An Interview With Creative Nonfiction Writer Augusten Burroughs
by Litsa Dremousis
"I believe I control the world with my mind," Augusten Burroughs writes in the title essay of his new collection, Magical Thinking: True Stories. And who’s to say he doesn’t? Having survived a tumultuous childhood and an early career as an advertising copywriter while struggling with alcoholism, Burroughs—now a bestselling author—has indeed controlled his world. Magical Thinking is his fourth book in as many years, taking its place alongside Sellevision, his satirical novel about cable television’s home shopping networks, and his memoirs, Running With Scissors and Dry.
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Massachusetts Family Sues Author Augusten Burroughs
A lawsuit recently filed in Massachusetts accuses author Augusten Burroughs of defamation, invasion of privacy, emotional distress, and fraud. The lawsuit, filed by the Turcotte family, contends that Burroughs’s memoir, Running With Scissors ( St. Martin’s Press, 2002), includes false information about themselves and the late Dr. Rodolph Turcotte, a psychiatrist who took custody of Burroughs at age 9. Also named in the lawsuit are Burroughs’s editor, agent, and publisher. The Turcotte family (changed to Finch in the book) is asking that the book no longer be published as a work of nonfiction. They are also requesting a public statement that it is not a memoir. Burroughs has not commented on the lawsuit. A movie adaptation of Running With Scissors, featuring Annette Bening and Gwyneth Paltrow, is set to be released next year.
