Talking to Writers: The Craft of Nonfiction

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Am I a writer Where should I get ideas Is my writing any good How did my favorite authors make it big The act of writing is a daunting task for many people, and becoming a writer means so much more than putting pen to paper.

Dean Nelson embraces the questions that plague writers by turning to some of the best-known authors of our time. With encouragement, advice, and refreshing honesty, writers discuss their own beginnings, struggles, and victories in a manner that will make readers say, I can do that.

In Talking to Writers: The Craft of Nonfiction, readers will hear from Anne Lamott about what she means by writing to heal herself, from David Brooks about what it takes to craft an informed opinion, from Tracy Kidder about the need for revision, and from Elizabeth Gilbert about being humble. Among the many other featured writers are Jeannette Walls, Cornel West, Nick Hornby, George Plimpton, and Susan Orlean, and more.

Bringing together interviews from thirty years of the annual Writers Symposium by the Sea, Nelson reveal writers motives, connect dots to their past, acknowledge their struggles, and often begin sentences with, Ive never said this publicly before The revelations are honest and encouraging, with a good dose of humor, to give writers of every level courage and support necessary to live the writing life.

Author Bio

Dean Nelson is the founder and host of the annual Writers Symposium by the Sea, which will be in its 30th year in 2025. He has interviewed many of the worlds greatest writers, including Amy Tan, Alice Walker, Anne Lamott, Ray Bradbury, Anthony Doerr, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Don Winslow, Deepak Chopra, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, N. Scott Momaday and dozens more. A nearly complete list can be seen here: https://www.uctv.tv/writers/ These are the voices that are in this book.

He is also the founder and director of the journalism program at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, and a practicing journalist. He has taught writing and journalism for 40 years. He has won several national and regional awards for his journalism.

His work with the Writers Symposium by the Sea has been recognized with awards from the San Diego Writers Festival, the San Diego Public Library, and various local civic groups.