with a reading of an excerpt from Lush Life.
Speaking in a wry tone, Price’s reading brought his sharp writing and street dialogue to life, eliciting chuckles from the audience. After Lush Life, Price read an excerpt from a new book about Harlem that he is currently working on. Featuring a long, rambling, religious monologue from a “prophetess” character, the reading was replete with farce and pop-culture references to Janet Jackson as well as Chris Brown and Rihanna. Loud and appreciative laughter rang out from the audience as Price went through his rant without pause.
After the readings (and a smattering of enthusiastic applause), Price opened up a question and answer session, as well as a discussion of his writing methodologies and career.
Price was open and frank about many aspects of being a writer, and often injected his answers with a dose of dry humor.
“It’s hell,” said Price about the writing process and the struggle to stay on point while writing as part of a career. “Some writers pop ‘em out like toast.”
Many of the questions were geared towards Price’s research methods, specifically how much time he spent or how close he was with his sources, and how he wrote the dialogue afterward.
“I spend time with them, not really study them,” said Price. “It’s intuitive. Everyone has their own sense of humor and sarcasm. You have to be interested in who you write about.”
Price also discussed his fascination with and abiding love for New York City, a common setting and inspiration for many of his works. He believes that “setting and place is a character” and explained how the dynamics of city life influenced his writing on Lush Life, which revolves around an unsolved murder.
“Worlds colliding are the only time people come together when they’re otherwise apart or isolated,” said Price in regards to murder, violence and its consequences on human interaction.
Writing on topics of interest was a key point that Price stressed, both as a writer and as a teacher. He emphasized that writers do not need to overwhelm themselves with reporting and fact-checking so long as they knew “the difference between the plausible and the absurd.”
“Get an impression, a sense, and then make things up,” explained Price. “It’s very hard for a writer who believes in reporting his book to write or finish it.”
Having written eight books, ten screenplays, and a multitude of other published works Price related that most writers are never fully satisfied with their completed work. However it is up to the writer to determine an endpoint and resist the urge to hold on to and constantly edit the material.
“Art is let go of. It’s never finished,” he offered.