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Scratch : writers, money, and the art of making a living Cover Image

Scratch : writers, money, and the art of making a living / edited by Manjula Martin.

Writers, money, and the art of making a living (portion title)

Martin, Manjula, (editor.).

Summary:

"A collection of essays from today's most acclaimed authors--from Cheryl Strayed to Roxane Gay to Jennifer Weiner, Alexander Chee, Nick Hornby, and Jonathan Franzen--on the realities of making a living in the writing world. In the literary world, the debate around writing and commerce often begs us to take sides: either writers should be paid for everything they do or writers should just pay their dues and count themselves lucky to be published. You should never quit your day job, but your ultimate goal should be to quit your day job. It's an endless, confusing, and often controversial conversation that, despite our bare-it-all culture, still remains taboo. In Scratch, Manjula Martin has gathered interviews and essays from established and rising authors to confront the age-old question: how do creative people make money? As contributors including Jonathan Franzen, Cheryl Strayed, Roxane Gay, Nick Hornby, Susan Orlean, Alexander Chee, Daniel Jose Older, Jennifer Weiner, and Yiyun Li candidly and emotionally discuss money, MFA programs, teaching fellowships, finally getting published, and what success really means to them, Scratch honestly addresses the tensions between writing and money, work and life, literature and commerce. The result is an entertaining and inspiring book that helps readers and writers understand what it's really like to make art in a world that runs on money--and why it matters. Essential reading for aspiring and experienced writers, and for anyone interested in the future of literature, Scratch is the perfect bookshelf companion to On Writing, Never Can Say Goodbye, and MFA vs. NYC"-- Provided by publisher.

Record details

ISBN: 9781501134579
ISBN: 1501134574
Physical Description: xv, 287 pages ; 22 cm
Edition: First Simon & Schuster trade paperback edition.
Publisher: New York : Simon & Schuster, 2017.
Copyright: ©2017

Content descriptions

Formatted Contents Note:

Early Days -- Owning This / Julia Fierro Fierro, Julia 3 -- With Compliments / Nina MacLaughlin MacLaughlin, Nina 9 -- Faith, Hope, and Credit / Cheryl Strayed Strayed, Cheryl, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 14 -- On Staying Hungry / Rachael Maddux Maddux, Rachael 23 -- Portrait of the Artist as a Debut Novelist / Porochista Khakpour Khakpour, Porochista 29 -- Mercenary Muse / Colin Dickey Dickey, Colin 41 -- Running the Widget Factory / Susan Orlean Orlean, Susan, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 50 -- Wizard / Alexander Chee Chee, Alexander 59 -- You Are the Second Person / Kiese Laymon Laymon, Kiese 69 -- Five Years in the Wilderness / Cart Luna Luna, Cart 84 -- Freedom / Richard Rodriguez Rodriguez, Richard, Caille Millner Millner, Caille 89 -- Word Hard, Read Dead / Yiyun Li Li, Yiyun, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 96 -- Write to Suffer, Publish to Starve / J. Robert Lennon Lennon, J. Robert 104 -- Daily Grind -- Best Work in Literature / Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 111 -- Insider / Kate McKean McKean, Kate 120 -- Against "Vs." / Leslie Jamison Jamison, Leslie 126 -- Love for Sale / Harmony Holiday Holiday, Harmony 136 -- Unlikeable / Emily Gould Gould, Emily 143 -- Sad Birth Lady™ / Meaghan O'Connell O'Connell, Meaghan 148 -- Ghost Stories / Sari Botton Botton, Sari 156 -- Economies 101 / Susie Cagle Cagle, Susie 162 -- Security / Roxane Gay Gay, Roxane, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 170 -- Monetization / Choire Sicha Sicha, Choire 174 -- Not a Complaint / Nell Boeschenstein Boeschenstein, Nell 184 -- Jump / Sarah Smarsh Smarsh, Sarah 192 -- Someday -- Selling Out / Austin Kleon Kleon, Austin, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 205 -- A Sort of Fairy Tale / Malinda Lo Lo, Malinda 214 -- Growing Up / Nick Hornby Hornby, Nick, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 222 -- FAQ: How to Buy a Home / Mallory Ortberg Ortberg, Mallory 228 -- Diversity is Not Enough: Race, Power, Publishing / Daniel José Older Older, Daniel José 235 -- Worth / Jennifer Weiner Weiner, Jennifer 243 -- Like a Fish in a Tweed Suit / Jonathan Franzen Franzen, Jonathan, Manjula Martin Martin, Manjula 258 -- If of It: Lunatic Independence in Nine Easy Steps / Laura Goode Goode, Laura 270.