title: Writers on Writing, Volume II: More Collected Essays from The New York Times (Writers on Writing (Times Books Hardcover))
author: The New York Times
description: The 45 writers who contributed to this second compendium of the weekly column in the Times arts section are nearly all A-list names-and highly contemporary, too, as most of the articles originally coincided with the publication of their latest books. The prosaic headlines ("Fiction and Fact Collide, With Unexpected Consequences") obscure the lively tone adopted by most of the authors, who seem to be enjoying the opportunity to wax anecdotal about various aspects of their career. Thus we have Ann Beattie on the book tour, David Shields about reacting to bad reviews, Elinor Lipman on the perils of getting (and giving) jacket blurbs and Stephen Fry's hilarious account of the questions fans ask about his writing methods. Though some of the authors choose to deal with contemporary events, as in A.M. Homes's eyewitness account of September 11 ("not something you want to remember, not something to want to forget"), nobody strays far from the literary, and quite a few offer insights into the creative process. Kathryn Harrison explains how a photograph seen in childhood led to the writing of The Seal Wife, while mystery writer Marcia Muller reveals that she once built scale models of her protagonist's regular haunts to help her understand the character. And Elmore Leonard offers practical advice on how to write better prose, including this gem: "If it sounds like writing, I rewrite it." Aspiring writers will find plenty of inspiration-and helpful counsel-from this collection, in which the writing is less stuffy and more relaxed than in a similar collection from the Washington Post. <br />Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
zlib_text: _Also by Pete Hamill_
  
  NOVELS
  
  A Killing for Christ
  
  The Gift
  
  Dirty Laundry
  
  Flesh and Blood
  
  The Deadly Piece
  
  The Guns of Heaven
  
  Loving Women
  
  Snow in August
  
  Forever
  
  SHORT STORY COLLECTIONS
  
  The Invisible City
  
  Tokyo Sketches
  
  JOURNALISM
  
  Irrational Ravings
  
  Piecework
  
  News Is a Verb
  
  Tools as Art
  
  MEMOIR
  
  A Drinking Life
  
  BIOGRAPHY
  
  Diego Rivera
  
  Why Sinatra Matters
  
  
  
  
  
  [About the Author](Downtown_toc.html#auth_bio_1)
  
  Pete Hamill has been editor in chief of both the _New York Post_ and the _New
  York Daily News_. In his writing for these publications as well as the _New
  York Times,_ _The New Yorker,_ and _Newsday,_ he has brought the city to life
  for millions of readers. He is the author of previous bestselling books,
  including most recently the novels _Forever_ and _Snow in August._ Currently,
  he is a Distinguished Writer in Residence at New York University.
  
  
  
  
  
  [Suggested Reading](Downtown_toc.html#bibl_1)
  
  THIS ESSAY IS based on memory, reporting, and reading. Much reading,