And if this stuff can be sort of vented in a consensual controlled situation like a fight club, I just see that as an improvement. He has been moved, however, by readers' accounts of how the book encouraged them to take more control of their lives. People are coming up and thanking me. It wasn't so long ago that Palahniuk himself had given up all hopes of becoming a writer. I had sort of told myself that someday when I retire, I might try to write a book.
People die before retirement.
So I started writing. Six years later, Palahniuk's writing is an increasingly sought-after commodity in Hollywood. I think that's a really powerful thing to be there to prove. Sarah Tomlinson is a freelance writer in Boston. All rights reserved.