My Paris
I first visited Paris on my honeymoon, a gift from my in-laws. The first days of the trip, however, were…
Publishing a Book: The Ecstasy and Anguish
For writers, having a book published is a huge moment. Before that happens, we may spend years writing a book. I certainly…
Great Review on Goodreads for A STONE FOR BREAD
Getting a good review is always a heady moment for a writer. Usually these come from professional reviewers on the…
On the Air with Frank Stasio and “The State of Things”
Chatting about A Stone for Bread. To hear the interview go to WUNC.
Greensboro News & Record: A STONE FOR BREAD a “remarkable new novel”
News & Record book reviewer Linda C. Brinson calls A Stone for Bread “a compelling story that’s hard to put…
Amazon’s Bizarre Marketing
So I go check out my Amazon page in the run-up to my new novel’s release. To get to the page, I…
From Acceptance to Publication: The Longest Year, Part 2
In Part 1, I talked about the editing and design of a new book. Now come the three “P’s” of book publishing: proofing, printing and publicity. Proofing…
From Acceptance to Publication: The Longest Year, Part 1
The most exciting moment in a writer’s life is a publisher’s phone call. Your book or novel or collection of…
Objective Distance
“Jean-Paul Sartre said that it takes 20 years for a writer to objectively read his own work as his audience…
From Blank Page to Novel: Envisioning A STONE FOR BREAD
Several months ago, my editor at Livingston Press asked for a few paragraphs telling how I came to write A Stone for Bread. Here’s what…
Encountering America’s Racial Divide
In the spring of 1972, I was teaching Freshman English three nights a week at Essex County College in Newark,…
Tips for Writers: The Outtake File
Warning: Never delete that page you hate! Or a character who’s all wrong! Or trash a manuscript in disgust! Certainly, we writers all have those moments.…
A Door, A Guarded Building and Serendipity: Researching a Novel
In my first novel Absolution, I set chapters in Vietnam, although I have never been there. In A Stone for Bread,…
Galleys, Page Proofs, PDFs — Cape Cods?
Just before we took off for a 10 day vacation, I read, edited and returned the final set of pdfs…
Ian McEwan on the Novel
“The novel as a literary form was born out of the Enlightenment, out of curiosity about and respect for the…
III. Backstories: Forgetting and Remembering — Two Students Who Influenced ABSOLUTION
The Veteran He was a handsome young man, tall and blonde, older than the other Freshmen in my Composition…