Interview with James McBride
Published:
May 9, 2003 | By the time James McBride submitted the first three chapters of his debut novel to Cindy Spiegel, his editor at Riverhead Books, he had already been on The New York Times bestseller list at least a year for his critically praised family memoir, The Color of Water. But his first book's popularity was no guarantee of smooth sailing for the second, a tale of Italy and American soldiers during World War II. "I had high hopes," McBride recalled. "I thought the chapters needed work, but I didn't think they were that bad. So she gave them back to me and said, 'It's really bad.' I was sad she said those words, but it just made me want to go back and do it right, because I knew it needed work, too. That's when the research got serious." |
To gain complete access to our Web site and the many available writing resources,
subscribe today.
|
|
Subscribe today and get 12 issues of The Writer magazine PLUS these great
online benefits:
- Research more than 3,000 markets for your work
- Read timeless articles on writing from 120+ years of The Writer
- Access links to hundreds of top-rated literary publications
- Read exclusive online-only articles on craft and freelancing
- Post your work for critique by other Writer subscribers in our forums
- Make friends and discuss writing issues in the Writer community
- Receive our informative biweekly e-mail newsletters
- Manage your account
|
|