The first I heard of michaeldeshazer was
through an email he sent to WEbook.
Michael said he spent his afternoons in Union Square Park writing and
promoting his self-published books. He’d
just discovered WEbook, and he wanted to know if we could give him some fliers
to hand out to folks he met in the park.
What a way to get noticed!
WEbook sent an emissary to Union Square Park to meet michaeldeshazer and give him some schwag. Since then, I’ve received no fewer than five (5) messages nominating Michael for WEbooker of the WEek – a record for a single WEbooker. So, who is this masked man?
To begin with, michaeldeshazer is the author of Pieces, a “non-linear” novel currently in contention to become the next published WEbook. He is also the project leader of Kick the Bucket, a collection of imagined last words by WEbookers far and wide. This project is also vying for publication.
Michael has been writing poetry since middle school, and he started writing fiction in high school. He wrote his first novel the summer before his senior year. In 2006, he moved to New York City to attend college, where he met author Karen E. Quinones Miller. Karen advised him to live only to improve his writing. Says Michael, “I did just that.”
What happened next is a little unusual. Michael moved in with five of his best friends, “who just so happened to be strippers,” and started taking Karen’s advice. The summer before his sophomore year, he wrote a book of thought-provoking jokes called NC-17. His novel Pieces is his most recent work.
Because he writes and sells his books from a park bench in Union Square Park, Michael calls himself the “Park Bench Writer.” However, he says: “Even when I don’t have to sell my books on the streets and in the park, I’ll still be the Park Bench Writer, because the park bench represents the lowest point of my life – when I slept on them – and the greatest period of hope in my life – selling my words and my dreams on park benches.”
Speaking frankly about his experiences with self-publishing,
michaeldeshazer
says, “It sucks. Don’t do it unless you
really believe in your writing and you absolutely can’t see yourself doing
anything else.” Michael hopes to get published through
WEbook, but, more importantly, he also hopes to improve his writing through
the community’s critiques, and to build relationships with and learn from
people who love writing as much as he does.
In the meantime, he kindly answered WEbook’s inane questions:
Q: What's the last funny joke you heard?
A: Waitress: What do you call a cow with
no legs?
Me: I don't know (even though I did).
Waitress: Ground beef.
You had to be there.
Q: When was the last time you lost
your temper?
A: I was doing
laundry at 3:00 a.m. a couple blocks from my apartment. After I put my clothes
in the washer, I decided to go home and twiddle my thumbs there as opposed to
the musty Laundromat. En route to my
apartment, I witnessed a drive-by shooting. When I arrived home, I called 911
and reported it. I knew the approximate location, but I wasn't sure of the
address of the house it occurred in front of. For this reason, the dispatcher
explained, she could not send any units to the scene. I lost my temper when I
realized I was trying to convince the police department to investigate a murder
scene.
Q: What are your daily writing
habits?
A: I take notes on
everyday occurrences, and then once a month or so, I sit down with those notes,
and create some form of prose. I also blog semi-regularly.
Q: What's your favorite WEbook
project not started by you?
A: 6 Word Stories,
the Sequel
Q: Describe where you see yourself
in 5 years – using only 5 words.
A: Eye wanna right reel whale.
Do you have a line on the wonderfullest writer on WEbook? The fantastickest feedbacker? Or anyone else who goes above and beyond to make WEbook the best writing, reading, and publishing community on the internet? Drop me an email, or visit my profile and send me a message with the title "WEbooker of the WEek" to nominate your favorite WEbooker and he or she will have a shot at joining the ranks of the immortals -- and getting a free WEbook T-shirt to boot.
Sign up for WEbook today and start reading, writing, and feedbacking.
-- Melissa
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