“That’s always the surprise to me, that I find myself in the middle of a subject that I had never anticipated.” In this video, Susan Orlean speaks about what led her to write The Library Book (Simon & Schuster, 2018), which explores her love of libraries and reexamines the historic 1986 fire at the Los Angeles Public Library. Orlean is profiled in the November/December issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

“I grew up reading a gigantic compendium of all the Grimm’s fairy tales, and also fairy tales originating from other parts of the world....” Singaporean author Sharlene Teo talks with Manchester Literature Festival’s Naomi Frisby about the inspiration behind her debut novel, Ponti (Simon & Schuster, 2018), the work of writers Guy Gunaratne and Nikesh Shukla, and her fascination with ideas of beauty, superficiality, and artifice.

“I plot beforehand to the extent that I have an idea of where I’m going, but I’m always willing to toss that out the window...” Stephen Markley talks about his start as a writer, his writing habits, and the publication of his first novel, Ohio (Simon & Schuster, 2018), which is featured in Page One in the September/October issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

Bill Gates shares his annual summer reading list, which includes Walter Isaacson’s biography Leonardo da Vinci (Simon & Schuster, 2017) and George Saunders’s novel, Lincoln in the Bardo (Random House, 2017).

“‘Yes, it’s true, there’s something thrilling, addictive even, about the idea that you’re living every moment only half a step ahead of death.’” Lisa Halliday reads from her debut novel, Asymmetry (Simon & Schuster, 2018), which is featured in Page One in the March/April issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

"When he dreams, he's always fourteen. He's always back in Mexico." John Irving describes the two parts of his new novel, Avenue of Mysteries (Simon & Schuster, 2015), which is featured in Page One in the November/December issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

“History hides. That’s its job. It hides behind other history.” Sam Lipsyte reads from his fourth novel, Hark (Simon & Schuster, 2019), at the University of San Francisco’s MFA Reading Series. Hark is featured in Page One in the January/February issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

In this video, Jennifer Baker, editor of the short story anthology Everyday People: The Color of Life (Atria Books, 2018), speaks with Nana Brew-Hammond about her story “Wisdom.” The anthology is a collective of work by established and emerging writers of color, including Mia Alvar, Alexander Chee, and Mitchell S. Jackson. 

“I didn’t know I was being helpful to anybody. I was just telling a story I wanted to tell.” Ursula K. Le Guin talks about her Earthsea series and the unexpected connections she has made with her readers. Le Guin died on January 22, 2018 at the age of eighty-eight. 

Jofie Ferrari-Adler, senior editor at Simon & Schuster, leads a conversation with debut authors Mira Jacob and Yelena Akhtiorskaya and agents Jim Rutman of Sterling Lord Literistic and Michelle Tessler of Tessler Literary Agency about the author-agent relationship.

Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough recounts childhood memories of spending time in the library, and how important librarians have been to his work as a writer. His new book, The Wright Brothers, was published by Simon & Schuster last month.

"In an age of constant movement, nothing is so urgent as sitting still." Essayist and novelist Pico Iyer invites readers to approach stillness as not only a creative catalyist but also as the ultimate adventure. A follow up to his essay "The Joy of Quiet," the book was released by TED Books and Simon & Schuster earlier this month.

Marysue Rucci, editor in chief at Simon & Schuster, speaks about her immediate response and connection to the story and characters from We Are Not Ourselves, a forthcoming debut novel from Matthew Thomas. Read more on the backstory of this novel in "A Day in the Life of a Publishing House" by Michael Bourne, in the new issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

The best-selling author introduces his forthcoming novel, A Sudden Light (Simon & Schuster, 2014) and discusses how this family drama began as a play, and then transformed into a novel.

"A novel or a story should be a microcosm of the era in which we live." Filmed in 2011 on his Montana ranch, best-selling author James Lee Burke opens up on how his contemplation of the misuse of power in America has inspired him to write more than thirty novels. A profile of Burke and his latest book, Wayfaring Stranger, appears in the July/August issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.

Nina Sankovitch talks about the trove of old letters she found buried in her yard and how they inspired her to write Signed, Sealed, Delivered: Celebrating the Joys of Writing Letters, a book about about how writing, receiving, and reading letters connects us all, forthcoming next month from Simon & Schuster.

To promote his most recent book, The Humans (Simon & Schuster, 2013), novelist Matt Haig asked readers on social media to film themselves reading their favorite lines, resulting in this unique book trailer.

"If you've ever tried to make a student loan payment with a credit card and you find out the loan and the credit card are issued by the same bank, I think you'll understand the characters in this book," says Jim Gavin about his debut story collection, Middle Men (Simon & Schuster). For this and other new and noteable books, check out this issue's Page One.

The Love Song of Jonny Valentine by Teddy Wayne explores the underbelly of fame in twenty-first century America's celebrity culture, told through the eyes of an unforgettable child. Here the author, whose first novel, Kapitoil, was published by Harper Perennial in 2010, endorses his own book.

The author of the story collection Girl Trouble (Harper Perennial, 2009) discusses her debut novel, The Next Time You See Me, about the people surprisingly connected to the discovery of a dead woman's body in a small town, forthcoming from Simon & Schuster next month.