Dennis Lehane grew up in a storytelling, bar culture. For him, storytelling was in his blood. Family would gather every week, telling stories of the Old Country. “I think I just grew up in the thrall of that,” he told me. “I wrote my first novel when I was 15.”

As an author, Dennis is known for Mystic River, Shutter Island, and The Drop, all novels that have been turned into films. In addition to novels, he’s written for The Wire, Boardwalk Empire, Mr. Mercedes, The Outsider, and most recently, Apple’s Black Bird.

In this interview, the author-screenwriter talks about being exposed to violence, what it means to be ceased by an idea, why he outlined Shutter Island but none of his other novels, his friendships with Stephen King and David Simon, and why good television can actually be trickier to write than novels.

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