The revelation, in a now-deleted "audio blog" on his website ends a long-running media cat-and-mouse game.
The buzz among writers in the Pacific Northwest is Chuck Palahniuk's awkward admission to having carried on a long affair with another man.
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"A sinister cabal of superior writers."
Article comments
26 - Jack's rage
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27 - Jack's rage
Sorry about typing the letter a one time, but I just write a response (the same one I'm about to write again.) and the figgin page wouldn't open.
Anyway, The idea that Chuck Palahniuk wrote Fight Club as a way of compensating is a load of shit.
Chuck went on a camping trip with his buddies, and the people next to their camp site were really drunk and playing loud music. Chuck went over there to ask them to quiet down and one of the drunk college kids punched him in the face. Chuck's friends saw what was happening and started fighting when the other drunk kids got involved. When Chuck went back to work with a few cuts and bruises people treated him differently. They eiter looked at him judgementally or tried there hardest not to look directly at him. This inspired him to write what is now chapter six of his novel Fight Club.
If all you do is pay atention to the violence, then you are missing the story. You miss all the comments made about our society today and, ironically, the way males deal with insecurities and feelings of worthlessness.
Also, Chuck has written many books besides Fight Club that deal with other issues, so may be you should read those before you go psycho-analyzing him.
Try to remember that it is FICTION! He writes in characters and shows things from their perspective.
Just because an actor is gay doesn't mean he plays every character gay.
28 - Travis
A man can be a man, even if he loves another man...and YES, people will view him differently than before, because that's just the way the world is. I know many an American man that will step away from the Fight Club book in as manly a manner as possible, shrilly screaming, "EW! WRITTEN BE A GAY MAN!" just to preserve his masculinity and pride.
Anyway, I would really like Chuck Palahniuk to write fiction through the eyes of a homosexual man (or woman, for that matter) - he doesn't have to be flamboyant, and she doesn't have to be butch, in that stereotypical way, just -gay-. It would be interesting to compare it to his other works, considering that Chuck's already written through the eyes of a straight man and a straight woman.
29 - Jaime Nichols
I'm 35, and I think Chuck Palahniuk's novels are about as good as having an anvil dropped on your head every couple of pages, whether he's gay or not.
I agree with Eric, though - the rub here lies in the dissonance, and actually, I think this little bit of dissonance does make his novels marginally more interesting... but only marginally.
30 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
i'm late to this, but i must say Chuck Palhuniuk is one of very, very VERY few novelists whose work i will buy the second it becomes availabile, regardless of the topic.
Same goes for his non-fiction essay collection and the portland book, too. i can lose myself in that fella's style, is the truth of it all, although it did get a bit repetitive after a while. pretty soon a fella realises all his books tell the same damn story. diary seemed to rectify that somewhat, and his latest, the one about the actors, appears to be a step further.
but i haven't found it yet, unfortunately. i dunno if its out yet, even.
ha. a pun, is what.
31 - Lost in Space
I don't believe in "outing" people, as I firmly believe that being gay is something that an individual needs to accept and deal with in his own time. However (and I am a gay man), last night I watched CP's documentary ("Postcards from the Future"), and was a little disturbed by what I saw. This is obviously a man who enjoys being in the limelight and encourages it... he frequently told budding writers in the doc to "write what they know." He also spoke about the media teaching people how to think (e.g., "Britney Spears is beautiful"). There's also an account by him about discovering masturbation as a kid and deciding "he'd be able to make some money out of it." I'm beginning to see that this is a guy who is packaging himself to be a star, rather than writing about what he knows, who he is or what he's experienced in his life. I can certainly understand his concerns about being "ghetto-ized," but how much of that is in order to continue to collect money and fans than being true to himself in his writing or in the public eye? Come on... how could someone have an affair with another man for 11 years, keep it a secret, and then tell others to "write what they know" or feel? The fact that he became so angry (and then actually DELETED IT later) at being outed by EW's interviewer shows how much the gay side of his life is an issue to him.
Is CP a good writer? Yes! Is he "compensating?" YES... if you can't see the obvious in "Fight Club," read "Guts..." if this isn't an account of Catholic guilt re: anal sex, I don't know what would be.
I'm beginning to feel that the cult of C.P. and J.P. Leroy have a lot in common... they're both a nicely packaged hoax to make as much money off the public as they can.
32 - Juboq Hang
It matters. It does define who you are, and what you keep hidden from everyone else if you choose to hide it. Obviously CP thinks that he's being outed is reason enough to be a dick, but Fight Club shows what his mind is capable of, and that ain't pretty.
33 - Richard Turner
Dude, Chuck Palahniuk is a gifted novelist no matter what his sexual preference is. I'm a 40 year old hard core tough straight man. Fight Club is a great story and is more than just fighting. Being a disabled military veteran I understand mental illness. You Rock Chuck!
34 - narodnikkki
knowing of his being gay only made me admire and respect him more. i am a straight guy btw.