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What I learned about myself from ghostwriting
Jose Ferrer and Mala Powers in Cyrano de Bergerac I never intended to be a ghostwriter, but the job made me a better writer and a better person, despite the ...
How guardians of history are funding my history of Alaska
Today, the vast majority of books are paid for by those who want a book to exist, not by readers’ purchases. Sales rarely compensate for writers’ years of labor. Fortunately, ...
Why paper is here to stay
As I mailed my last Christmas card of the season, I basked in a treasured emotion: feeling virtuous about something I actually enjoy doing. With each friendly message scribbled on ...
Can democracy survive the cacophony of the internet?
The chaos and fakery of social media are stress-testing democracy and its most important component, free speech. So far, the test isn't going well, but I don’t think technology is ...
Why AI is faking fan mail, and everything else
A reader reached out with a perceptive appreciation of one of my books, the kind of message any writer craves, reflecting careful reading and emotional connection. In the next paragraph, ...
How to manage the tricks of memory
Working with Senator Lisa Murkowski for years on her recent book, I came to know her two ways: through headlines about major events, and in long, private interviews, often a ...
Why I am holding on to certain secrets
When we were working on his book more than 15 years ago, Vic Fischer told me some stories that he asked me to keep confidential until everyone involved had died ...
Confessions of a would-be promiscuous blurber
Readers think of the blurbs on books jackets as recommendations from influential people about the quality of what is inside. Publishers think of blurbs as licenses to make money. Writers ...
Charles Wohlforth has written many of his own books, has ghost-written others, and helps many writers find their own way into print. Learn how to work with Charles.
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