Bill Parker

Author/musician Bill Parker describes himself as a "cheeseburger & fries kind of guy" who possess "all the people skills of a rattlesnake." He names Stanley Booth, Eudora Welty, Sam Shepard, Peter Gent, Kurt Vonnegut, and William Goldman as his primary literary influences. He considers himself "just sort of a word machine." "I write about everyday sort of people, who aren't brilliant, stunningly beautiful, rich, extremely powerful/influential, amazingly talented or possess a super power. They do like to eat. William Goldman said you should write about what you love and what you know. Kurt Vonnegut said you should write in your own voice. As such, I write in the voice of a modestly educated guy from a quiet Chicago suburb, who's been around a bit. Sometimes I bring in more fanciful elements, but I don't turn my stories into wannabe versions of 'Harry Potter' or 'The Lord of the Rings.' I've described what I do as writing about what might, could, or should have been in locations that are blurred, mirror images of places I've lived or visited. That's still true. "