I believe implicitly that every young man in the world is fascinated with either sharks or dinosaurs.
I read very widely, both non-fiction and fiction, so I don't think there's a single writer who influences me.
Writing is sweat and drudgery most of the time. And you have to love it in order to endure the solitude and the discipline.
Since writing JAWS, I've been lucky enough to do close to forty television shows about wildlife in the oceans, and yes, I have been attacked by sea creatures once in a while.