James R. Benn

How did you become a writer?

I always wanted to be a writer, which to me meant that I would write a book that had a beginning, a middle, and an end. And made sense. But I never took a step to make that happen until my 50th birthday. While having a celebratory dinner, my wife (who is a psychotherapist) decided it was an occasion to talk about my feelings. So she asked, "What do you want to do for the next fifty years?" I realized that it was time to revisit my desire to write before another half century went by. I started writing right away.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

Robert B Parker was my inspiration for writing crime fiction. He was a genius at brevity, conciseness, and characterizations. I am also in awe of The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories, by Christopher Booker. This book is a masterwork of more than thirty years research into why people tell stories. Booker breaks down literature into seven archetypal themes which occur across all types of stories. Using a wealth of examples ranging from ancient myths and folktales to plays and novels of great literature to the popular movies and TV soap operas of today, he demonstrates how these archetypal themes have remained constant over the generations. Not everyone will agree with Booker, but everyone will learn from him—about reading, writing and understanding. This fascinating read provides writers with a new way to look at their own plotting and tap into the hero's journey.

When and where do you write?

After coffee. In my office. Then after a nap, back to the office.

What are you working on now?

I've just started on the 19th Billy Boyle novel, PHANTOM, for release in 2024. This is set on the eve of the Battle of the Bulge.

Have you ever suffered from writers block?

No, never. I do suffer from occasional bouts of laziness, though. Thankfully, true writer's block has not paid me a visit.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

From the novelist Rachel Basch, who told me "The story has to move down as well as forward." Simple but profound.

What’s your advice to new writers?

Read outside your comfort zone. Read analytically. Break down the structure of books that you wish to emulate. Become part of a writing community, online or in real life. Writers support writers, in general.

James R. Benn is the Dilys, Barry, and Sue Federer Historical Mystery-award nominated author of the popular Billy Boyle WWII mystery series and three stand-alone works. His novel The Blind Goddess was long listed for the 2015 Dublin IMPAC Literary Award. Benn is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and has an MLS degree from Southern Connecticut State University. He worked in the library and information technology fields for over thirty-five years before leaving to write full-time. Benn and his wife Deborah Mandel live on the gulf coast of Florida. The Billy Boyle series, published by Soho Press, has been hailed as “meaty, old-fashioned, and thoroughly enjoyable,” by the Seattle Times. The New York Times called it “spirited wartime storytelling.”

Andrew Lipstein

How did you become a writer?

In college I took a creative writing course, and found myself obsessed with a short story I was writing, turning it into a novel over the course of a few weeks. It was terrible, as were the next few novels I wrote. But over time I got better.

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

I try not to be influenced by other narrative arts, especially while I'm writing. If anything, I look to other writers to feel free to do what I want. Before I wrote Last Resort I read Edward St. Aubyn's Patrick Melrose novels, and felt free to write how I wanted to, with my sense of humor, more for myself than I had before.

When and where do you write?

Wherever I can find the time. I have a full-time job and a child.

What are you working on now?

I've just finished the copyedits on my second novel, The Vegan (out in July from FSG), and the first draft of my third novel.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block?

I don't believe so? If I don't feel moved to write I don't, it's a waste of time if all I'll do is produce terrible writing.

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

Put yourself in a position to enjoy writing. You won't write well otherwise.

What’s your advice to new writers?

The above.

Andrew Lipstein is a writer based in Brooklyn. His debut novel, Last Resort, came out in 2022 with FSG in the US, and W&N in the UK. His second novel, The Vegan, also with FSG and W&N, will be published in the summer of 2023.

Danya Kukafka

How did you become a writer?

Reading. I spent most of my childhood with my nose stuck in a book, and began writing in elementary school. I think I’ve always wanted to engage with books in a deeper way. 

Name your writing influences (writers, books, teachers, etc.).

I’ve been consistently in awe of writers who play with genre in interesting ways—particularly crime fiction. In this sense, my influences have largely been writers like Megan Abbott, Celeste Ng, and Tana French. Lately I’ve been digging into stories that push beyond crime as well, into more speculative or structurally experimental realms, like Emily St. John Mandel, Akwaeke Emezi, Han Kang, and Carmen Maria Machado. I just read a novel that completely broke me open—Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow, by Gabrielle Zevin. I can already tell that book will be a touchstone for me for many years to come. 

When and where do you write?

I write at my desk at home— I try to take an hour of writing for myself every weekday morning. I have a full-time job as a literary agent, but thankfully my schedule is usually flexible, so I’ll triage my inbox quickly before turning everything off and diving into my own novel-in-progress. Sometimes I’ll work in the early evenings with a glass of wine. A few months ago, I spent a weekend alone in a treehouse, completely absorbed in the book, and those 48 hours were the most creatively productive I’ve had in many years. 

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a new novel! I can’t say much about it yet, but at this moment the concept is very outside the realm of my previous work, which I find so exciting.

Have you ever suffered from writer’s block?

For me, writer’s block tends to mean that I need to unlock some aspect of a story, or change a part of the concept. I never throw out novel ideas—I just change them until they work, and writer’s block often comes for me as I’m making those changes. But if I sit with the page long enough, something will always come out. 

What’s the best writing advice you’ve ever received?

The process is the point. I found this quote from Jia Tolentino, years ago, which I return to often: “The only thing you can guarantee yourself pleasure and challenge from is inside your own writing process. Do whatever you need to do in your life and your writing to open that space for yourself. If you can work in such a way that the process will be pleasurable, even if nothing comes of it—the work is an end in and of itself—then you’ll be okay.” 

What’s your advice to new writers?

Just keep going. I know it sounds so simple, but it’s really not: write anyway when you don’t feel like it, and when you’re unsure of yourself. Write anyway when it feels like you have nothing to say. The most important thing is that you carve out that time—if you do it often enough, the words will always, always follow.