Gini Koch
In no particular order: Terry Pratchett, Robert Silverberg, Charles Dickens, Robert Benchley, Dave Barry, A. Conan Doyle, O. Henry, P.J. O'Rourke, Mark Twain, Madeleine L'Engel... and then every other author I've ever read. I think we're influenced by everything we read, watch, etc. So everything I've ever read influenced me in some way, whether I loved it, loathed it, or didn't care much about it.
Specifically, O. Henry taught me how much can be done in a short story, A.Conan Doyle created my lifelong love of mysteries, Robert Silverberg showed me that you can write anything and everything and sound different while doing it, Madeleine L'Engel (and all those who wrote Nancy Drew mysteries, too) showed me that girls could be the heroes, Mark Twain showed how to do social commentary in an entertaining way, Dave Barry and P.J. O'Rourke make me laugh while still having something to say, Charles Dickens is a literary god for a variety of reasons, and Terry Pratchett taught me everything there was to learn about mixing humor into novels and still being able to hold a meaningful mirror up to society while writing an ever-growing, long-running series while at the same time creating a giant cast of indelible and beloved characters.
But Robert Benchley showed me, when I stumbled onto his humor collections decades after he was gone, that good humor is timeless. And for that I may love him most of all.
Specifically, O. Henry taught me how much can be done in a short story, A.Conan Doyle created my lifelong love of mysteries, Robert Silverberg showed me that you can write anything and everything and sound different while doing it, Madeleine L'Engel (and all those who wrote Nancy Drew mysteries, too) showed me that girls could be the heroes, Mark Twain showed how to do social commentary in an entertaining way, Dave Barry and P.J. O'Rourke make me laugh while still having something to say, Charles Dickens is a literary god for a variety of reasons, and Terry Pratchett taught me everything there was to learn about mixing humor into novels and still being able to hold a meaningful mirror up to society while writing an ever-growing, long-running series while at the same time creating a giant cast of indelible and beloved characters.
But Robert Benchley showed me, when I stumbled onto his humor collections decades after he was gone, that good humor is timeless. And for that I may love him most of all.
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