The cult novelist on his home office in Chicago, where he wrote his latest novel, “A Decent Ride.”
I grew up in a small rabbit hutch of an apartment in the kind of municipal housing district that they call “projects” in the U.S. but are more tellingly referred to as “schemes” in Scotland. There was no room for bookshelves, so in the absence of somewhere to permanently reside, books tended to transition through our house and around the scheme. As a result, I like to have books about to delve into to inspire me; sometimes just a glance at the spine of a certain work will help.
My workspace in my Chicago home is usually ordered when I begin a project, but it descends into a mess of Post-it notes, photographs and articles stuck on the walls by the time I’m finished. (You’re catching me quite early on in the game here.) Music is very important in my writing. I have a playlist for each character and usually end up with a mixtape for every novel. Sometimes I get carried away and forget to write, but it’s never wasted, as something always resurfaces from my binges.
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