Jack Zipes

How did you become a writer? As soon as I could write and draw as a young boy, I began writing stories about dogs and baseball players. By the time I reached high school, I became the editor of my school newspaper.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.). It is difficult to name influences because there have been so many and because I cover many different fields. In fiction, I'd say Kafka and Camus have had a great influence. The German philosopher of Hope, Ernst Bloch, along with many other philosophers from the Frankfurt School of Critical Theory such as Herbert Marcuse and Theodor Adorno, have influenced me.

When and where do you write? I generally write from 6:30 am to 1:00 pm every day. Then in the afternoon, I read or do some chores.

What are you working on now? I have just finished a new collection of essays, Buried Treasures: The Political Power of Fairy Tales. At the same time, I have edited three volumes of fairy tales by the neglected, author Gower Wilson, who published them from 1929-1931 -- Red Fairy Tales, Green Fairy Tales and Silver Fairy Tales.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block? Not really. Writing has been my relief and sanctuary.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received? Write from  your heart and write to resist all the brutality in this perverted world.

What’s your advice to new writers? Never let anyone tell you how to write or advise you how to write.

Jack Zipes is Professor Emeritus of German and comparative literature at the University of Minnesota. In addition to his scholarly work, he is an active storyteller in public schools, founded Neighborhood Bridges at the Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis, and has written fairy tales for children and adults. Some of his recent publications include: The Irresistible Fairy Tale: The Cultural and Social History of a Genre (2012), and The Golden Age of Folk and Fairy Tales: From the Brothers Grimm to Andrew Lang (2013). Most recently he has published The Sorcerer’s Apprentice: An Anthology of Magical Tales (2017), and Fearless Ivan and His Faithful Horse Double-Hump (2018). In 2019, he founded his own press called Little Mole and Honey Bear and has published The Giant Ohl and Tiny Tim (2019), Johnny Breadless (2020), Yussuf the Ostrich (2020), Keedle the Great and All You Want to Know About fascism (2020), Tistou, the Boy with the Green Thumbs of Peace (2022), and Haunting and Hilarious Fairy Tales (2022).