Wolfe: Fact or Fiction?

Tom Wolfe knew all about reporting, and all about writing fiction. He did both quite successfully in his career. And he was even able to marry the two by producing the novel as social commentary as well as non-fiction as creative narrative.

That's why Wolfe suggested young fiction writers try to get a bite of news reporting before tackling a novel.

"News is stranger than imagination and it triggers ideas," he said. "Find detail to help your imagination."

As an example, Wolfe mentioned socialite Paris Hilton. "The unaided imagination of a novelist needs to know what he's going to read in tomorrow's newspaper. Who would've thought Paris Hilton's scandalous video would be the very thing to launch her career?"

He strongly encouraged writers to do their homework before writing. "Blend in and live with people you want to write about. Learn about them before you write about them. Write about something real, something that relates to the world around you. Many great American novelists began as reporters."

No doubt, he included himself in that lot.

Learn more about Tom Wolfe and his books here.

Wolfe on Steinbeck

When Tom Wolfe spoke about the state of the American Novel at the National Book Festival years ago, he was adamant that the state of the novel was not good.

Wolfe believed that modern American novelists — especially the young — have nothing to say. He also described what he considers the Europeanization of the American novel.

"America has been Europeanized. America believes that the novel should be psychological instead of being about something. But this is an astonishing, unexplored country — go to it!"

He explained that many great American novelists were actually reporters. "Take John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath. He worked as a reporter to get his material. He needed to be a reporter for the material and exposure to the types of characters and situations he was writing about."

Tom Wolfe encourages today's novelists to get the scoop before attempting to master the craft.

Visit Tom's bookshelf at the link.
http://www.tomwolfe.com/bookshelf.html

Tom Wolfe & Me

The book-signing line for Tom Wolfe at the National Book Festival was so long that I had to leave it before getting anywhere close to the man in white (in order to make John Irving's presentation).

Later in the day, it was Tom Wolf's turn to speak beneath a tent. Again, it was so crowded that the closest I could get was five rows away.

It was later, as I walked along the national mall green, that I just happened to run into him. Wolf was hard to miss in his white suit and shoes. He began a live interview on C-Span's Book TV. I stood, watched, and listened. A crowd collected, but this time I remained in front.

After the interview, my A Man in Full was in full view. Before the "guards" could whisk him away, he had my book and pen.

I now have a pen Tom Wolfe used to write with. And a signed book to boot.

Knowing their rivalry, I asked him, "Are you and John Irving going out for drinks after this?"

He looked at me with a big smile. "The literary world we live in ..."

Find out more about Tom Wolfe and his writing at his Wiki page.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Wolfe