Entries from July 2009

Jul. 27, 2009

“Free” and the Future of Publishing

An internet entrepreneur suggests book publishers take a lesson from web start-ups.

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Jul. 20, 2009

Walter Cronkite and “The Strangler”

In the deluge of clips since Walter Cronkite died a few days ago, the same video seems to come up over and over, like a greatest hits collection: Cronkite announces the JFK and Martin Luther King assassinations, the moon landing, the call to withdraw from Vietnam. I’d like to call your attention to a more [...]

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Jul. 17, 2009

The Definitive Boston Crime Novel: “The Friends of Eddie Coyle”

“The Friends of Eddie Coyle” is my favorite crime novel, a lean, gritty story set in a Boston that has long since vanished.

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Jul. 16, 2009

Best Boston Movie Ever: “The Friends of Eddie Coyle”

A forgotten classic from 1973 is the best movie about Boston ever.

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Jul. 14, 2009

E-Books and Distracted Reading

Author Steven Johnson on e-books and linear, deep-focus reading.

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Jul. 10, 2009

Why the Strangler?

A reader suggests that I use this blog to share a little about how my books develop from initial concept to final draft. I’ll try, but readers should understand that a strange sort of apathy descends as soon as a project is finished. When I am writing, I am obsessed with the book being drafted, [...]

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Jul. 8, 2009

How Writers Write: Graham Greene

Graham Greene’s remarkable writing method

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Jul. 6, 2009

A Random Walk in Boston

I don’t get into the city much anymore. I have young kids and I work at home and I never seem to have the time. But tonight I met a good friend for a drink, and we wound up making three stops in town, all unplanned, chosen at the spur of the moment. All three [...]

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Jul. 1, 2009

Capote and Ellison: Blocked or just procrastinating?

What happened to two famous writers who fell silent?

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