Three Writers who both Interest me and make me feel Inadequate.

From what you'll hear about professional writing, the vocation's a bit like selling Furbees at a garage sale: it's hard to get anyone interested in what you're pushing, and even harder to get someone to pay for it. For those reasons and more, I've constructed a small list of the professional writers who not only interest me, but make me feel greatly inadequate.


Larry David

Certainly most well known for the co-creation of the sitcom Seinfeld (perhaps you've heard of it), David's done what many aspiring writers daydream about over their Starbucks mochachinos: made a successful living in television writing. But the writer's prosperity isn't accidental; Larry David has an exceptional knack for constructing outlandish comedic scenarios and tying together intricate pretzel plots (remember "The Bizzaro Jerry"?). For these reasons, David is a professional writer whom I find very interesting.

Larry David is currently working as executive producer on the HBO sitcom Curb Your Enthusiasm. For more information on this writer, you can visit his International Movie Database profile at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0202970/.


Dave Barry

Heavily syndicated columnist and steadfast advocate of the "booger joke," Barry wrote a humor piece for the Miami herald from 1983-2005. The writer's columns would typically put bizarrely humorous spins on topical issues and chronicle nuanced stories from Barry's life. Perhaps what I find the most interesting about Dave Barry was his ability to maintain a high level of quality over such an extended period of time and his adherence to his central writing style over the entire duration. Through his 22 years working for the Miami Herald, Barry truly solidified his unique voice and rarely deviated from it. For this reason I find Dave Barry to be a fascinating writer and an outstanding role model.

To soak up a little more information on Dave Barry, check out his website at http://www.davebarry.com/


John Swartzwelder

A long time television writer and short time novelist, Swartzwelder is responsible for nearly a sixth of all the Simpson's episodes. Watching the writer's installments, you can really get a feeling for Swartwelder's irreverent sense of humor. Yet even if he wasn't a shade funny of Bobcat Goldthwait, it wouldn't make a difference- Swartzwelder's written 60+ episodes for one of the longest running television sitcoms in history. Like Dave Barry, Swartzwelder's a writer that I find inspiring for his longevity as a professional writer and his adherence to his own writing style and humor. Without a doubt, John Swartzwelder is one of my greatest role models.

Swartzwelder still serves as a writer and consultant for the Simpsons. For such an accomplished writer though, Swartzwelder is remarkably mysterious. Finding a photo of the writer is a daunting task, while sniffing out any personal info. is twice as difficult. Regardless, a little more insight into John Swartzwelder's career can be found at his International Movie Database page at http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0841990/.


Finally- at last you can relieve the crippling pain of not knowing which professional writers I, eh... kinda like. In the future, I plan on penning even more revealing and informative posts such as, "My most Inspirational Cheeses," and "Hunka, Hunka Burnin' Hair!: why I can't use Hair Spray Anymore." Keep posted because, who knows, maybe I'll be making you feel inadequate some day :-).