Alissa Bennett on Fucking with Injections, Cemeteries, Edith Wharton, and more.
February 28, 2023
Alissa Bennett is a New York City-based writer and legendary zine maker, and she co-hosts “The C-Word” podcast with Lena Dunham. She’s been mentioned on this newsletter by Zach, Ivy, and Lena, which probably makes her the most recommended person to also be a guest 🏆, iconic. Alissa recently wrote the foreword for McNally Edition’s forthcoming reprint of Ursula Parrott’s 1929 novel Ex-Wife, which she says is “for real for real not to miss”. Bennet also has a great Instagram (@regret_counter) that she calls “The Museum of Bad Behavior” and it’s full of regret lists from anonymous submitters’ last hard night out. Lucky for us, Alissa is here to tell us what she’s been into.
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If there are two things my work is nothing without, they are my Newspapers.com subscription and my extensive collection of what I like to refer to as “pile of shit celebrity biographies.” There are a number of basic qualities that you should look for if you want to build a museum-worthy library of gossip: low print run , publishers you’ve never heard of, a relationship to The National Enquirer, and 20 point type. These books are usually written by deranged fans , disgruntled former associates , or alienated family members, and they are often accompanied by CDs that you will never listen to. Be careful not to get duped by the self-published literature that comes out in the immediate aftermath of a celebrity death: these books are often less than 20 pages long, and you are going to be disappointed! I’ve been had by these unscrupulous death scammers more than once and it always gives me a laugh, but beware the novice collector.