What is your go-to pen(cil)? The Montblanc 149 fountain pen that I lost on a Delta flight 30 years ago. I’m living with throwaways until I get over the guilt of losing it.
Most beautiful word in all the world: Oui.
Alter ego: Marcello Mastroianni in La Dolce Vita.
What’s for dinner? Porky’s Revenge pizza from Wildwood Pizza in Alexandria, LA.
What’re you reading? John le Carré’s A Legacy of Spies, Best American Poetry 2017, re-reading Tom Wolfe’s Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test.
Who is your most-recent writer crush? Janna Levin because of Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space.
Song lyrics stuck in your head, go: “The screen door slams. Mary’s dress waves,” “If you want me I’ll be in the bar,” “I was raised in the country. I been working in the town. I been in trouble ever since I put my suitcase down.” “We talked about unbuckling that old bible belt and headed out to some desert town.”
You’re a new edition to the Crayola box. Congratulations. What is your new name? Pasty White.
What are you putting off? Shorter list: What am I not putting off?
What was the last gift you gave someone? A t-shirt with a diagram of the now-defunct Briggs Stadium to a friend who is a Detroit Tiger fan.
What were you like as a college or graduate student? Distracted.
Here’s your free ticket. Where are we going? Petit Jean Mountain in Arkansas, Mendocino, Glacier National Park, a cabin outside of Burnsville, NC. Okay, it’s Paris, right?
Optional Doodle: “And as for the doodle, I prefer the Yankee variety.”
Jim Clinton is President and CEO for the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance (CLEDA), a non-profit organization dedicated to creating more and better economic opportunities in Central Louisiana. CLEDA focuses on business recruitment, retention and expansion; workforce development; entrepreneurial development and regional innovation. He serves on the boards of directors of the Louisiana Policy Institute for Children, America’s Kitchen Table, and the Regional Economic Alliance of Louisiana. He is a member of the Louisiana State University Press Advisory Board. His book of verse, What Is Fair, was published by Louisiana State University Press. His poetry, criticism and essays have been published regionally and nationally.
The Minnesota Review 