Dear Readers, Do It Yourself! November 30, 2006 • This weekend, join the DIY cult.DIY, for the uninitiated, means Do It Yourself.And what better time to drop-kick commercialism and embrace handcraftiness than the holiday season?
Contest: Create a Menorah, a Kinara, an Ornament November 29, 2006 • Design a menorah or ornament and receive NPR swag. Our first annual holiday decorating contest is in full swing. More information inside.
Novel Ideas Dan Chaon: Meat Is the Reward November 28, 2006 • We've asked fiction writers from all genres for the essence of noveling: how they write, how they overcome writer's block and their best written sentence. Today's Author: Dan Chaon
Novel Ideas Walter Dean Myers: An Outline Plus Family Advice November 28, 2006 • We've asked fiction writers from all genres for the essence of noveling: how they write, how they overcome writer's block and their best written sentence. Today's Author: children's author Walter Dean Myers.
Novel Ideas Neal Pollack: Looks at Checking Account Balance November 27, 2006 • We've asked fiction writers from all genres for the essence of noveling: how they write, how they overcome writer's block and their best written sentence. Today's Author: Neal Pollack
Novel Ideas Rita Mae Brown: Too Many Mouths to Feed November 27, 2006 • We've asked fiction writers from all genres for the essence of noveling: how they write, how they overcome writer's block and their best written sentence. Today's Author: mystery writer Rita Mae Brown
Novel Ideas Kaui Hart Hemmings: Off to the Writer's Room November 27, 2006 • Kaui Hart Hemmings's first novel, The Descendants, will be published by Random House in May. Hemmings grew up in Hawaii and now lives in San Francisco.
Novel Ideas Blue Balliett: Clean Socks and Blue Jeans November 23, 2006 • Blue Balliett is the author of two novels for children. Her latest, The Wright 3, is a detective story that takes place in a house designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Balliett graduated from Brown University with a degree in art history. She lives with her family and cats in Chicago.
Novel Ideas Jodi Picoult: You Can't Edit a Blank Page November 22, 2006 • Jodi Picoult is the author of 13 novels. Her most recent, The Tenth Circle, debuted at two on the New York Times bestseller list. She was born and raised on Long Island, studied creative writing at Princeton and currently lives in Hanover, New Hampshire.
Books National Book Award Finalists Explain Their Craft November 15, 2006 • We've asked fiction writers from all genres for the essence of noveling: how they write, how they overcome writer's block and their best written sentence. Today, we feature finalists from the 2005 and 2006 National Book Awards.
Novel Ideas Jess Walter: Juggles Different Writing Styles November 15, 2006 • Jess Walter is the author of four novels. His latest, The Zero, is a finalist for the 2006 National Book Award. Walter is also an investigative reporter. He lives in Spokane, Washington.
Novel Ideas Nancy Werlin: Get Thee to a Bread Store November 15, 2006 • Nancy Werlin is the author of six young adult novels. Her latest, The Rules of Survival, is a finalist for the 2006 National Book Awards for Young People's Literature. She lives near Boston, Massachusetts.
Novel Ideas Mary Gaitskill: Morning, Afternoon or Evening November 15, 2006 • Mary Gaitskill is the author of four novels; her most recent, Veronica, was a finalist for the 2005 National Book Award. Her short story "Secretary" was the basis for the film of the same name.
Novel Ideas Myla Goldberg: Sorry, Muse, No Candles for You November 14, 2006 • Myla Goldberg is the author of the novels Bee Season (that's spelling bees, not stinging bees) and Wickett's Remedy (about the 1918 flu epidemic). She lives in Brooklyn, NY.
Novel Ideas Jeanne Birdsall: A Nap Clears Everything Right Up November 13, 2006 • Jeanne Birdsall didn't write professionally until the age of 41. She received the 2005 National Book Award for Young People's Literature for her debut novel, The Penderwicks.
