‘Fight Club’ Author Chuck Palahniuk on David Bowie: “Young Americans” Helped Him Get Book Deal

Before Fight Club author Chuck Palahniuk was Chuck Palahniuk he was a struggling writer just like the rest of us. One key difference between us, however, is that David Bowie actually helped him get a book deal...kind of. It seems that putting "Young Americans" on repeat at a bar got him a meeting with a famed editor, and thus a pretty wonderful book deal.

Palahniuk recently penned a piece for Rolling Stone in which he discusses the late singer and the influence he had on him. The mind behind Invisible Monsters admits that as Bowie made a stopover in Portland for a concert back in 1986, Palahniuk could hear him rehearsing from his apartment, which ultimately led to a mini-dance party.

"He'd sing most of 'Young Americans' and stop," Palahniuk writes. "Then from the beginning. Over and over. All afternoon, my friends and I were in a music video, dancing on our perfect Hollywood backlot street, drinking beer and enjoying a concert none of us could afford to attend."

He then calls the repetition of "Young Americans," as well as the beer and sunshine, "hypnotic."

Ten years later, who would have known that David Bowie would be the one to grab Chuck Palahniuk the break he had been looking for. From the piece, it appears that famed editor Gerald Howard was appearing in Washington at a writers' convention. And while Palahniuk still had no money to go, he did track down Howard at his hotel room after the conference. And to get himself past the hopeful novelists—"three deep"—Palahniuk asked the bartender for $10 in quarters and decided to put "Young Americans" on the juke box...over and over and over.

"Soon everyone left, and I had Gerry to myself. Eventually I sold him Fight Club and 15 more books."

He ends his piece thanking Bowie, calling him his "hero" and "role model," and finally, by noting, "I will miss you very much."

Find the whole piece at Rolling Stone.