I’m enjoying reading the essays Amazon has collected for Writers Under the Influence, an online collection of pieces by writers on the books that have most affected them. I suggest entering via the main page, as the navigation between individual essays is, to use a technical term, suck-ass. (One other quibble: There’s a strong editorial voice to the introductions to the contributors — “We got sozzled with Steve Elliott at BEA,” etc. — but no explanation, that I could see, as to who “we” is/are.) Still, I liked seeing that in addition to Elliott, there are contributions by George Saunders, Heidi Julavits, David Amsden, Aleksandar Hemon, and Cintra Wilson, along with others.

Impressions so far: I’m going to take Julavits up on the recommendation to read Marianne Wiggins, but, girlfriend, what’s up with all the staccato? The essay is a minefield of “?”s and “!”s. I know I sometimes employ this style myself, which is probably why I’m sensitive to it, but it’s been ringing false to me lately, as if the writing were coked up instead of genuinely animated. Do you know what I mean? Really, some in-depth time with the sustained elegant measures of Edith Wharton might be in order.