Invisible Monsters
Charles Michael Palahniuk was born February 21st 1962 in Pasco Washington. He claims his heritage has roots in both France and Russia, though his name is Ukrainian. He was raised in a mobile home in Burbank, California. He also spent much of his childhood on his grandparent’s cattle ranch in eastern Washington.
After high school he received a BA in journalism from the University of Oregon. From there he moved to Oregon and began writing for local newspapers. Shortly later he switched jobs and started working as a diesel mechanic for freightliners. For the next thirteen years Chuck began writing while still keeping his job as a mechanic. He would constantly scribble notes on scraps of paper and write short stories in his spare time. At some points Chuck would lean over the front of cars and write by flashlight while coworkers thought he was fixing engines. Chuck also participated in a lot of volunteer work. He worked in homeless shelters and as an escort for terminally ill patients in a hospice. However, he quit when a patient he had become close friends with died. (Biography: Chuck Palahniuk)
Chuck’s desires to write began far before adulthood. As a child he was bothered night, after night by insomnia. To cope, he began reading. Some nights he would read through the night, without sleep, and go to school the next day. (Chuck Palahniuk) Years later Chuck joined a group known as the Cacophony Society. They described themselves as “a randomly gathered network of individuals united in the pursuit of experiences beyond the pale of mainstream society through subversion, pranks, art, fringe explorations and meaningless madness”. Many activities that Chuck witnessed and participated in while apart of the group helped to inspire many of his works. In 1999 Chuck found out that his Father and his Father’s girlfriend were brutally murdered. He would later use writing as a way to cope with his emotions about the deaths. (Biography: Chuck Palahniuk)...