We who curate our Twitter feeds and Facebook walls understand that at least part of what we're doing publicly, 'like'-ing what we like, is trying to separate ourselves from the herd.

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• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  Writers since at least the heyday of Gore Vidal have bemoaned their audience's defection to other f

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  In college, I was a huge fan of 'Les Miserables.' I seem to remember that people who were into Fren

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  For some reason, I spent my early thirties reading as much postwar Hungarian fiction as I could get

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  I came to feel that, in addition to Imre Kertesz, Hungary has produced at least three contemporary

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  Sure, 'Les Miserables' can be melodramatic. And seeing the musical instead of reading the novel wil

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  I respect Billy Joel, but I'm not a guy who's gonna sit down and listen to the entire 'Essential Bi

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  I'm not confident in my own ability to resist the titanic force of my own ego.

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  The ego being shattered is not what frightens me - that can be useful for writing - but the ego bei

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  I associated excellence in writing with New York City.

• Garth Risk Hallberg:

  I don't quite know why, but I am long-winded.