writing & publishing the novel

On Sunday, I heard novelists a bang-up group of novelists & literary folks discussing the art and practicality of all things novelistic. Pretty great.

Easily my favorite bits from the evening were Roberts saying "...when you're writing your first book, you're not just writing the book, you're writing yourself as a writer," and Alarcón saying "No one knows what the fuck sells or why." It would have been an appropriate moment to snort, were I the kind of person who laughs by snorting. Instead I am the kind who guffaws. So, that happened.