Thanks to an invitation from the inimitable Lewis Burke Frumkes, I delivered the keynote address at the Marymount Manhattan Writers Conference this morning. Lewis asked me to talk about being an editor, so I got to gas on about some of my favorite editorial thoughts, mainly, about how the job of an editor is to serve as an honest broker between the writer and the reader, and to se to it that the needs of each is being served. I also talked about how, during the course of my career, I moved from being a revolutionary (pretty grandiose, that–pie thrower might be more apt) to being an Upholder (of quality, of standards, etc.), and how, as I head into the next phase of things, I might become a counter-revolutionary, trying to make sure that the web’s ascendancy doesn’t cost us a lot of the things that the printed word provides–like, a sense of community. I encouraged the members of the audience to read more, and, when doing so, to be critical, demanding, and discriminating, but, when they like something, to be supportive, encouraging and enthusiastic. And I told them to be snobs. When a friend starts talking about a TV show, you should talk about a book, or a magazine or newspaper article. “If we’re the last people who care about the printed word, let’s make sure we go down reading.” It seemed to go over well. “I liked your talk,” said one lady. “Why’d they pick you?” (To read what Playboy intern Lindsay Silberman thought of the event, click here.) Below, pictures of me answering questions following the talk. )
