Friday, March 9, 2007

Paul Guyot

Paul Guyot has one of the more entertaining online bio pages I've read.

Here's the part about his writing gigs -- this is the Writers Read blog, after all -- but you're missing out if you don't click over and read about his early career path:
Paul was able to secure employment as a writer and has been fortunate enough to work with some incredibly talented people. He began writing for the short-lived David E. Kelley series Snoops where he worked with the “Bobby Orr of writing” Hart Hanson. Next came the WB’s Felicity where Paul wrote for J.J. Abrams. Contrary to rumor Paul is NOT the guy who suggested Keri Russell cut her hair. Paul then wrote for the UPN series LEVEL 9, where he got to match keystrokes with best selling author Michael Connelly.

Next, Paul spent three years as a writer/producer on the CBS drama Judging Amy where he was able to work with the legendary Barbara Hall, as well as Karen Hall—the most nominated female writer in television history—who taught Paul the most important rule of good writing: Don't ever use the word “nay” in any context. Ever.

These days Paul is an Executive Producer on Talk To Me, a pilot he wrote for TNT and Lion's Gate Studios.
I asked him what he's been reading. His reply:
I am a reading fiend. Or is it freak? I read multiple books at once, and have one with me all the time. Currently, in my car I'm listening to Dick Hill read Mike Connelly's The Last Coyote. I've read the book before, but the Bosch series is so good I love going back to certain titles after a few years. The Last Coyote is, for me, the quintessential Bosch book. For those that haven't read it in a long time, check it out again - it's worth it. And Dick Hill IS Harry Bosch.

In my briefcase I have Pegasus Descending by James Lee Burke. He is the Poet Laureate of crime fiction. And the Robicheaux series is one of the finest of all-time. I've heard some say Burke overwrites, but they haven't read him enough. Take this line for instance: "He made it as far as a lavender Cadillac where a man as big as the sky waited for him..." In five words Burke has described this character's physicality so perfectly that, though the image is different in each of our minds, we all see the exact same man.

And finally, by my bed is Unfinished Business: The Life and Times of Danny Gatton by Ralph Heibutzki. It's a biography of Danny Gatton, one of the finest guitar players the world has ever known. Gatton took his own life in 1994, and Unfinished Business is not only the name of his greatest album, but what he left behind.
Visit Paul Guyot's official website and check out his posts at Murderati.

--Marshal Zeringue