Will Blythe

Why I write. Thoughts on the craft of fiction is a collection of 26 fairly short essays in which authors explain why they write. Among the more famous contributors are names such as David Foster Williams, Ann Patchett, Jane Ann Philips, Richard Ford and William Vollmann, etc. According to comments by authors in the essays, the authors were apparently left very freely to decide how to write their essays, while they wereome contributors seem generously paid for their contributions. Some contributors seem to have taken this authorial liberty to the limit and produced some pretty awful postmodern trash. However, most authors provide a neat, short essay explaining their motivations to write. There is also one essay which celebrates the reputation of Alan Gurganus as a creative writing tutor. Interesting for a wide readership.… (more)