How did you first "meet" Mr. Wallace?

Maybe you did meet him in real life. At a book signing or something. In the classroom. At "church"*. But more likely it was in one of his books or essays.

A thread for first encounters.

I first met DFW on Sept. 24, 2001, when the L.A. Times ran a piece on him about his new move to the nearby Pomona College at the Claremont Colleges campus, where he'd recently begun his latest creative writing gig. After reading the article, I sensed there was something different about this guy, and I remained intrigued enough that the very next day I went out and bought IJ. Began reading it that night. And my reading life was inexorably changed.

Here's that article.

~~~~~

* DFWs code, in his personal essays, for A.A. or other 12-step meetings. Meaning, even if you did meet him there, you won't be posting about it here.

Met him (pike hoses) in the Salon in 2010.

I think I first read Wallace in Harper's. A short piece about men in the restroom. I am sure it is collected in one of his collections. I was struck by his vocabulary and the carfeulness of his choices of words - "sussurations" I recall in particular - and his minute observation of the subject. Wallace was in Harper's a lot and I enjoyed it everytime - but I never read a book of his until, a couple of years ago, Infinite Jest. I thought he was just a Sedaris kind of humorist but smarter.

I thought he was just a Sedaris kind of humorist but smarter

Me too! And maybe that's the greatest joke of all.

I was introduced to him at librarything. After seeing IJ mentioned a few times, I finally decided to give it a try. Some time late last year.

DFW cropped up on my radar a few years ago, but I thought he was just another crazy American with a Bandanna. It was our very own Freeeeeeky in the salon who really turned me on to him, though, in the previous group read we did there.

Lurking in a library basement somewhere. Or perhaps during a rerun of Hawaii 5-0(1) or Bob Newhart.(2) May or may not have been a cloud of smoke around. It was a long time ago. Decades.(3)

(1) Book 'em, Dano? Should it be "'em" or "them". Would someone with that hair say 'em?
(2) Bob!
(3) Back during the Year of the Smith-Corona(A) I believe.

(A) Obs. A wayward instrument which was neither pen nor processer.

6> John McEnroe was my favorite crazy American with a Bandanna. Or did he just wear a sweat band?

7> Oh I bet you could write your own DFW-bio, Sam.

I was in grad school in CA in 2006, and somehow got on a list to have a favorite author call me to remind me to vote. During one of the most awkward 2-minute conversations I've ever had, Jonathan Franzen told me, upon learning what town I was in, that his best friend (DFW) lived there, too. Just a few days thereafter, I picked up a copy of the Pomona alumni magazine laying about at the gym, and found "Consider the Lobster" inside. The rest is a history of gluttonous consumption of Things Foster Wallace (among other outcomes, resulting in Infinite Jest taking a top spot on my favorites shelf).

That's a great story, Katrinka!

a history of gluttonous consumption

Is that Wallace or you?

9: wow....

Steve Erickson's first contact with Wallace right here.

In Wallace’s fiction, every shard of existence seemed to be a thing of wonder; but that wonder clearly could not sustain an existence wracked by whatever it was that wracked his.

Thanks, EnriqueFreeque! The phrase is mine... Excellent thought by Erickson.

Picked up a collection of short stories on the remainder table at the local megastore. Was impressed. Later found Infinite Jest for2 dollars hardcover at The Bookseller after having paid full price for A Supposedly... (essays).

14> I'm going to guess, libraryhermit, that the remaindered story collection you first grabbed would've been Oblivion and not Brief Interviews with Hideous Men or Girl with Curious Hair? Did I nail it?

methimontheroadtodontaskus.

Were you blinded by Wallace's glory, Por-Man?

Or Tax-Man was it?

twasgokartmozart
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-sP_xrUF_RZA/T0RMqfBdyfI/AAAAAAAABdE/BfcHBlU5W4c/s1600/...

Someone in college recommended him to me. This was 1998 - 1999ish.

Also, found this Wallace much more likable than Mel Gibson's homophobic populist barbarian William Wallace, at least the Hollywood representation of that historical figure.

15> Oblivion. I didn't have the book right beside me at the time I wrote that post. Yes, you nailed it. (That doesn't say much for my memory, that I can't remember the name of a book that I read only a couple of years ago.)

Author Stephen Parrish explains how he was able to obtain and publish the transcript from the 10.26.08 memorial for Wallace held in Normal, IL, where he lived and taught for a decade. In attendance were many from the 12-step community who "worked the steps" alongside Wallace. Only their initials are given in the transcript to maintain AAs Credo of anonymity. This is an intriguing companion piece to Every Love Story is a Ghost Story, for those wanting more of an insider's perspective on the man:

http://www.stephenparrish.com/2011/01/memories-of-david-foster-wallace.html