Lindsay Pierce/AP
At the New Yorker Festival a few weeks ago, I had an opportunity to stand before my favorite author, Canadian darling and master of the short-story, Alice Munro and ask her stylistically how she does it. For those who missed the festival, here are highlights from Deborah Treisman’s interview with Alice Munro.
If you like the idea of meeting face to face with authors, CSPAN2’s BookTV can help you find book festivals in your own area. For local readings and panels see Barnes & Noble’s event locator.
If your favorite authors have already passed on, or if you would prefer to learn about them without leaving home, the legendary Paris Review hosts interviews with some of the best-known and best-loved authors including Ernest Hemingway, T.S. Elliot, Grace Paley, Chinua Achebe and Eudora Welty for download or purchase. The site also includes marked-up pages from authors’ manuscripts.
For interviews with authors of contemporary fiction and nonfiction Publishers’ Weekly is a good place to start. PW is a staple of the publishing industry and an interview here is a strong indicator of what’s hot. In other words it’s good fodder for your next book club.
One-story.com is another of my favorite sites for author interviews, but you’ll find fewer big names here. The magazine consists of a single short story sent to subscribers every three weeks as a small booklet (perfect for subway reading). The company then posts interviews with their authors on its Web site. For New Yorkers and their neighbors, the organization hosts monthly readings where you can listen to the author, read from their story or a new work, then ask your questions in person.
For aspiring writers Poets & Writers magazine, along with first-rate author, editor and agent interviews, teaches readers how to write a query letter and which literary magazines accept submissions and when. They also publish yearly reviews of different MFA programs.
Shannon Firth
Writer
Check out findingDulcinea's recent article "Fall Reading Essentials: Short Stories" and visit our Books Web Guide for more resources on exploring authors and their work online.
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