SOURCE: Stone, Robert, David Pink, and Chuck Lewis. “An Interview with Robert Stone.” Salmagundi 108 (fall 1995): 117-39.

In the following interview, Stone discusses the creation and characters of Outerbridge Reach, his approach to writing, his moral, political, and artistic concerns, American poetry, the formal education of writers, and the difficulty of the writing life.

We met with Robert Stone a couple of years ago at the Radisson Hotel in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. It was the last city in his national tour for Outerbridge Reach. He emerged from the lobby elevator wearing dark aviator glasses, a light dress shirt, gray slacks, and tennis shoes. We sat in a dark, quiet corner of the empty hotel lounge, set up our recorders, and told him a little about ourselves and our interest in his work. To break the ice we offered him one of the exotic sodas we'd brought along with us...