5 May '08

Murakami & Murakami

It may be that "Murakami" is a common Japanese name, like Brown or Smith (though I've only met one Brown in my life, and two Smiths), and coincidence has nothing to do with the sudden entry of both these excellent artists into my life...

8 May '08

Cute Little Update

My essay "The Blonde or Brunette" appears in the newest issue of Boston Globe Magazine. Credit goes to my editor for giving it a better title than "Weird Science." Evoking LeBrock, Hall, and Wells was not my intention. Give it a few days--it should hit the stands (do people use stands anymore?) by early next week.

15 May '08

Viewer Mail

It's been a long time since I received any Gods-related fan mail. Back when it first hit the shelves, accompanied by a sprinkling of publicity, a few readers sent their praises and criticisms. Then it launched in Italy, and clawed its way to the top of the best-seller heap (courtesy of Sonzogno's killer marketing team), and the fan mail I received was all in Italian...

20 May '08

Tobias Wolff Award

A few years ago, after reading Tobias Wolff's novel Old School, I wondered what had taken me so long to discover his work. Fortunately I read Old School after finishing my similarly-themed first novel. Otherwise--and I can pretty well guarantee this--Wolff's voice would have crept into my work, looked around, and asked: "Just what the hell are all these adjectives doing here?"

4 June '08

Doppelganger

Dear Micah-

I’ve asked several authors this question and haven’t yet heard a good answer: How do you come up with your ideas? How do you ensure that the ideas you’ve come up with haven’t been used by someone else?