In 2005, Steve Jobs gave a now-famous graduation speech at Stanford University. “You’ve got to find what you love,” he said. “Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to…
People of the Book is an interview series gathering those engaged with books, broadly defined. As participants answer the same set of questions, their varied responses chart an informal ethnography of the book, highlighting its rich history as a mutable medium and anticipating its potential future. This week brings the conversation to Brad Pasanek, assistant professor…
This Dark Road to Mercy Wiley Cash HarperCollins, January 2014 240 pages $25.99 In This Dark Road to Mercy, Wiley Cash has married the literary family drama to the dark heist comedy, drawing heavily on America’s pastimes: baseball, custody disputes, and tortured pasts. Easter Quillby’s father, Wade Chesterton, is back in town. At first Easter…
Hey there. I’m Steph Auteri, and I’m a recluse. It wasn’t always this way. Once upon a time, I commuted from New Jersey into New York City, working first in publishing houses and, later on, on a permalance basis for online magazines and even a daily newspaper. At that time, I discovered books by flipping…
In our Writing Lessons series, writers and writing students will discuss lessons learned, epiphanies about craft, and the challenges of studying writing. This week, we hear from Rachel McCain, a student in the MFA program at Sarah Lawrence College. You can follow Rachel on Twitter @Raqafella. —Andrew Ladd, Blog Editor Fact: I don’t trust computers. I’m always…
What do editors really want? Why are they putting one thing in the rejection pile and preparing for an auction for another? The difficulty in answering these questions is that every editor opens every proposal the same way you open presents from relatives: with hope but trepidation. They never know when it’s going to be…
The ‘Writers and Their Pets’ series began with my own desire to celebrate my dog Sally, and since then I have also invited other writers to share with the rest of us the details of their lives with beloved pets. Today, please enjoy this essay by Nina Mukerjee Furstenau. —Ladette Randolph, Editor-in-Chief Zee was his name. He had liquid…
When asked whether he saw himself as a Peruvian writer or an American writer in the New York Times last year, following the publication of his newest novel At Night We Walk in Circles, Daniel Alarcón replied, “Why should I have to choose?” I remember reading that passage in the second paragraph, rereading it, and then rereading it again…
I suck at endings. But that’s something a lot of people say, isn’t it? As if everyone else is really good at quitting a job or relationship or saying goodbye or ending a story. (I’ve never met anyone who claims special talent at this. Ever.) So much rides on an ending—it’s the final impression, the…
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